Sticking with the Dexcom

I wanted to share my new way of keeping the Dexcom sensor attached to the skin.  You'd think that for something that is supposed to last 7 days the adhesive would be stronger...even waterproof.  Especially considering their price.   Because after 2 baths it is peeling up to the point of needing tape or something to hold it on.  We even had to change to a new sensor once because of this. It just came off in the bath! The paper tape I found would do nothing. The tape roll I had from the hospital..the stuff they use to keep IVs in place was pretty rough on her skin and left grey adhesive-goo streaks on her skin that she did not enjoy me trying to scrub off with alcohol.   The IV3000 didn't work for her and I couldn't find Tegaderm in the form of anything other than a bandaid at the store.  I was horrified at the price of the tape rolls (like Rock tape that I had read is great) and Tegaderm that I found online.  So, I found these WATERPROOF Band-aid patches....and they are working  Through baths and everything.  And when it is time for them to come off, they come off with only a little discomfort.  Well, like a Band-aid:)   I just cut out the center padded portion and it fits around the sensor.  So far I have waited until it the original sensor adhesive starts peeling up before using the patch, but next time I may just go ahead and put it on immediately with the sensor change.  If the sensor adhesive is already peeling up you should trim off what has peeled up. The patch is just barely bigger than the sensor adhesive, so if it is peeling up, the patch will stick to the part that is peeled up with only a tiny bit overlapping to stick to the skin.  We are only on our second patch...because it works so well...the first one came up on the edge because I hadn't trimmed the original adhesive.  Learning process!  Here are some pictures:

Dexcom G4 Platinum

Today I inserted my sweet girl's third Dexcom sensor.  So we have had 2 full weeks working with her new (and first) CGM system.  The verdict? We love, Love, LOVE it.  Why in the world are these things not included in the "your child has diabetes...here are the supplies you need" motherload  received when children/families leave the hospital after diagnosis?  It is SO (repeat SO, SO) helpful to be able to see where she has been and where she is going.  I feel like her a1c has surely improved just in these 2 weeks...and we have had some highs (another issue to be mentioned shortly) but correcting is so much easier when it is definitely noticed faster than waiting for the "I don't feel good" that I used to hear a couple hours after she ate or being able to realize that a pump infusion set surely has gone bad when she is not responding to the insulin that I "gave" her.  And catching and treating lows is even better.  To see 5 minutes later or 10 minutes later that she is no longer dropping...to be able to catch the low before she GETS low in the first place is FANTASTIC. 

So...my take on how easy it is to use, etc..:  Well, there is no "training session" as there was with her pump.  We received her Dexcom on our doorstep via FedEx on New Year's Eve...coincidentally her one year diabetes-iversary...quite a gift:)...and got it out of the box...found the "tutorial CD" to insert in the computer and got started.  We watched the CD completely through, then re-watched the insertion steps as I inserted her first sensor.  Very good tutorial and we had no trouble following the instructions.  The only issue I had was not knowing how hard to push on the transmitter when attaching it to the sensor.  Have to be a little more firm with it than I would think and it is hard trying to do this on a 7-year-old's belly when I don't know how it is supposed to feel yet and I don't want to hurt her and she's a bit nervous about the unfamiliar procedure...and (unbeknownst to her) so am I.  But we managed.  I think it would be easier and no problem for an adult doing this on themselves for the first time.  It really is THAT easy.  And...the trick that I learned (thanks to my husband's suggestion after he watched me do the insertion) is for me to stand behind her and insert as I am looking down over her shoulder as someone inserting into their own belly would do.  It is much less awkward that way.  Also...have been doing some reading of others who use the system and they say that they get the best sensor readings on the back of their arm.  The tutorial says to only insert on the abdomen.  SO...will do more research to figure out what is up with that.  Real estate on the abdomen is going to get hard-to-come-by between a sensor every week and pump site changes every 3 days. 

So..the aforementioned highs...she was diagnosed as having hypothyroidism after the blood work done at her check-up at the end of December.  Whatever attacked her beta cells in her pancreas is now going after her thyroid.  Nice, right?  Not.  So, she has started taking thyroid hormone via a pill each morning.  I have read and her doctor told me that having hypothyroidism can make blood sugars hard to control.  Well, yeah, we have experienced that.  And the too-often-stated "I don't feel good" that has left me wondering how in the world am I ever going to send this child to school...maybe I can attribute some of that to a dying thyroid and hope that her new meds will improve how she feels on a daily basis.  BUT...a few days after starting the med (levo-thyroxine) we had some wacky highs.  WACKY.  I mean so bad that I changed out her infusion set a day early thinking it must be that...surely she was not getting any insulin.  But it didn't help.  So I changed basal rates a pretty good bit and that helped.  A lot.   So....she needs more insulin while on this med? I don't really understand it, but if it works, I don't guess I have to.  Besides, who REALLY understands diabetes?  There really is no rhyme or reason to some of the numbers that show up on that meter or CGM receiver. Just have to take the number and use it to get her where she needs to be. 

