Thursday, February 10, 2011

These numbers are not the same!!

Last night, as I lugged the laundry basket up the stairs, I knew something was wrong.  I felt that familiar shaky feeling.  So like a good diabetic, I grabbed my meter and tested.

84

Hmmm, okay, 84.  I figured maybe I was just tired.  It has been a stressful week dealing with the car accident and the insurance company and trying to get a rental car, so I guessed I was just rung out.  I started putting away the laundry, working harder than usual to focus on sock sorting.  Then my CGM began to wail.  So I decided to lest again, just to make sure.

44
 Ah ha!!  44 seemed more in line with how I was feeling.  But just to be sure, I tested a third time to confirm.

42
 I know I’m not the first to blog about a meter variance like this.  And unfortunately, I know I won’t be the last.  But it still needs to be said, over and over and over.  Our insulin and food decisions, our very lives, rely on the numbers we see on our blood glucose meters.  What if I hadn’t tested again after seeing that 84?  What if I simply went on the assumption that my shakiness was stress catching up with me?  What if I just went to bed, not knowing that my blood sugar was really in the low 40s?  I don’t want to think about what could have happened.  And honestly, my meter should ensure that I don’t have to . . . .
Posted by Karen at 11:17 AM
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15 comments:

  1. Auntly HFebruary 10, 2011 at 12:14 PM

    That is infuriating. When it happens to me, I think about people with no insurance coverage or an allotment of 3 strips per day. What do they do when they need all three for one test?

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  2. CaraFebruary 10, 2011 at 12:30 PM

    So scary. I'm glad you checked.again.

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  3. MeriFebruary 10, 2011 at 12:32 PM

    That is so scary! I'm glad you checked again. A big mantra in our house is "listen to your body." Our bodies know more than our meters.

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  4. Lorraine of "This is Caleb..."February 10, 2011 at 1:06 PM

    It's so true. I've come to accept that the number is more a guide and use Caleb's internal guide with the number. I think if the meters produced rounder numbers like in 5 or 10 increments, it would be easier to accept that they are not so specifically accurate as they appear to be.

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  5. ScullyFebruary 10, 2011 at 1:21 PM

    More often than not I ignore meter readings and treat the low anyway. there is no mistaking how I feel and if I feel low, I am probably low. There are many times I feel it long before my meter registers it.
    what a pain in the ass eh?

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  6. tmanaFebruary 10, 2011 at 1:27 PM

    Worse, when BG from cyanotic fingertips suggests hypo, but the real issue is hypothermia, not hypoglycemia... Or at least so my numbers would seem to indicate.

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  7. UnknownFebruary 10, 2011 at 2:14 PM

    tmana...I have noticed similar "false" lows with Joe when he is ice skating in zero degree weather...I only partially treat now b/c he'll end up in the 300s within an hour.

    To Karen...UHGHA WUHGHA! That stinks. I am so glad you rechecked. That type of variance is a bit scary when you are in the double digits eh?

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  8. MommaBearFebruary 10, 2011 at 2:46 PM

    SOOO annoying to say the least. Good thing you had your CGM on. I trust my CGM more than my glucometer most of the time, except for overnight. Glad you are ok.

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  9. stacy aFebruary 10, 2011 at 3:25 PM

    no fun. I hate when that happens!!!!

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  10. TrevFebruary 10, 2011 at 5:44 PM

    Totallt scary! We make decisions based on these readings. I have noted this many times with my youngest Type 1 who is 6, we'll test, and think crap, wash your hands, as the number won't make sense, and sure enough we get a completely different reading.
    Thanks for sharing, the more awareness the more we question things.
    Cheers!

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  11. UnknownFebruary 10, 2011 at 9:26 PM

    ARGH!!!!!!!!!!!!

    This totally ticks me off. I seriously think they oughtta refund test strips for discrepancies like that.

    Glad you caught it. SO GLAD YOU CAUGHT IT!!!!!

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  12. KathleenFebruary 10, 2011 at 10:18 PM

    It is very scary when this happens, but keep in mind, it is just a number without any trending accompanying it. There are so many variances that can misinterpet the actual reading so you always have to rely on your instincts. Even if I have an 84 before bed, I will always recheck in 15 minutes to see the trend, even with my sensor on! So glad nothing "BAD" happened! KMA

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  13. KaitakeFebruary 11, 2011 at 5:43 AM

    That's scary! Sounds like you BG was plummeting quickly! I always work on the theory that how I feel and what my test result is can be 5 - 10 minutes out of sync with each other. Trouble is I never know which way.

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  14. kathy bFebruary 13, 2011 at 6:14 PM

    On top of everything else you cannot trust the damn meter...I am so sorry!

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  15. AnonymousFebruary 15, 2011 at 9:19 AM

    Today at work I tested and saw "230". I thought "Hmm... I felt fine!" So, blindly trusting my meter, I bolus to correct that high, then proceed to give even MORE insulin for the breakfast I'm going to eat. Within FIVE minutes I start feeling out of it, and I think it must just be me coming down from that high. I test and see "50". AHH!! So I wasn't 230 after all? And I was low? And I have all that insulin in me?? HERE AT WORK??? Enter freakout mode where I down a whole bottle of juice. Now I'm coming back up, but mildly (NO, VERY) frustrated at the discrepancy!!!!!!

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