Diabetes and travelling!? NEED HELP!?

[carrieh]

Hi,
I have just been diagnosed as diabetic although at the moment i don't know what type i am - the specialist is treating me as type 2 in the hope that my levels will come down (no luck yet?!) so i am on tablets. There is still a possibility of being type 1 but i won't find this out until we have ruled out the type 2 - confused? i certainly am!? (I am 30 years old which is why i seem to be stuck in limbo over which type i am and am not overweight (by much anyway ha!))

Obviously the two are very different in their treatment and i don't know what to inform the airline / travel insurance etc as i don't know much yet, does anybody know what i need to do? If i am type 2 i will need to carry medication and blood glucose monitoring kit, if i am type 1 then it will be insulin injections and a blood glucose monitoring kit.

Also how much impact does this usually have on travel insurance and how hard is it to get all of this paraphenalia through customs? Any help would be greatly appreciated!!???

[Gill66]

Hi Carrieh,
Sorry to hear about your diagnosis and I hope you find out what type you are soon. I have Parkinson's and I've just informed Virgin about all the medication I have to carry with me (5 different lots of tabs & a throat spray) They were really helpful and said as long as all the meds had pharmacy labels on it should be no problem, but he made a note on the booking just in case and I said if I took a prescription with me would this help they said that it wouldn't do any harm.
All I can say about my insurance is that I pay about £30 extra, but I'd shop around because thy do differ a lot.
Gill.

[carrieh]

Thanks Gill i'm flying with virgin too so i'll give them a ring - it's certainly a start! Great to see another person from Merseyside!

[loadsapixiedust]

Lots of people with diabetes travel without any problem, it's a common condition and airlines are used to passengers travelling with insulin and monitoring kits. You should carry a letter from your GP explaining what medication etc you need to carry.

You should inform your travel insurance company that you've been diagnosed with diabetes and that investigations are ongoing.

You should make another appointment to speak to your specialist nurse or GP if you have any questions. Explain that you are concerned about making preparations for your holiday. It's early days and I'm sure you will soon find a regime which suits you.

[grumpys wife]

Hi Carrieh,
Sorry to hear about your diagnosis and I hope you find out what type you are soon. I have Parkinson's and I've just informed Virgin about all the medication I have to carry with me (5 different lots of tabs & a throat spray) They were really helpful and said as long as all the meds had pharmacy labels on it should be no problem, but he made a note on the booking just in case and I said if I took a prescription with me would this help they said that it wouldn't do any harm.
All I can say about my insurance is that I pay about £30 extra, but I'd shop around because thy do differ a lot.
Gill.

Hi Gill, my DH Pete was diagnosed with Parkinson's in May and I was wondering about the insurance for our trip in May this year. Thanks for sharing, I will get in touch with them :thumbs-up

[MARL]

Hi, I am actually a Diabetes specialist sister responsible for looking after type 1 and type 2 diabetic patients. I would suggest that you ask your GP or specialist nurse if they have taken 'GAD 62' antibodies as this is an accurate way of determining how much insulin your body is actually secreting. Depending on the levels will determine if you are type 1 or 2 (the results can take a few weeks to come back- but worth having done to confirm one way or another).

As for your insurance, I would inform the company that you are 'type 2' treated with tablets until you have confirmation. Diabetes UK is the web site I would refer you to as it contains up-to-date credible researched based information. There is a link on the site which details insurance companies happy to insure patients with diabetes. www.diabetes.org.uk

There is no problem if you have to carry blood glcose monitoring equipment with you or indeed insulin however keep it in your hand luggage and obtain a letter form you GP or specialist nurse detailing your need to carry needles etc.

I hope that helps and please PM me if I can provide you with any information regarding diabetes. I run an education group for newly diagnosed diabetic patients and I would be more than happy to post information out to you or answer any questions..

