Number of times you test a day....type II

I just got word from Medicaid that since my previous provider wrote scripts for only 1 test strip a day (30) in a month, I can only have that many for the Month of November…I won’t even say where or how angry I am.

I don’t think I test excessively. Three - four times a day, more if I am having a low or a high…until I get a normal number. On average, I may use 90 - 100 strips a month. But once??? That’s not even safe nor healthy. What the ?(*&^%!

So just so I have something to go into the new PA with, please share with me, how many times other T2’s test a day. I am sure the new person will give me as many as I can get, but I want to go in with ammo to show her what I know. If this has been done here before, please help me with recent numbers, okay?

Thanks a lot. Good thing I fired the old one!

Cathy J

At least 2, for my morning fasting, and evening postprandial which are the most problematic… but sometimes up to 4… depending on how things are going, if I’m high, if I don’t feel well, etc.

I test about four times a day. But, some days I may test more if necessary.

About 5x/day, which my doc thinks is excessive (I’m diet-controlled) but I think is slacking. If my insurance doesn’t cover the quantity or brand I want, I just pay for them myself.

From as few as 1x a day to as many as 4x but I have been running excellent numbers. If that deteriorates I’m
Back to as-needed.

I test about 12 times a day. I am on metformin but I need to know the impact of excercise and food. If we
dont test as type 2’s how do we know how to adjust our meals and excercise.

so here is my test times

  1. Morning before breakfast

  2. 2 hours after breakfast - how would I know if I need to adjust food if I dont know what the meal impact was

  3. Lunch time - need to know what my number is before eating so i eat according to the number of carbs I need.

  4. 2 hours after lunch. Need to know what the meal did

  5. before I drive home. I have gone low on the way home and had to recover, plus if its decent number I dont eat a snack.

  6. Before dinner. Tells me what type of meal I can eat and the portions.

  7. I test before excercise. I can go from 200 to 60 in 15 minutes and then excercise is ruined. If I do an
    intense workout or long bike ride I test 3 to 4 times in a 1.5 hour span to make sure enough glucose is supplied.

  8. when I go to bed I test.

  9. I wake up in the middle of the night because I have trouble sleeping. I used to go low on just metformin and used to
    wake up shaking, confused, and fast heart beat. I check to make sure numbers are good. Depending on the type of workout
    I had I may go lower than I like to in the middle of the night.

Hope this helps.

I was told the same thing that medicaid would only pay for enough test strips to test once a day anymore than that I pay for out of pocket.

Tooooo many times, actually about 15 times, yep 15.

I run about 6 times a day.
First thing am for fasting / prior to breakfast, 2hrs later for after befast.
Before lunch then 2hrs later, befor dinner and 2hrs later.
Then if I’m feeling odd I will test. but thats rare.

At any rate, if insurance didn’t cover it I would buy them myself.
I cheated, My Dr prescribed twice a day, I went to the Pharmacy and told them I tested 6 times a day and my doc’s PA adjusted my prescription.

TEEHEE ask and thou shalt recieve.

I mainly test only twice a day, but test more if I feel low or if I need to know what my bg is at a particular time. Diabetes WA also advises us to test before we drive. One a day is not at all enough.

It was 2 until insulin got involved, now it’s 4.

I am type 2 and test 9 to 12 times a day during the week day on the weekend I test maybe 6 times

Average twice a day…fasting and before bedtime. However, I test more on occasions: when I eat something uncommon to me, when I’m sick, when I feel “different” than normal…
When I was newly diagnosed, I tested 4-5 times a day.

Thanks, WE all KNOW that once a day is NOT enough, but stupid docs that don’t have a clue are the ones running the show, I guess. I won’t forget the package that came with my new meter said “You are the one who knows the most about your diabetes care, we are just here to help”…AMEN, we do know more than most docs give us credit for. Gotta make the call now, and not going to argue, just ask as Fatman said… and then I will tell.

My script started as 2x a day. Once when i wake up, then one more throughout the day. Either a before or after meal reading, or a before bed reading. I would start testing after lunch to see how it was effecting me, so ic an get a better idea of what does what. I tried to refill y prescription early because i was running out of strips, and thye told me insurance would only pay for exactly the script amount. I went to the doc, asked for a 3x a day script to have leeway. He just doubled it instead. Now im all good. So… in short… 2-4 times a day, leaning towards 2 on most days.

7 to 10 times a day
Before each meal and 1 hr. and 2 hr. after. More if I’m experimenting with a new food, checking the effect of exercise etc.

Up until 6 moths ago I had achieved good control (A1C of 5.6) and I was testing about 5 times a day. Then I started having problems with after meal spikes. My A1C went up to 6.1 and appeared to be going higher. I had not changed my diet (40 to 50 grams of carbs/day) so this was something of a mystery. I then upped my testing schedule to try to figure out what the problem was. After much trial and error,I found I needed to give up coffee and up my exercise schedule.

My insurance does not pay for my strips so this was a significant investment on my part. I think the bean counters who limit the amount of strips they will pay for are being extremely short sighted. What is it going to cost them when complications from poor control arrive?

Granted many diabetics are not interested in testing that much, but they should at least be told that the only way to tight control is frequent testing. Tight control minimizes complications.Insurance company’s and medicare should pay for the extra strips if a person is willing to put out the extra effort.

It annoys me no end to read about people who wish to improve their control but can’t afford the strips. Without frequent testing you are flying in the dark.

I have had a couple of good weeks in a row and if my sugar stabilizes I will gradually cut back on my testing

Right now, I test four times on average. Breakfast and dinner. I would love to test more often but no insurance, money so I am trying to keep the cost of the strips down. I eat a smaller meals in the afternoon and keep them consistent so which is why I feel I can skip that but if I am eating something new or my numbers have been high that day I will test more often.

I started testing at six time (for every 3 meals) but I can’t afford it anymore.

I test 4 times a day or more. My perscription is for 2 per day. Somy insurance won’t pay for more than that.

But I found I can get them on the internet for not much more than my co-pay when I use my insurance. Check around, there are a bunch of sources.

I test anywhere from 5-8 times a day, depending on how my diabetes wants to behave.

average 5 x a day. My fasting numbers are usually my worst due to dawn phenomenon so I test fasting, 2 hrs after breakfast, before lunch, before dinner, before bed. Test more if eating something usual or if my numbers are off.