Advice in moving to dedicated libre reader instead of phone.

[Sara Grice]

I'm willing to give the reader a try, as the app for my phone is still not feeling right, I know everyone says just follow the trends, but currently I'm sitting around 14.8 and my sensor is reading 10.9, it's just nowhere near especially when my levels are raising...
I'm kinda dubious it will be any better than my phone but I'm still at the try thing to see what works stage


My phone isn't listed as compatible according to libre anyway..hense why they sent me the reader in the frist place

So I'm gonna try the reader, but I'm not sure about a few things.

My team has access to my info on the libre link app, but if I switch to the reader they won't beable to see that right? How do I get around this problem as I want them to beable to see what my levels are

And we'll.. my main other question is...is there anything I need to know about using it that might not be obvious?

I don't want to use both the reader and the phone at the same time because I know the double readings that will probably be different will just confuse me even more

 

[Leadinglights]

@re

I'm willing to give the reader a try, as the app for my phone is still not feeling right, I know everyone says just follow the trends, but currently I'm sitting around 14.8 and my sensor is reading 10.9, it's just nowhere near especially when my levels are raising...
I'm kinda dubious it will be any better than my phone but I'm still at the try thing to see what works stage


My phone isn't listed as compatible according to libre anyway..hense why they sent me the reader in the frist place

So I'm gonna try the reader, but I'm not sure about a few things.

My team has access to my info on the libre link app, but if I switch to the reader they won't beable to see that right? How do I get around this problem as I want them to beable to see what my levels are

And we'll.. my main other question is...is there anything I need to know about using it that might not be obvious?

I don't want to use both the reader and the phone at the same time because I know the double readings that will probably be different will just confuse me even more

@rebrascora uses the reader in preference to her phone and loves it. I think it is important just how you set it up initially though.

 

[Sara Grice]

@re
@rebrascora uses the reader in preference to her phone and loves it. I think it is important just how you set it up initially though.

Yeah I mean, I dunno I'm starting to think my body just hates the sensors and thet will always just be inaccurate...but I'm willing to try to see if maybe it helps.

It just is so frustrating because around 19.22 after I had gotten of a half an hour phone call I tested my finger (I ate tea at 18:00) becuase sinse I ate my sensor hadn't moved much from it's premeal reading of 9.8 to . Which felt weird...an hour and 20 mins with barely any movement...i did eat quite slow though so I thought maybe it was just the right amount of insulin. But my fingre came back and said 14.8 while my sensor had now only barely moved above 10??

It's just so weird. So maybe the reader will be more reliable? I dunno.. everyone seams to well me it's normal for the sensor to be that far off but..an hour and 20 mins to even show any sort of rise??

I'm mainly just wondering how I get my diabeties team able to see what my reader says? Or is that not a service the reader provides? Ide hate to be stuck the librelink app

 

[Robin]

I'm willing to give the reader a try, as the app for my phone is still not feeling right, I know everyone says just follow the trends, but currently I'm sitting around 14.8 and my sensor is reading 10.9, it's just nowhere near especially when my levels are raising...
I'm kinda dubious it will be any better than my phone but I'm still at the try thing to see what works stage


My phone isn't listed as compatible according to libre anyway..hense why they sent me the reader in the frist place

So I'm gonna try the reader, but I'm not sure about a few things.

My team has access to my info on the libre link app, but if I switch to the reader they won't beable to see that right? How do I get around this problem as I want them to beable to see what my levels are

And we'll.. my main other question is...is there anything I need to know about using it that might not be obvious?

I don't want to use both the reader and the phone at the same time because I know the double readings that will probably be different will just confuse me even more

Do you have a laptop? I use the reader, and the yellow lead that attaches to the charger plug can be plugged in to a computer. Then you register on the libreview website, follow the instructions about uploading data (you need to install the device drivers, I managed it, I’m a complete technophobe, I just followed the instructions) and it uploads the data from the reader for your clinic to see.
The other way is to start the sensor with the reader, but then also swipe it with your phone. You will be able to use the reader to scan, and set alarms on the reader. Provided you remember to scan the sensor with your phone once every 8 hours, it will transfer the data to Libreview.

 

[Sara Grice]

Do you have a laptop? I use the reader, and the yellow lead that attaches to the charger plug can be plugged in to a computer. Then you register on the libreview website, follow the instructions about uploading data (you need to install the device drivers, I managed it, I’m a complete technophobe, I just followed the instructions) and it uploads the data from the reader for your clinic to see.

Oh right ok...that might be a problem them because I don't have a laptop or computer
..my smart phone is normly all I need.

I have an iPad but I don't think that would work lol

 

[Robin]

Oh right ok...that might be a problem them because I don't have a laptop or computer
..my smart phone is normly all I need.

