Insulin storage- first trip with a diabetic

[Soccerpooh]

Type 1 daughter was diagnosed last February and we finally we feel brave enough to tackle WDW again. I am getting ready to order Frio packs, and wondered how well they'll work in the July heat. She is on Humalog (pens) 3x a day, and Lantis at bedtime. Would the Frio work to keep the Humalog pen at room temp while we are at the parks?
Also, what do you use to transport the unused, refrigerated pens when flying? Would ice packs keep it cold enough for approximately 6-8 hours of travel time? We are staying in a vacation home for the week, so we are good the rest of the time.
TIA for any help!

 

[baileygirlsmom]

I think you can store them either at the baby care center or the first aid center at each park, someone else help me out with this?

 

[Kinziepoohsmom]

I put my husbands insulin in a ziplock bag with his name on it and leave it at First Aid until it is time for an injection. We have never had a problem doing this at any of the parks.

 

[buffettgirl]

Type 1 daughter was diagnosed last February and we finally we feel brave enough to tackle WDW again. I am getting ready to order Frio packs, and wondered how well they'll work in the July heat. She is on Humalog (pens) 3x a day, and Lantis at bedtime. Would the Frio work to keep the Humalog pen at room temp while we are at the parks?
Also, what do you use to transport the unused, refrigerated pens when flying? Would ice packs keep it cold enough for approximately 6-8 hours of travel time? We are staying in a vacation home for the week, so we are good the rest of the time.
TIA for any help!

Yes a frio works well for the preventing overheating of the insulin in the summer. This is what a frio was designed to handle - keeping an item at appx the temp it was when you put it in - so room temp will stay safely room temp. And yes also, ice packs will keep your unused items cold enough. What I do is wrap my vials (or your pen cartridges)in papertowels, put those in a zippy bag and put them all with ice packs. It will keep them from getting wet and from getting too cold.

I think you can store them either at the baby care center or the first aid center at each park, someone else help me out with this?

I put my husbands insulin in a ziplock bag with his name on it and leave it at First Aid until it is time for an injection. We have never had a problem doing this at any of the parks.

This is unrealistic for a child, really. Many people with type 1 take more than just meal time shots - shots for snacks, shots for correction highs etc. Also, walking to first aid, taking a shot at first aid and then walking back to a restaurant for food, waiting in line, having no idea if the carb amount that you just gave the shot for will be available is a very unsafe activity. And a waste of time.

 

[Soccerpooh]

Thanks for the help! Buffettgirl- your detailed reply is VERY helpful! You are right about keeping the insulin at Baby Care or First Aid. Unless we are very close to either place at meal or snack time, it will be to risky, so it has to stay with us. Thanks again!

 

[buffettgirl]

Thanks for the help! Buffettgirl- your detailed reply is VERY helpful! You are right about keeping the insulin at Baby Care or First Aid. Unless we are very close to either place at meal or snack time, it will be to risky, so it has to stay with us. Thanks again!

anytime.

We generally only go to WDW in the summer so we've had lots of practice.

Mickey bars are great end of night treats - lots of fats which help offset any lows that are going to result from all the extra activity during the day. However, we find disney food, just like all restaurant food, to give incredible fat spikes anyway - I swear they cook everything in butter. So half the time we're fighting highs all night, not lows.

 

[zurgswife]

Just be prepared for her daily insulin needs to change. I have 2 T1D kids and they ten to use less insulin because of the extra walking and the warmer weather. The frio bags are a perfect place to store. Also if the pens are in use you don't need to keep the refrigerated but in the warm weather you wouldn't want them to get to warm.

 

[ttintagel]

Just be prepared for her daily insulin needs to change.

Oh, yes! I test a lot more often at WDW because of the extra exercise and more unfamiliar foods. Also, the symptoms of high and low BG are so easy to miss when you're hot, tired, and overstimulated!

My frist Dexcom CGM arrived yesterday, and my first thought was, "This is going to be great for WDW!"

 

[buffettgirl]

Oh, yes! I test a lot more often at WDW because of the extra exercise and more unfamiliar foods. Also, the symptoms of high and low BG are so easy to miss when you're hot, tired, and overstimulated!

My frist Dexcom CGM arrived yesterday, and my first thought was, "This is going to be great for WDW!"

oh...you are going to freaking LOVE it. Like love it so much you want to marry it. It's been a game changer for us. Since we started with the Dex G4 in January we've seen a full point drop in a1c. Of course, we were having a very bad bout of teen hormones kicking in but it's gotten us out of the "OMG call CPS" range and into the "well, not horrible for puberty" range. LOL.