Participating in Medtronic Minimed VEO and Enlite CGM SensorTrial

Yippee! I am going to participate in a four to five month trial that may put me on the Medtronic Minimed VEO, which has been available in Europe. The thing that makes me most giddy is the opportunity to try the new Continuous Glucose Sensors, called Enlite. YAY!

The Enlite CGM Sensor can be worn for 6 days and has a much different profile in terms of the size of the insertion needle and the inserter. YAY!

The VEO offers a Low Glucose Suspend (LGS) feature to halt insulin delivery when the CGM senses you are low. Both devices are long overdue to the American Market, so if I can help speed this sucker to market, SIGN ME UP!

I want this technology for me, but mostly I want it for my daughter. She is 11 now and middle school is so trying for a T1 kid. I can't hold her hand anymore, so I'd love it if the technology would give her more support.

I'll post more after my first appointment. Of course, there are lots of hurdles to qualifying, so cross your fingers for me!

My 10 Year Old is Now Hooked Up: CGM

Well, we pulled the trigger and got our daughter the upgrade for her Minimed insulin pump to a Revel with the Continuous Glucose Monitor. I warned her it was coming, but I was not prepared for the resistance to putting the sucker on her.

The pump is great, the CGM sensors, not so much. They are freakin' huge needles and it took me one hour to convince her to let me put it on her. We iced her bum, we talked, we cajoled, we pleaded, we reasoned, but the only reason she consented was because we had a birthday party to go to, the clock was ticking and I refused to back down.

We had to establish the rules of engagement. Three kisses, then I had to count to three, but I couldn't touch her with the inserter until three. Then I had to say "ok" before I pushed the button.

She did it and cried like a baby. Said it hurt like hell. It bled a little, but she said it hurt for a good 20 minutes, but she was fine by the time we reached the party.

We didn't start the sensor until after the party and the sensor had its wick wet, so calibration was immediate. She thought it was pretty cool when the blood sugar numbers finally popped up on the screen of her pump.

She watched it through the afternoon and into evening. We'd ask, "Have you taken your blood sugar lately?" with a smile and she would whip out her pump and tell us the number.

We calibrated at bedtime, but she lost the sensor around 11:00 pm. I positioned it closer to her Minilink Transmitter and she was fine, until 3:00 am. She came in and said she was high, so I wanted to check against her meter and it was off. CGM said 315, meter said 230. That was significant enough for me, because the calibration had about the same difference earlier in the evening. I sat in the dark and decided to turn off the CGM and restart the sensor.

By morning things seemed to match, but she was still running high. She took some Advair for breathing difficulties and I know that was shooting her blood sugars up. She called me from school and said the thing was beeping all morning. High blood sugars, missed bolus warnings, even though she bolused. I reminded her it is going to take time to balance her insulin levels to match what is happening in her body. When that happens, she hopefully won't hear any beeps at all .

More in my next post, but I'm not sure I will be able to convince her to put that sensor on again. We'll see. More later.

Minimed Revel: Jury still out, but underwhelmed

I hate to judge something without ample time to use it, but I am pretty underwhelmed with the Medtronic Minimed Revel and CGM package. I have been using the Medtronic Minilink CGM since it came out, ordering a new one after my other konked out after 18 months.

I had the 722 Minimed Paradigm pump and it has worked really well for me. But, back when I started this blog, I was testing the Freestyle Navigator. I loved it; for the most part.


I LOVED the predicative alarms. I actually stopped lows before I had them. What could be better. So when the Revel promised predictive alarms, I thought, "Hell ya!"


I have received predictive alarms, but many came when I was already low or moments from the threshold. I'm not 100 percent sure exactly what was happening with many of these, because I don't tend to take my BS when I wear the CGM (slap my wrist). It has been really accurate for me the majority of the time. Not perfect, but really good. So several alarms I got were maybe five minutes before the actual low alarm, but I don't know what my actual BS was.


