Tips on drawing blood?

[Nancy LC]

Ok, I got myself a glucose meter just out of curiousity and I've wasted a lot of strips so far. :p My problem is getting a big enough drop of blood for the meter. So far, it seems to hurt least on my forearm but I'm not getting much blood. The tips of my fingers seem to have lots of nerves and I can't quite summon up the courage to stab myself hard enough.

Any tips for a newbie?

[pauleo]

I'm a relative newbie. One thing I noticed is that when I first wake up I have to squeeze the blood out (of a fingertip pricking point). After exercise it flows out usually with no need for squeezing my finger. So my guess is that even doing some mild exercise for 1-2 mins (like arm swinging or hand clenching) could help the blood flow.

[angien03]

Good morning Nancy --
The forearm is tougher to get enough blood from. Exercise ups your circulation like Pauleo says, so if you can do it after that, it'll be easier for you. When I have trouble gettin blood on my pts at work, sometimes i'll drop their hand down, and also cover it with a hot/warm towel for a little bit. That makes the veins dilate and increases blood also. Prick the side of your finger, not the pad. It should be a little less painful. Best of luck to ya!!

[emily30]

Nancy,

For the people who I have to do daily BS on, I find the easiest and least painful is to to draw from the upper side of a finger, even better the thumb. Before you prick it, give your hands a good wash under some very warm water just before, you'll get a much better flow of blood on warm fingers and the skin will be softened, so you won't have to set the lancet dial so deep. Give the digit you've chosen a few tight pulls, drawing blood to the tip, then prick it.

HTH

[RobLL]

And remember the blood goes in the end of the strip, not on top of it.

Hand warm, if necessary wash them in warm/hot water
Shake your arm, forcing blood down toward your hand
'milk' blood toward your finger tip

Then use the device

Top of my fingers, even when I set the device to go deeper, frequently produces a 'dry hole'. grrrr

[Nancy LC]

And remember the blood goes in the end of the strip, not on top of it.
Yeah! It took me 3 strips to figure that one out. :p

I'm covered in bruises and little punctures today.

[CNYMom]

Also, stuff I've read says not to squeeze too much to get it out or it affects the readings (not sure how). Dropping the hand, or washing it in warm water works for me.

As for the actual stabbing, my meter came with a thing that does the stabbing for me, once I gather up the nerve to push the button. That simplifies it, but I still hate it.

And as for where... arm didn't work so well for me, either, so I use the sides of the finger tips (not the pad). Rotate them, too, meaning don't always use the same one.

Good luck!

[Lisa N]

stuff I've read says not to squeeze too much to get it out or it affects the readings

That's correct; 'milking' the finger can produce inaccurate results and don't poke twice in the same finger if your stick wasn't deep enough for a sufficient sample the first time.
Warm water is usually the best method to get the circulation flowing (as in wash your hands, which is a good idea before you 'stick' anyway. ;) ). A warm washcloth over the site for a minute or two if you are using your forearm might help.

Some other tips:

-Use the sides, rather than the pads, of your fingers. Your fingers will thank you if you use a computer keyboard a lot.
-hold your hand below your waist and shake for a few seconds just before testing; this will help blood pool in the fingertip
-alcohol wipes aren't necessary if you wash your hands and can make the stick sting more
-use an 'autolet'; a device that does the sticking for you with the press of a button and can be pre-set to various depths
-only use the lancet once; the needles are so fine now that one use is often enough to dull or bend the tips

HTH!

[Daryl]

Ok, I got myself a glucose meter just out of curiousity and I've wasted a lot of strips so far. :p My problem is getting a big enough drop of blood for the meter. So far, it seems to hurt least on my forearm but I'm not getting much blood. The tips of my fingers seem to have lots of nerves and I can't quite summon up the courage to stab myself hard enough.

Any tips for a newbie?

What kind of numbers are you getting, if that isn't too nosy? :lol:

[KoKo]

What kind of numbers are you getting, if that isn't too nosy? :lol:

I'm covered in bruises and little punctures today.


