Should cgm users be exspected to leave the cinema each time they want to check their levels on there phone?

[Sara Grice]

I want to rant alittle if that's ok

Saw an online discussion around people using their phones when watching a film at the cinema, and it reignited my anxiety about everything doing that again, some of the viritole (should have food thrown at them, cinemas should block phone signals, telling people to knock the phones out of there hands... it was alot)

I quite frankly don't want to have to get up a few times thrpugh the movie to check, but don't want to be assumed as rude and be cussed or even physically assaulted. I tried to speak up, but got shouted down and baiscly told stop using your diabeties as a excuse to ruin other people's experience, how I should be fine with just having to walk out each time to check, and how if im having a "low blood suger episode"??? I shouldn't be going to the cinema anyway...as if it works that way, I properly wouldn't get a hypo and if that was all i had to worry about i probably would have gone by know But people like that are mainly what's stopping me.

Please give me your honest thoughts as other type 1s, am I being selfish for wanting to beable to stay sat and check my phone from time to time? I explained how I would do it as discreetly as possible and even explain to the people near me beforehand to they would understand, still got called selfish. And well, I am just one person In the cinema with many other people, I get that I should think of them aswell..I dunno I'm confused

I had made quite a bit of progress since my diagnosis, been making more regular trips into town to get over the nervousness. I'm checking my sensor and my figures much less. I'm still very nervous about hypos and properly keep my levels higher than I should but...I'll hopefuly get here sooner rather than later. And was looking forward to maybe catching a movie again, but this has realy made me think twice...

My main take away is I need to save up for a smart watch, only way I'll feel comfortable from being seen as rude or having my own experience effecred trying not to bother anyone else, until them i guess it wouldn't be fair to everyone else for me to go.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Absolutely not IMO.

There are patrons at cinemas without diabetes who are constantly on their phones, “dual screening” with their handsets held right up in the air. (I’m sure these are the people to whom the vitriol was being directed)

What you are talking about is a quick fetch of the phone, and then glance at the home-screen widget, or quick navigate to the CGM app, perhaps with your phone held low in your lap, to check BG levels - which could be really important!

It would be considerate to have and alarms on vibrate-only, and/or use dark mode if the sensor app offers that, but there are people behaving far more disrespectfully in cinemas with no need. And without a serious medical condition to manage!

 

[Sally71]

It only takes a few seconds to check your reading on your phone, and if you keep the phone on your lap rather than holding it up in the air I doubt anyone else will notice. Presumably you’ll only need to check it once or twice and not every few minutes, so go for it!

 

[Lucyr]

Please give me your honest thoughts as other type 1s, am I being selfish for wanting to beable to stay sat and check my phone from time to time?

You shouldn’t be checking your cgm in the cinema on your phone as phones aren’t allowed to be used during the film and really you should be able to go 2 hours without looking unless you feel unwell or an alarm goes off. I know you’re anxious but practice is the way forward to fix that too.

Set the alarms to vibrate at levels where you’d want to take action if they went off and have your fingerprick meter and insulin and carbs somewhere you can grab them and go out. You need to confirm a low or high with a fingerprick before treating anyway so would have to go out to do that to see what you’re doing.

If you absolutely have to look at your phone screen then at least turn the brightness down but don’t just look to check just to see, and disrupt the film for others.

 

[Lucyr]

My main take away is I need to save up for a smart watch, only way I'll feel comfortable from being seen as rude or having my own experience effecred trying not to bother anyone else, until them i guess it wouldn't be fair to everyone else for me to go.

I would not use a smart watch in the cinema either, the screen is also bright. I set mine to cinema mode when the adverts end so that the screen stays black with nothing displayed during the film.

 

[John Gray]

if you were to turn down the display brightness to minimise light spillage, and place it face down on your lap when not looking at it, you might be able to minimise adjacent hassle.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

It only takes a few seconds to check your reading on your phone, and if you keep the phone on your lap rather than holding it up in the air I doubt anyone else will notice. Presumably you’ll only need to check it once or twice and not every few minutes, so go for it!

I think that’s what I would do (though I acknowledge that strictly speaking @Lucyr is right).

But the reassurance of one (maybe two?) quick glances would help me I think. Though I’d probably use the display on my pump.

And as Lucy says, it really should be reserved for checking alarms, not “just to see”

 

[Lucyr]

It only takes a few seconds to check your reading on your phone, and if you keep the phone on your lap rather than holding it up in the air I doubt anyone else will notice.

I always notice, people think oh it’s only a few seconds sneakily reading a text on my lap but it’s like switching a lamp on illuminating the whole seat and air above them, really distracting.

At least only check it if an alarm goes off and just set alarms you’ll need to respond to. Also set up a bg only profile so that if your phone vibrates it is definitely bg related and not a text etc.

 

[Sara Grice]

I always notice, people think oh it’s only a few seconds sneakily reading a text on my lap but it’s like switching a lamp on illuminating the whole seat and air above them, really distracting.

At least only check it if an alarm goes off and just set alarms you’ll need to respond to. Also set up a bg only profile so that if your phone vibrates it is definitely bg related and not a text etc.

What do you mean "bg only profile" I'm not sure what you mean by that. Sorry for my ignorance

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

What do you mean "bg only profile" I'm not sure what you mean by that. Sorry for my ignorance

I think it would be one to silence all notifications *except* vibrate alerts for low BG?

Might be worth using ‘air plane mode’ to switch off calls / mobile data?

