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Libra freestyle.

N

Ninaj

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Relationship to Diabetes
Type 2
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I am currently using Libra 2 freestyle for their 14 day free trial. It has been eye opening, However I cannot afford the sensor every month/15 days. Can you get these on prescription?
 
Ninaj said:
I am currently using Libra 2 freestyle for their 14 day free trial. It has been eye opening, However I cannot afford the sensor every month/15 days. Can you get these on prescription?
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Very unlikely as even Type 2 taking insulin are unlikely to be prescribed them. Many GP's don't even prescribe a finger prick glucose monitor unless people are taking specific oral med.
Make the most of your free trial to learn as much as you can about your tolerance to the carbs in your meals so you can put that information to good use when making food choices.
Some people self fund a sensor every so often but otherwise invest in a finger prick monitor.
Should have said welcome to the forum. If you are willing to share a bit about your diagnosis, what your Hba1C is and any meds then people can make appropriate suggestions.
Diet is usually the key to managing the condition and getting more exercise if you can but depends on your situation.
 
Ninaj said:
I am currently using Libra 2 freestyle for their 14 day free trial. It has been eye opening, However I cannot afford the sensor every month/15 days. Can you get these on prescription?
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Are you on insulin 2+ times a day and have you been advised to fingerprick 8+ times a day? That’s the main criteria for T2 to get libre prescribed. What decisions are you making based on the results you’re seeing? Would you be able to make those decisions by fingerpricking?
 
Also some T1's before they where allowed on prescription did self fund their libre's even if not full time, just sometimes. Can you ask as gifts for birthdays etc?
 
Ninaj said:
I am currently using Libra 2 freestyle for their 14 day free trial. It has been eye opening, However I cannot afford the sensor every month/15 days. Can you get these on prescription?
Click to expand...
As a T2 IDDM I've been trying to get my Libre sensors on prescription for years without success. Fortunately, I can afford to self-fund as I wasn't prepared to finger prick (at all let alone enough when I switched to basal/bolus) so couldn't drive legally without.
 
Snapsh0t said:
As a T2 IDDM I've been trying to get my Libre sensors on prescription for years without success. Fortunately, I can afford to self-fund as I wasn't prepared to finger prick (at all let alone enough when I switched to basal/bolus) so couldn't drive legally without.
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Are you aware that you must carry finger pricking kit with you when you drive.
Although CGM readings are accepted by DVLA, they require us to carry a back up in case it fails
 
Snapsh0t said:
Fortunately, I can afford to self-fund as I wasn't prepared to finger prick (at all let alone enough when I switched to basal/bolus) so couldn't drive legally without
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You can’t legally drive if you aren’t willing to fingerprick at all. You must carry a fingerprick kit at all times and you must use it in certain circumstances. If you aren’t doing this you’re driving illegally and should stop until you have and can use a fingerprick kit
 
AnGelA65 said:
Where can I read this directive?
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This is the first thing that came up when I Googled "DVLA Diabetes CGM": https://assets.publishing.service.g...e-to-insulin-treated-diabetes-and-driving.pdf
It is an official DVLA document and it states
If you use a real time (RT-CGM) or flash glucosemonitoring (FGM) system to check your glucose levelsand the reading is 4.0mmol/L or below, you must stopdriving and confirm your finger prick glucose test reading.
• Your finger prick glucose level must be at least5.0mmol/L before returning to driving.
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And
As there are times when FGM and RT-CGM users are required to check their finger prick glucose, users of these systems must also have finger prick glucose monitors and test strips available when driving.
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AnGelA65 said:
Where can I read this directive?
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If you’re on insulin then you signed to agree to it when you got your medically restricted licence, easily googleable also or on links others have given
 
Saw my consultant Endocrinologist yesterday, self funding. She said they’d not give me a Libre monitor because I’m T2 and not on insulin. So I will have to self fund it too. I recently had a weeks residential training course and decided to put one on to monitor levels. This was a good idea as the food was cheap high carbs, which I cannot eat. Long story, but it was hard going getting the diet I needed and glad for the Libre to keep an eye on my levels and it demonstrated to those in the catering what happens as I showed them the results on the app!
 
AnGelA65 said:
Ah, I’m not on insulin
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You shouldn’t have any restrictions on driving then


AnGelA65 said:
Saw my consultant Endocrinologist yesterday, self funding. She said they’d not give me a Libre monitor because I’m T2 and not on insulin. So I will have to self fund it too.
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You shouldn’t need a libre monitor if not on insulin. Occasional structured fingerprick testing or just modifying your diet should be enough.
 
Lucyr said:
You shouldn’t have any restrictions on driving then



You shouldn’t need a libre monitor if not on insulin. Occasional structured fingerprick testing or just modifying your diet should be enough.
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Well my nurse thinks I may be LADA. I am already very low carb and readings are erratic. My fingers bruise from pricking. It’s ok I can afford to buy them myself.
 
AnGelA65 said:
Well my nurse thinks I may be LADA. I am already very low carb and readings are erratic. My fingers bruise from pricking. It’s ok I can afford to buy them myself.
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If your fingers bruise from fingerpricking then it may be your technique is poor as that shouldn’t happen. Even as a potential LADA fingerpricking should be enough information as you don’t take insulin and so can’t do anything with the continuous trace of data a cgm provides. It’s not advised to low carb if potentially type 1 either.

What fingerpricker do you use? Have you watched some videos or read about how to painlessly fingerprick?
 
My fingers bruise because I’m very sensitive and bruise easily. My consultant used my phone to look at the charts and records very easily and it was great as she could give me a good appointment using all the information that I wouldn’t have had if I only pricked twice a day.A GP when I was first diagnosed told me I didn;t need to monitor my glucose levels. At all!! It seems many diabetics are told this and many on another diabetic sight are astounded. So many be I wont get the best out of out because I am not on insulin but I get the best for me and thats what matters. I get what I need which is help to monitor my levels and reassurance
 
AnGelA65 said:
My fingers bruise because I’m very sensitive and bruise easily.
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What fingerprick device do you use and what setting?


AnGelA65 said:
I get what I need which is help to monitor my levels and reassurance
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What actual actions do you take to change your blood sugars based on the results you see on the libre? Reassurance is nice but it’s expensive when “reassurance” doesn’t actually change your risk of complications
 
AnGelA65 said:
My consultant used my phone to look at the charts and records very easily and it was great as she could give me a good appointment using all the information that I wouldn’t have had if I only pricked twice a day.
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Same with this, what exact changes did the consultant make to your diabetes medication based on the CGM that they couldn’t have made based on fingerpricks?

I’m not being awkward here, it’s nailing down what exact actions is the CGM results causing that improve your blood sugars that you couldn’t get from fingerpricks, that will help you get the funding if indeed CGM is needed in your case.
 
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