Just got a brand, spanking new 670G with all the bells and whistles - Contour Next Link meter, Guardian sensor, CareLink to upload all device information. I’ve literally had this on for 24 hours and it’s only gone downhill since yesterday evening.
Because a low was detected, the system stopped delivering insulin sometime during the night while I slept. I didn’t hear any alarms until almost 5AM; at which point it showed the delivery alert and also an alert for high BG which required a meter check. I checked and my BG was 166 so I did a correction. Went back to sleep for another hour and when I finally got to work and checked before drinking my usual breakfast shake my BG was 152. That was pretty much the last I’ve seen of a close-to-normal result.
The rest of today has seen nothing but levels in the 200s and 300s and I’ve done several corrections to “fix” it.
It’s not fixing. No explanation or advice from my trainer other than “Lower your carb ratio”. Couldn’t even tell me where to find what current basal rate the pump was actively delivering (it’s under Basal on the main menu; OR under Quick Status under Status in Main Menu).
All in all I am currently very unimpressed and frustrated. The first day on a new, improved system should not be this BAD. I should be able to trust an insulin pump right out of the box and so far, I do not.
I don’t like the limiting delivery increments (maybe THAT’S the problem??) and I (currently) don’t like something that just shuts off and leaves me traveling towards high BG.
Hi @lolaveed70. Are you in auto mode already? Maybe take it 1 step at a time like disable auto suspend, use manual mode operation, just to rule out infusion set probs and cgm cal probs too? Just thinking out loud
Thanks, Joe. I think their goal is to just throw you into the deep end of it right away. The training was for the whole setup at one time but I don’t really think 2 hours is enough.
When I got home tonight I was even more frustrated since the pump started scream-alarming in the car while driving home. It was a high BG alert (fantastic ). Immediately after walking in my front door I texted my rep and told her I was changing out my infusion site since this was the only thing that made sense to me - her earlier suggestion to lower the carb ratio didn’t really jibe .
An hour and a half later and my CGM is already reading me on a downward trend to 172 which, after a small snack and a light dinner of low-carb quiche and a jackfruit side dish, sounds super-awesome after a day of swimming in 200-348 molasses!
It seems like they want to distract you from all the stuff that you lost, like the quick-bolus (audio-bolus?) and all the time it takes you now to scroll through menus and press buttons 20 times. There’s not even a Home button on this thing!
I actually asked my trainer why they did away with the quick bolus feature and she said it was because too many people were overdosing themselves while sleepwalking(!!??). That cannot be true, could it?? Why let a few people who should not be wearing a pump (couldn’t they conceivably press OTHER buttons while sleepwalking??) ruin it for the rest of us who used that feature all the time and never suffered for it?
Anyway, thanks for replying and for reading this rant. I’m hoping for a way less aggravating tomorrow…
Tech is changing pretty rapidly. Have you considered returning the Medtronic and trying Tandem? At least with them you get software upgrades. I think the suggestion to try manual mode for a while is a good one. It’s important to make sure your basal rates, carb ratios, etc., are dialed in on the new pump for auto mode to get better results. Personally, I am Loop-ing with an old 722, and thrilled with the results.
Thank you all for your advice and just for checking in. I really appreciate it.
It is now day 3 and honestly I feel a bit better about it all. Turned out to be a site problem (trainer suggested a “clean” site that I’d never used and it was kind of a bad angle where I couldn’t see very well where I was placing it with the serter). Absorption was not great where the infusion set was placed. After I changed it to one of my usual areas I was steadily in range for a good portion of time.
My trainer called me yesterday and the plan is to upload all the data on Sunday and do a phone conference on Monday (Christmas Eve!) to get me going in Auto Mode. Right now I think I’m in calibration mode until the pump and sensor “learn” me.
I just came off the Tandem TSlim and honestly I would never go back to that. Those reservoirs waste so much insulin and I was very, very disgusted with that company since the time when my pump literally shut itself down because it got too hot. I was on vacation with my husband and we walked from the car to the beach and it started alarming before we found a spot to set up our towels. The pump was on the waistband of my shorts and the metal housing(!?) got too hot being in the sun for less than 10 minutes. Seriously, WTF and no thanks; never again!
So far I wanna say I’m excited to learn everything about the 670G and all its features. I like that it shuts down automatically when I’m approaching low in the middle of the night and it DOES NOT wake me up with alarms (until I’m actually low). I like that it shows me my BG all day and only asks me to calibrate every 12 hours(? - I think that’s what it’s doing…).
I’m also really excited to get the hang of CareLink - the web-based software where you download all your pump & sensor data and lets you create reports so you can see all your trends. I’ll be fine-tuning all my settings on Monday.
Glad to say it’s starting to feel more like a gift than a curse. Happy Holidays, everyone!
Hi, Cindy - I think you can program a set bolus which you can quickly access from the main menu. Yes, the missing quick bolus kinda sucks since I used it all the time but with all the positives this system has I can (almost) forgive their removing that feature.
All they need to do now is integrate a fully-functional meter-remote like my old Animas Ping had (I will forever miss you! ) and it will be almost perfect. Right now their Contour Next Link meter can only do a manual bolus (only in manual mode! ) but if you’re good at tight estimates then it’s fine.
