1 Week with the Stelo CGM

Been using the Stelo by Dexcom for a week, and I have a few observations that I should pass on as I start week 2.

1. The first sensor failed during the 30 minute warmup
   - Don’t put an extra overpatch on the thing until it’s done warming up! Was a pain to get off as the pack I got are meant to stay on for about 10 days or so, which is still 2/3’s the number of days the sensor is supposed to last.
   - Make sure baby oil is on your shopping list to dissolve the adhesive if you don’t have a bath to soak in.

2. If it fails, use the support thing in the app
   - They might be able to get a sensor to you to replace the failed one.
   - I didn’t realize this and tried repairing the sensor, that will not work.
   - I have the 3-month subscription so, I’m planning to see how long these 5 sensors can last as they have a 12 hour “Grace Period“ for starting the new one. I will only start the new one as the old shuts down.

3. Get the Dexcom Clarity app
   - It helps correlate the data, shows previous days data, and lets you download the info in a very organized pdf.
   - It is around an hour behind the data from your Stelo.
   - You log in with the same login info from the Stelo app.

4. It does not work with the Dexcom Follow app.
   - There is no way that I could find to make it alert others of a high or low event.
   - I am trying to find a solution as that would let me be able to create automations for letting me know of these events when my phone is charging in the next room or in my pocket.

5. It doesn’t notify about lows.
   - The lowest it is programmed to show is 70, but if your numbers are under 70, you probably should treat it as a possible emergency.
   - Supposedly putting pressure on the sensor can cause false lows.
   - Mine tanked the first night, in my sleep, but as I have a weird sleep schedule getting over this annoying cold I’ve had for about a month, I have had several times where I have tested this with different sleep positions and times. Mine tanks, though waking can spike me like crazy.

6. It doesn’t notify about highs
   - I get notifications about spikes, about an hour after the spike started
   - but nothing about if my blood sugar is over the target range
   - and nothing about sugars being above what the sensor is supposed be able to track at over 250mg/dl

7. You may have a few surprises in what you thought you could eat
   - There were a few things that I thought were ok, as my blood sugar didn’t spike for a couple hours, so within the normal for me testing window, but then at the 2.5 to 3 hour mark would go from a normal 110 to well into the 200’s by hour 4.
   - Yes, I was a dumbass and tested it repeatedly over the next couple days to see if there were other factors I was missing, and, no, it was that treat, specifically.
   - And, yes, this is how I know how the app seems to respond to very high sugars
   - Also, this is how I know the delay in the Clarity app. Needed to know how high I got when it was starting to show “Above 250” in the Stelo app, but Clarity just had data from the previous hour, where things seemed well.
   - Learned to either use finger sticks or wait until it was back under 250 for about an hour to see how bad it really was.

8. Double spikes are a thing
   - It’s called biphasic spikes
   - apparently often seen in non-diabetics
   - not an insulin resistance thing
   - no clue why I get them
   - noticed them when testing certain foods while using finger sticks every 15 minutes for 2 hours and thought I was doing testing wrong. Yes, totally a thing. Both the double spikes and me doing the finger stick testing every 15 minutes with new foods for the first 2 hours. I’m a data whore.

The over patches I got hold up to at least 1 week of me being my mostly sedentary self. Was planning to go riding my new bike more than just once, but it has been a bit wet (and I don’t trust the brakes just yet). The temps here have been comfortable in the 50’s mostly, but will be dry and get into the 70’s next week, and, we might be getting the house tented then… depends on if any of the local companies will be willing, so going biking might not be feasible just yet.

So far, I think things are going well, all the above things considered. I am getting data that was sorely lacking previously. Yes, finger sticks are still a thing to have on hand, but don’t need to be used daily (unless surprises show up in testing).

Anyway, here’s to a hopefully uneventful week 2, as I plan to not do any experimenting (except for the new protein powders I want to try out). See you then!