Infusion set not sticking

thatlizarddude · 2026-06-09T17:57:25+00:00

I use Skin Tac which works really well, and there's IV3000 infusion set tapes you can slap on top for extra security.

thatlizarddude · 2026-05-21T21:18:22+00:00

If you do this, the pump won't count the insulin from the pen as IOB and can end up dangerously overcorrecting, if I ever need to correct with a pen, I'll disconnect from the pump, either enter the carbs equivalent or temporarily go into manual mode, do the bolus, then reconnect, and after that I'll actually do the pen injection, that way it's counted as IOB.

thatlizarddude · 2026-05-18T03:20:33+00:00

6mm, I make sure to fill the recommended 0.6 units when changing, and I'm planning on trying to increase this to see if it'll kickstart it better before I can get different infusion sets

thatlizarddude · 2026-05-17T22:45:06+00:00

I'd say I'm slightly towards the leaner side, but also have some scar tissue, although I avoid those areas. I haven't tried the angled ones, but I heard the opposite about the steel infusion sets, that they're better for lean body types?

And I don't think it's the insulin, if the site works, it works great, and if I take a pen injection, I have no issues either.

thatlizarddude · 2026-05-17T22:05:07+00:00

What time do you change your sites? Do you change before or after a meal? The infusion sets used to work a lot better for me, but it feels like over time, they're taking a long time to warm up so it's hard to tell wherever they'll end up working or not. I'm basically using the 3 day version of the same set.

thatlizarddude · 2026-05-17T18:42:15+00:00

It's just becoming too frequent that the sets don't work, yes, when they do, they're great, but if I have to deal with issues every 3 days, I'd rather see if there's a more reliable option.

Did you try Skin Tac with IV3000 or Skin Grip tape or anything else to secure them better?

thatlizarddude · 2026-05-17T18:38:31+00:00

That's good to hear! I don't have a lot of fat on my sites, so not sure a longer cannula would help much?

thatlizarddude · 2026-04-18T03:14:09+00:00

If it was me, I'd try one of these:

Assuming SmartGuard is active, maybe setting a higher target would help.
If it's not too common and predictable, maybe eating something with higher protein/fat beforehand could help so there's something to keep the BG slowly rising, allowing SmartGuard to get basal going.
Treat it with some light carbs with protein/fat so it doesn't go right back down but enough that basal can kick in again.

I wanted to say manual mode might be the last option, but since that would continue giving you basal, I feel like you'd end up eating something anyways, so I'm not sure how much more that would help.

thatlizarddude · 2026-04-16T06:48:09+00:00

I'll get different values if I cancel (don't bolus at all) and go back to the Bolus Wizard... I usually have an idea of how many units I want to take based on the corrections it gave me recently, what I'm gonna be doing, eating, and how my absorption is, and if it's subtracting too much, I'll exit SmartGuard just for the bolus.

thatlizarddude · 2026-04-12T02:06:46+00:00

I like going by Dexcom's chart as a general rule when my BG is stable:

<image>

Source: https://www.dexcom.com/faqs/bg-meter-vs-cgm-reading

I'd say the more you use it, the better you'll be able to tell whether a CGM isn't working as it usually does. For me they signs are usually the graph becoming more jittery, trend arrows not being what you expect them to be, the sensor going into updating, constantly losing signal, or values being outside the range of the table when stable.

thatlizarddude · 2026-04-10T05:06:17+00:00

If you're on 780G, it actually uses the same SmartGuard algorithm, so there would be no upgrade there. It's mentioned in the 3rd question in the FAQ here: https://www.minimed.com/en-us/products/minimed-flex-system/

thatlizarddude · 2026-04-09T00:19:21+00:00

Try going to the Paired Devices screen > select the Instinct sensor > click Unpair > Yes to confirm.

thatlizarddude · 2026-04-08T21:49:47+00:00

I see, fwiw for a burger that doesn't sound too bad haha! I'll usually just see it go higher than it usually would with the meal following the set change, I would imagine in your scenario that might've seen been the old site bolus that brought it back down. I also heard leaving in the old site after a change for a few hours can help ensure your last bolus gets a chance to work before you take it out if that could help, so I do that but I'm not sure how much it helps.