I have an iPad but I don't think that would work lol

Oops, I edited my post, you may not have seen, it’s also possible by swiping the sensor with your phone every 8 hours,

 

[Bruce Stephens]

I'm kinda dubious it will be any better than my phone but I'm still at the try thing to see what works stage

Almost certainly the reader will just give you the same readings as your phone. It'll give them only when you scan, so that may help you, but when you get them the readings are going to be the same, so if the problem is that they differ from test strips then changing won't help.

 

[Lucyr]

I'm willing to give the reader a try, as the app for my phone is still not feeling right, I know everyone says just follow the trends, but currently I'm sitting around 14.8 and my sensor is reading 10.9, it's just nowhere near especially when my levels are raising...
I'm kinda dubious it will be any better than my phone but I'm still at the try thing to see what works stage

It’s the same sensor in your arm and the same algorithm converting the readings it gives to blood sugar numbers. Changing to a reader won’t help change the readings you get.

 

[Sara Grice]

It’s the same sensor in your arm and the same algorithm converting the readings it gives to blood sugar numbers. Changing to a reader won’t help change the readings you get.

That's a bit disappointing to hear...I realy wish I knew what I was doing wrong, only seeing a rise in my levels an hour and 20 minutes after my meal and it being not realy that close to the level I got with my finger. I tested my finger at the time I normalt get my peak levels and as i said i was up around 14.8, then I waited 20 minutes after that and checked my sensor it had only got up to 11.3.. and even now, it never got much higher than that... something just feels off, I know people say look at the trends...but if the trends arnt even right?? If it was still showing trends correctly it would have still shown I got closer to 14.8 then a measly 11.8 (the highest the sensor showed over all)


Baiscly I'm willing to give the reader a try, unless anyone can give me any other ideas as to the cause? Just saying "look at the trends" isn't helpful because as I pointed out.. the trends arnt showing as they should, the highs are being underestimated by a bit, what's to say it's not gonna do the same for low and just...underestimate how bad they are

 

[Sara Grice]

Almost certainly the reader will just give you the same readings as your phone. It'll give them only when you scan, so that may help you, but when you get them the readings are going to be the same, so if the problem is that they differ from test strips then changing won't help.

So what I'm just never going to have sensor with useful Info? If my tea brought me up to 14.8 thay would have been good to know.
I'm not expecting it to be spot on, it's measuring different things, but I at least want it to be accurate enough to give me a rough guide. 11.3 on the sensor 20 mintues AFTER I got a blood reading of 14.8 just dosent feel right.. especially after I saw the same tying happen with my lunch where it underestimated how high I acutly got. It seams to only be accurate in the mornings when my levels are steady but like...I can't just not eat?

And i'm trying to rule out things that I may be doing wrong here... got any ideas? Frist I thought it was a dehydration issue..then maybe an issue with my patch..(still completely ruled that out yet)

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Could you explain the anxiety your are getting from Libre to your clinic @Sara Grice - and ask if you could try Dexcom One+ instead?

It’s the same cost as Libre, but different sensor technology, and I think it allows calibration.

I wonder whether a different sensor type might suit you better?

 

[Sara Grice]

Could you explain the anxiety your are getting from Libre to your clinic @Sara Grice - and ask if you could try Dexcom One+ instead?

It’s the same cost as Libre, but different sensor technology, and I think it allows calibration.

I wonder whether a different sensor type might suit you better?

They know, they don't realy offer any support though, I started therapy on Friday through my gp, but the frist sesson was mainly information gathering. It is a therapist who deals with people with long term illnesses like diabeties type 1

I was offered to try dexcom as a free but for a few reasons I decided libre seamed like a better fit. For one I dread changing over the sensor so the 10 day lifespan puts me off..when they get a 14 day one that would be more appealing. But from what I've heard it isn't any more accurate than the libre, and the calibration sounds good but I worry about the human element messing things up. dunno.. it's looking more appealing by the day

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

For one I dread changing over the sensor so the 10 day lifespan puts me off..when they get a 14 day one that would be more appealing. But from what I've heard it isn't any more accurate than the libre, and the calibration sounds good but I worry about the human element messing things up. dunno.. it's looking more appealing by the day

With your current level of anxiety over Libre I think it might be worth a shot. Different sensors suit different people. NONE of them will exactly replicate every fingerstick every single time (and never would be able to), but there’s a chance that a different sensor technology might suit your body chemistry slightly better?

10 vs 14 days is pretty small potatoes if you actually get a flow of data you find it easier to trust and work with?

The other option (as suggested by the trainer who introduced me to Medtronic’s new Simplera sensors) is to try to cross-check as little as possible, and just go with the sensor data as being what things are - unless your internal warning signs tell you things are way off.

