Oh no the consequence of my actions (finger bruising)

[Sara Grice]

A few days ago I made a post when I was in a pretty bad headspace, my libre that had seamed accurate just seamed to read low that morning compared to finger pricks. This caused be for about half the day to spiral in a not healthy way and do way to many finger prick tests, I thought I was at least rotating the sites, but when your panic-y and are finding it hard to keep the tests 15 minutes apart...you run out of spots fast enough...


. Once I relaxed a bit I got into a better headspace and have brought down my testing to about 6-8 a day which is alot closer to what they recommend (I know not amazing but I'm working on it) but I have noticed that I am starting to see the ramifications of my spiral...my fingres are definitely looking a bit darker round the ends, I hoped it would go down over night but sadly not. I did a quick Google search and found that bruises do effect readings which I know sounds like common sense but I wasn't told...I kinda assumed blood is blood you know ...so now I'm at a bit of a loss and only have myself to blame as I can't realy reliably use any of my usual fingers for testing so by giving into my anxiety I've made it harder to actuly manage my diabetes as effectively with blood testing when I realy need it.
I guess the 4-6 times a day isn't just a recommendation for no reason and there actuly is a reason for it, who could have guessed

-Sigh- I'm definitely using this as a teachable moment so I hopefuly learn my lesson next time I feel the anxiety spiral of I've got to test my finger right now

 

[SB2015]

A few days ago I made a post when I was in a pretty bad headspace, my libre that had seamed accurate just seamed to read low that morning compared to finger pricks. This caused be for about half the day to spiral in a not healthy way and do way to many finger prick tests, I thought I was at least rotating the sites, but when your panic-y and are finding it hard to keep the tests 15 minutes apart...you run out of spots fast enough...


. Once I relaxed a bit I got into a better headspace and have brought down my testing to about 6-8 a day which is alot closer to what they recommend (I know not amazing but I'm working on it) but I have noticed that I am starting to see the ramifications of my spiral...my fingres are definitely looking a bit darker round the ends, I hoped it would go down over night but sadly not. I did a quick Google search and found that bruises do effect readings which I know sounds like common sense but I wasn't told...I kinda assumed blood is blood you know ...so now I'm at a bit of a loss and only have myself to blame as I can't realy reliably use any of my usual fingers for testing so by giving into my anxiety I've made it harder to actuly manage my diabetes as effectively with blood testing when I realy need it.
I guess the 4-6 times a day isn't just a recommendation for no reason and there actuly is a reason for it, who could have guessed

-Sigh- I'm definitely using this as a teachable moment so I hopefuly learn my lesson next time I feel the anxiety spiral of I've got to test my finger right now

Hi Sara
It is soo hard at the start and I can understand how all this is feeding into your anxiety. Blood is blood but it can get harder to get it out from places regularly used as you have found. I have used the base of my thumbs on the pads which seem quite productive.

You will find your own balance and that won’t stay the same, but will suit your needs at the time. It is different for each of us at different points.

Is there something specific you can do when you start to feel more anxious about levels? Would setting a timer to give you a delay until the next test (eg 2 hours (unless hypo)) work for you.
To get my pre-bolus delay before breakfast I set a timer and do 30 minutes of music practice. A win win for me.
I find it hard to wait 15 min after a hypo before re testing, so I use spider on my iPad and fill the time.

Sorry if you feel bombarded by suggestions, but just select what helps you at any point and come back with further questions.

 

[Sara Grice]

Hi Sara
It is soo hard at the start and I can understand how all this is feeding into your anxiety. Blood is blood but it can get harder to get it out from places regularly used as you have found. I have used the base of my thumbs on the pads which seem quite productive.

You will find your own balance and that won’t stay the same, but will suit your needs at the time. It is different for each of us at different points.

Is there something specific you can do when you start to feel more anxious about levels? Would setting a timer to give you a delay until the next test (eg 2 hours (unless hypo)) work for you.
To get my pre-bolus delay before breakfast I set a timer and do 30 minutes of music practice. A win win for me.
I find it hard to wait 15 min after a hypo before re testing, so I use spider on my iPad and fill the time.

