Loop is really good at handling unstable sensors for me. I don’t use Loop too aggressively. I set my max bolus to 3U to ensure I don’t get too much insulin (if CGM is really off), and I just monitor CGM AND my body (how I feel) constantly, as well as more finger sticks. Before starting Loop, I, too, wondered how it was possible to use it and CGM when CGM is not accurate! But with careful use, it is not too much of an issue, except for the constant monitoring during the few unstable days. More than makes up for the relatively freedom on the stable days!!
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I found a way around this problem: I calibrate twice, back to back. so if my reader is showing 130, but my finger stick is showing 75, I do a calibration, then , bc the dex doesnt adapt to that first calibration, I do a second one, and like magic, poof I’m back on TR on my dex. But, I only will calibrate when the arrow is straight, not while it is going up or down. Hope this helps you some.
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Thanks, DM! I’ve tried this, too, but it doesn’t seem to work for me. Maybe it depends on how off it is. The more off, the more likely it won’t work (for me)!
Oh, but not back to back I wait 'til I get the next reading and if it is still off, I’ll re-calibrate. I haven’t tried just calibrating twice before the next reading. I will give this a try tomorrow - my next sensor change!!!
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Good luck. Ill b thinking of you. For me, the first day of a new sensor is completely wonky, so although YDMV, dont let it get to you. 
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embarrassing but true, during the first day I must finger stick about 20 times. Call me neurotic, but I like to keep in my TR as much as possible. But then again, I have OCD and testing is just one of my unpleasant obsessive behaviors.
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I don’t worry about it. For me, when the Dex has not yet settled, it tends to read low. So that means Loop will try to raise my BG, maybe 20 or 30 points, and that’s really not going to hurt me. The jitter in the Dex numbers means that Loop switches back and forth between giving a tiny extra bolus when the graph jumps up, and then suspending the basal when the graph jumps down. It seems to average out because insulin action is slow compared to the 5-minute CGM jitter.
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It’ll be a while for me since it doesn’t integrate with the O5 system as of yet. I can’t go back to non-automated despite my disappointment in still not having iPhone control of the system. Come on Insulet!
Is there a update to xDrip for the Dexcom G7? I also use the infamous Sony Smartwatch 3 for a primary receiver which has been very reliable for all versions of Dexcom.
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Sorry, I have not been using xDrip+ as a collector for a fews years, not since I moved to Loop. I checked FB group and it seems G7 is only supported as a companion app, where xDrip+ is not directly connected to the sensor. This probably means that the Sony Smartwatch 3 will no longer be able to connect directly to the sensor either.
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Thank you very much for your comments on the Dexcom G7. I have been a little hesitant about switching from the G6 to the G7. After reading your comment, I’m a lot more confident. Thank you again.
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Quick update on the G7. I thought I’d try the “presoaking” trick this time: inserting a sensor without activating it while the previous one is still running to give the new one time to settle before official recording starts.
I’d never done this with the G6 but it turns out that with the G7 it works a little strangely. Once you insert the sensor, it starts recording even if you’re not seeing the data. Once you pair the sensor by entering its code all of that “ghost” data will suddenly appear overlaid with the old sensor’s data. So you will have several hours in which you’ve got readings from both sensors displayed, after which only the new one will be recorded:
I’m glad not to have been up all night with those false lows, but as a result this new sensor of mine has about 12 hours less life in it. Since there’s also a 10-12 hour grace period that’s ok, but a bit frustrating and something to be aware of.
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Thx for sharing this! I’ve heard interviews with dexcom ( I think Jake Leach?) where they ask about the ability to pre soak the G7 and the dexcom guy never really acknowledged or answered the question. I don’t know if he understood that some of us insert a sensor hours before activation to help with false lows in the first 12 hours.
So now I finally have a answer! Thx!
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My new VA Endo said that Tandem should be good to go with the G7 this fall (she was thinking the November time frame.)
I found this interesting, as the VA rarely seems to know what future products or time frames are about anything unless it is spelled out in big, bold, black and white!
She was confident enough in this that she did NOT renew my G6 transmitter prescription (well, DME, but same difference.)
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@Hammer I’ve held off on transferring to the G7. The first issue was my Endo indicated people in Northern VA were not able to obtain it readily. The second issue is all the reports I’ve read of the G7 loosing connectivity frequently due to body placement vs Omni Dash or phone/receiver; I just didn’t want to have regrets on that count, though I actually have no facts on often “frequent” is or how wide-spread the problem actually is. I’ve mostly held off hoping Dexcom, or Dexcom and Insulet/pump manufacturers, figure out whose problem it is or if a joint fix can be determined. The G6, despite its wonky first day and 2-hour warm up, works the majority of the time for me, so I’ve stuck with the devil I know.
If anyone has actual data on the G7 connectivity drops, it would be helpful to know what it is, where it is, and how it was gathered…
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So i am revisiting this topic since i have switched from the G6 to the G7, and have gathered quite a bit of info that someone might find helpful. First off, I LOVE that the G7 warm-up is only 1/2 hour. Generally it is close to my finger stick reading, but not always. I generally dont trust that first day for accuracy, but i am pleasantly surprised most times to find out just how accurate it can be. But, by day two, i am up and on my way. (and btw, i’ve never done the “soaking” thing. No point for me)
I love that there is no transmitter to deal with. I love how streamlined and thin it is, i love the attachment ease, i love how comfortable it is on my arm ( i often forget its even there). And, i find it much more accurate than the G6.
