I know I'm late to the chat but thought it worth noting for others my experience for the first time with diabetes in hot pools in General.
FYI I'm on insulin. My blood sugars were not as high as they normally are - I assume that either the increased circulation improved the insulin absorption, or I became less insulin resistant - as I did move between pools a bit, and the outside temperature was quite cool.
I wear a cgm and was concerned about it lasting( sticking) in the pool for that long but it seemed OK. I spent some time standing in the pool rather than sitting so that may have helped.
I made sure that I scanned my CGM about every hour which involved leaving the pool area and going to our gear. This was a bit of a pain. I also realised that my CGM did not measure accurately until I had been back on land for a while. I suspect its something to do with the interstitial fluid , increased skin temperature, and BG differences/delays.
My BG started dropping after I was in the hot pool for about an hour, and after about 2 hours I had to find carby food to stop what was quite a sudden drop after leaving the pool. Thankfully the food queues were short and I had jellybeans on hand for emergencies.
Two main issues I had were
a) I could not take insulin to the pool as the outdoor temperature was too cold for the insulin and I did not have any way to keep it regulated. I do have a pack to keep it cool, but not options for keeping it 'warm'
b) I did not want to take my BG monitor to the pool to rely on rather than my CGM. I was not confident it would survive the cold. If I had thought about it I would have brought an older ';sacrificial' one, but I didn't.
Thankfully I have been able to rely on feelings of hunger and hangryness to signal that I need to check on things.
Keeping a close eye on numbers after getting out of the hot water was important for me as they dropped quickly. From 14.7 to 7.8 in a few minutes, and I think without intervention it would have kept gping. I doubt the was a perfectly accurate reading FYI, but for me, definitely needing food input.
Definitely worth keeping an eye on the hydration too.
On a positive note, my hand and foot puffyness was improved temporarily, and circulation definitely improved.
To make the situation easier, I would have a buddy nearby keeping an eye on the time for checking levels and to support if needed. Ability to read CGM/bg monitor close by for fast feedback. Treatment options of varying degrees also close by. And definitely checking levels regularly - make sure you have easy access to a clock or watch to make things easy. Schedule some quiet time after the pools to adjust BG/eat as necessary at ones leisure if the others in your group are not used to your needs.
10/10 would definitely do again. A couple of days in a row are even better for relaxation purposes