99 problems and the prick is one

So I just tipped over the A1C, and officially have the Beetus. I have a serious problem with needles. It’s not a pain thing; but something about that thin metal being inserted make me shudder.

So as you can imagine, it makes checking my sugar a bigger problem then it would be for the average bear. My doctor has asked me to do it at least once a week, which is fair, but now I’m having another issue. I’ve tried twice now, and each time the blood comes out kinda watery, or thin looking and my meter shows error.

My hands are dry, so it’s not that. I googled it and I’m not getting a clear answer. Do I need to go to a deeper setting? I’ve used 2 and 3. Am I hitting the wrong spot? Looking at my finger from the top, making a square, I’m using the bottom corner of the lower left quadrant on my ring finger.

I rarely cut myself deep enough to get blood, so I don’t know if it’s only the finger prick that’s been watery/thin. I’d rather not intentionally cut myself to find out.

I’ve made some surprisingly minor lifestyle changes and the few symptoms I had have gone away, but I’d like more precise tracking than that. I don’t see my doctor again until the new year.

Any advice/experience/ideas you could share would be helpful!