Yeah I was kinda wondering that too (not that the numbers would say anything to me just a good or a bad would suffice :lol: )

[Jiggerz]

stuff I've read says not to squeeze too much to get it out or it affects the readings (not sure how)
You could get tissue mixed in with the blood. Not good.

Holding a warm cup of coffee helps.
Only poke towards the sides of your fingers. Poking in the middle, and you "could" hit bone, which "could" result in a bone infection.
Massage the selected finger, "milking it" towards the fingertips helps.

(Things I've learned working in a nursing home, and MA school.)

[Nancy LC]

What kind of numbers are you getting, if that isn't too nosy? :lol:
My first reading was 92... that was just before bedtime about 4 hours after eating. I wasn't pleased.

Then the next morning I got a 70. That seemed quite good.

Next one was about 90 minutes after eating all day at a party and I had peanut M&M's and a few potato chips... 72?!? That surprised me.

I think I need to use the automatic pokey thing that came with the glucose meter, it looks like a pen... I'm REALLY not good at sticking the lancet in myself.

I have been waiting for my current set of bruises and holes to go away before trying again. Is 90 minutes after eating a good time to do it?

[Lisa N]

I have been waiting for my current set of bruises and holes to go away before trying again. Is 90 minutes after eating a good time to do it?

Nancy, 'standard' testing for blood glucose after a meal is 2 hours from the time you begin eating (not after you finish). Depending on how long it takes you to eat, that might work out to 90 minutes but if you want to be accurate, time it.

My first reading was 92... that was just before bedtime about 4 hours after eating. I wasn't pleased.

Considering the difficulty that you had getting that first sample, 92 was probably reflecting the stress hormones in your system from several pokes before you got the sample.
The rest of your readings are fabulous! :thup:

[Nancy LC]

Well, tonight at 5:30 pm it is 58! This might explain why I feel so tired in the afternoons. I ate 1 oz of almonds about 90 minutes ago.

Hmmm... what could cause such low blood sugar readings? Ugh, reading up on it sounds like lots of terrible things could.

Oh! As far as drawing blood that little device packaged with the glucose monitor is excellent! I had to poke myself 3 times to get the depth right but it hurts much less than trying to do it by hand.

[Lisa N]

58 is hypoglycemic territory. I'd be a mess if my blood sugar dropped that low. In fact, the one time it was that low, I was sweating, visibly shaking and about to pass out.
Some people don't get hypo symptoms until their blood sugar gets very low, though, if they get them at all so it's individual.
OTOH, one low reading does not a hypoglycemic make. You might find it helpful to keep a log of what you eat and the corresponding blood sugar values and see if you can spot any trends. :idea:

Oh! As far as drawing blood that little device packaged with the glucose monitor is excellent! I had to poke myself 3 times to get the depth right but it hurts much less than trying to do it by hand.

It's called an autolet and it's definitely a lot quicker and easier than trying to do it by hand.

[Nancy LC]

Yeah, it is odd but my hypoglycemia symptoms when I low carb appear to just be sleepiness and laziness. I can eat a meal and it'll go away. I remember having the shakes, sweats and nausea before going low carb. I figured it was the big drop that made the difference, whereas nowadays I just slip slowly into hypo territory. Or at least that is my suspicion why I'm always SO sleepy when I get home from work.

Perhaps this is also why that darned snack machine calls out to me at work. It's really my blood sugar drifting down that is causing me to crave starches.

I've never felt that coffee makes my blood sugar drop because I don't get hungry, but maybe it does? Hmmm...

[Daryl]

Yeah, it is odd but my hypoglycemia symptoms when I low carb appear to just be sleepiness and laziness. I can eat a meal and it'll go away. I remember having the shakes, sweats and nausea before going low carb. I figured it was the big drop that made the difference, whereas nowadays I just slip slowly into hypo territory. Or at least that is my suspicion why I'm always SO sleepy when I get home from work.

Perhaps this is also why that darned snack machine calls out to me at work. It's really my blood sugar drifting down that is causing me to crave starches.

I've never felt that coffee makes my blood sugar drop because I don't get hungry, but maybe it does? Hmmm...

