I have had the Dexcom G6 for a while, now. (The G6 is the newest Dexcom on the market). I love it a lot. I think it is better and worse in a couple ways, and I want to share that with you this month. Here are the pluses and minuses of the Dexcom G6:
Pluses-
1.) I can read it on my phone. This has been a huge help, because now I can control my levels easier. With the G5, sometimes I wouldn’t be able to get to my receiver or pump as easily as I can with my phone. I can see my blood sugars more because of that, and I now can keep them where I want to a little easier.
2.) The shape of the transmitter and site. With the other models of the Dex, it was bulky. It could get caught even on my clothing. The G6’s new style is rounder and smoother. With the previous Dexcom styles, I could get it caught easily. The smoothness helps because it will not get caught on my clothing hardly ever. The roundness doesn’t really help me personally, but I like it a lot more than the other Dexcom styles, which were more square-like.
3.) The inserter. Before I got the G6, the inserter hurt more than my pump inserter. You had to manually do it, and for some reason, it hurt more than the pump’s injection. Maybe not for some diabetics, but it hurt more for me. The new style is just amazing. I watched some insertion videos of people trying the G6 out for the first time, and I didn’t believe it. The people would insert and just drop their jaws in amazement. I thought they were making a big deal out of it. One girl was like, “Oh my goodness, I didn’t feel it. That was literally the fastest and easiest thing I have ever done in my life!” I kinda laughed. No WAY could it not hurt like that and be that fast. Welp, guess what I did when I inserted it for the first time… “WHAT THE HECK? THAT WAS LIKE…WHAT? WAIT, WHAT? NO WAY. WAIT…HOW WAS IT THAT…*Gasp* …WHAT??” Yeah, I was more dramatic than all the videos, I think. Even now I can’t get over it. It’s just amazing how simple and un-hurtful it is. (THAT’S A WORD IF I WANT IT TO BE.)
Okay, nothing can be perfect…
Minuses-
1.) It does not connect to my pump. I honestly don’t know if it reads on the Tandem pump’s X2, but I don’t have the X2, so I only see it on my phone and receiver. I can’t really complain too much, because I don’t know if it would be reading on the X2.
2.) I honestly can’t think of two things I don’t like about the G6. Yeah… I guess we stop here. I can’t think of anything else I don’t like… Um, this is awkward.
Bonus Story
So, last week, I was at a classical concert. I was sitting next to an older lady, and my Dexcom kept going off every few minutes. I was a little annoyed, because the alarms can not be shut off if your blood sugar is off enough. So here I am, sitting next to some lady who looks like the grandma you don’t like, and once my Dexcom has gone off enough times, she turns to her husband and goes, “How rude!” Now I didn’t hear that, but my dad clearly did. He flipped around, leaned over me, and in the middle of a concert, he whispers, “It’s her Dexcom. She doesn’t make insulin. It’s her Dexcom, it keeps her alive. It keeps her alive, it’s her Dexcom.” I didn’t want to look at her right in the face, because I’m sure it was embarrassing enough for her, but I can imagine that her face was white as snow. “Do you understand??” I’m sure she did, but she mumbled something like, “It’s necessary.” After the concert, she came to me and apologized. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t know it was medical, I’m so sorry.” I was like, “That’s okay..” and she’s like, “No, no it’s not.” I just kind of stared at her, not knowing what to say. It really wasn’t okay, but what else do you say in that situation? I just kind of awkwardly stared at her smiling. Then my dad came over like, “This is Charlotte, she has Type 1 Diabetes.” They clearly didn’t know what to say, and the husband was like, “We love the name Charlotte. Such a pretty name!” with his wife awkwardly nodding. At least it was my dad and not my mom who talked to her… 😉
So to wrap it up, GET THE G6, IT’S AMAZING, and don’t sit next to my mom, if you plan to say something stupid, about a type 1 diabetic.
