Questions

[Bonniesmum]

Hi.
I have a couple of questions. Does anyone else have sore fingers from using the glucometer.
My finger pads have thickened skin and the lances barely make a hole. Is there some knack to it ?
Took my first metformin this morning. Don’t know why but it really has stressed me out. Any one have any major side effects from metformin.

thanks
Liz.

 

[Felinia]

You should be able to adjust the depth of the lance. I found 2 was not enough but 3 was fine. Regarding Metformin, a well known side effect is stomach problems - the runs and cramps. They might take a couple of weeks to settle, or you could ask for slow release. Whatever you do, take it in the middle of food - before, pill, after, like a pill sandwich.

 

[leonS]

Use the side of finger rather than the pad - not so sensitive and perhaps thinner skin too.

 

[Bonniesmum]

That’s why I feel nervous of taking it. I have diverticulitis and IBS so really didn’t want to suffer with upset stomach. I took my pill while eating this morning. Thanks

 

[Thebearcametoo]

Yes use the side. That way you get two different sites on each finger (don’t use your thumb or index finger just the others) and adjust the depth to the minimum needed for each finger. You may find that some fingers need less depth and that if you’re warm and well hydrated you need less too.

 

[Tee G]

I dont jab my fingers at all as im using diet at the mo. However reading thru the many posts on here one guy said he stopped using alcohol wipes on his fingers before pricking because it was making the tips all 'leathery' he said he just gave his hands a good wash, shook them to 'air dry' which warmed them up in the process too before stabbing! Maybe this could help you? Maybe worth a try??

 

[Felinia]

That’s why I feel nervous of taking it. I have diverticulitis and IBS so really didn’t want to suffer with upset stomach. I took my pill while eating this morning. Thanks

I have Diverticular Disease too and my DSN said Metformin was contra indicated for people with diabetes. Guess it depends on how high your HbA1c is, where the problems from diabetes outweigh any other medical problems.

 

[trophywench]

Yeah - when I was a child, a lady (was she a Dr? Barbara someone) walked from Lands End to John o' Groats and I well remember her saying she'd treated the backs of her heels in surgical spirit specifically to harden the skin so as she didn't get too many blisters.

OK it also kills 99% of germs more gently than Domestos - but unless you are employed as a cowpat juggler or cleaning sewers without protective clothing - there is no need to be THAT clean! One of my old GPs used to say as long as one was 'socially clean' …… well nobody recently has told me I stink in company hence I assume I must still be socially clean!

 

[Drummer]

I don't wash my hands specially before testing. I do wash my hands quite a few times in the day - having grown up in an environment where we kept animals, and having animals in my adult life it is a well fixed habit. I also use a new lancet each time I test, just in case. Having established the diet I need to stick to in order to keep my Hba1c and blood glucose as normal as possible I no longer need to test very often at all.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Have you skimmed through Alan S’s post on reducing the discomfort of finger-stabbing?

http://loraldiabetes.blogspot.co.uk/2006/10/painless-pricks.html

 

[trophywench]

Dr Barbara Moore, in 1960!

 

[SB2015]

Hi.
I have a couple of questions. Does anyone else have sore fingers from using the glucometer.
My finger pads have thickened skin and the lances barely make a hole. Is there some knack to it ?
Took my first metformin this morning. Don’t know why but it really has stressed me out. Any one have any major side effects from metformin.

thanks
Liz.

Position of insertion
I use the sides of the pads of my fingers, but also the palm of my hand on the thick base of my thumb or little finger. I don’t wash my hands before, I just brush away the first blob and then use the next, in the principle that the first blob does the cleaning for me.

Depth of stab
My finger pricker has a scale to set on how deep it goes. It goes up to 6, but I have only used that accidentally when I must have moved it over in putting it away and that hurt a lot. I am currently on 2, and that is after 12 years of finger pricking. It might be worth checking that your is on a low setting.

Lancets in finger pricker
The boxes of these suggest that they are for single use only. I know I use mine again and again and then remember to change them when it hurts. Could you try a new lancet.