I have recently been diagnosed with T1D and I am giving myself injections at mealtime and long lasting every 24 hrs to stabilize my BG levels. I do not plan on switching to a pump in the near future, but I am considering a CGM. I discussed this with my endo and she did not recommend using a CGM unless I was using a pump and she didn't really explain the drawbacks of a CGM + injections. Will the CGM still be worth it if I am using injections or will it be a waste of money? The thing that is so attractive to me about the CGM is that it can tell me if I'm trending low before I start to feel too bad.I play division 1 college soccer and a CGM would really be a live saver to me.... but would it be as affective in tandem with injections?
Hello Bailey.
I use a medtronic 5230 G with an enlite CGM system, You would want to get a dexcomm CGM if you were going to do this. As for separating a dexcom from a pump, we do have at leas tone member who has done this and he feels it has been beneficial to him. I imagine there are more I just do not know them.
As for the benefits? I do feel that combining the two devices is likely best. the reason I say this is because a pump allows for instant fine adjustments in dosing. Injections are far more long term in nature. If you think of it when you take insulin you are committing to eat a certain amount usually well before the true active period of the insulin. With a pump the two actions are pretty close together. You eat you dose only for the amount you are eating. In essence with a pump you inject based on what you have eaten. When you use MDI ( multiple daily injections) You basically eat to your injections. It is a very big difference.
I used MDI for 28 years and I did not want to get a pump. At this point now after 10 years of using a pump I woudl never go back. They are just so much better for me.
Still one method is not necessarily that much better than the other. If you are willing to take more injections it is more a matter of preference.
I wish I had done it earlier. as for the CGM? A dexcom will give you information you cannot necessarily use while doing MDI. Again it takes longer to act and you get stuck having taken more insulin than you wish to to eat for. I find the convenience of the pump absolutely incredible.
I wish you the very best.
rick
Thank you for your opinion I will keep that in mind. What kind of information does the dexcom give that is not useful while doing MDI?
Mdi is just as fast as pump bolus. It’s the fast acting insulin that makes it fast. I first found out about fast insulin when a doctor put me on what he called the poor mans pump, a long acting non peaking insulin and injections with food and for corrections.
I'm on MDI for the moment along with a dexcom. It helps me immensely not only with hypo warnings, but I've been able to pinpoint when my long acting takes effect, and when it loses it. I think the cgm would be a benefit to every T1, whether mdi or pump. There's only so much info to get from 10 readings a day. To answer your second post, I don't think there is any unlawful information to be had. The more info we have, the better we can tailor our insulin treatment!
Amanda would have a better opinion about the viability of the Dexcom and MDI. I need to revise what I said above. All information is good regardless of how you act on it. In my opinion the dexcom would give you two things, low and high notification and trend which is your blood sugar movement going up or down and when.
I will leave it to the current MDI's to comment on the situation you pose, and gracefully bow out.
Hi Bailey, I have had T1D for 39 years and only last year started pumping. I did however get a Dexcom in Nov. 2012 and it has been life changing for me. I spent the first 6 months with the Dexcom on MDI and it taught me so much about the way my blood sugars change in response to foods and exercise. It alerts me to highs and lows and allows me to exercise safely. In my humble opinion, every T1 whether on MDI or pumps can benefit from having a CGM. It also made setting my pump basal rates much easier.
I am on the animas pump and use Dexcom G4 platinum. If I had to choose between the two I would choose the Dexcom and go back to shots. The information that it gives you and how your blood sugar trends is invaluable. Also the alarms have been a savior for me. I like the pump for convenience but I do not believe you have to have a pump to see the benefit of the CGM.
I would dump my insulin pump before I would think of giving up my CGM. I get more useful information from my CGM. Why an insulin pump helps if your basal rates are drametcally different at different times of the day, my rates are relatively stable and could be handle with MDI.
i started on dexcom about seven months ago and made the next step to a pump recently. i had no idea really how my bg reacted throughout the day and to certain things, like coffee before i got the dexcom. Also eased me into having something on my body all the time and changing sensors regularly. I never really understood the full advantages of a pump either, particularly the slow and steady supply of insulin and how that smooths out BG. I think the cgm is definitely worth it.