Thanks for reading all this. 😊
-Charlotte
Dexcom G6 Overview
And bonus funny story
I have had the Dexcom G6 for a while, now. (The G6 is the newest Dexcom on the market). I love it a lot. I think it is better and worse in a couple ways, and I want to share that with you this month. Here are the pluses and minuses of the Dexcom G6:
Pluses-
1.) I can read it on my phone. This has been a huge help, because now I can control my levels easier. With the G5, sometimes I wouldn’t be able to get to my receiver or pump as easily as I can with my phone. I can see my blood sugars more because of that, and I now can keep them where I want to a little easier.
2.) The shape of the transmitter and site. With the other models of the Dex, it was bulky. It could get caught even on my clothing. The G6’s new style is rounder and smoother. With the previous Dexcom styles, I could get it caught easily. The smoothness helps because it will not get caught on my clothing hardly ever. The roundness doesn’t really help me personally, but I like it a lot more than the other Dexcom styles, which were more square-like.
3.) The inserter. Before I got the G6, the inserter hurt more than my pump inserter. You had to manually do it, and for some reason, it hurt more than the pump’s injection. Maybe not for some diabetics, but it hurt more for me. The new style is just amazing. I watched some insertion videos of people trying the G6 out for the first time, and I didn’t believe it. The people would insert and just drop their jaws in amazement. I thought they were making a big deal out of it. One girl was like, “Oh my goodness, I didn’t feel it. That was literally the fastest and easiest thing I have ever done in my life!” I kinda laughed. No WAY could it not hurt like that and be that fast. Welp, guess what I did when I inserted it for the first time… “WHAT THE HECK? THAT WAS LIKE…WHAT? WAIT, WHAT? NO WAY. WAIT…HOW WAS IT THAT…*Gasp* …WHAT??” Yeah, I was more dramatic than all the videos, I think. Even now I can’t get over it. It’s just amazing how simple and un-hurtful it is. (THAT’S A WORD IF I WANT IT TO BE.)
Okay, nothing can be perfect…
Minuses-
1.) It does not connect to my pump. I honestly don’t know if it reads on the Tandem pump’s X2, but I don’t have the X2, so I only see it on my phone and receiver. I can’t really complain too much, because I don’t know if it would be reading on the X2.
2.) I honestly can’t think of two things I don’t like about the G6. Yeah… I guess we stop here. I can’t think of anything else I don’t like… Um, this is awkward.
Bonus Story
So, last week, I was at a classical concert. I was sitting next to an older lady, and my Dexcom kept going off every few minutes. I was a little annoyed, because the alarms can not be shut off if your blood sugar is off enough. So here I am, sitting next to some lady who looks like the grandma you don’t like, and once my Dexcom has gone off enough times, she turns to her husband and goes, “How rude!” Now I didn’t hear that, but my dad clearly did. He flipped around, leaned over me, and in the middle of a concert, he whispers, “It’s her Dexcom. She doesn’t make insulin. It’s her Dexcom, it keeps her alive. It keeps her alive, it’s her Dexcom.” I didn’t want to look at her right in the face, because I’m sure it was embarrassing enough for her, but I can imagine that her face was white as snow. “Do you understand??” I’m sure she did, but she mumbled something like, “It’s necessary.” After the concert, she came to me and apologized. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t know it was medical, I’m so sorry.” I was like, “That’s okay..” and she’s like, “No, no it’s not.” I just kind of stared at her, not knowing what to say. It really wasn’t okay, but what else do you say in that situation? I just kind of awkwardly stared at her smiling. Then my dad came over like, “This is Charlotte, she has Type 1 Diabetes.” They clearly didn’t know what to say, and the husband was like, “We love the name Charlotte. Such a pretty name!” with his wife awkwardly nodding. At least it was my dad and not my mom who talked to her… 😉
So to wrap it up, GET THE G6, IT’S AMAZING, and don’t sit next to my mom, if you plan to say something stupid, about a type 1 diabetic.
Thanks for reading all this. 😊
-Charlotte
SugarTalesForT1D 