So, I decided to check sugars when I got the alarm and the first time I did this I got the Predicted Low alarm and I was 55 mg/dl. This thing is supposed to warn me 30 minutes before a low and I was already 55. This happened several times with similar results.

Benefit of the doubt wants me to say, "I need to get used to it," "its a new machine, give it a break," but a big part of me is saying send it back.


It isn't any more helpful that the 722 at this point, it just has more alarms.

OH! Big issue, I can't hear the freakin' alarms at night.

I went for two hours with No Delivery and I didn't hear or feel a thing. The alarms were not great to begin with on the 722, but they were WAY too soft on the Revel. They have different low and high chimes, but they are not better and sound softer to me because they are so high pitched.

So, I haven't put a sensor on for two days because it makes me tired thinking about verifying the readings. Easier not to know, but I better figure this out soon, I'm running out of decision time.

Anyone using the Revel have some thoughts to share? I'd love input.

Minimed Quickset Problem, Not Lot 8

I have had four "No Delivery" alarms out of one box of the new infusion sets Minimed has sent me. I reported it on the third time and just reported another.

It is with a box of 9mm, 23in. Quick-Set Paradigm with Lot Number: 9200558

It happens when I am bolusing only and within the three day window of normal infusion set function.

The Lot 8 issue was a fiasco and I wonder how long it took folks reporting their problems to get a adequate response. I bet if the problem had only been "No Delivery" vs. Spontaneous over delivery if it would have taken a lot longer for a recall? Any lack of delivery can be blamed on my scar tissue or improper insertion.

My experience has been that a No Delivery alarm is notice of a serious problem. I only twice or three times have gotten No Delivery alarms with an occlusion. I can be high for hours and never get an alarm, so when these alarms happen, I stop and pay attention.

Just curious if anyone else has had any problems.

Minimed Sensor Backorder --four business days. Thoughts on CGM and my kid.

I ordered my Sensors for my Minimed Real-time CGM on Halloween, Wednesday,October 31 and got notification today that they were being overnighted. That was less than one week and I ordered a box of ten.

I'm pretty happy about this. Life without readings is basically life, but with no idea what your blood sugar is. Yes, I am supposed to be taking it, but I have gotten so comfortable wearing the sensor all the time, I just can't get back to my meter.

I had a sensor that was really rough on me as my last sensor. I bled like HELL and hurt when I put it in. I read on a forum that the ones that tend to bleed have had longer life, so I crossed my fingers and hoped, but it failed after four days and I wasn't going to mess with it. I just wanted it OUT!

I am still bruised and I took it out almost two weeks ago.

Not sure why this happened, but thankfully is was the first in 30 sensors to do this kind of damage.

I've decided to wait on the CGM for my seven year-old girl. I have come to find out that it isn't the insertion that worries her most (although it absolutely does), but it is the alarms going off all the time. You know what? That happens frequently. It will really extend the amount of time she is thinking or being reminded about diabetes, which is a lot and for right now, in this first generation of devices, I am willing to let her have some space with it.

Also, when the CGM is made so that I get the alarms on my mobile device, that will be a whole other story. It is a lot of responsibility for a seven year old to deal with the various alarms. Trust me I TOTALLY understand the benefits for her and me, but for now...we are going to wait.

Tape is Necessary on CGM Transmitter--I just flushed $35 down the toilet

So, I put in a new Minimed Sensor two nights ago. I put it on my rear, so I had to get my hubby to help me because I don't like it too high on my hip.

I forgot to put on my overbandage (Tegaderm) and I thought about it several times, but I needed hubby to do this too, and he was never around when I thought about it.

I was very careful getting dressed and going to the restroom, but this morning I was bending over to pick up the recycling and a seam in my jeans caught just under the edge of the sensor and pull it right off my fanny.

Oh well!

Symlin and CGM--Wow! This is SO much easier

You know I tried to use Symlin a couple years ago, before the Continuous Glucose Monitor, and it was HARD. I got low...really low and the lows are tough to treat, but I recently decided to give it a try again now that I have the Minimed Realtime Continuous Glucose Monitor.

