Continuous Glucose Monitors (CGMs for short!) provide people with diabetes an option to receive alerts to high or low readings to stop them in their tracks. Products like the Dexcom G6 allow users to see their blood glucose readings in real time through a wearable sensor, alongside insight into the direction and rate of change of the user’s glucose levels. This technology is exciting; but sometimes, taking the leap to new technology is hard to do.
Before we get into this blog, I should tell you a bit about myself! My name is Kendra, and I’m CIM’s Communications Coordinator. I was diagnosed with T1D, and recently celebrated my 20th diaversary. For the first 20 years of my life with T1D, I was in a full-blown love-hate (okay, mainly hate) relationship with finger pricks & my glucometer. For the first decade or so of my diagnosis, they were really my only option. Mentally, I think I sort of accepted my fate, and just settled into a routine with finger pricks. Of course, in recent years a variety of Flash and Continuous Glucose Monitoring technology have become widely available for people with diabetes to monitor their blood glucose readings. Despite hearing people rave about these products and the freedom it brought them, I had absolutely no interest in making the switch.
Disclaimer: Please check out CIM’s Partners Page to learn more about the companies we work with. It’s important for CIM to recognize and to disclose that our writing may be biased based on the fact that Dexcom provides sponsorship and support to CIM. We work hard to get information into the hands of the diabetes community whenever we feel it may help people live life without limits.
Shortly after my T1D diagnosis. My mum claims I was making this face because I had just asked for halloween candy & she got my glucometer out first. Apparently my dad just had to snap a pic. I believe it!
Just another picture of me in the early years of my life with T1D. Wish I still had those pajamas!
I’ve always been a bit of a dinosaur when it comes to diabetes tech, and CGMs were no exception. When I was still relying on finger prick exclusively, I shamelessly used the same style of poke (does everyone call it that?! Maybe it’s just a me thing!) that I started using during my diagnosis in the year 2000 until 2017 when it broke & I realized it wasn’t worth tracking down a new one (or tracking down the right lancets for it!). Yes, that’s right, 2000 – the year of Y2K, the Sydney Olympics, and Coldplay’s debut album. Using something new kind of scared me, and life with diabetes can already feel scary and unpredictable enough as is. There was a sort of comfort in using the same tools, even if they weren’t totally working when better options were available.
I also (a little subconsciously) struggled with the idea of making my diabetes visible. Sure, taking out your whole glucometer set up can feel awkward in some situations, but it felt less intimidating than having a device visible on my body. I like to think of myself as a confident person, and I’ve never intentionally shied away from discussing my diabetes or revealing it to others. That being said, I haven’t had the desire to encourage people to discuss my diabetes unprovoked. I think a part of me viewed diabetes technology as a flashing neon arrow that said “hey, I’m a bit different!” and that made me uncomfortable.
All of that aside, a combination of attending my first Slipstream, followed by my 20th diaversary, triggered a total mental shift in how I wanted to approach my diabetes management. Not only did I get my very first pump, but I also decided to give the Dexcom G6 CGM a try. Spoiler alert – I’m pretty darn happy with that decision. One of the biggest changes for me has been feeling significantly less stress around my blood glucose readings. I feel like I have a deeper understanding of the patterns my blood sugars take throughout the day, and it’s allowed me to adapt my strategies for high and low blood sugars to keep things relatively steady on the average day. Being more frequently in tune with what my blood sugars are doing is also a big deal – whipping out my glucometer all the time could be a hassle, and I have to say that I would definitely go longer than I’d like to admit between testing my sugars sometimes.
Could DEFINITELY get used to these sites with a CGM!
Of course, it’s not all sunshine and rainbows… at least I got a notification!
Of course, that’s not to say my life is entirely stress free with a CGM. If I’m having what I consider to be a rough diabetes day, sometimes the alerts can start to get to me! However, they’re also a stark reminder of how thankful I am to be notified of changes in my readings, especially if they start to move into potentially dangerous territories. This was not a luxury I was afforded when only using a glucometer. This especially comes in handy with low blood sugars. I rarely feel my hypos, often if I’ve dropped super low, and generally don’t feel them at all. This can be really scary! Having a CGM does alleviate that stress, and I’m made aware of and often able to tackle my hypos before they become a serious issue.
The CGM’s alerts also allow me more flexibility in my life. I generally keep pretty busy – between grad school, work, community commitments and the like, diabetes always feels like another full-time job on top of it all. I’m sure you can all relate! On those days when life is twisted upside down, having a CGM let’s me feel more comfortable about checking out of diabetes a little bit – while not entirely fool-proof, it’s a relief knowing that if I start to drop or go higher than I’d like, I’ll be alerted so I can take action.
Finally, I have to say that starting to use wearable diabetes tech has really changed my mindset with regards to my diabetes. While wearing a CGM did take some getting used to, I no longer feel like it’s drawing attention to me – and when someone does ask me about it, I’m cool to talk about my diabetes. If anything, learning more about all of the available tech options has me excited to talk about what’s out there! Taking the plunge to get a CGM was a scary decision in a lot of ways – but now that I have it, I can’t imagine life without it.