Just shows you that the low carbing helps "flatten" your blood sugars-- I mean, improving from the shakes to mild sleepiness.

If the coffee is caffeinated, it can make your blood sugar bounce up, which can result in it bouncing back down a bit too far, I believe.

Like Lisa said, 2 hours after the start of a meal is a good rule of thumb for testing postpranadial levels.

Thanks for sharing your readings with us!

[eddiemcm]

"58 is hypoglycemic territory"
I've been in mid 60's a couple of times but
had no discomfort.Actually,I wish I would have
had some sort of symptoms to warn me that I
was getting close to hypo.I have a T2 friend
who gets very bad symptoms in low 80's.
Bye for now
Eddie

[Nancy LC]

This morning I got up and my glucose was 76. Nice... then I had 2 cups of coffee and started feeling a little foggy headed... took it again and it was 56. Yikes! I don't know if it was just the activity from being up and getting ready for work and not eating, or was it the coffee?

I decided it's time to make a REAL effort to get the coffee monkey off my back. Started increasing the amount of decaf in my typical ratio of 50/50. Maybe by mid-week next week I'll be weaned down enough to give it up altogether.

[RobLL]

Nancy: I would not assume that it was related to the coffee. From your numbers you probably have an impaired glucose function. Quite a few of the recent threads might be worth your reading. And here are a couple great links.

http://www.geocities.com/jenny_the_bean/index.html
http://www.geocities.com/lottadata4u/index.htm

[Nancy LC]

I didn't really see anything in those links about hypoglycemia like I seem to have.

[Nancy LC]

I'm starting to think my really low readings were errors. I tested last night after dinner (1 hour) and it read 70-something and I think my hands were damp. I took again and it read 99ish after dinner.

I still can't get enough blood to come out unless I squeeze my finger tip a bit.

[RobLL]

If I get an unusual reading I retest on the other hand immediately.

[pauleo]

If I get an unusual reading I retest on the other hand immediately.

How often do you get a significantly different reading when you do that?

[Daryl]

I'm starting to think my really low readings were errors. I tested last night after dinner (1 hour) and it read 70-something and I think my hands were damp. I took again and it read 99ish after dinner.

I still can't get enough blood to come out unless I squeeze my finger tip a bit.

It's possible the meter and/or strips aren't accurate. I had to toss about 60 strips and the meter I first bought due to inaccurate readings. I called Dr. Bernstein's office, and they told me the only meter he is recommending currently is the Accu-Check Aviva. Within two days, my doctor had given me one free.

[Lisa N]

-Always check the expiration date before you use them
-once they are open, store them in a dry, cool place (not the kitchen or bathroom)
-handle your strips as little as possible and try not to touch the blood collection end until you put a drop of blood on it
-wash your hands before handling the test strips
-keep the container tightly closed and only open it long enough to remove a test strip when you need one
-use the test solutions to check the accuracy of your meeter once a month, more if your readings seem 'off' and your strips are within the expy date

HTH!

[Daryl]

-Always check the expiration date before you use them
-once they are open, store them in a dry, cool place (not the kitchen or bathroom)
-handle your strips as little as possible and try not to touch the blood collection end until you put a drop of blood on it
-wash your hands before handling the test strips
-keep the container tightly closed and only open it long enough to remove a test strip when you need one
-use the test solutions to check the accuracy of your meeter once a month, more if your readings seem 'off' and your strips are within the expy date

HTH!

And don't confuse them with a ketostick :lol:

[Nancy LC]

use the test solutions to check the accuracy of your meeter once a month, more if your readings seem 'off' and your strips are within the expy date
I didn't know there was such a thing!

Tonight I got a 65 right before dinner, so perhaps that wasn't a faulty reading.

[Ann1231]

Nancy,

For the people who I have to do daily BS on, I find the easiest and least painful is to to draw from the upper side of a finger, even better the thumb. Before you prick it, give your hands a good wash under some very warm water just before, you'll get a much better flow of blood on warm fingers and the skin will be softened, so you won't have to set the lancet dial so deep. Give the digit you've chosen a few tight pulls, drawing blood to the tip, then prick it.