I am 38 and my insulin requirements have increased significantly in the past year and I am also gaining weight as a result. This does not make me happy, so I'm trying Symlin (which I hear is now FDA approved in a pen).

I have been on Symlin for about a month, using it once or so a day. It is NOT convenient to carry it around with you when you have been reliant on the CGM and your pump, so I usually get Symlin when I am at home eating.

I have to say, it is miraculous to see how it impacts my blood sugars post meal. It works well, but the best is that I can catch lows early and see exactly how it impacts my readings for hours after.

It has been a long while since I posted regularly, but in case you weren't sure, I LOVE having a CGM and I can't imagine life without it. I will live longer and I will see my child grow because I know answer to the only question that really matters with diabetes-- "What's your blood sugar?"

I'm Mad!! Minimed Carelink Software has a Gaping Hole

Just to put this up front--I'm MAD!

Minimed offers Carelink Personal Therapy Management Software, a Web-based system designed to help you take information from all of your diabetes management tools – your insulin pump, continuous glucose monitor, blood glucose meter(s), and logbook – and organize it into easy-to-read charts, graphs and tables. It offers a logbook as well, which is "intended to assist you in analyzing impacts to your glucose control based on delivered Bolus insulin and external events documented in the Logbook."

PROBLEM--The Logbook only offers five "external event" options for documenting what is happening with your diabetes care:

Carbs
Exercise
HbA1C
Infusion Set Change
Urine Ketones

There is no place in this "therapy management software" to make general comments about your health or wellness, like when I have the stomach flu, a major deadline at work and I am stressed to the point of exploding or a sinus infection. My menstrual cycles causes HAVOC on my blood sugars from the day I ovulate through PMS and to the end of my period.

These are not random notes; frivolous nuggets of information. This information is about MY LIFE and every move I make impacts my diabetes control. My doctor, when he reads the files I saved from Carelink, has to know the facts when making recommendations about bolus/basal changes. If he doesn't see what is going on, it looks like I am just randomly out of control.

The very thing that makes the CGM so miraculous is that we get hard numbers 24/7. Numbers are virtually meaningless if you don't know what is happening to my body causing the blood sugar changes.

My doctor will get two weeks worth of reading through the Carelink and the first five days are relatively stable; it shows some lows, but there are notes related to exercise, so that makes sense. There was one super high with a note about an infusion set change, so that makes sense.

Then, day six shows blood sugars hovering between 150 to 200. No notes (after all this isn't related to the five logbook entries provided). Two days later they are high--over 200 all the time. A temp basal is employed, but again no notes.

I'm 250 at bed time on Day 12 and then Day 13 shows a huge drop in sugars; now below 70 all morning and not much higher after lunch. Day 14 is stable again--80-140 most the day.

What is a doctor supposed to do with this if he doesn't know I'm sick or have my period or had a bad batch of insulin or had a tough work week. There is no treatment recommendation that would make sense.

So, my point--I'm mad that the medical companies spend so much energy developing technology that can serve us SO well, but they forget about who is using it or what we have to do to manage the disease they are helping us treat. Who would release software that doesn't allow a user to make general notes. It is absoutely ridiculous!

October 3, 2007 Update

I e-mailed Minimed the night I wrote this post and I have not received a follow up beyond the message that my comments were being forwarded to the Marketing Dept. I sent them another message this morning requesting a response.

Minimed CGM Update: I've Got a Secret

So summer has been busy and posting fell way off my radar, but I do have a few things to share. First, the CGM makes my life much easier, however it also can drive me nuts. Sometimes I wish I could go back to ignoring my diabetes; "feeling" my way through. I knew I wasn't high and I knew I wasn't low, but I tended to hang in the 150-220 range and that isn't good for anyone all the time.

So here I am, enlightened and technologically hooked up.