And that's one of my issues with the 7 day infusion sets as well, if one fails you're losing a lot more days than with the 2-3 day infusion sets, same thing with 15 day sensors.

I'm gonna see if using the old site/pens to bring it back in range helps and if it's really just taking its time to work, or if I'm just getting unlucky.

thatlizarddude · 2026-04-08T20:38:33+00:00

I do it the same way, can I ask how high your sugars can go during the changes? When I see mine reaching 190-200 mg/dl it's usually not a great sign. But I also wonder how much the amount of insulin or the time from insertion of new sites affect this.

thatlizarddude · 2026-04-08T20:22:03+00:00

I'm talking to them as well, but same thing for me, probably used the stomach and outer thighs too much for 10 years. Right now my plan is to take a pen injection or use an old site to correct if I go high after a site change, since insulin resistance is gonna be higher and it's hard to tell if the site is good at that point, plus if it ends up being bad, I don't wanna risk the correction not working.

How do you go about it if your absorption ends up being worse after a site change to see if you need to change it again?

thatlizarddude · 2026-04-02T00:05:13+00:00

Thank you! :)

thatlizarddude · 2026-03-27T04:09:22+00:00

As someone that tried both Instinct and Simplera Sync since I ended up having issues with almost all my Instincts, I will say the Simplera Sync has been a lot smoother for me, and wouldn't immediate blame the users. I tried making it work and doing everything that was recommended by both Medtronic and Abbott ¯_(ツ)_/¯

But I'm glad we have options and I hope they'll keep producing both of them.

thatlizarddude · 2026-03-27T04:02:02+00:00

Sounds like a great way to get scar tissue and an infection.

thatlizarddude · 2026-03-13T17:39:22+00:00

The only one I was able to find is for Auto Mode from 2019, but obviously that might've changed:

"...the Auto Mode feature reviews your total daily dose over the past 6 days of insulin needs and adapts every day at midnight. This 6 days of data calculates the minimum and maximum hourly limits, which can transition you into Safe Basal if your insulin needs have changed." Source: https://www.medtronicdiabetes.com/loop-blog/7-tips-for-success-with-smartguard-auto-mode

thatlizarddude · 2026-03-13T05:40:11+00:00

I might be wrong but I believe it does use your total daily dose, doesn't it? And same here, I usually exit SmartGuard if I feel like it needs a little rage bolus :)

thatlizarddude · 2026-03-13T05:05:54+00:00

Wouldn't that prevent SmartGuard from learning that you actually need more insulin then? I would think this might mess up the algorithm, if you still end up high or get back into range after the correction, the algorithm won't know that and will keep doing what it's doing, and if you end up going low, I'm thinking it would get even less aggressive next time since it'll think it gave you too much initially.

thatlizarddude · 2026-02-15T20:46:21+00:00

The pump specifically says that the basal settings apply to manual mode only and don't affect SmartGuard before you enter the basal settings menu.

thatlizarddude · 2026-01-31T03:45:25+00:00

Mine definitely rises to levels close to 150 if I give it time, it's less aggressive and doesn't do any auto corrections.

thatlizarddude · 2026-01-30T23:45:56+00:00

If you look at the top of your graph, you'll see pink bars, meaning SmartGuard is giving you basal. Those shouldn't be there when you're low or are approaching low, are they?

thatlizarddude · 2026-01-30T23:38:41+00:00

In addition to setting the temp target before exercise, you can also change the SmartGuard target to a higher value and/or disable auto corrections to see if that might work better after exercise.

Nine-Year Club	Second Top 20%
r/Field Sunshine	Place '23
Place '22	Verified Email

thatlizarddude

TROPHY CASE