Less work

What’s the holy grail when it comes to diabetes technology? I suspect the answer may change depending on who you ask. Different people with diabetes, different ideas of burden, different priorities. But one thing that seems to be quite universal is that people with diabetes want to do less when it comes to their diabetes, and they want tech to help with that. 

Each and every week, I get asked to review or promote new apps, devices and other types of technology. Or I am asked if I can provide some feedback on an idea which has the aim of improving the life of people with diabetes. 

When time permits, I’ll spend some time with developers, and I always start by asking ‘What’s your point of difference?’. I want to know that because there’s so much out there already, and if it’s just another app or program to add to the noise, why bother? 

The point of difference I am always searching for is the bit that means doing less. Anything that requires more input or thought process than what is currently available, without offering benefit elsewhere seems to be a waste of time. 

I want to do less for more. Surely that’s not asking too much… 

For me these days, if I want to check my glucose level, I glance down at my watch. I don’t need to do anything more. Or I swipe right on my iPhone to see a little extra: the header of my Loop app (which shows current glucose level, predicted graph, IOB and battery volume). 

To bolus, I either open the Loop app on my phone (two taps after waking my phone), or on my watch and go from there (one tap after waking my watch). 

It takes very little effort. I don’t in any way have to stop what I am doing. And it is super inconspicuous. No one knows what I’m doing – not that I’d care. But it’s nice not to have to do something that often draws attention, or questions from others.

I have often wondered if I’ll try a Tandem t:slim pump once Control IQ is finally launched into Australia, and the one thing that is stopping me is knowing that I’d have to give up bolusing from my phone or watch. 

New devices or technologies that demand more seem to be in direct contrast to PWD demanding to do less. I wrote this piece after a conference presentation about the (first gen) Medtronic hybrid-closed loop system that showed added burden from users because the system required so much extra input. The very idea that a device developed to increase automation needed users to think about it more was baffling. 

DIY systems are developed by people with diabetes, or loved ones of people with diabetes. Having that skin in the game means that there is a determination to deliver not only a product that does more, better, but one that doesn’t add to diabetes burden. You will never hear the idea of ‘it’s good enough’ because to us, it never is!

But even with these goals, there still is a user burden. Cartridges don’t fill themselves; infusion sets don’t change themselves; sensors don’t insert themselves; batteries don’t replace or recharge themselves. 

Which brings me to the latest toy I’ve started using, which has managed to cut a few tasks from my diabetes job list. 

The diabetes DIY world continues to push the envelope with all components of systems. And the latest from a group that has been looking at the use and affordability of CGM has recently been launched (albeit in limited numbers).

Say hello to Anubis, named for the god of death and the afterlife. The group working on Anubis has worked out how to give used G6 transmitters a new life, and, quite frankly, they are far more impressive in their afterlife! Simon Lewinson from the stunning and aptly named Mt Beauty part of Victoria has led on this work. Simon is the bloke who developed a rechargeable G5 transmitter – the Fenix – which has been one of my all time favourite pieces of DTech ever. I used it continually for about three years, only stopping to trial an Anubis.

I realised just how impressive the other day when I checked the settings on my newly inserted sensor using an Anubis transmitter:

That number circled is when my sensor expires – 60 days after the sensor was inserted. What that means is that there is no need for me to do a restart after 10 days. I’m not sure how many of you reading this have tried to restart a G6 sensor, but my experience has required my husband and a butter knife, and ensuring that sensor restarts were only done when there was harmony in the home. As someone who fully self-funds CGM, I will get every single last minute of life out of a sensor, so restarts G6s up to three times.

The spouse-wielding-cutlery step has now been removed, as has the need for a two hour warm up every ten days. Now, a sensor goes in, and it keeps going until it finally just stops working. I’m not really sure how long that will be. It’s day 12 now and there’s not been a blip, and I’m super interested to know just how many days it will tick along, undisturbed and uninterrupted. I certainly don’t expect to get to 60 days, but I’ll give it a red hot go!

My Anubis is the latest device in my arsenal that is helping to chip away at all the things diabetes demands of me – things that, quite honestly, spark no joy at all. I’ve not yet found that holy grail, but compared with what else there is available to me, and what I have used before, this is better. Less work, less burden, better results. Why wouldn’t I want more of that?!

Want more information?

The Bionic Wookiee has written this terrific piece explaining the nitty gritty tech details of Anubis. My eyes usually glaze over when reading this sort of stuff, but David does a stellar job making it interesting. And understandable!

Want an Anubis? Of course you do. This is the FB page to head to. It’s a new page and there’s not much on there just yet, but it is where info will be shared.