For the second time, I tried to insert the Minimed sensor in my upper rear; I love it (day one). It wasn't uncomfortable when I slept, but I was extra cautious when I turned over last night. I really don't prefer to do infusion sets there either, I am a stomach inserter. My daughter is a butt cheek inserter and to show her that the sensor didn't hurt, I had to do it myself.

I have to say, that reaching around to hold the sensor in place with two hands was challenging, but I managed. Next time, I will get my husband to help. The first time I tried to do the sensor in my rear, it went poorly. I did it too high on my hip and it hurt, a lot, so I pulled it out. $35 down the toilet.

So now for my not so secret, secret: I now insert the sensor at night, attach the Minilink transmitter and go to bed. I do not turn it on; I just let it be until morning. When I wake up and my blood sugars are stable, I start the new sensor and within seconds, I get the BG Meter Now calibration request. This lets me skip the first two hour calibration and that is a life/schedule saver for me.

One of the biggest irritations for me is the constant alarms over something or other (which is because the CGM is doing its job), but the calibration alarms have always felt inconvenient. Before, when I would decide to put the sensor on, I would have to think hard about where I was going to be when the first two hour calibration would be required. Usually, I would be in a meeting. Being beeped at, while talking business, then stopping to either snooze the blessed alarm or calibrate, drove me nuts. That is fixed with the evening insertion.

I still have to contend with the six hour calibration, but that is mostly no big deal.

Accuracy is mostly good; within 10mg/dl. I've contended with a few situations that threw me for a loop, but this thing isn't perfect.

Oh! One shocker. My A1C did not come down. It was the same as last time. I have not been vigilantly tweaking my numbers, I have just been preventing lows and highs. After all, I spend most my diabetes vigilance managing my kids diabetes and tend to just ride mine out, but I was shocked that it wasn't lower. I have read all over the place that the CGM isn't necessarily going to lower A1C's, but for me it has reduced the serious fluctuations in sugars. Rather than being high then low, I am more in the middle. I tightened my High alarm from 275 (yes, silly me) to 200. That should help.

I also decided to give Symlin a try again. Haven' t ordered it yet, but will post when I do. I have been gaining weight and increasing my insulin rates with no changes in my diet. I guess age and insulin resistance is the culprit. Not pleased about either, but at least there are options to help with both!

Travel to Maui: Pumps, CGM & Salt Water

We just returned from Maui where my sister got married and it was spectacular! I have proof!

We saw rainbows EVERY day and I even drove through the end of one. I have never seen anything like this, but only caught one rainbow in photos.

I was SO sick of diabetes on this lovely trip. Every time we turned around either my infusion set was clogged or my girl had sand in hers, or my CGM was beeping constantly at me. She was low, I was high, or we were both low and Dad was pulling his hair out trying to understand all the drama. I wore my CGM on the plane with no issues, either in flight or at security. No beeps and no worries with 10 hours in the air.


Maui is the loveliest place I have ever been, even in a draught. We stayed upcountry, which to me is the REAL Hawaii. The place we stayed had an orchid nursery, along with a property full of bananas plants, papayas, lilikoi (passion fruit), tangerine trees, avocado trees and lemon treess. Lilikoi is the best thing I have ever tasted. I walked out of my room each morning with coffee and grabbed a banana off a bunch that was picked the day before. Sweet!

We also spent plenty of time at the beach. No matter what we did to protect our infusion sets, we had to change them every time. Salt water is to blame I bet. As it dries, the salt crystals clogged the holes. A guess, but probably a good one.


Speaking of beaches, this is where I sat for three days when I wasn't in the water.


Aloha!

Children should not have diabetes--Our battle with the CGM

I am exhausted. My daughter is six, nearly seven and endures the every three day infusion set changes, the 8 to 10 blood sugar checks per day, but I just endured the longest hold out EVER over diabetes.