Thats all i’ve got to say. But All in all, it is my favorite model so far and i have been trying them out since the G4,G5,and G6.
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@daisymae Thanks for the feedback on the G7!
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Here are my comments on the G7.
The big advantage is that there’s no time period where I’m without CGM readings because of “warm-up.” With the G6, the 2-hour warmup time happened to coincide with large excursions way too often. With the G7, as long as I insert it at least a half hour before the previous sensor quits (10.5 days) and wait at least a half hour before starting the new sensor, there will be no gap.
The G7 inserter is somewhat smaller, and it is easy to take apart to extract the needle for sharps disposal and springs for recycling. (I presume that most people will not bother to do that, and just toss the inserter.)
The insertion button on the G7 is much stiffer; harder to press. It’s ok, but if my hand arthritis were much worse, maybe it would be a problem.
In my abdomen, the first day readings are less accurate than the G6, but in my experience the error is always on the safe side (i.e., it would lead me to raise my BG, not lower it — which won’t make me unconscious or cause me to crash my car.)
The modestly smaller sensor size is noticeable, but it doesn’t appear to help me in any way. Perhaps it would be different if I wore it on my arm.
The pressure lows seem to be about the same. Not notably better.
The biggest negative is the app for iOS. The alert system is much worse than in the G6 app.
First, the behavior is as if the alert is triggered by a timer rather than by the arrival of a BG reading, so it often happens that an alert starts based on the previous BG reading, then the new reading arrives. In a scenario where my BG was high and it is just now dropping into range, it often happens that the high alert will start to sound, then the number will change to the new value and the alert will abruptly silence. Those false alarms bug me.
Second, in a 5-minute interval they seem to give all the applicable alerts, not just the worst one. So if I’m low and they predict that I will go really low I’ll get the “severe low soon” alert, and after I open the app and dismiss it they will then pop-up the “your BG is low now” alert and make me dismiss that one too. I’m in the app and I just looked at the graph, so the second alert doesn’t help me. It’s merely pendantic and bothersome.
Third, it’s much more annoying to ack/cancel an alert in the G7 app, because there is a delay of a few seconds after the app opens before they show the alert pop-up with the dismiss button. So an alert comes, I open the app, and I wait and wait and wait (all of 2 or 3 seconds but it bothers me) do be done with it. It is as if the designers are saying “Now I want you to look at what you’ve done and take a while to think about it before you go back to whatever else you were doing.”
You asked for actual data on G7 connectivity drops. I don’t have that, but I can say my experience. Recall that I wear the sensor on my abdomen. With the phone on the nightstand, reliable connection is always maintained, whether I’m on my back, belly, left side, or right side. The only routine signal loss is when I’m sitting in a chair, with my hands folded in my lap, with the sensor on the left side and my phone in my right-side front pocket. I might get a drop-out once an hour or so. Sometimes it can be resolved by shifting the position of the phone, other times I have to take the phone out and move it closer to the sensor. I don’t lose signal with the phone in my left shirt pocket and the sensor on the right (or left) abdomen.
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Thanks for the report @bkh! Good to hear known 1st hand experience! I may give it a shot, but will likely be in the fall with my next Endo appt. Hey! That’ll be right at my anniversary of being on Dexcom!
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As a swimmer, I can say without equivocation, there is an enormous difference while swimming with the G7 than with the G6. The flat, stream lined G7 eliminates any “drag time” as i push my body through the water ahead. The older G6 had a very noticeable drag, which i found terribly annoying. And i was constantly concerned that despite the over-patch and Tegaderm, the sensor and the Transmitter would fall off because of it. And what would i do then (without the transmitter)? I’d have to pay OOP for a replacement.
With the G7 i can swim without worry about this potential senarial. I can put my mind to more comforting thoughts.
I wear my G7 on the underneath part of my left arm and sleep on my right side (always have and probably always will). Even though it pushes against things (T-Shirt, Sofa, Pillows, my husband…ive never lost a signal. I have lost its signal when i leave it someplace and forget about it for too long, but the signal had always come right back on (maybe a total of 5-10 minutes wait time at most)
i happen to have arthritic hands and fingers which are definately impaired, however i find no difficulty inserting the G7. The worst for me were the G4 and the G5. I wasnt much of a fan of the G6 either, but at least it was an improvement.
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Yep, it turns on the moment the big button is pressed. Dexcom say the data retention within the sensor is substantially more than the G6 transmitter, which was 3 hours, so a 12 hour presoak maxing out the “extra” 12 hours in the lifetime should report the overlap without a problem.
I love your graph. I haven’t been able to get that out of xDrip+ (I don’t use the Dexcom software); I really want to see both tracks and even though xDrip+ can’t currently sync to both transmitters simultaneously it can get the “backfill” data. Alas it doesn’t let me see the overlap figures.
Your graph really helps in understanding how the G7 settles down and, more important, does not settle down.
I’ve been presoaking since I started (5 sensors so far) and I now know that 12 hours is not enough, as your graph demonstrates. Whatever, it’s better than the G6 fiction.
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