A Fall Risk and a Diabetic

[MinnieIV]

Hello boards!

So my DBF and I are planning our very first trip to the world (I am a DL veteran) but this is the first time I travel with my newfound of extremely low blood pressure... and you guessed it, its triggered by heat and humidity. Basically my blood pressure falls and I first get nauseous and then lose consciousness. It's not horrible in 30 minute gaps, and with regular fast passes I never had to worry about standing in line long, and the weather in California is vastly different. (It was bad enough where I had to make my move from the east coast back home in order to be close to family to watch over for my fainting) Now living in Arizona, I've become used to being indoors a lot during the summer, but I realize now how Florida in May was probably not the best decision, but we love Disney and our flights are non refundable lol.
I'm just wondering if I should consider the DAS, if there are too many rides with outdoor queues.

Then on top of it all my boyfriend is diabetic, and does not use the pump but old fashioned needles and insulin in glass and would rather not have to adjust for his needs in public and in lines, is there a way for me to hold his spot while he takes care of his business? Heat bothers him a little bit but not as much as me ironically, despite his more serious condition.

I also have gluten sensitivity and am lactose intolerant. We are 21 years old (who LOOK healthy haha) and pretty capable on our own, but would just like a little help guiding ourselves through the park with our particular, err, situations

 

[Toffeewoffy]

DAS apart, I wonder whether you're the kind of people 'borrowing' a CM guide for the day might work for.

You often see families in the parks with an in-tow CM who they have personal use of for the day; I don't know whether you have to pay for this service, but it would certainly need to be booked in advance. But the CM would be able to fast-track you past the sunny queues, for example.

It might be worth looking into.

 

[Allison]

DAS apart, I wonder whether you're the kind of people 'borrowing' a CM guide for the day might work for.

You often see families in the parks with an in-tow CM who they have personal use of for the day; I don't know whether you have to pay for this service, but it would certainly need to be booked in advance. But the CM would be able to fast-track you past the sunny queues, for example.

It might be worth looking into.

Yes, you pay for it and pay dearly. Something to the tune of $315 an hour for a minimum of 6 hours for a private tour guide who picks you up at your resort.

 

[Bete]

Disney World is very different from Disneyland. You can expect longer lines in my opinion. I think they could exceed an half hour even with fastpass plus on certain rides. In this case even a DAS may not help. Disney World has gotten a lot tougher with issuing a DAS, now. They may say you need a wheelchair; since, you are prone to fainting and falling. There are wheelchairs with safety belts which might help if you are prone to fainting. You can push the wheelchair if you want to walk for a while and feel up to walking. In addition, the parks are more spread out; so, you have more walking at Disney World. The average guest does 6 miles of walking a day and if you plan longer days it could go to 10 miles a day of walking.

I think you may have to think about hitting the parks early and take a break and come back at night. These are the cooler parts of the day. Perhaps buying cooling products might help like the neck bandanas or cooling vest. You can use a misting fan. Stay well hydrated. You can get free tap water and ice at many places. Pace yourself with shows and do some air conditioned places to cool off. Wear a sun hat and sunglasses; it couldn't hurt. You know yourself and perhaps you get a little warning about your situation in which case I wouldn't even enter a ride queue if I was feeling poorly. I would head for air conditioning. I would also consult your doctor about the trip. Elastic compression socks may help you. Avoid alcoholic drinks. Using more salt may become your friend on this trip (known to raise blood pressure); although, I think you absolutely need to discuss this tactic with your doctor. If you consume more salt you may have to take in a lot more water to compensate for dehydration. This all needs to be discussed with your doctor.

There are first aid stations in the parks where your friend can do his insulin. I really don't think it will be necessary for you to wait in line anywhere while he does this. You won't save that much time even if you could do this.

You may have to talk to a manager at quick service restaurants to make sure you get the foods you need. At table service restaurants you can ask for a chef and they may be able to prepare a special dish to suit your needs. Plan on a much longer wait if you go this route.

If you ever go back to Disney World I would highly recommend November thru February for Disney World in your case.

 

[Mrsjvb]

DAS apart, I wonder whether you're the kind of people 'borrowing' a CM guide for the day might work for.

You often see families in the parks with an in-tow CM who they have personal use of for the day; I don't know whether you have to pay for this service, but it would certainly need to be booked in advance. But the CM would be able to fast-track you past the sunny queues, for example.

It might be worth looking into.

you pay a LOT for this service and there is a minimum number of hours you must book it for.


not sure a DAS is going to help you though, the heat and humidity are everywhere so unless you plan on doing your waiting outside the line inside a shop every time, you are still going to have to deal with them. plus you usually end up doing MORE walking/backtracking using a DAS.. approach the ride, get a return time.. wander around, return to the ride and get into line which may or may not be 'short'

as for holding a place in line: sorry but that is NOT appropriate no matter what the circumstances or excuse. he needs to time his shots for just before or after getting into a line. everyone in the party needs to enter any line at the same time.

