My blood sugar has been way better these last three days but I almost wish it hadn't improved so that my decision regarding getting a CGM would be easier to make.

There's a kind of weird guy in my neighborhood who is visibly disabled (two canes) and fairly clearly cognitively disabled (either that or crazy). Anyway, my brother broke his elbow and this guy was saying that my brother would heal, be just fine, so long as he didn't have diabetes. And I said, no my brother doesn't have diabetes, it's just me. And he said he was diabetic too.
I asked him for how long, and he said since he was born. I was kind of suspicious about that one, since he said he'd been in the marines. I said, "They let you join the marines with diabetes?!" and he said, no, they didn't know he had diabetes, he didn't have the money for doctors growing up so nobody knew. He says they found out while he was in the marines and that's why he had to leave the marines.
So I figure this guy probably has T1 (he was telling me that he's on Lantus and Regular) and through some combination of bad medical explanations and a cognitive impairment, he thinks he was born diabetic. I'm always meeting people who think that juvenile diabetics were all born with it, so I guess it's not so weird to meet a diabetic who thinks the same. Of course, it could be he has some form of MODY, but he said type 1.

And I was thinking that my reaction to him is probably the reaction that most of the diabetics I've met have probably had to me: It's great to meet another diabetic, but does he have to be so weird?

I called Minimed and a replacement receiver is 550, a replacement transmitter is 649. If you are a previous Guardian user, getting a new receiver and transmitter is 1199 dollars. If you then bought a box of four sensors, you'd be at the 1344 cited as the price of start up. But you could buy only 10 pack boxes.
I think I'm going with Dexcom anyways. I want less pain.

I talked it over with my mother. She thinks I should have my thyroid function retested, as I have a history of thyroiditis and thyroid dysfunction can mess up blood sugar. She agreed that, at least if this continues, she's willing to help pay for a CGMS for me.

So I'm thinking about whether I should go in soon to see the endo for a TSH. Maybe. I'm overdue to see my other doctor anyways, so maybe I'll ask her to run a TSH even though it's always been my endo who's done that.

Guardian v Dexcom

I have had nutsy blood sugar in the past month, details below. I'm therefore thinking about buying a CGMS out of pocket again. My last experience, in 2008, was with the Guardian. I found it accurate for at least a week per sensor, all sensors I wore in the arm, but continuously painful and itchy. I lost the transmitter and decided not to get another. I still have some sensors, now expired. Anyways.

I'm looking at the Dexcom Seven Plus. I spent a couple hours reading about it today, plus I called customer service. Sales there says I can buy a starter pack and a box of four sensors now for the price of 999 dollars if I pay out of pocket. A box of 4 sensors is 319 dollars unless I agree to buy six or more boxes in a 12 month period, in which case it's 289 dollars per box. The transmitter and receiver each have 12 month warrantees.
So for one year, if I used 28 Dexcom sensors, the total cost would be 2733 dollars.
But if I had to use 36 Dexcom sensors, the cost would be 3311 dollars.

If I went with the Guardian again, then as I remember it startup cost is 1344 dollars and that includes 4 sensors (despite what the internet says). A box of 10 sensors is 350 dollars. The receiver is warranteed for twelve months, but the transmitter only for six months. I forget the replacement cost for the transmitter; either it's 450 or 650 dollars. So if it's 450 and I had to replace it, and I used 34 Minimed sensors, the total cost over one year would be 2844 dollars.
If I needed 44 sensors, the total cost would only grow to 3194 dollars.

Now, I've used the Guardian before so I'm pretty sure I really could stretch 34 sensors over a whole year. I've never used the Dexcom so I don't know how long I could get out of one of their sensors, which is one of the things making me hesitate. Some other thoughts:

The Dexcom only needs to be recharged, and doesn't need batteries. This would probably be a savings of over 100 dollars over the course of a year of full time use.

The Dexcom people charge shipping and handling, which I hear can add up to 15 dollars per shipment. That could add up quick.

I hated dealing with Minimed customer service. Although they replaced the receiver twice, they were horrible with my financial transactions and with talking to insurance.

I hated the feeling of wearing the Minimed sensors and I hope the Dexcom ones would feel less painful.

I loved the data analysis, graphing, and predictive alarm features on the Guardian. I also loved that the screen stayed on. The Dexcom has none of these features. Even worse, the Dexcom has a low alarm that can't be turned off. This would make continuing to use the sensor as it fails probably worse because it reads a little low as it goes bad, and I could accommodate for that if I could turn off the alarms.

Dexcom users can't use tylenol. Probably not a big deal as I don't use tylenol.

The dexcom transmitter doesn't store data and you're not supposed to go swimming with it for more than 30 minutes. I don't go swimming often... but sometimes.

The shape of the dexcom makes buying additional tape to keep it down less likely to be necessary.



I went on a road trip in early June for a week and my Lantus needs went down.
I came home and my Lantus needs rose back to 8 units per day or so.
I left again after two weeks, and on the road I achieved steadyish overnight blood sugar with Lantus doses of 4-6 units.
I got home and my wake up numbers climbed. I took 8 units, 9 units, 10 units.
I woke up in the 200s, 300s, 300s, and more 300s.
I opened a new vial of Lantus.
I still woke up in the 300s. Not only that, but my daytime numbers kept rising out of nowhere, no food on board, 300s and 300s and I took 20 units of Novolog last night when my suppertime number was 316. I ate about 30 cabs (my usual ratio is 1:8, so that means I ate for about four units). I kept checking to see if I'd come down, but all I got down to was 180.

Well, finally I just rage basaled and took 15 units of Lantus last night. I woke up with a blood sugar of 75. But after breakfast I was up at 302. Hoping it would come down, I didn't correct; at 11 AM it was 324. I took 6 units of Novolog. At 12:30 it was down to 296. I left it alone. At 2:30 it was 90. At 2:50 it was 54. I ate 24 carbs of granola bar. At 3:25 it was 52. I ate a muffin and put lots of honey on top, then walked home, a distance of about a mile and a half. At 3:50 I was 132. At 4:50 I was 192 and I took 2 units. At 7:00, I was 232.