B
My son been using Medtronic minimed, and we love it… some bumps along the road… but overall he is within 90 % within range , A1c 6.9… recently diagnosed 5/2018… on pump since 8/2018…and we sleep at night… any issues, Medtronic nurse that set you up should be available to help for 6 mths… also Medtronic 24hrs hotline can help…find a good endo, we did, and she uses Medtronic pump as well… relax and give a chance…
It took me 2 years to get comfortable with the 670. I finally spent 10 minutes - yes just 10 minutes - with my endocrinologist to adjust my settings. Carelink data was the key to his help. I don’t know why it took me so long to deal with. I’m much happier with the pump. Also, I’ve turned off several of the alerts and warnings – only keeping those for lows and highs.
Hi Doug - I was actually supposed to have a phone check-in with my trainer today. I uploaded all my data to CareLink last night so we have almost one week’s worth of info to review.
The past few days have been way more normal - aside from all the holiday stresses and occasional overeating!
I’m sorry I didn’t see your post 6 days ago, but I am also glad to see that all is working out well. I LOVE my 670G and would not trade it for anything! My training was way more intense and it took them weeks to let me get into auto mode. But YES it takes a bit of time for the system to learn us and us to learn the system. I too had to change some settings so I don’t get alarmed when not really necessary And as I learn to understand what the system is trying to do, I can “forgive” some of it’s choices as they are for my best interest (my life). I learn to work around the annoyances and appreciate the savings. If you have any questions, ask and I will be happy to respond…although I am not always on-line. All the best and Happy New Year!!!
Hi Louis - if you read more posts in the thread all seems to be working out. My trainer put me in auto mode on Monday of this week. It’s a little unnerving since I’m not used to “letting go”; which is basically what you have to do.
Honestly I’m looking forward to seeing where this system can take me. I love that it’s talking to the Guardian sensor all day and making incremental adjustments every 5 minutes. I still have to work out some kinks (last night my BG was high for me - around 223 - but the system didn’t seem to be correcting it…) But I remember the trainer telling me something about it taking a bit of time for it to “learn” me and for she and my doctor to make an necessary settings adjustments.
I just put a new sensor on last night and I’m feeling more confident that I can just let the system do it’s thing (instead of “stacking” insulin like I’m used to doing and then crashing low at various times of the day).
Don’t freak out - I feel like everything I’ve experienced so far is just the road to better control and less worry. Good luck and Happy New Year!
Hi Linda - Thanks so much for your reply. This is what I need to hear. My training was only(?) 2 hours and I feel like there are many things I’m not sure about.
I have to make a list of questions as I think of them. I’m a little unnerved that there is no more Manual Bolus and that sending a bolus from the meter is deactivated in Auto Mode. I’m also not thrilled that the meter doesn’t have the Bolus Wizard like the pump does (which is currently irrelevant since I can’t use it anyway in Auto ).
I’ll definitely ask my trainer and don’t worry if you’re not online for a while but do you know of any way to clean the adhesive off the Guardian transmitter (that’s safe)? I couldn’t get it all to rub off when I changed out the sensor last night and it’s picked up red fuzz from the inside of my bathrobe.
Lola, I felt your pain when I read your first post. I was also used to tightly controlling my BGL’s and was terrified of high numbers. I’ve now had the 670g for 7 months, and since I gave up my control issues my A1C has decreased to 6.8 and I’m aiming for 6.0. Am glad you posted; this group’s feedback is priceless!
Thanks for the reply! , I’m actually a very controlled diabetic with a high of 6.3 a1c , for almost 40 years , my pump I’m on is great but they are not making then anymore, I’m just afraid the new pump with smart technology isn’t gonna do as good as I can ! Lol
Wow… I’m at it for close to 40 years also! (Diagnosed 36 years ago).
Which pump do you use? My all-time favorite was the Animas Ping. LOVED the meter-remote as you could use the Bolus Wizard or do a manual bolus. I’m hoping this MiniMed 670G develops that capability soon - the Contour Next Link meter that it comes with has a remote bolus feature but it only does a manual bolus (which is ok if you’re good at math) AND, you can only use the remote in manual mode which kinda stinks (I am currently in Auto Mode where it corrects on its own).
Today is a much better day - started off with a normal BG and it didn’t quietly shut down for lows during the night. I woke up with no alerts whatsoever!
Glad to help alleviate some stress. Making a list of questions to address with your trainer and your Endo is a good idea. There absolutely is a manual bolus, it’s just meant to be used only for carbs. I found that I needed to be more accurate with my carb counts in order for it to all work well.
As for the Bolus Wizard, which I love, you are right it is no longer necessary. That being said, before the pump got really good at “me” I used to toggle out of auto mode when my sugars were high, use the bolus wizard and then toggle back into auto mode. I don’t recommend that, just something I did before I gained confidence in the pump.
Sorry, I can’t help you with the adhesive. First put in the tester so it does not get wet whenever you clean it. I heard wd-40 helps break down adhesive. I never put the tape on the transmitter (only the small tab to hold it in). I put the extra tape under it for more stability but I don’t want to have to deal with the tape residue either. This works well for me.
I ordered thr t slim instead , them 670g has alot of bad reviews, I usually don’t pay attention to one or 2 bad reviews but that’s all I see is bad , so i decide on t slim , I can manage it my self probably better than the 670 , my highest A1c was 6.3 in like many many years , so after 40 years with the disease and not one side effect, I’ll keep doing what I am , and i pray the t slim was the right choice !!!
). Immediately after walking in my front door I texted my rep and told her I was changing out my infusion site since this was the only thing that made sense to me - her earlier suggestion to lower the carb ratio didn’t really jibe 
.
) and it will be almost perfect. Right now their Contour Next Link meter can only do a manual bolus (only in manual mode! 
) but if you’re good at tight estimates then it’s fine.