I have the Minimed CGM and I upgraded her pump, so she could use it too. Well, today was going to be the day. We went to the Endo and we were going to "give it a try." We have a trip planned to Hawaii and I wanted her to have the CGM with the 5 hour time difference, the constant activity and 12 hours of inactivity during the flights. So much to worry about.

We iced her butt, we talked, we hugged, we iced, talked, hugged, cried, iced, hugged, cried, hugged, hugged, cried, talked, hugged and cried some more.

The damned needle on this thing is LONG. It is freakin' scary, even for me on the first try. On the Navigator, at least you didn't see what was about to be plunged into you.

So we tried again. More hugs, ice, tears, then squirming, then Daddy tries to help. He holds her with a hug and she twists away. He holds her tighter and she cries and twists some more and he gives up. I talk, she cries. I hug, she hugs, she cries and 45 minutes later; totally exhausted and late for a play date, we promise to try tomorrow.

For weeks I tried to convince her that this was going to be a good thing. Less B.G. checks (she says she doesn't mind checking her blood sugar), less worry for me (she really doesn't understand). I talked to my counselor about how to approach this, because she is simply scared it will hurt. My words mean nothing. I had friends with young kids that have the CGM talk to her, email her; she is NOT convinced it won't hurt like hell. Words mean nothing; I can not change her perceptions of what could be.

My counselor said I need to talk from the heart and I did. I told her that I love her more than anything on earth, and that as a mommy who loves her, I have to do everything in my power to keep her safe and healthy. We are fortunate to have access to the CGM and as a mom who loves her little girl, I have to utilizes the most powerful forces in the universe to protect and help her be healthy.

She seemed to buy that; understands that this isn't just about what I "think" is best. But it doesn't changed the fact that she THINKS this is going to be the worst thing ever.

Holding her down and slapping the thing on her butt was what we had to do with infusion sets early on, but it just feels SO wrong to me with my child. I breech a deep trust with her when we have had to resort to that. It has broken our hearts more than a few times.

So I have given her a big job tomorrow, her job is to try her very hardest to use all the tools she has to keep herself as calm as possible. We can't change how she feels, but perhaps (idealistic mommy here) she can help herself be a little less tweaked. Anyway, I am emotionally wiped out. She is playing up stairs and I'm going to go close my eyes.

She cried out, "How did this happen to me? How did I get diabetes?"

What's a mother to do?

Howdy Camp Bluebonnet Families!

I wanted to gove a shout out to all my new friends from Camp Bluebonnet, a camp for children with diabetes in Central Texas. This week was a blast, even as rain poured on our last day of camp. I had so much fun sharing with folks interested in the Minimed Real-time System. Lot's of interest.

Have a great summer friends and stay tuned for more info on the Minimed CGMS...I heard they are close to having one site for both the Sensor and the Infusion set; close as in maybe a year.

Feel free to post a comment and say howdy! I'd love to hear from you guys!

Reminder: Freestyle Navigator Info in Archives

I was at Camp Bluebonnet today with my daughter and a bunch of great parents and their kids with diabetes and I was reminded of how grateful I am to not only have a CGM, but to have had the experience with the Navigator CGM that is still not released yet. For those of you just tuning in to my blog, and are interested in learning more about the Freestyle Navigator Continuous Glucose Monitor to be released by Abbott Diabetes Care later this year (crossed fingers), I have chronicled three months of trials in the first part of my blog archive.

Keep in mind, that my comments and photos were of a version that isn't necessarily going to be released, and the things that will most likely change are size and calibration times. I love my Minimed Real-Time, but the Navigator was awesome when the CGM projected lows or highs -- really quite accurately. I look forward to the day I can upgrade to the latest technology, but I count my blessings every day I have the sophisticated technology I do have.

There will always be a tomorrow, as with computer technology, but to utilize the best the market currently offers is an awesome experience and My A1C is the better for it. Next steps are to get this and all CGMS covered by insurance, but for now I count my lucky stars...Oh! my blood sugar right now is 138 post dinner.

ARGH! Spoke too soon! Bad Sensor Day Eight!

