OK, this is insane. I've eliminated the false lows at night of my Freestyle Libre 3 Plus continuous glucose monitor, but... Twice this week (one just now) I've just been sitting here watching a video about 1.5 - 2 hours after a normal meal and gotten the LOW alarm saying my blood sugar's around 54. Knowing I just ate, I sucked up my needle fear and severely low pain tolerance (the whole reason I HAVE the CGM) and jabbed my finger. No, blood sugar is actually 123! Then the Libre shot back up to a normal level reading within a minute.

What. The. Fuck.

I am sick of this. I like how small it is and that it lasts 2 weeks, but i cannot keep dealing with these false lows. How is faulty performance like this acceptable? Not in my book, it isn't. My brother has used a Dexcom G7 for about a year now and literally never has these false alarms. It's bigger and only lasts 10 days, but I can't deal with this bullshit anymore. I will be discussing a switch at my next Dr's appt. Alas, I cannot recommend this product due to poor reliability when all other variables have been accounted for and it's proven wrong.

Well, next week should be interesting. My continuous glucose monitor, a Freestyle libre 2, is being discontinued in September in favor of the 3 Plus. So, per the email recommendation, I've had my provider change the prescription. I now have the new one waiting when this one runs out next Tuesday. And honestly, I'm really hoping for improved performance.

The 3+ has a 15-day wear, a range of 33 feet Bluetooth, better alarm control, and can work with insulin pumps. (which, thank the gods, I do NOT have) And it's smaller. But my 2 has shown a marked tendency to be easily affected by several things that cause it to give off false lows when I'm laying down at night or for a nap. Accidental compression, excessive sweat without hydration, it hates I had an electric blanket on, etc. I don't wear it on the side I sleep on, but I've found myself sleeping on my back more often to humor it and that actually is quite uncomfortable for me. It's gotten to the point where I had to turn off my phone to keep it from giving me false low alarms every hour and a half or so. And I know they were false because they were compared to a blood stick, which I also broke down and bought. I still have a LOT of difficulty actually sticking myself, which was the point of the CGM in the first place.

It's all education, I know, learning about what works for me. But when you have fibromyalgia's sleep problems to start with... I was close to throwing that phone through a wall to get it to shut up! I did some reading and apparently I'm not the only one with false low issues. Maybe that's why they're discontinuing it. *shrug* We shall see. If the 3+ really isn't any better, I'll go to the Dexcom which my brother wears and literally never does that. I'm hoping not, it's a bit more expensive.

Now, patches. As you saw in a previous post, I also have these patches/bandages that are popular to hold it on. Does one last the full 14 days? No, they're full of shit about that. But it lasts about a week, which isn't horrible. I would say if someone also exercises a lot or showers a lot more because of that, it's not going to last even that long. I tried going without and the CGM's own adhesive was wearing off a little around day 5. So they do help hold it on. To be fair, it's been unseasonably warm lately even for here, so sweat has been an issue. But given I live in a desert and it's barely spring, I have to find an adequate solution. The Libre, unlike the Dexcom, does NOT come with an alcohol wipe with each applicator, which feel a bit... cheap. Like, Dexcom apparently does. You couldn't put one little alcohol wipe in with it when I'm supposed to use one? I have them, but that's not the point. Even my Ozempic comes with one wipe for each injection.

Ah well. That's my rant. Otherwise, I've just been writing and have submitted some more poetry to journals. Fingers crossed for acceptance! Peace and hugs to everyone in these trying times.

OK, I have to share this cause I'm impressed. So, having diabetes, (big frowny face), I've discovered my blood sugar takes a dip overnight. Sometimes alarm-low. But to fix that, a little protein just before bed keeps it evened out. The best way I've found to do that is a small protein shake. I've been trying different powders to find one I like and last night was a big win.

The brand is Rule One. It's a whey protein powder that mixes with milk very well. (I'd never mix with water like some of them say, that's gross.) I had the chocolate fudge flavor and holy cow is it good. Rich and truly chocolatey, it satisfied that sweet craving as well while only having 1g of sugar per serving. I got mine on Amazon for about $14.99 for a 1-lb bag, making it just barely over $1 per serving. Well, that's decently less than the other brands of pre-made shakes in their little juice box sizes. I use a 20-oz Blender Bottle.

I will absolutely be trying the other flavors and look forward to the "toasted cinnamon cereal". Which made me smile since they can't use the name, but I love cinnamon flavored stuff. 24g of protein per serving kept my blood sugar steady for about 7.5 hours of sleep and the half hour between drinking and actually going to bed. I do that so my acid reflux doesn't act up from laying down right away. So, yeah. Highly recommend.
amazon.com/dp/B0CQM97P3Z

So now that I've had them almost a week, I'm reviewing the patch bandage things that I bought off amazon as covers for my continuous glucose monitor on my arm. Mine is a Freestyle Libre 2 and does not come with covers like a Dexcom does. (I'll work on it, I don't know why my images are only showing up in photos, not in the post themselves. They do have ALT text, though.)

These, so far, do NOT last. The sensor is on your arm for 14 days before you replace it. This patch lasted 6 days, I just put a new one on. They come in white people flesh tone, baby crib pink, or the rainbow assorted pack I bought that includes the "skin" tone and black. I've used the two "skin" tone ones now.

First off, the backing is divided into thirds. Although the package markets these to the Freestyle Libre sensors, the backing is not cut with a circle in the middle of it, which is a pain in the butt. I took the recommendation of a lot of amazon reviewers and left the paper on in the center over the sensor to make it easier to remove. I'm glad I did, but being cut in a strip meant I had to measure the width of the sensor and cut the paper correctly, an extra step. It's not hard to position and put on, though, much like a fabric Band-Aid with peeling off one piece of paper at a time.

Over the 6 days, though, the edges started fraying about day 3 (I mainly wear tshirts and sweatshirts). Then it started peeling up on the upper edge, where it would rub against a shirt you're taking off over your head. I took it off today because half of it had literally no adhesive left and was flapping off. When I took it completely off, it wasn't even sticky anymore in that area.

So, while they're pretty colors, they don't stay stuck worth crap. I'll be looking at other brands and saving the rest of these for... I don't know, art projects? Emergency bandage covers? Vaguely absorbent coasters for a lukewarm can? *shrug* Not worth the money, in my opinion. Oh well.