Sorry if you feel bombarded by suggestions, but just select what helps you at any point and come back with further questions.

Thanks, I've said it before and I'll say it again but thus forum has the loveliest people on it, my thumbs are the hardest ones to use for me, in terms of specific things I use when anxious, music helps, looking up cat pictures and and videos help (I am a cat lover but sadly am not allowed to have one) but I can get into such a state where it's hard for me to focus on those other things. So my therapist before our frist appointment got me to download a guided relaxation app, it's sort of to help me have more awareness of my mental state before I start to realy spiral to stop myself from being to far gone. It's something you gotta keep doing though as a few days before I had the spiral the other day I hadn't done it in awhile, I gotta think of it like any medication I take, works best with consistency...ill get there.(at least I hope )

I have been kinda against setting alarms, I dunno, it worries me that would discourage me from checking when I absolutely need to, I still don't realy know what a hypo feels like. And my health anxiety has sort of trained me most of my life to ignore if my body is telling me somethings wrong...because it normaly isn't..so "trusting what my body is telling me" is something I struggle with...which leads me to genraly want to stop myself from going below 7mmol/ml. At the moment it's just me trying to get better at self controll

 

[Leadinglights]

If you are getting bruising then try a less deep setting on your lancing device and don't squeeze but just apply gentle pressure.

 

[Sara Grice]

If you are getting bruising then try a less deep setting on your lancing device and don't squeeze but just apply gentle pressure.

I found it realt difficult to get any blood out on the lower settings I'm afraid and I tend to only squeeze enough to get out what I need.

It was aculy one of the frist issues I had to ring my diabeties team about, that I couldn't get readings with my blood because I was just having such a hard time getting any out.
Wish I could do less of both those things but sadly so far that's what has worked best to get reading.. it's either only get a tiny speck of blood small enough that a flea would complain I was being stingy with their drink...or the bruising. But I appreciate your advice.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Which lancing device do you use @Sara Grice ?

Some seem better (gentler) than others. I’ve always preferred the Roche fastclix / multiclix ones, which seem to set depth very accurately, and while I am happy to use a lancet multiple times on myself, having a cartridge of 6 available makes it dead easy to swap to a fresh one as soon as I start feeling the old one.

Are you using the sides of your fingers? Not too close to the nail? These areas have fewer nerve endings than the pads, and also there’s the benefit of the ‘backs’ of each finger (the opposite side, away from you as you look at the sides of your finger) which can be used to double your sampling spaces. Though it’s a bit awkward there!

 

[helli]

Do you warm your fingers before pricking?
Holding a cup of tea can help to bring blood to the surface so you do not need to prick so deep. Shaking my hand also helps. But remember to shake before pricking! Yes, there is a story there involving a white shirt.
I was also told not to squeeze my finger to force blood out as this can cause bruising. I was told to "milk" my fingers from lower down.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

But remember to shake before pricking! Yes, there is a story there involving a white shirt.

Reminds me of the time(s) where I’ve given a bodged finger a squeeze to encourage a droplet, and none was forthcoming from my leathery fingers… so I gave a slightly firmer squeeze, whereupon a needle-thin stream of blood arced gracefully out of my finger over several feet under much higher pressure than I felt I’d applied!

 

[Sara Grice]

Which lancing device do you use @Sara Grice ?

Some seem better (gentler) than others. I’ve always preferred the Roche fastclix / multiclix ones, which seem to set depth very accurately, and while I am happy to use a lancet multiple times on myself, having a cartridge of 6 available makes it dead easy to swap to a fresh one as soon as I start feeling the old one.

Are you using the sides of your fingers? Not too close to the nail? These areas have fewer nerve endings than the pads, and also there’s the benefit of the ‘backs’ of each finger (the opposite side, away from you as you look at the sides of your finger) which can be used to double your sampling spaces. Though it’s a bit awkward there!

