For some people, just thinking about pain can keep them from testing their blood sugar as often as recommended by the healthcare team. But there are steps you can take to make testing easier:

•  Use the sides of your fingers. There are fewer nerve endings compared to the fingertips.
•  Rotate fingers. Use a different finger for each test, so one doesn't get too sensitive.
•  Consider testing beyond the fingertip. If you and your doctor agree that testing other sites is right for you, you may find it less painful to test from your palm, forearm, upper arm, calf or thigh instead of your sensitive fingertips.
•  Don't stick too deeply. Use a lancet device with a personalized depth setting so you don't have to go any deeper than necessary to get a drop of blood.
•  Use a fresh lancet. Today's lancets are so tiny that just a single use can bend or dull the tips. As a result, they can hurt more if you try to reuse them.

In addition, choosing the right blood sugar monitoring system can help reduce pain, too:

•  Switch to the system that reduces the pain of retesting.
•  Use the least-painful lancet device technology.