Libre Freestyle fitted today!

[jordmagx]

Hi all!

I’m new here and I’ve never actually contributed to a forum before but I just thought it was about time I reached out to all you lovely people because sometimes it feels like I’m the only person with type 1 diabetes!

I’ll quickly introduce myself. My name’s Jordan, I’m 25 and I’m from Belfast in Northern Ireland. I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in April 2017. Obviously it was a shock as I was a ripe 23 but I feel I’ve adapted quite well.

Anyway, today I had a routine blood test at the hospital and the doctor suggested the freestyle libre sensor. I’d heard of it before but I had never considered it for myself. He referred me to the nurse who told me more about it and the next thing I knew a sensor was stuck to my tricep.

I’ve done my reading so I feel as though I understand how it all works and I have it set up with my phone and that, but I have some follow up questions that I haven’t really found clear answers for so I hope you delightful lot can help a fella out!

Does anyone know if I can bath normally with it? I know it seems like a small issue but the nurse told me to keep it out of the water which I thought was simply not convenient however the manual says a bath is fine as long as water is no deeper than 3m? I just don’t want to interfere with the quality or accuracy of its readings and wanted to hear from people who’ve been in my position. (And if you know about swimming with it, that would be useful too!)

Also, I was wondering how to properly remove it? Even though I have half a dozen leaflets and booklets, none of them outline how to remove it. I feel like it’s gonna be so painful even though it probably won’t be but it’s the fear of the unknown! (You probably just simply pull it off but just checking there’s not a specialised way to take it off).

I hope my forum-writing skills are satisfactory and I can’t wait for your replies! (Or ignore me, whatever).

Thanks for reading!

Jord x

 

[Ljc]

Hello @jordmagx . Welcome to the forum. Wow, you’ve been provided a Libre , I hope you find all that additional info really helpful, Is yours just a trial .
I love my Libre, it’s been a game changer for me.
I don’t swim anymore so I can’t answer that question but I know other here do swim with one on.
As the leaflet states, it’s fine to shower or bathe with one on , I’m just a tad careful when drying around that area.

Their is no special technique required to remove them. It does not hurt at all but your be supprised how difficult they are to prise up the adhesive pad and get the things off. Make sure you get all the sticky residue off else you will have a ring mark .

They tend to be far less accurate at high and low numbers. So it’s wise not to rely on them for corrections , as it’s likely you’ll well overshoot, they are sampling the fluid between the cells rather than blood, which means their is a time lag of <15 > minutes

 

[SB2015]

Welcome to the forum Jord, and glad to hear how you have adapted to your new normal life of living with T1.
I use a Libre sensor, and as Lin has said it is a game changer.

I self funded for them at the start, and having had one fall off after swimming and another on a door jam, I cover mine with a tegaderm. I cut a hole in the centre before applying it to fit over the hole in the sensor to let it ‘breathe’. With this on I happily swim, and enjoy the bath without trying to keep my sensored arm out of the water (important for managing to hold my Kindle and the glass of wine).

Another thing that I do is put the next sensor in the day before the previous one runs out. It gives it 24 hours to settle before I activate it. I do this because I found that when I first put them in I got very strange readings for about the first day and then it settled down.

Like Lin I find that the readings at the upper end and lower end are often a bit out form my BG, but then it is measuring different things, and there is also a time lag of about 15 min between them. The differences do not bother me, as I am generally more focused on the direction of travel arrow of my glucose readings in the Libre, and the patterns that it shows me over the past 8 hours. If they get a bit more awry than I expect I use it as a reminder to drink more water, since the Libre is measuring glucose in the interstitial fluid, so it could indicate that I am a bit dehydrated.

If I am feeling hypo I always revert to BG test, and I also have to do this for driving as the DVLA won’t accept readings on the Libre.

If you have any other questions fire away. No question will seem silly on here. Someone will help out and there are plenty on here who will be thinking I am glad he asked that.

 

[SB2015]

Ps when it comes to removing the sensors, just get your nail under a bit of the sticky bit and yank it off. It usually leaves a bit of red ring which for me is soon gone.

 

[jordmagx]

Hi guys,

Thanks for the replies! I appreciate it and you’ve answered my questions!

I feel lucky to have been prescribed the Libre as I know it costs £60 a touch so I make it my mission to use it properly and hopefully it will help me in return.

I’ve woken up this morning from lying on it and I feel a little tender around that area, is this just because it’s the first day or should I avoid lying on it altogether?

Jord x

 

[jordmagx]

Ps Lin,

It’s not a trial, the doc just mentioned at my appointment that they recently got funding for them and they thought I was the perfect candidate because I have next to perfect control and it would help me streamline my BG further.

I feel blessed as I know the expense the NHS goes through so I can access it!

Jord x

 

[SB2015]

The only time I found mine uncomfortable was when I put it too far forward on my arm, having missed the proper flabby bits. For that fortnight I just avoided lying on it. Next sensor I hit the flab.

Sometimes when you lie on it you will see a weird blip in the graph from overnight.

 

[Bruce Stephens]

Does anyone know if I can bath normally with it? I know it seems like a small issue but the nurse told me to keep it out of the water which I thought was simply not convenient however the manual says a bath is fine as long as water is no deeper than 3m? I just don’t want to interfere with the quality or accuracy of its readings and wanted to hear from people who’ve been in my position. (And if you know about swimming with it, that would be useful too!)

Also, I was wondering how to properly remove it? Even though I have half a dozen leaflets and booklets, none of them outline how to remove it. I feel like it’s gonna be so painful even though it probably won’t be but it’s the fear of the unknown! (You probably just simply pull it off but just checking there’s not a specialised way to take it off).

Some people find they don't stick all that well and use something over the top when bathing. I find mine sticks fine for normal having a bath/shower so I've stopped worrying. If I swam I probably would.

For removal, gently (and slowly) peel it off. (The thing that goes through the skin is quite flexible, so don't worry about causing damage doing that.) And (as others said) clean carefully to try and remove the glue. (I don't think anyone knows what the risk of allergic reaction is, but minimising it by doing basic things like cleaning seems sensible.)

 

[mikeyB]

Hi Jordan, welcome to the forum.

It’s brilliant that you’ve got this funded. We’ll all have to move to Belfast

I must say I don’t bother waiting 24hours to let the sensor ‘bed in’, I just spark it up and wait for the hour that they set before you can use it. I haven’t had that problem of odd readings. As has been said, ignore it if correcting a high or low reading, use test strips, because of the time lag.

And never put a new one on before a bath or shower, the adhesive takes a couple of hours to set properly.

Best of luck, and let us know how you get on🙂

 

[nonethewiser]

Does anyone know if I can bath normally with it? I know it seems like a small issue but the nurse told me to keep it out of the water which I thought was simply not convenient however the manual says a bath is fine as long as water is no deeper than 3m? I just don’t want to interfere with the quality or accuracy of its readings and wanted to hear from people who’ve been in my position. (And if you know about swimming with it, that would be useful too!)

Best double check, almost certain it says 3ft of water as opposed to 3m, then its only for a max of 30 minutes.

Only recently started using the libre full time and the other day downloaded the librelink app, find its much easier to use than the reader and the features are much better, worth downloading if your the type of person who never has their mobile to far away.

So far not had any issues with removing the sensors.