 

[MinnieIV]

you pay a LOT for this service and there is a minimum number of hours you must book it for.


not sure a DAS is going to help you though, the heat and humidity are everywhere so unless you plan on doing your waiting outside the line inside a shop every time, you are still going to have to deal with them. plus you usually end up doing MORE walking/backtracking using a DAS.. approach the ride, get a return time.. wander around, return to the ride and get into line which may or may not be 'short'

as for holding a place in line: sorry but that is NOT appropriate no matter what the circumstances or excuse. he needs to time his shots for just before or after getting into a line. everyone in the party needs to enter any line at the same time.

I more so referred to him waiting in line with me the ENTIRE time, but JUST in case his sugar dropped/rose, he could run to the bathroom and then catch up with me again, when he was done. He would enter the line with me every time, but its not really something you can predict in some rare situations, so leaving the line for a quick moment would be necessary.

 

[MinnieIV]

Yes, you pay for it and pay dearly. Something to the tune of $315 an hour for a minimum of 6 hours for a private tour guide who picks you up at your resort.

Definitely not affordable, we are college kids and are paying for this trip entirely ourselves through our part time jobs, if only :/

 

[Gracie09]

I more so referred to him waiting in line with me the ENTIRE time, but JUST in case his sugar dropped/rose, he could run to the bathroom and then catch up with me again, when he was done. He would enter the line with me every time, but its not really something you can predict in some rare situations, so leaving the line for a quick moment would be necessary.

The way the lines are set up there is usually no quick way out and you would have to push past people to get back in. It's really not feasible

 

[Talking Hands]

He should test prior to entering the line. Also keep some fast acting candy on his person for emergency needs. Honestly I would never go test or inject in the bathroom. No matter how clean they look there are tons of germs. I normally will test in public and no one really notices. Same with injecting. Most people never notice and if they do it is their problem. As long as no one in my immediate party is bothered I am fine. As your boy friend I do not use a pump but needles and vials. Carry them in a glasses case or a nice Disney case that can be clipped to my belt or placed in a pocket.

 

[utterrandomness]

Using more salt may become your friend on this trip (known to raise blood pressure); although, I think you absolutely need to discuss this tactic with your doctor. If you consume more salt you may have to take in a lot more water to compensate for dehydration. This all needs to be discussed with your doctor.

Absolutely discuss with your doctor, but you could kill two birds with one stone by drinking electrolyte beverages. I don't know if your issue is similar to POTS or another kind of dysautonomia, but a lot of folk with those conditions use electrolyte beverages to manage. I would recommend Nuun tablets, that way you don't have to carry around heavy bottles, you can just refill/buy a waterbottle and dissolve the tablets in it.

 

[MinnieIV]

Thanks for all the advice, will definitely keep it all in mind and will be talking to a doctor about it soon for sure.

 

[buffettgirl]

I more so referred to him waiting in line with me the ENTIRE time, but JUST in case his sugar dropped/rose, he could run to the bathroom and then catch up with me again, when he was done. He would enter the line with me every time, but its not really something you can predict in some rare situations, so leaving the line for a quick moment would be necessary.

If he's low, standing in a slow moving line while treating said low is a perfect thing to do. We always test in line, and treat lows in line.

If he's high, I would suggest simply testing before entering a line and injecting if necessary. If he happens to test in line and he's already high, a 20 minute wait isn't going to change much. Or..you could be like me and just whip out the syringe and give a shot right in line. I swear...99% of the people in line wouldn't even know what he's doing. (perhaps he'd get a pen for vacation, vs syringes?)

 

[ttintagel]

This is something my endocrinologist specifically mentioned before one of my Disney trips, so if he hasn't already checked it with his endo it might be worth asking - I would never take a correction or a bolus dose of insulin before getting on a ride. If you got stuck in there because of a breakdown, or if the unusual conditions of the day caused the insulin to absorb more quickly than usual, you could get hit with a low BG in a very inconvenient place.

HDMV (his diabetes may vary), of course, but I would treat a low in line and let a high ride a little while. (Unless it was sky-high, in which case I probably wouldn't feel much like riding, anyway.) I test in line all the time.

 

[buffettgirl]

This is something my endocrinologist specifically mentioned before one of my Disney trips, so if he hasn't already checked it with his endo it might be worth asking - I would never take a correction or a bolus dose of insulin before getting on a ride. If you got stuck in there because of a breakdown, or if the unusual conditions of the day caused the insulin to absorb more quickly than usual, you could get hit with a low BG in a very inconvenient place.

HDMV (his diabetes may vary), of course, but I would treat a low in line and let a high ride a little while. (Unless it was sky-high, in which case I probably wouldn't feel much like riding, anyway.) I test in line all the time.

I think it's definately a YDMV situation. Sometimes my son gets high just from excitement. Sometimes he gets low. If we know that a high is from adrenaline, we leave it alone. If it's just a run of the mill "oops we bolused wrong" then we'll correct.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

The way the lines are set up there is usually no quick way out and you would have to push past people to get back in. It's really not feasible

I agree. For many lines which wind all over the place through buildings, there is no way you would be able to rejoin your companion in line if you left to find a bathroom for any reason.