The difference in how you would respond between eg 11.8mmol/L and 13.9mmol/L is arguably fairly marginal - both are “a bit higher than you’d ideally like”. So in some ways you’ll be reacting similarly to both, so you may as well just go with the sensor value the vast majority of the time?

 

[Lucyr]

from what I've heard it isn't any more accurate than the libre

Different sensors have different accuracy levels for different people. Remember meters aren’t accurate either and a meter showing 14 with cgm showing 11 is perfectly within the definition of accurate enough for diabetes devices.

You seem to trust fingerpricks more though so I’d just stop using sensors and stick to fingerprick. There’s no point wearing a libre if you’re fingerpricking all the time anyway.

 

[Bruce Stephens]

11.3 on the sensor 20 mintues AFTER I got a blood reading of 14.8 just dosent feel right

They're both "too high", and if the arrow for the sensor was going down they'd be consistent with each other. In both cases the value probably isn't that close to what a lab would show: it's not in the range where test strips are required to be reasonably accurate.

After starting a new sensor I check with test strips a couple of times when I'm stable (according to the sensor) and make sure it's close enough, and after that I rely on the sensor except occasionally if I feel it's not right (sometimes sensors do start to fail, though I find it's uncommon). And I'm relying on the sensor to try and stay as much as possible between 4 and 10 (as reported by the sensor), and precise numbers aren't that important.

 

[Leadinglights]

What are the readings you are taking doing for you other than making you more anxious as at the moment there is not much you can do about them.
Restricting yourself to readings that are going to provide you with some useful information in relation to what you are eating and when and how much insulin you are taking.
This will provide good data for your nurse to give advise.0

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

After starting a new sensor I check with test strips a couple of times when I'm stable (according to the sensor) and make sure it's close enough, and after that I rely on the sensor except occasionally if I feel it's not right (sometimes sensors do start to fail, though I find it's uncommon). And I'm relying on the sensor to try and stay as much as possible between 4 and 10 (as reported by the sensor), and precise numbers aren't that important

That’s pretty much my strategy too @Bruce Stephens

With the addition of checking with a fingerstick after hypo treatment if the sensor is still nagging that I’m stuck in the 3s long after I’d expect to have recovered (and often I have when checked with fingerstick!). That helps me avoid unnecessary-double-treatment rage. 😉

Too much cross-checking always seems to make me more annoyed with my diabetes/tech and doesn’t actually improve my levels much. So as long as I’m happy the sensor is more or less OK, I run with it.

 

[Bruce Stephens]

With the addition of checking with a fingerstick after hypo treatment if the sensor is still nagging that I’m stuck in the 3s long after I’d expect to have recovered (and often I have when checked with fingerstick!). That helps me avoid unnecessary-double-treatment rage.

I do that too, yes.

So as long as I’m happy the sensor is more or less OK, I run with it.

I seem to remember a trial where that strategy was tested and they found it to work well. That is, there's an obvious potential problem with trying to keep in range (4-10) when you know there's a good chance your sensor isn't giving you accurate readings (but is maybe 0.5 or 1 out), so I think there was a trial looking at how well that worked. Presumably by Abbott (since Dexcom and others allow correction).

But possibly it was more of a modelling experiment: suppose people did what they actually do, how much does the real TIR change if their sensors are inaccurate in particular ways?

 

[helli]

With the addition of checking with a fingerstick after hypo treatment if the sensor is still nagging that I’m stuck in the 3s long after I’d expect to have recovered (and often I have when checked with fingerstick!). That helps me avoid unnecessary-double-treatment rage. 😉

I do the same with high BG as I find a similar lag with it coming down.
Finger prick checking stops me worrying that my BG is too high for too long and over treating.

When my CGM says I am between 4.5 and 9.5, I accept what it says.

The other thing I do is an evening finger prick check. I chose this time because it is when my BG is relatively flat because it is more than 4 hours since eating and exercising.

My fingers are prickless the rest of the time.

 

[MikeyBikey]

Interesting thread! A reader has crossed my mind as I am having problems with Libre on my Pixie 6 but otherwise I am happy with the phone.

I got nowhere with my support chat with Abbot as they just shut the chat! I as going to call on Friday but a senior nurse said she knew all about Libre and after getting nowhere started with my spare sensor and by 6:00 we still had "SIGNAL LOSS"! On Saturday a DSN came along with àa really arrogant attitude to sort it. Result "SIGNAL LOSS"!!! Some have complained my phone is locked but I pointed out "my phone and my data"! If the Reader doesn't have issues it may be the way to go. My clinic want a smart phone but need to respect it is the patient:s property not the Libre set up.