Why do it the easy way when there is a more complicated way? That’s what some might think when they see how I tape down the enlite sensor but let me show you how and why I do it.

If you’ve seen my pictures on Instagram you might have noticed that I tape down the enlite sensor in an unique way. I did it like Medtronic tells you to the first few times and it just didn’t work for me. I tried different things and in the end this is what stuck.

Why I tape down the enlite sensor differently

It takes some time to prepare the tape however when you get the hang of it it’s just an extra minute. I’ve never had problems with my enlite getting caught anywhere and I don’t get water under it. If you look at Medtronics official description you can see that the tape covers part of the connector. That’s where my problem was: water would get caught under there and loosen the tape after 2 showers. With the way I do it, water can’t be trapped anywhere, which makes your tape last longer. A little extra bonus: Since the actual tape isn’t sticking to your transmitter it doesn’t get dirty. I had my transmitter for more than 2.5 years and had to clean it maybe once.

Wanna know how I do it? Let me show you.

How to tape down the enlite sensor the right way

1 – Load up your Inserter with the sensor

2 – Clean your skin with alcohol

3 – Place the Inserter on the skin and press the two green buttons. Hold it in place and count to 5. Remove the Inserter

4 – Take out the needle. This picture shows you how I do that with one hand. I place my index and my middle finger on the needle. The rest of my fingers go to the connector of the sensor.

5 – Remove the adhesive backing and place the tape down.

Now this is where I do things differently

You’ll need beard scissors to cut your tape. My tape always used to stick to the scissors when I cut it until I read somewhere (I don’t remember or else I’d give credit where credit is due) that you have to cut the tape with beard scissors. Works like a charm, the tape doesn’t stick to them.

I need two tapes from Medtronic. They send you 10 with 5 sensors so that works out perfectly.

You want to cut the first tape like this:

Cut the second tape in half first (straight line). Now cut along the dashed lines:

Back to taping your sensor down

 

6 – Take the first tape and place it around the connector like shown in the picture (I snapped the picture before I took the adhesive backing off so that you can see it better). This takes some practise but don’t give up just yet. My first few attempts had some little bubbles in them that I had to straighten out. Over time I got better. If you have a partner or family member that lives with you even better. Let them do it, saves you the trouble of doing yoga like moves to get your tape on.

7 – Take one half of the second tape and place it facing down, like shown in the picture.

8 – Take the other half of the second tape and place it facing up.

9 – Connect the transmitter to the connecter. Wait until you see the green light blinking.

10 – Remove the adhesive backing from the clasp and place it on the transmitter. Again, if you have someone that can help you, you won’t have to bend around awkwardly 😉

Voila, you’re done. As you can see there is no way to water can get under the tape now so it actually does it’s job. Which is making sure that the sensor stays where you placed it!

 

I hope this instruction was helpful for you. If you have any questions, leave me a comment and I’ll answer as soon as possible.