I live in tornado alley. A few years ago the sirens sounded and my family took cover. Across the street, trees were uprooted. Trees fell over on fences and garages. The tornado really did sound like a freight train. The sirens gave us enough warning to get to safety. I'm grateful my government provides that protection for the community.Diabetes is like living in tornado alley. You never know when trouble is going to strike. Wouldn't it be great if someone invented an early warning system? Something small that I could carry in my pocket that would sound an alarm before I had a seizure from low blood sugar? Or how about a device that sounded a warning that my blood sugar was dangerously high? Wouldn't that device be life saving?
The early warning system for people with diabetes does exist. It's called Continuous Glucose Monitoring. I carry one in my pocket. Most of the time it is quiet and monitors things in the background. But every few days, I get an alarm.
Not only does the graph show my blood sugar is 50. It has an arrow pointing down letting me know my blood sugar is falling. Now is the time to intervene before something tragic happens.
This time my blood sugar was going up in the middle of the night. The high blood sugar warning sounded. I woke up and discovered the cat had chewed through my insulin pump tubing. Once again my CGM saved me from disaster.
A CGM is an early warning system that I have come to rely on. It's something I feel my life depends on. When I found out Medicare doesn't cover CGM I was surprised. Then I was angry. A device this remarkable needs to be available for people over 65.
A CGM is as life saving as a tornado warning. Our seniors deserve the same protection I have. Medicare needs to cover them now.
I'm joining the Crusade for CGM Coverage By Medicare. Do you want to join me? Here's how.
No comments:
Post a Comment