Have a great holiday and let us know the outcome of your tests carried out :)

[disney dave]

both my dd are type one dd1 from the age of three and dd2 3 years ago at the age of 16..... me dignosied type 2 at 43yrs and dad at 67yrs.

dd have been to florida 11 times (dd1 on her own twice times and dds together last year) and we have never had any issues we always make sure that the insurance policy covers us and inform the insurance company of our diabetes.

we always carry a covering letter from diabetic nurse to say that we are carrying insulin and i take my prescription copy with me for the tablets. just make sure you tell people you have you diabetic eqipment with you and you will be fine(...dh aways used to get stopped by customs and serached till we realised it was cause he never said he was carrying the kids stuff!!!!) we always have a spare blood glucose meter with us and put stuff in cases and have loads in hand luggage, Insulin will freeeze in the hold so needs to be kept in hand luggage. so airlines will offer to fridge your insulin for you but we've never taken them up on the offer and take a frigo bag that keeps medication cool. we never order diabetic diet on the plane as its may not have enough carbohyrates in the meal... we used to take butties with us when the kids were younger incase they didnt like the food!!

your diabetic nurse will tell you about how to sort out the change in time zones on either oral meds or insulin.

there are plenty on healthy options in foods around and always diet coke nad now disney do diet lemonade!!!

diabetes is a hard thing to get used to but youve got to learn to life with it rather than letting it rule your life. know it sounds hard at this moment in time but you are on the right track finding information on how to make sure you are safe on holiday PM me if we can help :wave:

lesley

[JaneSi]

I am type 2 diabetic, havin been on tablets, but now starting insulin. In the past I have just had a letter from my GP detailing all the medication that i'm taking. I have always had insurance, the last one being with a company based on the Selbourne Road, Nr Alton. I have never had any problems carrying my testing kit and don't envisage any even with pen/needles etc.

God luck with your diagnosis.

[Clare]

Carrie, first of all please try not to worry :)

I'm a type 1 (30+ years) and have been travelling since I was a young child with needles and kit. I do always advise the airline that I'm travelling with needles (in Virgin's medical bit on the website they do say to notify them), but have never had any problems.

I also do what Marl says (again the airlines do request this in their website/info) regarding taking a letter from my GP/consultant, and again have never had any problems.

Years ago, before the nice new tiny needles/pens, etc., you had to take great big glass syringes and giant 1-2 inch needles - never had a problem then and it's even less of a problem now lol.

Unfortunately, being type 1, some insurance companies do decline to cover and some charge the earth for cover as well. However, I've found Nationwide to be very good - they charge me £70 for an annual policy, and cover absolutely everything.

[duggs]

Hi...I'm Type 2...From what I understand, you'd more than likely know if you were type 1 by now as its more serious. You'd feel unwell and unsteady quite a bit as your blood/sugar got too low.

Suspect you are on the first level of medication, Metformin which needs to be taken fairly reg. to take effect. Didn't really do much for me either BUT when they put me on some others, things really got interesting.

One of which, around 11.00 am, brought my levels shooting down so much that I started experiancing what it felt like to be Type 1, feeling very light headed and starting to shake quite a bit. A couple of biscuits later and I was fine. Needless to say...I dropped that one. They need to see if Metformin will bring your levels down first, if not, hopefully they'll give you some other tablets also. Some doctors I've found out though are reluctant to prescribe other pills, told it was down to cost, BUT keep on at them if Metformin doesn't do it. Buy a self testing blood/sugar level kit and ask the Doctor to put the testing strips on prescription (they're VERY expensive otherwise).

Be a little carefull regarding the tablet, AVANDIA though...its had quite a bit of bad publicity recently.

There is a wealth of Diabetic info on the Net. Its not a disaster...you'll just need to make a few changes to your lifestyle although it can all be a bit of a "science".

Funny thing....I've never drunk alcohol BUT loved my pint of Pepsi/Coke. THAT's what they say triggered my Type 2 and yet after a pint once in a while now, I check my levels and they're perfectly normal. After a meal however, up it goes normally to around 12/13..spooky but true.

But as mentioned...don't worry..you certainly ain't alone.

[Joolie Peaches]

I've been a Type 2 Diabetic for about 10 years now and have never had a problem travelling to and from the States with tablets in my hand luggage.

I always find my levels are better over there because I seem to eat less because its too hot :grin:

I take tablets for other "troubles" too but I find the change in time zones quite easy to cope with, mind you I don't sleep much, theres too much to do over there!

There are some very good books out there to read about both types and the best help is always a Diabetic Nurse, so just make sure you go to your checkups!

Good luck, I'm sure you'll cope brilliantly!

