Have u tried Skin Tac and/or additional dressings? I use the Dexcom free overtapes for my G5 which easily keeps them secure for 7 days (I no long do restarts).
Oh, Dave, I try to remember. I didnāt this time. But, Iām putting on the over patch right now. Thanks for the reminder. 2 remaining sensors should almost get me to my next appointment. Its time for me to try some sensor restarts.
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Wow @mohe0001 anytime Iām calibrating my sensor itās only 5-10 points off when I check it. Those kind of differences would be aggravating.
mohe0001,
This is a very good presentation of data.
John
Thanks DrJohn. I guess I donāt think of this accuracy as that bad, @Marie20. It gets far worse. Its possible that I threw it off by calibrating first thing in the morning. I dont typically calibrate. But, I can experiment more since Iām doing 100 million manual finger sticks. Sometimes its over 150 points off - thats why I need to take a closer look at it.
FWIW, I am rarely doing calibrations (or finger-sticks) unless Iām feeling or intellectually questioning the reading.
Typically, when I do second-guess the G6 itās when I have bolused for a meal and three hours in I get a 
or 
coupled with an already high BG, or the reverse.
My general experience in those instances is that the CGM is nearly spot on and the anomalies are so varied and rare that I canāt detect a pattern.
YDMV!
@mohe0001 Our systems are all different of course. But one thing I noticed when I first started using my G6 was if I calibrated it at higher numbers, then the lower numbers were off.
In other words if I calibrated it at 150 because it was off, then the readings at 110 would then be off.
So I donāt bother to check it for calibrations at 150 or even 130, I will wait to calibrate when it is in the 95-105 range because that is when I am relying on it to dose for meals and also the range I want to stay in. And my correction doses wonāt be that far off at 120 etc. If I hit 150 it is because my timing or estimate was off in bolusing but I should already be on my way down. (Or sleeping).
So maybe try to pick a narrow range to calibrate it at. And then see if it is being accurate in that range for you? Because I hadnāt found it could be almost spot on accurate at 110 and then be that accurate at 150.
Are we even supposed to calibrate a G6? I just dont know how things work anymore. It does seem a lot more accurate today without the calibration - but, I changed the sensor last night as well.
The G6 is not supposed to need calibration, but Dexcom acknowledges that calibrations may be necessary. Which is yet another reason Iām miffed that Medicare supposedly wonāt provide coverage for strips. If I could have at least 100 or so per month, Iād feel comfortable (presuming the G6 isnāt a total disaster, accuracy-wise in my body).
@mohe0001 Much closer results!
I always calibrate the G6 sometime in the first 12 hours. I check it the first couple of days on a new sensor and about 5 days later and if a restart only the first day. Usually.
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I check it against a finger stick first thing in the a.m., sometimes again later on, but rarely calibrate unless itās way off, which it rarely is. During the erratic start-up period Iām more likely to calibrate, but try not to overdo it.
The G6 doesnāt require calibration after the initial 2-hour warm-up. Manual calibrations are supposed to be limited to the 20/20 rule - calibrate if your fingerstick is +/- 20% and the CGM is over 80 mg/dl; if your fingerstick BG is lower than 80 mg/dl calibrate if the CGM is off by 20 mg/dl.
Dexcom calibration guide here.
If you start a sensor without the code, you must calibrate twice after the 2-hour warm-up, once in 12-hours, then another time 12 hours later. After that you have to calibrate every 24 hours.
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Anyone confirm if medicare covers strips as prescription, under Part D after upgrade to G6 ?
If itās worth anything, Dexcom told me no strips ship with the Medicare G6.
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I donāt get them with my G6 shipments, but I never expected them either.
I know Dexcom says 20-30% is acceptable, but it is not to me and Iām sure not to others out there.
If I dose thinking I am at say 95, but really I am at 78, my dosing will be off and put me too low. If my sensor says I am at 130, but really I am 155, that is not okay either because it means I wonāt be taking enough of a bolus or correction.
And it definitely needs calibration. If you listen to Dexcom says that tells you itās okay to dose and be 20-30% off, then would you not need to calibrate. But thatās insane.
My G5 alerted me to reading of 263 after dinner tonight. I wasnāt happy. Before giving insulin I finger tested and was extremely relieved to see that I was at 119.
I put a new sensor in this morning at 7:30. Should I still be this far off 11 hrs later?
I calibrated a couple of times during the day due to false readings. Other reading were fairly accurate.
Am I doing something wrong. Should I only count on 6 days of accurate readings?
During those calibrations, do you recall if trend was relatively flat, or was it changing? Generally I try to calibrate when fairly flat, and Iām hydrated.
Ahhhh, I am probably never properly hydrated since I was dx with SIADH. I am limited to 50 Oz of fluid daily. That could be the problem. SIAHD has nothing to do with being a type 1 diabetic.
I am not overly fond of my CGM and can keep a very low A1c without it, so I may have to stop using it. It is very handy when out and about though.
Thanks for the response.
When I first started using Dexcom, it took awhile until it registered accuratelyā¦began using it 3 weeks after being diagnosed Type 1 so that was part of the problem. These days, 4 years later, inaccuracies are usually due to dehydration, sleeping on it, or trying to use a sensor for too long. Stick with it; it will get better!
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