Begin Again

My sweet girl has a practically perfect Diabetes-iversary. It is December 31. Today ( or rather yesterday, since it is now 2013) marks one year since her diagnosis. It has been the most warp-speed year. It seemed to pass by so quickly. Living life in 2 hour increments between blood sugar checks and snacks, etc. can do that I suppose. And I still feel so new to this disease and like I have so much to learn, but I HAVE learned so much. But the reason that today I found that this is the perfect day for an anniversary of diabetes is that it is a day for pondering new beginnings..a fresh start. Take a deep breath and begin again. We made it through year one. The ball drops. On with year two. We can do this.

So...the perfect gift for her diabetes-iversary? FedEx dropped off her new Dexcom G4 Platinum CGM (pink, of course!) this morning at 8:45. How cool is that? So new year, new device to hopefully help us handle the crazy swings a bit better. We spent a good portion of the day watching the tutorial and reading along in the user guide. We inserted the sensor ..no problem! She cried in advance...fear of the unknown is greatest for her but she wanted it badly And she is truly so brave. She watched the entire tutorial with me. That impresses me at age 7. Before the insertion we got out a minute and watched an insertion done by a mom on a little boy about 2 or 3 years of age. Super kiddo who was brave and who showed that it obviously didn't hurt. His was a Dex 7..sensor insertion looks the same though. Then for good measure we also watched Lorraine's Caleb get his very first sensor inserted. He seemed a bit nervous but was brave and said it didn't hurt. Thanks to both of these ladies for posting these videos. They were helpful. My sweet girl was put at ease and we inserted with no problems and no tears. It hasn't been quite smooth sailing tonight, but I know from all I've read that will come with time. We haven't even done the 12 hour calibration yet! Right now she's been at 124-135 with a forward arrow for about 3 hours. Not too shabby:).

We discussed this morning whether it should be called her "diaversary" or her "diabetes-iversary". She voted for the latter. Why? " Because 'diaversary' sounds like 'die' ". Good point. Diabetes-iversary it is !

Photo-a-day Challenge

I'm WAAAY behind on posting photos, but it's hard to find time to post when taking care of ol' diabetes, right? But I have had it in the back of my mind and have been taking pictures here and there that are appropriate for each day's catagory. So here are a few. I may have to skip a day here and there. Gotta do this while I have the moment:)

Ooops

So my sweet girl ate lunch today...she had a typical weekday lunch for her. It was what my mom used to call a "mix" when my siblings and I were growing up. It consisted of some strawberries (10 carbs), 5 saltine crackers(10 carbs), some mammal-shaped cheese crackers(10 carbs) and a 3/4oz slice of cheese. She had eaten some Chick-fil-A nuggets(12.6 carbs) for a snack a couple hours earlier when we were out so this is all she wanted at the time. Well, her BS was 126...I bolused for the 30 carbs and she ate all that was on her plate. Then she decided she wanted more crackers..I tried to talk her out of them..which is something at which I succeed more often than not..but she was still HUNGRY and more cheese or a 7carb mini-yogurt would not do. So I have her 3 more crackers and another slice of cheese and waited to bolus because she had said that wouldn't be enough. But it was...she jumped out of her chair and began to play...and I forgot about the second bolus. So we ended up with a 294 a couple hours later. Chalk another one up in the pro-CGM column. So far, the only negative I have is having to wear something else and having another site to care for and change. The "pros" are many. And my sweet girl is very excited about the idea of getting one. Now of we can just get doctor and insurance approval ! Don't laugh...it could happen.

T1D4ADAY

This month JDRF is offering this cool experience for those who, for one day, would like to have a little better idea what goes on in the life of a person living with type 1 diabetes (T1D) on an EVERYDAY basis. So, before I recommended this to family and friends, I did this myself to see what it was like and how close to accurate it was. To sign up you just text T1D4ADAY to 63566 and they will begin your day the following day or the next, depending on how late you send in the text. They will send you texts throughout the day as if the texts were your own thoughts about managing your own type 1 diabetes. It sounds like an adult with T1D, so it is a bit different than a parent managing their child's, and different than a child managing their own during the school day. But, for me, as the mom of a young child with T1D, I found it a interesting and sobering and heartbreaking peek into her adult life.... When I'm not there to back her up and help her decide how to handle each situation she is faced with...when I'm not there to say, "Hey, it's ok...we can fix this".

So...I recommend to all this month to take a day to "have" type 1 diabetes. Then share it with anyone you know who might also be willing to learn. JDRF is doing a FANTASTIC job and there is some great hope on the horizon for better technology to manage this disease. And they are working to find the cause and a way to prevent this auto-immune disease from occurring. Please check out your local JDRF walk or bike ride...or just donate if you can. Thank you:)

Never ending

So I've compared having a child with diabetes to having a newborn. The level of constant care and attention and planning is similar. And today I was reminded again of this as we spent hours out on an errand that should not have taken that long. But when you have to stop and check blood sugars, stop to treat a low, stop for a needed snack...it adds up in time similar to the amount of time it takes for the diaper changes and feedings needed when out with a newborn. But diabetes doesn't grow up and need less care. Even those beautiful people who have been managing it for decades still have highs that require an impromptu pump site change in the vehicle or lows that stop them in their tracks, demanding to be fed. My sweet girl will have 60 or 70 YEARS of caring for diabetes. Overwhelming if I stop to think about that.