This may be a silly question (just started with my Dexcom last weekend), but when you want use a sensor for longer than a week, do you have to pretend that you are using a new one, and go through the 2 hour start-up process?
In other words, is there some way to avoid the transmitter's shut down at the end of 7 days before/after it happens?
Thanks in advance!
Leata
You have to pretend that you are using a new sensor.
There is no way to avoid the transmitter's shut down at the end of 7 days before/after it happens.
Well, you can manually stop it and restart it for the 2 hour calibration/marination period. You don't HAVE to wait until it shuts down. But no way to bypass the shutoff after 7 days.
Shoot, I thought that must be the case, but thought I'd check. Thanks!
Yes, but for me it does not take the full 2 hours. It starts up much quicker. Jo
That was one advantage (maybe the only one LOL!) of the Medtronic CGMS when I used theirs, if you could restart, it was a instant calibration required. I usually will stop the dex sensor on the day it is to quit when my alarm goes off in the morning, then hit restart and in most cases, I can input sugars and get it going again before I leave the house or before my day gets to involved.
Some additional points to make:
1) The G4 will display a warning message several hours before it's due to stop the sensor, so you can plan to stop it manually at a time that's more convenient for you to wait 2 hours and recalibrate (rather than have the G4 stop when it decides to).
2) I keep track on my calendar of whether it's a week when I've changed the sensor, or a week when I'm reusing the sensor... sometimes I can't recall which is which unless I write it down (old-timer's syndrome, I suspect).
3) Depending on my mood and whether the tape holding it in place is still looking good, I may try to get a few more days out of a functioning sensor, or may say the heck with it, and change the sensor at the two-week mark.
On the G4 you can look up the insertion time under Settings/Device Info.
Cool! Learn something every day... Thanks.
Thank you everyone! I appreciate the info!
Amazing.
You are the fist who does not need exact two hours of Calibration.
You are so lucky.
Everyone on Dexcom has needed two hours of Calibration at start up.
It does not take me the full 2 hours either when I go past 7 days...
Me too, takes two full hours the second time around. Same with third start up.
I have only extended mine twice, since I am a new user, but it took mine a couple of minutes over 2 hours each time...hmmm. I don't know why. And yes, I was hyper as a new user I watch it like a boiling pot of water.
Yep, but that is only for the last insertion. If it is more than a week I may forget so I set it in my gmail calendar as a reminder.