• Guest - w'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2025 Survey »

Advice please - Newly diagnosed and going somewhere hot!

S

supersaint63

Newbie
Messages
3
Hello,

I was diagnosed type one about a month ago (feels like much longer!) now so this is all a bit new to me. I've pretty much got the hang of the insulin and carb counting and apart from the odd mild low things have been going ok.

I'm going away for the first time this weekend and wanted to get some opinions on things to watch out for. Its going to be 30 - 36 degrees in Madrid and I expect I'll be doing quite a bit more walking around than on a normal day. Pretty sure that means I'm going to need less insulin but don't know whether I should make any pro active changes or just do regular testing and make changes as necessary.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

I'm 32, and currently taking humalog 3 times a day with food (about 1:10g) and Levemir 5 Units at 7pm ish and 3.5 units at 7am ish.

Thanks everyone

Barry
 
Hi, am not a type 1 but am sure someone will soon be along with some great guidance and support, Somewhere hot you going as a new insulin user , you will definetely need an Frio Insulin Travel Wallet these keep your insulin plus cartridges cool during travelling , and you can buy these VAT free as a diabetic too. Hope this helps? Anna.x :D
 
Hi there -
the weather man last night said this weekend in the UK would be cold and wet 'like autumn' so I'm trying not to be too envious of your trip.

You are quite right about the fact you'll probably need less insulin:
a) because you will be more active than usual
b) you may also find that hot weather makes the insulin more effective (many people have more hypos in hot weather).

If it were me, I'd probably be proactive and drop the quick acting just a tad - one unit less than normal, say. And as you say, keep testing, and make sure you always have stuff on you to treat hypos.

Other advice:
- Definitely get a cool carry case for your insulin and pens.
- if you are flying, make sure all your insulin and testing strips are in your carry-on luggage; they might freeze if they get put in the hold
- don't worry if you don't get your blood sugar as good as you do at home. Enjoying your holiday is also important for your mental wellbeing!

Have a lovely time....
 
Hello Barry
I'm camping in the UK this weekend so am feeling jealous! But won't complain as we're off to Italy for our hols soon. My T1 son, also newly diagnosed, has been advised by our DSN to drop his lantus 30% the night before we go (he's only on 4 units so we're dropping to 3) to take account of extra activity and heat, and to go back to normal the night after we get home (since effects of exercise can last for 24 hours). We were also told that he might need to cut down the novorapid too, so we'll be doing lots of extra testing to see how it goes. Her reasoning was much better to run a little high and keep safe. She said if he does go much higher than we would like, we could use correction doses for short term fixes. However in her experience this sort of regime works quite well.
We've got the frio wallet to keep William's insulin cool, and a letter from our hospital explaining whay we have all those needles and phials of insulin on the plane.
Have a great holiday!
Catherine
 
If you are flying make sure you contact your Dr or DSN and get them to give you a letter stating you are T1 and are NOT to be seperated from your supplies.
Most of the time they won't even check but I have had them examine it in close detail a couple of times in the US and at Stanstead when they had a new guy on that was a bit of a muppet.

Enjoy your trip :)

A
 
Barry,

Both the heat and increased exercise will have a tendency to lower your bg so be very careful, as Snodger says you could reduce your humalog slightly to allow for this or eat some additional carbs which will work just as effective. Just be sure to test regular and carry fast acting glucose with you at all times plus some small 10-15g of carb snacks, also make those around you aware of what to do should you need assistance in treating your hypo.

Enjoy your time away! :D

Nigel
 
Thanks everyone,

Looking forward to the time away. It should be a good practice for when we fancy a longer holiday and also for eating out and carb counting.

I've bought myself a small thermos flask which neatly fits the two pens, spare insulin and test strips in. I did look into those Frio thingies but read some mixed reviews.

I've got the letter from the DSN so hopefully all should go we'll at the airport and we are not checking any bags so I will be keeping everything with me.

To be on the safe side, I think I might knock a half a unit of my morning an evening long acting over the weekend and the do something similar with the quick acting. I'll be making some estimates based on what i'm eating so if I err on the side of caution that should cover it.

Thanks again for the tips, really appreciate it. :D

Ps - For any other newly diagnosed reading this... I bought and read the book "Think Like a Pancreas" having seen it recommended on a few Forums. Not sure what anybody else thinks? But I found it really useful.
 
No tips I'm afraid other than to watch out for unscrupulous cab drivers, just wanted to say hope you have an enjoyable and relaxing trouble free break :D
 
Back
Top