About an hour after I posted my last note, I got two "Cal Errors" and a "Bad Sensor."

I am ok with six or seven days, but I am really challenged to keep it on longer. Not becuase I have to, but becuase I love beating the system.

Try, try again!

How to Get Past Sensor Day 7--Minimed CGM Update

I am once again grateful to have this CGM AND I have figured out (with the help of a Minimed source) how to extend the life of the sensor beyond seven days! Once you see the "Sensor End" on the sixth day, the Minilink transmitter needs to be disconnected and charged 20 minutes or so. Then it can be reconnected and "Start Sensor."

Yea! So, I am on day eight with no irritation and accurate readings. I have promised to do comparisons of reading vs. finger tests, but I don't check my finger blood very often (bad girl).

My daughter is having a blast at Camp Sweeney, but I have to leave tonight and stay in Dallas, so I can go get her Friday morning. I have talked to her "Big Sister" at camp everyday, except today and she is well over her home sickness and doing really well.

Things are good--Minimed Real-time working well

It has been awhile since I've written! I am happy to report no issues with the Minimed Real-Time System. It is working well, I just wish I could get my blood sugars down. It surprises me each and every month how steeply my blood sugars climb with PMS. It is shocking really. Last week I was 100...almost all the time, this week I can't get much below 200 and that is with a significant increase in my basal pattern.

The sensors on this thing have NOT lasted me more than seven days. I get a bad sensor reading on the seventh day almost every time.

My daughter is going away to a camp for kids with diabetes. This is her first time and she is really nervous, but I think she'll have a blast. I missed out on camps as a kid with type one. I am sad about that, but hopefully my girl will have enough fun for the both of us.

She put on the camp questionnaire that her goals at camp are to have a lot of fun and to learn how to measure her own food. How cute is that!

Minimed REAL-Time CGM Curses and Gratitudes--Part II

Having the Minimed Real-time CGM is a blessing, but it can be really annoying, too. I need to be frank and this may horrify some people, but I prefer NOT to deal with my diabetes. I am not motivated to take my blood sugars and I have a pretty good sense of my blood sugars without checking 4-10 times per day. I got the CGM because I thought it would lessen my resistance to diabetes self-care, but at times the thing just annoys me. I don’t WANT to look at my pump or hear that damned alarm. The alarms rarely warn me of problems, this is specifically BECAUSE I have the CGM and am in good control with its assistance, but the darned thing is always asking for something.

Yesterday, I left my blood sugar kit at home and missed a calibration for 5 hours. This means the alarm goes off what feels like every 10 minutes, but it may be 30, and I want to toss the thing out the window. Common sense says, “Just check your BS first thing in the morning and last thing at night, but I forget, so no logical solutions are necessary.

Then the sensor ends, which means stopping, starting the thing again and then calibrating again, then calibrating again in six hours and again before bed. Meanwhile, I get a low reservoir alarm and my battery is getting low and I just want the thing to quit beeping at me. Oh! I put my pump on the left and not the right side, so I also wrestle with “weak signal” alarms.

By the way the Navigator had a HUGE range for transmission--10 feet at minimum. I rarely had a weak signal and in fact left the receiver upstairs in my bathroom all the time and still tracked readings. I put the Minimed pump under my back while I’m sleeping and I get a “weak signal” alarm; THAT is ridiculous.

A friend who started the CGM with me just left the thing off for a week and that sounds good to me because all the blessing I have received are slightly shadowed by frequent alarms of one kind or another.

I am really just not as deeply committed to my diabetes care as I thought I “should be.” I want to reiterate that this CGM is a GIFT and one of the best diabetes technological advancements since insulin. Sometimes I just don’t want to think about it AND I know that if I don't, I won’t do any permanent damage.

Minimed REAL-Time Minilink Doing Well--Need Advice on Longer Wear!