I just use the one given to me from the pharmacy..it came with a true matrix gx monitor so it's properly that make? I did have another one I liked better but sadly ive lost it ):. It's not big or high tech but it'd what my local pharmacy had. I've attached a picture.

And I'm having trouble visioning the back of your finger spots you mentioned....

 

[Sara Grice]

Do you warm your fingers before pricking?
Holding a cup of tea can help to bring blood to the surface so you do not need to prick so deep. Shaking my hand also helps. But remember to shake before pricking! Yes, there is a story there involving a white shirt.
I was also told not to squeeze my finger to force blood out as this can cause bruising. I was told to "milk" my fingers from lower down.

Milking fingres made me chuckle, then I got disturbed by the image of finger tips with udders on them.
Also..See times like these I realy dislike my diabeties team, becuase they basicly told me to squeeze, while pointing my I finger down. It works but if it causes excess bruising then urgh I'm back to square one if it being a hassle to get blood out

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

And I'm having trouble visioning the back of your finger spots you mentioned....

I generally use ‘side 1 of each finger - much easier to get to.

But each finger also has a side 2 which I can also use if needed.



Excuse the state of my nail beds / nails. My hands ha a hard time gardening yesterday!!

 

[Sara Grice]

Also I know this isn't the point of the post....but again something just dosent feel right with my sensor, it just seams.
.best way I can describe it is sluggish and..feels inaccurate. This is what's been causing me on and off stress over the last week. My last sensor also sort of started doing the same. I had some milk whioe ago, took a test with my fingre 25 mintues ago it said I was at 11.1, I used my thumb which isn't bruised.and my sensor has only moved 0.3 mmol/ml, not coming anywhere near where my blood is saying I am..

I noticed it when I had lunch aswell i got up to 14 when I tested an hour after my lunch but my sensor never read above 12??

I'm gonna do some breathing exercises and kitten videos cos this sort of thing just...makes it hard to just trust these sensors...but I don't wanna spend another evening doing fingre tests. It realy just sucks and I keep wanting to scream what am I doing wrong

 

[Sara Grice]

I generally use ‘side 1 of each finger - much easier to get to.

But each finger also has a side 2 which I can also use if needed.

View attachment 35435

Excuse the state of my nail beds / nails. My hands ha a hard time gardening yesterday!!

Thanks that is very helpful

 

[rebrascora]

14 and 12 are near enough the same value. They are both telling you your levels are above range. Split the difference and ca\ll it 13. As your levels become more in range, those values will almost certainly get closer together.... ie. less difference between Libre and finger prick. So if your sensor reading was 7, your finger prick might be about 8 and if your sensor was 4 your finger prick might be about 4.5. This is certainly what I find.

Unfortunately your anxiety and expectation of accuracy of both Libre and your BG meter are likely the main problem and comparing readings and seeing a difference seems to be feeding your anxiety. If your BG meter says you are at 14 after a meal then why do you need to test again until the next meal or before bed. If you were at 5 and dropping I could perhaps understand it.

People survived before they even had finger prick testing and I take that as a great reassurance. You are letting the technology we are lucky to have, feed your anxiety.

You have to think to yourself, what will testing achieve and if it will not cause you to take action ie confirm that you need more insulin in the form of a correction which I don't think your nurse has advised you on yet, or a hypo treatment because your Libre says you are low or you feel hypo, then don't test. Believe me, you will know when you are hypo, especially when your levels are persistently high at the moment, you will likely get false hypos in the 5s or maybe even 6s because your body is used to higher levels.
I think it is also important to understand that you have plenty of time to treat a hypo even though it doesn't actually feel like it at the time. You don't feel it one moment and are unconscious the next.

 

[Lucyr]

I noticed it when I had lunch aswell i got up to 14 when I tested an hour after my lunch but my sensor never read above 12??

That is very close readings and well within the definition of accurate for diabetes devices. You could have readings further apart than that and still count it as very accurate.