Traveling with Type One Diabetes

Trains, planes, and automobiles.

No matter which form of transportation you choose to travel by, controlling your diabetes is going to be slightly more difficult than normal. I've been a type one diabetic for seven years now so I've done some traveling since I've been diagnosed. Nothing is scarier than being stuck on a bus with a really high blood sugar and a full bladder, or going low while everyone else on the trip is sleeping and you’re trying to test and treat the low without waking anyone else up. With being in college, I obviously go on a lot of bus trips with classmates for tours which is where I gained most of my experience on traveling with type one diabetes. I know I don’t have much experience with traveling with type one diabetes and the various forms of transportation, but here are some tips that are useful for traveling in general.

Pack extra supplies. Always, always, always, ALWAYS have extra supplies with you when you’re travelling such as test strips, syringes, site changes if you use a pump, and most importantly, insulin. There is nothing worse than being in a new city and realizing that you don’t have something that you need to take care of your diabetes. Then you have to try to contact your endocrinologist’s office, find a close enough pharmacy, get a prescription called in, and then actually go and pick it up. It’s annoying and slightly embarrassing to deal with.

Plan for emergencies. You have no idea what may happen. Are you ready for an unexpected low? You never know how much you might have to walk so make sure you have enough glucose tablets on hand to treat multiple lows. What if your pump site accidentally gets ripped out? Do you have your extra supplies with you or packed in your suitcase under the bus or with the rest of the luggage on a plane?

Plan ahead. Make sure you have enough supplies to last you the whole trip. This should really just be common sense but just in case it’s not, here’s how to plan ahead for your trip. Know exactly how many days you will be gone and pack your supplies accordingly. If you use a pump, figure out how many times you will have to change your site and pack that many changes plus extras. Going back to packing enough supplies, you don’t want to run out in the middle of your trip and have to go through the steps of getting more supplies while you’re out of town.

Make sure someone you’re traveling with knows that you have type one diabetes and how to help you if you need something. This is extremely important because if there’s an emergency with your diabetes, they need to know how to help you. They need to know what a low blood sugar looks like, how to treat it, and what to do if you pass out from the low. They also need to know how to help you treat a high blood sugar if it’s so high that you are getting physically sick and can no longer take care of it yourself.

Make sure that you research more specific traveling tips before you go on a trip. Traveling with diabetes can be tricky, but it doesn't have to ruin your trip if you pack extra supplies, plan for emergencies, plan ahead, and make sure someone knows how to help you.