Child with Type 1 Diabetes

[wadd9159]

On July 27th 2010 my 5 year old was Diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. Needless to stay for the 1st 3 months her A1C was awesome, but here lately she's had some very crazy high blood sugar numbers. Our Disney trip is planned for the end of March and I am so worried about making sure we get her carb count right for her insulin injections and also how the rides will affect her. We do go back to the Endocrinologist on Feb. 1st so hopefully if we need anything extra we can get it from them then. This will be our 2nd trip to Disney but the 1st since her diagnoses. She also has a learning disability so she is behind where most children her age would be. Her sugars will drop and she acts find and can not tell when she's low yet. We want her to have an amazing time, but are worried about all the food. She will be 6 in April so we are also looking for a stroller that will hold an older child without having to rent one from Disney. She tends to get tired and complain that her legs and feet hurt when doing a lot of walking. We looked at a few medical type strollers, but some where around 2000.00 and we can't afford that right now. Any suggestions?
Thanks for all your help!

 

[Ambassador]

We have taken a variety of sizes of our own strollers to WDW. We found a lightweight umbrella-style stroller to be the most practical and useful. Gate check it with your airlines.

Speak to your endo about all aspects of your trip:

• how often should you monitor?
• can you plan for your own regular meals such as Breakfast and Lunch, or what kind of choices can she have at the Resort/ Parks? Special dietary requests can be made in advance.
• She will be more active, and so may need an adjustment in her regular insulin doses

You should be prepared with all supplies and snacks each day, and know the locations of First Aid stations within the Parks. Over the last five years, we have gone from obsessive to more relaxed; you must be ever vigilant, but having fun is good for everyone's health!

 

[visitingapril09]

my daughter was diagnosed at 10 and is now 16. We will be there around the same time I think. March 22nd for 2 weeks. Melissa is now on a pump but our first trip to disneyland she was on injections. The second she was on a pump. Be very prepared with snacks, juice, extra insulin etc. You can use a stroller no problem, they have rentals too. If I can answer more specific questions please just ask.

 

[mnosky]

I have type 1 - I have a pump so I can adjust my basals pretty easily. I've laos had it for almost 25 years and have a history of bad lows so my advice may not apply. But some things that helped me prevent lows at WDW.

I use a pedometer so I can see how much I walked each day and then I know if I might need to lower my overnight basals (for example an epcot day I will lower my basal that night vs a MK day) - you could use this for guiding you on a bedtime snack - bigger snack on a more walking day.

I tend to have big bedtime snack without giving insulin for it - something I never do at home. I often end up being high in the AM at disney. I try not to worry too much about a few highs since it's only one week

I use extendbars to prevent lows at Disney. Maybe ask your endo about this - check out the website - they have them at walgreens I think but I order mine online.

Ask your endo/CDE for specific insulin lowering advice for WDW - they would probably recommend similar adjustments that they do for kids at diabetes camp - maybe not as much activity though?

How much does your daughter weigh? While an umbrella type is a cheap option, you will have a hard time manuevering it if she is 50 or so pounds - my older DD would ocassionally jump in in my younger DDs stroller an I'd have to say get out I can't turn it.
I used an orlando stroller rental for a city mini double for my 6 year old and 1 year old when my 6 year old was about 50-55 pounds. It was under $100 to rent. They also have a special needs stroller for I think about $120/week but I don't think you'd need that. It looks like a classic single (not special needs) goes up to 75 pounds and is $80/week. Magic stroller is cheaper but has just the city minis not the larger classics.

HTH!
Michelle

 

[Selket]

This site by Badshoe and his family on Disney and Type 1 diabetes is excellent: http://allears.net/pl/diabetes.htm They have two children with type 1 and visit Disney often.

A medical stroller can be rented but you could also rent a WDW stroller - I think that would fit a 6 year old depending on their size. To rent a medical stroller for children I think you could look at the FAQ for this board - there are wheelchair places listed (or used to be) that rent children's wheelchairs also.

You can go to Guest Services inside the park and request a guest assistance card to bring the stroller in the line - I think a wheelchair is automatically allowed with no card needed. If there are other issues you can discuss them with GS - explain what your needs are.

As for carb counts on food - you will need to learn to estimate. I use a Salter Nutritional Scale at home which gives me carb counts on cooked food - so I've developed an eye over the years for what a serving size is like. A good carb counting book (like for fast food places) can give you some ideas of carb counts and portion sizes.

I suggest you test a lot more often than you do generally.

The Children With Diabetes website is an excellent site for parents - if you aren't already a member - please join us there: http://www.childrenwithdiabetes.com They also have an annual conference called Friends for Life that is for parents and children with type 1 (and they are adding programs for adults with type 1 too). It is held every summer in July in Orlando and this summer will be at Disney World at the Coronado Springs Hotel. I cannot recommend CWD or this conference highly enough. It is worth changing your vacation plans to July for - honestly. Childcare is there for the kids (type 1 and siblings) while the parents go to seminars. The kids have an awesome time. Nothing like a 1000 kids and adults with type 1 all having pumps and cgms beeping and drawing up shots to make you feel like you belong - LOL!

 

[DumboDash2006]

Hi, I'm sorry to hear about your dd's diagnosis. My dd was diagnosed five years ago next week, a few months before her sixth birthday. We went to WDW the following summer.

We still had her stroller from when she was a baby (Chicco, full size but folded like an umbrella stroller). That ended up being way too hard to push with her weight by that point. I ended up just renting a stroller at WDW and found it ideal. MUCH easier to push and navigate and I could put the giant fanny pack I wore with all the diabetes supplies in it. When we got on rides I took it out and put it on. It was rather large lol. Also room for water bottles, the camera etc. Since we went in August it was brutally hot and while we still had a few lows I can't imagine how bad it would have been if she had to walk all over the parks in that heat.

