u/HighlightTheRoad

Thinking of moving to Australia and will be eligible for Medicare if so.

I have been doing a lot of research into the healthcare system (..and concluded I might be best going back on pens :( omnipods are expensive!), one query I have is the following:

Why does NDSS recommend only ordering a month’s worth of CGMs at a time due to the ‘short shelf life’?

It seems to be the opposite of what happens in the UK. I get three months worth of sensors delivered at a time, but can only get one month worth of insulin at a time. Whereas in Australia it’s 5 lots of 5 pens at a time.

Do they store the sensors somewhere for a while? Do you frequently have short expiry dates on the CGMs when you receive them? Or is this just a precaution from the NDSS?

TLDR: do you actually only order a month’s worth of CGMs at a time? Is this guidance just that, guidance?

Just switched over from the g6 and thought the guidance provided on the website for airport security etc was quite vague, so I rang up dexcom.

They confirmed with me that the g7 still cannot go through the security checkpoint X-rays (different matter if you check in your bag as the luggage scanning used there is different).

I am absolutely fed up of asking for my devices to be hand searched. Bad enough in English, it is a nightmare in a foreign country where you don’t speak the language.

Looking to go to China and found out there are even X-ray security checks at the train stations there (!!), cannot imagine trying to argue with staff there just going for a simple cross country train journey.

I usually end up taking a translated version of the dexcom guidance and letter from my hospital but I’ve had bad experiences in some countries where I’ve really had to argue (on like two hours sleep). Actually some of the worst experiences have been in my own country many years ago but thankfully the education has increased so much here.

I’m on an insulin pump as well and by far and away the most stressful (well, most regular expected stressful) part of travelling for me is the goddamn security checks.

I have unopened pack of paneer in my fridge with the date of 20.05. It is now 06.06. Looking through the clear packaging the cheese visually looks okay. If I open it and it smells okay, would you still use this?

There’s no use by date, only a best before date.

On my last sensor change I changed my transmitter (and made the mistake I make every time of changing and setting up my sensor before informing my dexcom of the transmitter change ugh!.. but that is irrelevant to this post..).

I have found a couple boxes of freestyle libre 2 sensors that are due to expire this month so was thinking of switching briefly back (to not waste them) before returning to my G6s.

I am worried this may pose a problem though with the transmitter having already been activated. Can anyone see any issues with this or is it a sound idea?

This time last year my hba1c was 6.7 percent and now it is 7.3 percent. Not a huge difference but it all feels so defeating. I try so hard (okay yes I could try harder.. but that sends me spirally mentally too!), and haven’t changed my lifestyle much (in fact I exercise more now! which does contribute negatively unfortunately quite a bit of the time).

I have had issues with my omnipod pods starting to fail on me randomly, think leaking. Which results in my glucose skyrocketing. When the pods work they work well, when they don’t well they ruin my day frankly.

There’s some people I read on these subs who pretty much lead the same lifestyle as me (good diet, exercise, prebolus, hybrid system, etc) yet consistently keep their hba1c under 6.5 percent.

Why does it feel impossible for me to do the same??? Some people talk about how simple it can be to keep glucose in check and it is baffling to me, are they underselling themselves? Are they very low carb (I can’t do that to myself again frankly..)?

Hello, I am due to visit your country this weekend.

I note there is a bank holiday on Friday and Sunday. What do I have to be aware of on these days? I presume most restaurants will be open, or is that not the case? Will any supermarkets be open?

I will be making sure to reserve a train ticket in advance.

Thank you