Here’s How CGM Changed My Diabetes Management

2023-01-09

In 2014, at the age of 23, I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes (T1D). half of all humans With T1D, I was diagnosed as an adult and had a learning curve to adapt to this new way of life.

Successfully managing diabetes can feel like a full-time job, but with the right resources, toolguidance will help you check your blood sugar. Get a Continuous Glucose Monitor (CGM) is one of the best decisions for my diabetes management.

Learning to live with diabetes

Learning to monitor blood sugar levels is very important in managing diabetes. In my diabetes management, small but important calculations and decisions like carb calculations, insulin pre-bolus doses, list of foods to avoid, pizza split blouse (very important!) are part of my daily life. became.

Back then, my day was long and busy. After my diagnosis, I often sat through work meetings with hypoglycemia because I miscalculated my bolus. I waited until the meeting was over before rushing back to check my blood sugar and correct the low. All this because I didn’t want to disturb the meeting. It’s not that my colleagues were uncooperative. I didn’t want to be the person who would hold out for the whole meeting.

I say this because we all take time to learn to live with diabetes, and it often takes time to share our diagnosis with others. This applied to my personal life as well. Elevated blood sugar often caused me to cancel plans or eat dinner early.

Blood sugar readings have become part of my routine

In the early days of living with T1D, the most trivial and mundane activities started getting my attention because of how they affected my blood sugar. I had to quickly learn to be prepared to deal with the ups and downs.

To understand how exercise affects blood sugar levels, I started checking my blood sugar before, during, and after activity. Increase your basal insulin at the end of your cycle and check your blood sugar more often at the beginning of your period when blood sugar levels often crash.

Everyone’s list is different, but they have one thing in common. Managing diabetes requires a conscious effort. You cannot escape it.

Diabetes is called an “invisible disease”. How can you say I’m diabetic if you haven’t seen me inject myself with insulin or check my blood sugar? When they insisted on trying continuous blood sugar monitoring, I cautiously agreed.

Using CGM comes with a learning curve

I was skeptical of CGM at first. I don’t think I was quite ready to share my diagnosis openly yet.

Like everything before it, learning to live with CGM comes with a learning curve. By that time, I had learned the tricks of self-monitoring and knew that CGM would be a useful tool to help me better manage my diabetes.

After familiarizing myself with the latest diabetic devices, I realized that wearing a CGM would make a huge difference in managing my diabetes.

Here are four reasons why I love CGM.

1. Daily Blood Glucose Graph

Diabetes is different for each person. Different foods, situations, and activities affect people’s levels differently, and being able to see your blood sugar levels over a 24-hour period can help you discover your own unique patterns.

2. Fewer finger sticks

Before CGM, I tested my blood sugar at least 8-10 times a day. In my girlfriend’s CGM, all I have to do is prick my finger to calibrate the new sensor.

3. Convenient

Since I am often surrounded by people at work or while traveling, it is quick and convenient to be able to check my number with a sensor. (It can also be very discreet if that is your consideration!)

4. Diabetes Diary

Finally, I treat the sensor report as a diabetes journal. I learned this late in the game, but now have a copy of the CGM report. This will help you identify patterns you can share in your next Endo appointment (more on that below).

It doesn’t always replace a finger prick

CGM is part of the technology. It’s impressive, but not always accurate. If the CGM shows that it’s going low but you don’t feel it, or if you feel that a hypo is happening but the CGM doesn’t show the same, I always start with regular finger pricks. Use a test to check your blood sugar level.

How CGM Has Improved My Diabetes Management

It’s no exaggeration to say that CGM has helped me better manage my diabetes. Here are his three ways CGM has changed my diabetes management.

MORE DATA-DRIVEN DIABETES MANAGEMENT

For me, good diabetes management is a combination of small decisions made throughout the day. For example, if your fasting reading in the morning is 200 mg/dL and you are taking a correction dose, when it is time for your lunch bolus, knowing the trend of your current level will help you accurately calculate your bolus dose. I can.

When I started on CGM, I calculated my insulin-to-carb ratio based on my sporadic blood sugar levels throughout the day. Blood glucose measurements were taken six weeks after starting CGM use, and carbohydrate ratios were adjusted based on blood glucose data.

Identifying Foods That Affect Blood Sugar My CGM helped me identify foods that were bad for my blood sugar. Some proteins, like whole black grams (a popular snack in India, where I’m from), lead to delayed spikes, so I try to avoid eating them. Understood.

Another example: A protein like paneer takes 4-6 hours for my body to fully digest, causing my blood sugar to spike about 5 hours after eating. finish bowling.

Family and friends can track my level in real time

Many of the currently available CGMs do more than just monitor BG levels. For example, my parents, siblings and close friends track my number in real time.

This feature is also useful for children and those experiencing nighttime low pressure.

CGM Data + My Endocrinologist Appointment

My CGM data will help make your endo schedule fruitful. My endocrinologist asks all patients to log their food. With the food log and her CGM report handy, discuss peaks and valleys in the graph and see if diet or activity is to blame.

In diabetes, not all highs or lows have answers, but CGM can help you understand 90% of them.

I’m still getting new benefits from CGM

A year ago, I switched from using an insulin pen to using an insulin pump. Using myCGM with a pump is especially important for calculating basal doses.

With the help of my favorite diabetes tech, I was able to be in range about 85% of the time. I will continue to improve this figure.

Finally, in addition to its obvious benefits for diabetes management, CGM is a great conversation starter and spreads awareness about T1D.

Editor’s Note: Educational content related to continuous blood glucose monitoring is made possible with the support of Abbott Diabetes, an active Beyond Type 1 partner at the time of publication. Editorial control rests solely with Beyond Type 1.

Written by Chhavi Chadha, posted on 01/09/23, updated on 01/09/23

Chhavi is an auditor turned marketer who was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes as an adult in 2014. Her diabetes advocacy began to make “her invisible” visible. She earned her MBA in India and worked as a content strategist at her marketing agency in India before moving to Canada. When not at her job, she spends her time reading fiction and trying out one-pot her vegetarian recipes.