25/07/2022
Hello everyone! I cannot believe I am writing this right now! Definitely a pinch me moment as this kind of stuff does not happen for me! But at the start of July 2022, I applied to Dexcom’s G7 Early Access to trial it out and be one of the first in the world to use and test the new appliance. Thousands of people applied but low and behold on 22/07/2022 I had the best email ever, saying I had been selected for the 1-month trial.
The conditions for the trial were as follows:
You must not post anything about the G7 on social media until it is available for general sale
You must remove any other CGMs during the trial
So obviously I still want to share my experience about the G7 everywhere but at the minute I am keeping it quiet! But at the same ensuring I am writing this fresh to applications, so my thoughts are at the forefront of my mind!
So back on 25/07/2022 my exciting parcel arrived at my house! Containing the month’s trial! The boxes are tiny compared to the G6, definitely cutting down on how much material is being used – so much better from a sustainability perspective. I have uploaded a video onto my Instagram of unboxing the G7 and inserting it so please check it out if you are interested! Its so light weight and small! You barely even notice it on your arm!
Insertion
The insertion was so simple! It comes together it one device, transmitter is included within the outer casing as well. You do not need to prime the applicator at all. The device is protected via a screw cap, one thing to note is that you can see the needle, so if you have chronic needle phobia, maybe try it and see how you go but could be worth sticking with the G6? Once the screw cap is off, it is ready to go! To release it from its pod, you press the applicator firmly against the skin and press the white button on the side. Honestly so simple! The first time applicating, I was extremely apprehensive about this, and no information was out there about how painful etc it was. The release noise is so much quieter and I believe the needle is smaller than the G6 (but do not quote me on this, this is purely from my own observations). Personally, the release noise builds up the stress surrounding cgm changes so for me this is a massive deal as it makes the whole experience that much nicer! The change itself did not hurt one bit; I was so impressed! Even on the back of arms which are extremely worn now from years on injections etc, I was just filled with shock that it was inserted and I kind of didn’t realise!
The Warmup
WOW! Is all I’ll say!
30 minutes absolutely flew by! I managed to insert my new G7 and went off to get some bits from the shops and by the I had arrived I had the notification saying the warmup had completed and it was all ready to go. I has a really helpful and obvious count down in the app as to how long you have left and as I said, literally no time at all went by. As someone who lives a busy life, this suits me perfectly because I have an extra 1h30 of knowing what my blood sugars are compared to my G6. This is really helpful, especially if I need to head out in the car during the warmup time!
As the G7 is connected via Bluetooth, every change will result in pairing a new transmitter, but this can all be completed through the G7 app and takes about 2 seconds so is really not an issue!
The Size of It
The new Dexcom G7 is about 60% smaller than the G7. It is almost flush to the skin reducing large amounts of risk of getting the G7 caught on clothing straps, corners or general objects. Each pack also includes an over patch to ensure it last the entire time. Due to the size reduction, the weight of it is much lighter as well. It’s not something I ever really noticed whilst using the G6 but having an ultra-lightweight device on just shows how much effort the engineers have had to do to improve the product and reduce it drastically in size!
Duration
So, there was reports that the new G7 was going to have its life extended to match the Freestyle Libre’s of 14 days, but these trial ones only have a duration of 10 days. I am unsure of whether this will be altered when the product goes onto general sale later this year. But 14 days is good but the scares I receive are much better when the product is only left in for 10 days, so I am not fussed about this!
Cost?
I am unsure of the cost of it at this current moment of time in July 22, but reports are saying that it should be priced at a similar rate to the G6. As and when I hear more information, I will add it to this post!
As of October 2022, the prices are £51.25 for 10 days of use or £140 per month! Which is amazing news considering the Dexcom G6 is £159!
Opinions After 1 day?
My genuine first thoughts of the G7 are incredible, if the pricing is the same or cheaper than the G6 I will most certainly upgrade! But I do not think there is enough upgrades on the device to be able to charge more for it – so if the pricing is more expensive, I am very happy remaining with the G6.
But the size, the insertion, everything about this experience so far has been painless! I have sense checked the readings a couple of times for my own peace of mind and you cannot fault the accuracy, there has been no difference at any point. After 1 day, I love it! Once I have used up 1 whole sensor I will write how my first session has gone below!
Opinions After 7 Days
Like any sensor there are some incredible innovations with the G7 but also some drawbacks – at this point in time I am unaware of the cost of the G7, my thoughts are that if it costs the same as the G6 then I will make the switch BUT I do not think it is worth it if it costs anymore.
I did receive a more frequent signal loss toward the end of sensor than the G6, I have fed this back so hopefully by the time the G7 makes it to general sale this issue may have corrected itself. This being said it wasn’t a major deal but there were a few instances out on a site for work when my blood sugars would disappear at about 11mmol/l to then sync back at 2.3mmol/l – which was scary!
Couldn’t get over the discreetness of the sensor! Its honestly so small and tucked onto the skin that not even bra straps got stuck on it! Lola did try and bite it a couple of times but it was cute so that doesn’t matter 😊
The accuracy never failed! You do not need to calibrate everyday like the G6 but you really did not need to!
My followers on the Dexcom follow app haven’t had to change anything and it has just updated my Dexcom clarity, still allowing me to view the previous data! So, there was absolutely no hiccups in changing over from the old sensor to the new one!
The alarms are better, you have more options to customise them, and you actually get alerted – it’s a major win to help keep those blood sugars in range!
It genuinely felt like I was not wearing a sensor at all, I kind of forgot I was wearing it. I will be extremely sad to put the G6 on after my month’s trial of the G7 but all I can hope is that I can upgrade!
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