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Is The Dexcom Worth It And Should I Ask My Dr About It?

A DiabetesTeam Member asked a question 💭
Lake Butler, FL

I'm a type 2 and I hate poking my finger every day 3 times a day. The last time I went to the Dr my a1c has not changed. I have lost a little more weight since I went to the Dr.

January 23, 2023
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A DiabetesTeam Member

@A DiabetesTeam Member

Absolutely worth it if you can get a prescription for it

In Canada the Dexcom and Medtronics (a really lesser known one) is almost exclusively prescribed for Type 1's while the Freestyle Libre (and Libre 2) is predominantly prescribed for Type 2's

The Dexcom is a true "real-time continuous" monitor while the Libre system takes a reading every 15 minutes (if you just leave it alone to do it's job) so they classify it as an "intermittently scanned continuous monitor" (ya, whatever)

As a Type 2 either system is more than enough to meet our needs

I wore the original Libre and have been using the new Libre 2 for just on 2 1/2 months now

I still do a stick test in the morning (hard habit to break and allows me to compare it to the sensor).

The CGM's do measure something different then the stick test and they don't always line up with each other - over time they give the same answer, but not at any given minute and that is something that "new users" of CGM's need to be aware of because it can be a little freaky when your CGM says one thing and your Meter says something that seems "far apart" - they do catch up with each other

Your Meter measures "sugar in whole blood" while the CGM measures sugar levels waiting to feed your cells (in the fluid around them) - even a Lab Test measures "something different" - sugar in "blood plasma" - so if you scanned the CGM and did a stick test at the same time the Tech was drawing blood, all three would give you different results - sometimes quite far apart

This is because it "takes time" for the sugar to get from one place to another so the test only tells you it's at "whatever level" at "that place" at "that time"

But certainly CGM's make self management so much easier - I can "test" 200 times a day if I want (average about 25 to 30) so you get near instant feedback about what exercise did for me, or what that meal did etc

Priceless

Unless you are paying out of pocket of course - 28 days worth of sensors (in Ontario Canada) cost just shy of $240 ($45 for me out of pocket) so with coverage I use it - when I was paying full cost out of pocket, I would use the sensor a couple times a year

January 23, 2023 (edited)
A DiabetesTeam Member

Try poking the side of your fingers instead of the pad. Not as sensitive

January 25, 2023
A DiabetesTeam Member

yes since i got mine my levels have gone down so happy loss quite abit of weight but being to see when i spike or drop has been a god send i was at 59 and felt great and when the reader went off i was shocked to see how low i was got my levels up with the help of my team did get a high reading but expected it would highly recommend it

January 28, 2023
A DiabetesTeam Member

If you can order Dex 7-Yes. Cannot in good conscience advocate purchasing Dex 6.

June 5, 2023 (edited)
A DiabetesTeam Member

I got the Dexcom 7 but it's 50 for 10 days and that's just too much to spend on it.

May 16, 2023

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