I use a Medtronic 670G & Guardian 3. As any user of this pump & CGM knows, it is not uncommon to be asked to “Enter BG”. However, sometimes I am unsure whether I should let the pump use the BG for calibration, bolus, both, or neither. There are 3 reasons that I may do a BG:
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Meal BG: I always do a BG before a meal so that I can include an appropriate correction bolus along with the bolus for any carbs I may be eating. I always do a bolus with this BG (even if it calculates the bolus to be 0), that is pretty much the reason I did the BG in the first place. I usually do a calibration with it as well; my goal is to do enough calibrations this way that I can minimize the need to do other extra BGs for calibration. The only times that I would not do a calibration with a meal BG is if I recently did a calibration (so that I don’t “overcalibrate”) or if my CGM claims I am excessively high, excessively low, or very rapidly rising or falling.
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Enter BG Alert: As any 670G user knows, it is not unusual to see an “Enter BG” message. Although this is a pain in the neck, it is worth doing in order to keep yourself in Auto Mode. However, when the result is sent to the pump, I am sometimes unsure whether I should let it calibrate, do a correction bolus, both, or none. I don’t want to “overcalibrate”, but I’m not sure if I will be giving the pump what if wants if I don’t select calibrate. Sometimes it is hard to know whether I should let it do a correction bolus, especially when you are asked for multiple BG(s) or if you recently did another bolus that may or may not still be taking effect.
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Calibrate Now Alert: You will see this alert if you ended up waiting the limit before calibrating (which I have occasionally done, especially if it decides it wants one in 6 hours instead of 12 or I skipped a calibration due to one of the previously mentioned reasons) or while doing the initial calibration after inserting a new sensor. I will obviously calibrate with this BG, that is why I did it. However, I am not always sure whether to let it do a correction for the same reasons mentioned above.
I obviously don’t want to do more than necessary with the BG (overcalibrate, do unnecessary boluses, etc.), but I do want it to accomplish the goal that I did the BG for. Can anybody give any input on this? Is there any way to determine whether the BG will satisfy the pump’s Enter BG request? How do you decide whether or not to let it do a calibration? I am willing to do the necessary amount of BG(s), but I still want to minimize them and make sure they are doing what I expect them to. Thanks.