A popular question I see in support groups is why do we wear a cgm, what are the benefits?
There are so many benefits to wearing a Dexcom CGM for me that I cannot even begin to list them all. The benefits to wearing a CGM, continuous glucose monitor, are just endless.
A very good place to start reading is here: http://www.dexcom.com/continuous-glucose-monitoring
Think of looking out a big picture window, you want to be able to see out the entire window right? Now imagine poking your finger 5-10 times a day. I want you to black out that big window with paper and cut how ever many holes in the paper that you poke your finger. That is what you get to see about your Diabetes everyday. You want to see the whole picture now don't you?
Now take all the paper off the window so you can see the whole picture again. That is what it is like to wear a Dexcom or any brand CGM. Your diabetes didn't go away in between times you checked your blood sugar did it? No, of course not. You have no idea what your blood sugar does after you eat, when you are sleeping, while you are driving and you have no idea weather it is going, up, down, steady, rising quickly, or dropping quickly. These are all things you need to know when you have Type 1 Diabetes or are taking insulin.
I have worn my Dexcom for four years every single day. That is 1,460 days of wearing a Dexcom 24/7/365 and there is no way I will stop wearing it. For me personally the data is priceless, it helps guide me in my journey with type 1 Diabetes.
I call my Dexcom my flashlight in the long dark tunnel of Diabetes. There are no substitutes and there are no other better tools for me to use at this time in the tool bag of Diabetes care.
A person can be battling their A1C and with finger sticks they look perfect but then they wear a Dexcom and find out that in between their blood sugar is way out of where they thought it was.
A CGM can help you obtain better management and help you to live a longer life with less complications. Diabetes management takes a lot of time in our lives and a lot of thinking and guessing carb content. A lot of times ours carb counts are wrong and that is why you need a CGM to tell you that you were wrong and help you do something about it before it becomes an issue.
Don't you still need to stick yourself to calibrate a couple of times a day?
ReplyDeleteIs the insertion difficult? Don't you have to do replace frequently?
What about clothing discomfort?
My sister was re-diagnosed from Type 2 to Type 1 (Late adult onset) and has 3 very rambunctious sons...