OK, so I haven't posted in a long time about the Minilink, but things are going really well. The only problem I am having is that I can't get the sensor to last more than 7 days. At the sensor end warning on day three, I unplug the minilink and recharge it for a couple hours. At the second Sensor End warning, I try the same thing, but I get two Cal Errors after I reconnect and then a Bad Sensor. Any advice on moving past this would be appreciated.

Things I am doing:

• I have tried inserting the sensor at a deeper angle than 45, I put the sensor in my stomach (tried my hip and for me, it hurt like hell, but I hate infusion sets there, too).
• I let the sensor warm up about 30 minutes before I insert it
• Once it is inserted, I wait about 15 minutes before connecting the Minilink(to wet the cannula)
• I recharge the battery at each "Sensor End" which is every three days

Regarding accuracy. I have found this to be really accurate. I have discrepancies occasionally, but not on the norm. Overall, I am very happy with this and if I wasn't wearing it, I wouldn't know what my blood sugars are. As a busy mom, it is SO easy for me to blow off regular blood sugar checks, so this CGM is saving me (I do have a very good sense of whether I am high or low, but I would prefer to not be 180 all day, which is why I got this).

Send your advice my way on how you get longer sensor wear. I have a friend (medical professional) who has had three weeks of wear (still on her), but I have already tried everything she is doing.

Minimed REAL-Time CGM Back on Track / Camp for T1 Kids

With the exception of one weird and whacked out reading comparison, my blood sugars have been matching very closely with the finger sticks. I am relieved! My daughter just got her pump upgrade and we changed from purple to blue, which makes her really happy. I am being patient, but I hope she give the CGM a try. She can try mine out before we buy.

Yesterday we had the pleasure of meeting two other families living with T1. Moms with kids going to Camp Sweeney decided on a play date before the kids head off to camp and we met at Central Market (a lovely grocery with outdoor play area and great live music). The three girls played on the playscape and moms chatted about all kinds of stuff, but the focus was on diabetes and how we handle so many of the complicated situations we have with little ones with T1.

My girl was pretty nervous; she is six and a half and the other girls are eight, but they were so sweet and asked my girl if she wanted to play. Last night she told me how much she loved meeting the girls and one of the moms is pulling together another group before the one week mini-session at Camp Sweeney (Camp Sweeney is an overnight camp for children with diabetes that lasts one week for the mini-session and three weeks for the regular sessions). My girl surprised me when she said she wanted to attend.

Anyway, it is so nice to be developing a community of friendships with kids who have T1. My daughter also attends Camp Bluebonnet (also for kids with diabetes), which is a day camp about an hour from Austin and that is another place where these kids will grow their friendships. When I was diagnosed at 14, I knew only one kid with T1 and she abused her body. She gave up trying early in her adolescence and I didn’t like to be around her, because her attitude was so bad. I never got the chance to go to Camp Sweeney and I’m a little upset my parents didn’t encourage me to go. I didn’t understand at the time how cool it would be to hang out with kids in my same position.

Anyway, my daughter has the opportunity and I hope it grows healthier attitudes and wonderful friendships.

Minimed CGM Lost Sensor AGAIN! Friend has Same Problems

I met the loveliest woman at the Minimed REAL-Time Pump and CGM training on Monday and we have been e-mailing each other about our experiences with this thing. Since we put on the sensors at the doctors office on Monday we have both experienced a some really wide ranges between finger sticks and the readings on the CGM. For instance I tested 261 and the CGM said 140. I even did a correction for the 261 and I saw no change on the CGM.

She had the same issue, finger test 227, CGM 147 with two down arrows even. She reported two Cal Errors and a Bad Sensor yesterday, so she switched out everything feeling a little frustrated that the sensor only lasted three days. Today she was working out (with new sensor) and the CGM kept giving her LOW alarms showing a blood sugar of 40 for an hour. She tested every ten minutes while this was happening and got finger test readings of 140-240. What gives?

Today is sensor day four for me and I got two Cal Errors and a Bad Sensor. I wonder if we have a bad batch of sensors?

More later...