Frustrated

[MichelleF78]

Thanks Barbara @rebrascora sorry only just got this. Been having a totally miserable time. I am gaining weight and retaining water. Both my ankles have swollen up and I’m in pain. Honestly I feel like just giving up!

 

[Proud to be erratic]

Hi @MichelleF78
I can't help with any bright ideas or suggestions for weight gain or water retention, other than knowing that there are oral meds that do help water retention and, as far as I'm aware this is not necessarily related to diabetes; nor are meds such as tamulosin (sp?) contradictory for diabetes.

I just wanted to go back slightly to your initial post and ask about your abnormal BG readings, particularly your highs. I ask because I'm unlucky enough to not get a great correlation between my libre readings and actual BG from finger pricking, so I simply don't trust any readings that are not in the 5-7 zone. Yesterday and this morning my sensor has been saying I was 15, when 3 BG checks (rewashed hands etc) verified I was 7.5 to 8 actual. And in the small hours this am my sensor woke me to tell me I was at 4 and going vertically down (absolutely not a false compression low from accidentally lying on the sensor) yet I was 5 and then 5.5 a short while later.

Are you (did you) check with finger pricks when you got sensor readings that are well out of normal 5-10 range? Do you have a sense of how good the correlation is between your actual BG and Libre's interstitial readings generally and with your current Libre? Are you possibly allowing your Libre to mislead you? This can happen and while it doesn't explain water retention it can lead one to try and correctmatters when corrections or adjustments aren't really needed.

I know this differential occurs between my body and Libre and generally I tolerate the inconsistency and try to work with it. I am now abandoning my current sensor - it's essentially unworkable for me and I not only don't trust it any more but am having to finger prick a lot and confirm reality, rather than Libre's "current cloud cuckoo" world. I'll ask Abbott for a replacement, which I'm pretty confident that they will provide in the next 7 working days. It's a nuisance, but now necessary.

 

[rebrascora]

Thanks Barbara @rebrascora sorry only just got this. Been having a totally miserable time. I am gaining weight and retaining water. Both my ankles have swollen up and I’m in pain. Honestly I feel like just giving up!

For me, walking is key to both of those things. I have been starting to put on weight recently and ankles were starting to show sock marks and I was just feeling rather bloated and horrid. I am now onto my third consecutive day of brisk power walking and my insulin doses have gone down significantly and I feel so much less bloated already and more focused on eating healthy home cooked meals and salads and really enjoying them. I go through phases of being motivated and then something will get in the way for a few days and knock me out of my routine with walking and then it is really tough to get myself on track, but once I do, I feel so much better physically, mentally and with my diabetes management.

 

[MichelleF78]

That’s great. I wish I could walk like that just now but the pain in my ankles are quite severe Barbara

 

[MichelleF78]

Hi @MichelleF78
I can't help with any bright ideas or suggestions for weight gain or water retention, other than knowing that there are oral meds that do help water retention and, as far as I'm aware this is not necessarily related to diabetes; nor are meds such as tamulosin (sp?) contradictory for diabetes.

I just wanted to go back slightly to your initial post and ask about your abnormal BG readings, particularly your highs. I ask because I'm unlucky enough to not get a great correlation between my libre readings and actual BG from finger pricking, so I simply don't trust any readings that are not in the 5-7 zone. Yesterday and this morning my sensor has been saying I was 15, when 3 BG checks (rewashed hands etc) verified I was 7.5 to 8 actual. And in the small hours this am my sensor woke me to tell me I was at 4 and going vertically down (absolutely not a false compression low from accidentally lying on the sensor) yet I was 5 and then 5.5 a short while later.

Are you (did you) check with finger pricks when you got sensor readings that are well out of normal 5-10 range? Do you have a sense of how good the correlation is between your actual BG and Libre's interstitial readings generally and with your current Libre? Are you possibly allowing your Libre to mislead you? This can happen and while it doesn't explain water retention it can lead one to try and correctmatters when corrections or adjustments aren't really needed.

I know this differential occurs between my body and Libre and generally I tolerate the inconsistency and try to work with it. I am now abandoning my current sensor - it's essentially unworkable for me and I not only don't trust it any more but am having to finger prick a lot and confirm reality, rather than Libre's "current cloud cuckoo" world. I'll ask Abbott for a replacement, which I'm pretty confident that they will provide in the next 7 working days. It's a nuisance, but now necessary.

Thank you very much. Yes I do finger prick on occasion and it’s very similar. I have a reader as well as my alarms don’t work on iPhone.