Seven and a half years after my T1 diagnosis, I am finally enjoying a CGM! It has been almost two weeks since I received my Dexcom Platinum G4 in the mail, and what a two weeks it has been. My diabetes journey has been full of ups and downs, as is common with most T1’ers. Since moving from Rhode Island to Manhattan almost four years ago, my diabetes management took a strain. Living in a new city with new surroundings, including a new preschool teaching position, I developed anxiety over the fear of lows. Although I am lucky enough to have never experienced extreme hypoglycemic symptoms, the fear of experiencing that on a crowded subway, a wonderfully chaotic classroom, or a busy NYC street was enough to scare me into keeping my blood sugars higher than recommended. Obviously, this fear took a toll on my A1C. I was consistently living with an A1C of 8.5%, not horrible but not where I wanted it to be.
Fast forward three years, and here I am with an A1C of 6.9%, achieved with my pump and glucometer, improved understanding of my diabetes related anxiety, and hard work. When my doctor suggested a CGM, I was thrilled. After reading Ryan’s blog and seeing how important his CGM was to his daily living and exercise, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on one. As a runner myself, I was excited to start mentally enjoying my runs instead of playing the guessing game: how is my blood sugar trending? Am I going to get low? Can I make it ten more minutes before testing again or will my impatience get the best of me?
As with any technology, the cliché is true: the machine is only as smart as its user. I was warned by my doctor to not constantly look at my CGM, or to stop testing my blood sugar all together. Knowing how to use my CGM is a huge part to making this a successful tool. The first few days, I did exactly the opposite of what my doctor suggested: I was looking at the receiver every five minutes and testing it against my glucometer readings; I was calibrating most of these readings, further throwing off the CGM technology; I was waiting for the CGM to mess up and have to live with the scary consequences of a low blood sugar. As the days when on I began to look at the trend arrows, just as much as the blood sugar readings, and to only calibrate twice a day. The most important lesson I have learned so far, however, was to trust my own body and sense of blood sugar, just as I have been doing for the past seven and a half years.
I cannot wait to see how using the CGM will impact my A1C, my overall mental health, and my exercising. Tomorrow I will run my first race with my CGM in Central Park. It will take a lot of emotional strength, but I have decided to leave my “diabetes running kit” behind and just bring my CGM and “smarties” for the race. I am going to allow the CGM to do its job and in return promise to be supportive, trusting, and confident in my new buddy.
Fast forward three years, and here I am with an A1C of 6.9%, achieved with my pump and glucometer, improved understanding of my diabetes related anxiety, and hard work. When my doctor suggested a CGM, I was thrilled. After reading Ryan’s blog and seeing how important his CGM was to his daily living and exercise, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on one. As a runner myself, I was excited to start mentally enjoying my runs instead of playing the guessing game: how is my blood sugar trending? Am I going to get low? Can I make it ten more minutes before testing again or will my impatience get the best of me?
As with any technology, the cliché is true: the machine is only as smart as its user. I was warned by my doctor to not constantly look at my CGM, or to stop testing my blood sugar all together. Knowing how to use my CGM is a huge part to making this a successful tool. The first few days, I did exactly the opposite of what my doctor suggested: I was looking at the receiver every five minutes and testing it against my glucometer readings; I was calibrating most of these readings, further throwing off the CGM technology; I was waiting for the CGM to mess up and have to live with the scary consequences of a low blood sugar. As the days when on I began to look at the trend arrows, just as much as the blood sugar readings, and to only calibrate twice a day. The most important lesson I have learned so far, however, was to trust my own body and sense of blood sugar, just as I have been doing for the past seven and a half years.
I cannot wait to see how using the CGM will impact my A1C, my overall mental health, and my exercising. Tomorrow I will run my first race with my CGM in Central Park. It will take a lot of emotional strength, but I have decided to leave my “diabetes running kit” behind and just bring my CGM and “smarties” for the race. I am going to allow the CGM to do its job and in return promise to be supportive, trusting, and confident in my new buddy.
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