As for the carb counts I just took the Calorie King book (if you don't have one yet, get one) and found the closest match to what she was eating. Overall it worked well.

Make sure you take WAY more supplies than you think you will need. We used a FRIO bag to carry insulin the park. I put that in my fanny pack along with her meter case, glucagon kit, glucose tabs, skittles, syringes etc. She also wore a smaller fanny pack with a meter kit, glucagon and skittles. That was in case she went off on a ride without me with grandma or something.

Overall it went quite well. No big diabetes problems. A few mild lows/highs but nothing that wasn't quickly handled and fixed.

Good luck!

 

[Pink_Belle]

So far, I've never had a ride affect me. Sometimes the adrenaline of rides like Everest can get to some people, but Your Diabetes May Vary, and that hasn't happened to me so far. I've gone twice with Type 1.

We eat only counter service, and I've found that WDW is pretty much the BEST place to eat the stuff high in fat that usually throws me for a loop, like lots and lots of pizza. I pump and do a dual wave bolus, but even when I have forgotten, the exercise usually keeps me from spiking too high. I've had some of my best bgs at Disney. For carb-counting I usually bring a mini scale with me and a list of carb factors. The pizza I weighed on a big scale in several different places in different parks, and all of the weights were the same, maybe 1 or 2 grams off, so you really only need to weigh it once, unless it looks fishy. I weighed French Fries EVERY time, though.

It's a good idea to carry plenty of stuff for lows with you, because the first day or so can be rough. Bring plenty of snacks, just in case. Check a LOT. I checked about every two hours. Sometimes more. I use a LOT of strips at WDW.


The most important thing is to HAVE FUN! Don't let diabetes keep you from having a magical trip! It CAN be done!

 

[Jen_in_NH]

My son was diagnosed 2 years ago, and we took him for his first Disney trip almost a year after diagnosis. We noticed he had a few wacky highs and lows, but there was really no way to predict them. We brought a lot of extra supplies with us, as well as stuff to treat lows. The whole trip went really well.

A few things that worked well for us was to measure out snacks for him, and bring them into the parks with us. We also brought a 1/2 cup measuring sup with us, so at mealtimes, we could measure up what a serving should be (he was 2 at the time, so a smaller serving worked well). Disney will not give out carb counts on their food, so being able to measure made our lives easier. I know the chefs will measure out stuff if you ask, but it seemed easier (and probably quicker) to just do it ourselves.

I agree with Selket - if you haven't checked out CWD, come on over. It's an excellent site both for resources and moral support

Jen

 

[MomofLogan&Evan]

I'm sorry for your child's diagnosis. My son was diagnosed with type 1 when he was 15 months old. He is now 5 years old. We have been to Disney twice since then and are planning to return in Sept. The first trip he was on syringes, the second trip he was on the Omnipod pump. Both trips were cool so the heat never effected him. He also was not effected by the rides. We did try and "round down" on the carbs so as to not have him go low when guessing carbs.

These are things that we do:

Bring extra supplies!!
Use a frio pack for insulin.
Always have a soda/icing with you for lows.
Get a GAC as soon as you arrive
Bring a measuring cup (1/2 cup, 1/3 cup) to measure carbs.
Bring along the Calorie King book.
Bring pre-measured snacks with you.

We would let him have "Disney" snacks throughout the trip. His favorite were the popcorn (4 grams/1 cup) and the Itsakadoodle Popsicle (which has the carb count on it.)

Good Luck and Have Fun!!

 

[Trip 2 Disney]

I'm sorry for your child's diagnosis. My son was diagnosed with type 1 when he was 15 months old. He is now 5 years old. We have been to Disney twice since then and are planning to return in Sept. The first trip he was on syringes, the second trip he was on the Omnipod pump. Both trips were cool so the heat never effected him. He also was not effected by the rides. We did try and "round down" on the carbs so as to not have him go low when guessing carbs.

These are things that we do:

Bring extra supplies!!
Use a frio pack for insulin.
Always have a soda/icing with you for lows.
Get a GAC as soon as you arrive
Bring a measuring cup (1/2 cup, 1/3 cup) to measure carbs.
Bring along the Calorie King book.
Bring pre-measured snacks with you.

We would let him have "Disney" snacks throughout the trip. His favorite were the popcorn (4 grams/1 cup) and the Itsakadoodle Popsicle (which has the carb count on it.)

Good Luck and Have Fun!!

Thanks for the carb counts on the popcorn and popsicle!

 

[wadd9159]

Thank you all so much for the information. We are so looking forward to our trip and have already stocked up on extra supplies to bring with us. Oh and we just got our FRIO pack in the other day!!! We are still trying to decide what to do about the stroller situation but am sure we will figure it out.
Thanks again!

 

[brody-maddison]

My DD is almost 5 and was diagnosed at 15months. We have been on about 4/5 trip since and never used a GAC - can someone explain what benefits it would have please?

 

[SueM in MN]

My DD is almost 5 and was diagnosed at 15months. We have been on about 4/5 trip since and never used a GAC - can someone explain what benefits it would have please?

Only time for a quick reply right now.
Mos people on threads like this have posted they do not use a Guest Assistance Card with diabetes. The biggest help would be allowing a stroller to be brought into lines and used as a wheelchair (people using wheelchairs and ECVs in line don't need a Guest Assistsnce Cardto use them in lines). Most attractions are wheelchair accessible.

There is more information about Guest Assistance Cards in post 6 of the disABILITIES FAQs thread. You can find that thread near the top of this board or follow the link in my signature.