Diabetes question

[poohbear8]

My son (20) was diagnosed in Sept 2011 with Type 1 Diabetes, two weeks into his freshman year at college. He has since been put on a pump and just added a glucose monitoring system too. Since he has been at college, he has handled it all by himself and does a pretty good job.

We are going to Disney in June, which will be his frist trip since he was a child.

Are there any considerations I need to know? Does he need to remove the pump/glucose monitoring pods when he is riding the roller coasters?

Since he handles most of his care, I don't know what issues could pop up and he wasn't sure either, since he hasn't been to an amusement park with diabetes.

TIA!

 

[gritzel4]

I can't answer all of your questions as I am not Type 1 but Type 2.

What I have experienced is that I forget to drink enough and eat snacks. Last trip I ended up shaking from low blood sugar. Thankfully, I keep glucose tablets with me and my husband was able to purchase an orange at a snack cart. I just never realized how much walking I was doing

Best of luck

 

[ttintagel]

I leave my Omnipod on for all rides, and haven't had a problem. I've recently heard that some people take theirs off on coasters, so MMV. The part that attaches to the body is OK to get wet, but I slip the remote control into a Ziploc bag if it think it might.

I test at least twice as often at WDW, because the effects of high or low BG are easy to mistake for the normal fatigue, heat, sensory overload, etc. of the parks. I basically test every time we sit down or stop to rest.

Bring twice as many supplies as you think you'll need, and some extra snacks and whatever fast-acting CHO you use for lows.

Some people have reported problems with BG's and high temperatures, but it's never been an issue for me.

(ETA: I've had the same experience as gritzel4 with forgetting to stay hydrated!)

 

[buffettgirl]

My son (20) was diagnosed in Sept 2011 with Type 1 Diabetes, two weeks into his freshman year at college. He has since been put on a pump and just added a glucose monitoring system too. Since he has been at college, he has handled it all by himself and does a pretty good job.

We are going to Disney in June, which will be his frist trip since he was a child.

Are there any considerations I need to know? Does he need to remove the pump/glucose monitoring pods when he is riding the roller coasters?

Since he handles most of his care, I don't know what issues could pop up and he wasn't sure either, since he hasn't been to an amusement park with diabetes.

TIA!

we leave pump and CGM on for all rides. never had an issue. (also, we leave CGM on during our flight too...)

There are a lot of diabetes related threads here so a quick search will pull up tons of info, so I won't duplicate what's already been said but I think the important thing to remember is that he'll need more supplies than he thinks m at least double, and being that age he's bound to forget something like meter batteries or pump batteries. (or long acting backup Lantus or something in case of pump failure). Not sure what CGM he's using but the Dexcom needs it's own charging cord too.

I'd make sure you personally know how to use glucagon and that you have it with you. Also, it would be considerate for you to have fast acting glucose on hand for him as well. It sounds like he's got it all under control but being the mother of a 20 year old myself (without diabetes) I do know how they sort of regress when they come home from school. So he may actually be happy to have the mental break and have someone else looking out for him.

Carbs counts are non-existent at WDW except for packaged foods. Ice cream is a great night time snack as it has loads of fat to counteract all the day time activity.

Have a great trip! And if you go searching for any of the old threads and you're curious about things just give a shout.

 

[poohbear8]

Thank you so much for the info! I will search the threads also. This trip will be a first for all of us. He hasn't flown since he was diagnosed, so that will be an adventure also. I really don't see him much, since he works when he is on break. I had to ask him when he eats and how often, so I can plan what I need to take and when to make ADRs.

Will he need a Dr's note to carry the insulin on through security? It will need to be kept cold with a gel or ice pack. I know I had one when I took gel packs through for my knee, but I don't remember if they required it or if we just got one to be safe.

 

[ttintagel]

I used to get a doctor's note for traveling with insulin, syringes, etc. but nobody ever asked for one so I stopped bringing it.

 

[buffettgirl]

Thank you so much for the info! I will search the threads also. This trip will be a first for all of us. He hasn't flown since he was diagnosed, so that will be an adventure also. I really don't see him much, since he works when he is on break. I had to ask him when he eats and how often, so I can plan what I need to take and when to make ADRs.

Will he need a Dr's note to carry the insulin on through security? It will need to be kept cold with a gel or ice pack. I know I had one when I took gel packs through for my knee, but I don't remember if they required it or if we just got one to be safe.

We've never needed a note for TSA.
TSA has info for diabetes here http://www.tsa.gov/traveler-information/passengers-diabetes
He will not want to go through the full body scanner machine but the regular metal detector is fine, unless he requests a pat down, which is his right to do so. His items can all go through the xray if he chooses, there is no harm there, and again, he could request a visual inspection if he chooses. But it is safe to allow the supplies through xray.

He is allowed to take gel packs / ice packs in a cooler bag as long as those ice packs are fully frozen. What we normally do is put all supplies in one carry on bag together and put that bag in the grey TSA bucket and tell the agent that those are diabetes supplies for our son. Your son will obviously handle that himself. But he will be allowed all items diabetes related that he needs. We have never had any issue at all.

My son sometimes gets swabbed due to his pump and cgm, and sometimes he does not. But never have we had any sort of harassment. He does not ever have to disconnect or turn off those items (sometimes my son is asked to 'wake' the pump from the sleep screen.)

I would print out the TSA's rules so that you can refer to them in case you run into a misinformed TSA agent.

As for food - chances are with a pump he eats whenever he wants. So it shouldn't really be a problem for him. You can ask, but usually pumping removes all time / food issues. (it's lovely).

 

[poohbear8]

Thank you!! You guys rock!!

 

[GrandCalifornian]

I don't have a whole lot to add that hasn't already been mentioned, but I just wanted to join in because I am a Type 1 who was diagnosed in my early 20s as well. I find that everything is really not that big of a deal at WDW, and having a CGM (which I leave on the whole time) is very helpful. Despite having a good handle on things at home, numbers are always different at WDW, mainly due to all the extra activity. I too find ice cream to be an excellent snack to help keep numbers up, and there are so many great choices at WDW. I will reiterate to bring extra supplies, and as long as you have everything he needs it should be a relatively normal trip. Enjoy!