 

[Sara Grice]

From what I gather from the replies, I stil got a bit to go in my anxiety before I can think about going it seams, because I don't think I'm quite ready to not do a few reassurance checks. When I'm at home or another place I'm comfortable with like work I don't have to check realy for hours, but in the cinema where I know it isn't going to be as easy to deal with if things go wrong I would feel the need to just check every no and then. Especially on my frist time there. Personal problem I admit I just feel like I need that reassurance.

 

[Sara Grice]

I think it would be one to silence all notifications *except* vibrate alerts for low BG?

Might be worth using ‘air plane mode’ to switch off calls / mobile data?

Ah thank you, dossent airplane mode turn off Bluetooth aswell? That would effect my sensor, the best thing I could do would be to go through all my apps and decide which ones have a chance of notifications and turn them off.

Libre sadly doaent have a dark mode and I'm not that comfortable with 3rd party apps..so another thing to think about

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

My Airplane Mode (iOS) leaves Bluetooth Active i think? Might depend on your phone’s system / version?

 

[Lucyr]

What do you mean "bg only profile" I'm not sure what you mean by that. Sorry for my ignorance

On iPhone you can set up different focus modes. Hopefully android does this too. You can choose what notifications and from who can come through. So I have a diabetes only mode set up where my phone will notify me for the libre app but not for anything else. I have others like a work one that only allows notifications from work colleagues and work apps etc.

 

[Sara Grice]

On iPhone you can set up different focus modes. Hopefully android does this too. You can choose what notifications and from who can come through. So I have a diabetes only mode set up where my phone will notify me for the libre app but not for anything else. I have others like a work one that only allows notifications from work colleagues and work apps etc.

Not seen anything like this on android, I'll look into it but I don't think we have am equivalent

 

[Lucyr]

in the cinema where I know it isn't going to be as easy to deal with if things go wrong

What scenarios are you imagining here? You’re probably catastrophising.

If your blood sugar goes low you will feel the symptoms before you’re low, or your cgm will alarm at whatever you set it at eg 5. You’ll have a snack to prevent the hypo and continue watching the film. If you feel like you’ve actually gone hypo you’ll have a snack and go out to wash hands and fingerprick, using the lighting strips on the floor and the handrails to safely leave.

Are you imagining some kind of collapsing in the dark scenario or something?

 

[Sara Grice]

What scenarios are you imagining here? You’re probably catastrophising.

If your blood sugar goes low you will feel the symptoms before you’re low, or your cgm will alarm at whatever you set it at eg 5. You’ll have a snack to prevent the hypo and continue watching the film. If you feel like you’ve actually gone hypo you’ll have a snack and go out to wash hands and fingerprick, using the lighting strips on the floor and the handrails to safely leave.

Are you imagining some kind of collapsing in the dark scenario or something?

Honestly kinda yeah, arnt you at higher risk of falling when your low? Not even hypo terrirtory just low (like around 5). My diabeties team told me like on my frist apportionment to keep my hypo stuff on the same floor as me, if I go down. Stairs take it with me, if I go up bring it up aswell. Always took that to mean avoid navigating stairs while low..did I misunderstand? Should i not be worried about falling over?
those lighting strips and stairs arnt realy the easiest things to navigate at the best of times while just leaving to go to the toilet, and if i remember there are only handrails in certain parts. And I was always told you need to check your sugars before treating with anything as i could be a false low cuased by say the cinema chair pressing against the sensor. So yeah having make it down some stairs in the dark with minimal lighting dose leave me a bit nervous.

 

[Bruce Stephens]

I think it would be one to silence all notifications *except* vibrate alerts for low BG?

I'm not sure the Android LibreLink app has such an option. Maybe there's a general "I'm in a theatre, don't make a noise" option. Android has Adaptive Vibration which sounds like it might be right but I suspect not. I use Juggluco which does offer just vibration (including vibration on my watch).

 

[Lucyr]

Honestly kinda yeah, arnt you at higher risk of falling when your low? Not even hypo terrirtory just low (like around 5).

You’re absolutely not at high risk of falling over with a bg of 5.0. You’d have to go below 3, or maybe low 3s before falling over from a hypo was a concern. You wouldn’t just randomly fall down the stairs either, you’d stand up, feel a bit wobbly, sit back down and have your fast acting carbs first. If your libre alarm is set to 5.0 then you’re leaving the cinema before you’re hypo though so there’s not a risk of falling unconscious before you test bg

Unless you’re elderly? Then I’d be more cautious and say there’s more risk of falling. Just as they can tend to have falls with less explanation.

 

[Leadinglights]

Honestly kinda yeah, arnt you at higher risk of falling when your low? Not even hypo terrirtory just low (like around 5). My diabeties team told me like on my frist apportionment to keep my hypo stuff on the same floor as me, if I go down. Stairs take it with me, if I go up bring it up aswell. Always took that to mean avoid navigating stairs while low..did I misunderstand? Should i not be worried about falling over?
those lighting strips and stairs arnt realy the easiest things to navigate at the best of times while just leaving to go to the toilet, and if i remember there are only handrails in certain parts. And I was always told you need to check your sugars before treating with anything as i could be a false low cuased by say the cinema chair pressing against the sensor. So yeah having make it down some stairs in the dark with minimal lighting dose leave me a bit nervous.

I think the meaning is to have your hypo treatment with you, on your person or certainly within easy reach. In any case you are talking about the odd occasion when you would treat without testing just to be on the safe side.
You could try a dummy run at home where you don't check for a couple of hours and see how that works.