I was approved for the MM warranty replacement including the CGM. I had the whole training and wore it for about a week until I got fed up. First of all I can’t find a place to put it. I’m short and my torso is short. I had my pump on one side of the stomach and the sensor on the other and I couldn’t sleep. Every time I turned over I was on something else.
It was also pretty inaccurate. I calibrated when I was supposed to. At one point it was reading 400 and when I tested I was actually 200 - major diff.
I really would love to like the system so I need your tips and hints.
In terms of placement, I like my thighs (front and outer side). I usually put it on the same side of my body as the infusion set so that the pump and transmitter are as close as possible. My legs bleed a little bit more sometimes but I find it easier to place the transmitter in a place that doesn’t bend/tense so much.
Accuracy is a lot of trial and error, and still hit or miss. For insertion, I usually rock the senserter back just slightly so it goes in a bit shallower and get good results most of the time. I also hold the skin taught so that the inserter goes in with minimal manual assistance. For calibration, the first two readings are clutch, so make sure you’re as stable as possible (don’t eat for like 2h before or 20 min after). If I feel like it’s poorly calibrated then I’ll restart the sensor (sensor>sensor start>new sensor) and start from scratch.
To avoid the lag period for new sensors, I also put the sensor in the night before I plan to replace it. And when I get a sensor that just doesn’t have a good range, like it won’t go below 80 no matter what, I adjust my alert settings to help out.
It is a royal pain in the butt to optimize, but it’s worth the time in the end!!!
Thanks. I just tried in my upper, slightly outer thigh. We’ll see how it goes this time around. Insertion was good. Do you put the tape cover directly over the transmitter? That’s how I was trained to do it but it gets all gummy from it.
+1 on the thigh - all over my thigh, if I can reach the area, then that’s where the sensor goes. I go as far down as nearly 2/3 way to the knee in the winter, to the short line in the summer (which is only about 1" different). I also put my infusion set in the back of my arms often. The arms are the most comfortable for sleeping. I use a 43cm cannula for that and 23 for the abs. You can also put either one in your butt, again, I only put them where I can reach, which for me is high up on the sides of the butt.
There’s no difference between 400 and 200. The sensor (and your meter) are both most accurate ~100 and lose their ability to be accurate ~250, so there is no way for you to tell which one was more correct.
Here’s an update. I slept fine, the cgm was not in my way at all. I didn’t feel like I was going to dislodge it even with my tossing and turning.
On the other hand, I the transmitter had been sitting on the charger for a few months so I thought it was good to go. I had set it all up and went to work thinking it was fine. Well much to my dismay I found out shortly that the charge must have run out b/c I kept getting “weak signal” and “lost sensor” messages. Oh well. This morning I disconnected the transmitter to charge it and put it reconnected it. I chose “reconnect to lost sensor” on the pump. Did I do the correct thing?
Ouch!! on the thigh guys - I have no fat on my thigh and any insertion would hit muscle. At 155# 5’7" I have a narrow band around my stomach with loser than normal skin but no real concentration of fat - my best insertion is at my oblique - “lovehandle” area. I’ve tried the top of my glute - but the constant rubbing of my pants at the waist line caused a lot of discomfort.
I’m going to try pulling tight at the skin and adjusting for a shallower insertion - once in a while I’ll hit scar tissue and have a tough time pushing the needle (more like a spike really) in.
Having a “weak signal” and “lost sensor” message means that the pump is too far from the sensor and it’s loosing it’s signal. It’s not because it needs charging. If you get a “weak signal” for too long you will get a “lost sensor” reading. There’s no need to remove the sensor. Just turn it off and restart.
When I hadn’t used mine for a long time the MM rep told me to disconnect it for a minute and then place it back on the charger and let it fully charge.
My 2 cents on the placement of the sensor…I’m a thin person and the best places for me are on the back of my arms (need help to insert it), on the upper part of my backside and a little above my waistline on my back where there is enough tissue for a good pinch. Sometimes if I get a couple of lost signals or weak signals, I tape down the sensor part in the front with a bandaid or a small piece of Hypafix. I also put a small square of Hypafix under where the transmitter will be so it’s not touching my skin directly and then I tape down the whole thing with occulsive dressing. When I put it on my backside, if I feel like it isn’t flush to my skin because of curves or such, I place a small square of gauze under the transmitter. That way if it was pushed down it wouldn’t pull up on the sensor and give me errors. So it would go, Hypafix, gauze, transmitter and occlusive dressing(sp?).
It can’t be too far b/c the sensor is in my upper thigh and the pump was either clipped to my bra or in my pocket. It seemed to be working fine after I charged it. It said “warming up”. Then after an hour it said “weak signal” again. Now it says “warming up” again.
Do you think the sensor is bad? It’s been a very hot summer and the ac is not on in my room while I’m at work a whole day.
Well it was on pretty securely so I don’t think that’s the issue. It’s frustrating but I’m not going to go crazy. After all, it’s not like my pump isn’t working so there’s no safety issue. It’s just annoying.
I let it charge for about 20 min this morning btw so I can rule out the charging issue.
Try taping down the front if the sensor. Maybe it’s moving too much. I’ve had that happen before. You coukd also call Minimed. They can step you through some stuff. Many times they have gotten it to work for me. If its a bad sensor they will send you a replacement. I hope it gets working better for you.
I sometimes have weak signal and lost sensor warnings when I first start up mine. Even when I have my pump where I normally wear it (on my pants pocket). I usually move it around to different areas until it starts up and then move it back on my pants pocket. Then I don’t have trouble after that.
160 @ 5’10" and an avid runner so you don’t need a lot of subq fat, just a few mm. it’s thickest on the frontal/outer corner and towards the top. i do have to rock the senserter back, sometimes substantially, so it won’t go too deep. once you’re used to the angle then you won’t need to pinch.
the fat is more even on my thighs so there’s a lot more real-estate available to me by using them. now that i have the angle down i rarely have issues but still occasionally get some pain but it goes away quickly.
