One touch ultra mini use

imagine7696030614 · July 2014

Sorry if this has been asked before. I tried to search GD threads but couldn't really find the answer. I went in to my endo for my routine thyroid follow up and told the dr that I had failed my 1 hour glucose test, passed the 3 hour and will need to repeat the test at 30 weeks so with this info (and the fact that I typically gain 60 lbs with each pg and had failed the 1 hour test with a prior pg...but also passed that 3 hr test) he wants me to test my blood sugar for one week. He gave me a one touch ultra mini and showed me how to use it. He tested my blood and it was 140 but I had just had some snapple peach iced tea(which I was reprimanded for) lol. Anyway, he had mentioned that I could use the same lancet more than once and I didn't think to ask any further about it but is that typically what everyone does? Use the same lancet for a couple days? Seems a little risky to me/unsterile? How many times can we use the same one? Thanks!

Heartwood0519 · July 2014

I'm a Type 1 diabetic and test my blood sugar 10-14 times a day. I got my meter a little over a year ago and I think I may have changed the lancet once...

lrobi13 · July 2014

I change my lancet every 1-2 days and I test four times a day.

eta..I wash my hands before each use so it is more about the needle getting dull than it is about unsterileness for me.

Heartwood0519 · July 2014

starla487 said:

There is a running gag in the diabetic online community to also remember to change your lancet when you set your clocks back and forward. :-) That said, I honestly can't remember the last time I did, but probably should at some point. (And I've had T1 for almost 32 years.)

Ha! I was starting to feel bad that maybe I was a bad diabetic!

Sockgnome78 · July 2014

I change mine every couple of days or when it at arts to hurt. I had the same question when I started testing. Funny thing is the lancets are the cheapest of all things for teating. I can get a box of 100 that will last me for a year or 2. The test strips are what get you.
I do wash my hands as much as can be done before testing. Sometimes when out I just test at the table on my lap.

imagine7696030614 · July 2014

Oh wow! I had no idea you could go so long without changing! That's a relief. So, do we have to clean the needle at all? Thanks again!

Sockgnome78 · July 2014

I don't clean it. Mine you have to pull to activate the needle. So I just leave it alone until time for a change. Not like it is touching other people's blood or bodily fluids.

vmt617 · July 2014

I've been type 1 for 13 years. I think my lancet gets changed approximately every three or four months, but it's definitely infrequent. It's obviously recommended to change more frequently, but as already mentioned --- it's one of those suggestions that is routinely ignored.

crystal8503 · July 2014

I change mine every week or two.

MrsMac613 · July 2014

My nurse told me to change it everytime. I could have saved myself a lot of lancets.

imagine7696030614 · July 2014

Thanks again! I tried to do the test twice but failed. Wasted two strips. I just tried to look up a tutorial on YouTube but wasn't much help. I think maybe I'm waiting too long after inserting the strip to get the blood on it....or just not getting enough blood in it...man, I have a whole new level of sympathy for those who have to do this everyday, indefinitely.

Sockgnome78 · July 2014

On my meter I don't have an exact time limit to put the blood on. Also it will tell me if there is not enough blood for testing and will give me a count down timer to add more.

I would read through the manuel to make sure you are doing it right.

When I test I get everything prepared before the strip even touches the meter. So my lancet is "cocked" and ready to go. Got the strip on not inserted the meter. Lastly I wash my hands if I have touched food. If not I just tested. Insert test strip and poke finger.

Some tips for poking your finger: Relax! It won't hurt as much. I breath deeply before I poke and then pull the trigger. Sometimes I build it up too much and this is even after a year and half testing. I don't massage the tip of my finger. You want your whole body to be relaxed you so get ample blood. And just do it! I was a big baby the first time I tested at the Endro office. I nearly passed out. Luckily not pregnant! Just have fun with it. I try and make a game out of it some how.

MrsL2B · July 2014

I try to remember to change mine when I refill my test strips prescription.

If you're worried about reusing them and/or you're not getting enough blood, try single-use lancets. They hurt like a bitch, but you'll never have to worry about not getting enough blood for a reading.

kindacrunchy · July 2014

My husband is a type 1 and I think he changes the lancet a couple times a year.

Kendrav4 · July 2014

I change mine everytime for some reason...last time I had GD I changed every couple of days

lrobi13 · July 2014

The nurse showed me how to do it and it really helped. It really decreased my mistakes. She told me to wash my hands in warm soapy water and to milk my hands. Basically squeezing the blood down my hand into my fingers. Then I dry them thoroughly. The other great tip is to place my hand down flat on the table and prick the sides.

hope this helps! It is a big bummer to waste strips and to have to re prick!

Emerald27 · July 2014

This may sound weird to you ladies, but my mom is diabetic and tests on her arm, not her finger...like on her forearm just below the elbow. Maybe it's the particular meter she has, but she said it doesn't hurt at all and it saves her poor fingers.

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