HTH

I always wash my hands in really warm water too with my fingers hanging down. I always have to test mine at the side of my ring fingers between the pad and the nail. I do get sore after days of doing this but it's the easiest place for me to get enough blood for the test.
Ann

[Ann1231]

Nancy, try these sites and see if they give you information that might help. They sure helped me 11 years ago when I was finally diagnosed.

http://www.fred.net/slowup/hai.html
the above is my favorite. I learned so much there. If you haven't been there before, take your time and read ALL the articles. VERY informative and helpful.

http://hypoglykemie.nl/index.htm
http://www.hypoglycemia.org/

I hope these give some answers or insights!

(((((hugs))))))
Ann

[RobLL]

Pauleo - I seldom get a reading out of the 77-125 range, most are 99-120.

Here are the off ones and retests
125/117
126/106
125/127
166/152 Full but modest portions English Breakfast!
128/117
127/133 This was after fasting lab test (135)at 11am, 8am that morning it was 90

And there were probably about another 8 I did not retest

Walmart ReliOn,

[pauleo]

Hi,

I have a LifeScan OneTouch meter. When I was reading your comments about incorrect readings, I was thinking that I never see readings that seem unexpected., The one time I tried to verify consistency by taking a reading from my left and right hand immediately in succession, I got identical readings from each hand.

However I just had a flurry of incorrect readings including a 67 and an 88 after eating, so I knew they were wrong.

It seems to have started with a new container of test strips. Do you think they do sometimes make bad batches? (I'm guessing that they would want to avoid this at all costs because of litigation.) Do you think it's worth my switching to a different brand (Avida?)?

Paul.

[RobLL]

Pauleo - I make the assumption that for day to day measuring the claimed 5% accuracy is more than adequate. In fact 10% would still provide most of the information we need. You will notice that in my double metering there was only one reading that was more than 5% off.

Maybe you would want to, once a week, do a left hand, right hand reading just as a check. Otherwise it probably pays to take a relaxed attitude toward these readings, unless your doc says otherwise. Did you run the calibration strip? You might also want to check same hand different fingers if you persist in getting a 67/88 split. I would take them back then. Another idea, there is probably an 800 number with your strips or meter, maybe give them a call.

[pauleo]

OK thanks. I agree there's no point getting obsessive, these things are to give you a feel for what's happening, not a detailed measurement. I also had for the first time two bad test strips that were not even accepted by the meter, so I'm sure that was a bad container of test strips. Maybe they got heated up or left in too much cold, or maybe they were used strips that someone put in the washing machine to clean them up.

Thanks for advice. By the way do you use both sides of your fingers? I always use the thumb side of my fingers (that's what the assistant in CVS who sold me the meter told me) but some of my fingers are feeling a bit beat up now.

(p.s. joke about the washing machine)



Pauleo - I make the assumption that for day to day measuring the claimed 5% accuracy is more than adequate. In fact 10% would still provide most of the information we need. You will notice that in my double metering there was only one reading that was more than 5% off.

Maybe you would want to, once a week, do a left hand, right hand reading just as a check. Otherwise it probably pays to take a relaxed attitude toward these readings, unless your doc says otherwise. Did you run the calibration strip? You might also want to check same hand different fingers if you persist in getting a 67/88 split. I would take them back then. Another idea, there is probably an 800 number with your strips or meter, maybe give them a call.

[Nancy LC]

Well, this glucose monitoring is certainly interesting!

After a typical paleo style low carb meal at 1 hour my blood sugar was 110. Seems quite acceptable, that's usually the peak right?

Today I had a Thai meal (with white rice) and took my blood sugar 2 hours after... 130. Yikes! You can certainly see how much difference there is between meals and carbs!

[Daryl]

Well, this glucose monitoring is certainly interesting!

After a typical paleo style low carb meal at 1 hour my blood sugar was 110. Seems quite acceptable, that's usually the peak right?

Today I had a Thai meal (with white rice) and took my blood sugar 2 hours after... 130. Yikes! You can certainly see how much difference there is between meals and carbs!

Yes :) . And stuffing yourself can make it go high, too, even with non-carby food, I've found.