[Charlotte_18]

hello there :wavey:

four months before i was due to go to florida my boyfriend was diagnosed with diabetes (they don't know what type he is either!) and was put on injections. He had to find specialist travel insurance, but you do not need to inform the airline. As long as you have a doctors note/perscription letter and have placed you're medication in a clear sealable bag in you're hand luggage, you'll have no problems. Even in the theme parks carrying insulin around they are completely fine as long as you let them know.

have a good hol!

xxx

[carrieh]

[QUOTE=duggs;1940011]Suspect you are on the first level of medication, Metformin which needs to be taken fairly reg. to take effect. Didn't really do much for me either BUT when they put me on some others, things really got interesting.



Thanks so much for all of the response, i am much clearer now on what needs to be done and not so worried!

As for the metformin, i had a nasty reaction and so they put me on Glucophage (SR metformin) which seems to be fine. Still no drop in levels yet but its early days and am up to 2 tablets a night - working my way up to 4 so fingers crossed, it's just a matter of time :grin: .

I have started to look at different insurance as my usual (DH, DD +DS'S) Isn't very good for me. As for the time zones and medication, i hadn't even given that a thought! I have an appointment with the specialist before we go though and will ask that at our next meeting (along with a multitude of other questions!) :d: :wavey:

[JaneSi]

Unfortunately I too had a bad reaction to Metformin, and coped with the neverending trips to the loo. They then tried the Slow release but that gave me an even worse reaction, so am now on one insulin injection a night plus 4 glaclazide tablets. Today was the first day that my sugars were under 10 before breakfast and around 6 at lunch time. I'm feeling really good about it at the moment.

Hang in there, it's taken me 4 years to get to this point!!

[Diggity-Dog]

I have been diabetic (type 1) for 8 yrs. As many people have said you shouldn't have a problem with travelling with needles, tester kit etc.

The most important things I have learned over the years are to never go anywhere without sugary snack and a sandwich or something more substantial than a glucose tablet, unless you know that you have guaranteed access to food. Someone I know took a train journey and then discovered that the buffet was closed and the train didn't stop at the stations he was expecting it to. After a while he realised he was going low, panicked and then accosted a fellow passenger for her sandwiches! Luckily he wears a medic alert bracelet, so he was able to explain what he needed. That is probably the second important thing, get yourself a medic alert or similar id bracelet or necklace, it will it give emergency services vital info in the event of an accident,or if you ever have an episode a la train.

I'm starting to sound like one of those people who has a horror story for every occasion, I was trying to be helpful!

Hope it all works out.

[Weggy]

Hi

I was diagnosed about 2 and a half years ago, and have been to Orlando twice in that time. I'm type 2 so only carry a testing kit and metformin - have never advised the airline and have never had a problem with security.

When I was first diagnosed, my glucose level was 20+. I think they start most people on tablets first, treating them as type 2. With an improved diet, exercise and the tablets, the levels came down within a couple of months. Please, do listen to everything the specialists tell you. Diet and exercise (if you can do it) make as big a difference as the tablets in my opinion.

Parks - good advice to carry something sugary with you, be it some sweets or something similar. You do a heck of a lot of walking compared to normal and this can hit the blood sugars. Disney are getting better with fruit options, ie you can choose apple slices instead of fries so grab those and stick them in the bag for later... also try their no added sugar ice cream. And the favourite for me, frozen banana coated in chocolate and nuts. A thin layer of chocolate so shouldnt cause too much of an issue - especially as you're walking around.

As for the diabetic meal on the plane - dont bother. Absolutely horrid! Like someone else said, it had hardly any carbs in it, which we all know is not good for a diabetic who's been rushing around an airport! Just have a normal meal but leave the desert if it's a chocolate cake etc...

Feel free to PM me if you have any questions, but above all, don't let it restrict you - ENJOY your holiday :grin:

[Diggity-Dog]

I have bought a couple of FRIO insulin travel wallets from Boots.com in their half price sale . They only had the one size on offer (for 2 pens), but I'm hoping that it will be a good investment. I could have done with this when on holiday over the past couple of years as I have used ice blocks when traveling and they make everything damp, as well as being heavy.

Does anyone use these Frio wallets and they as easy as they claim to be ?

Sophie.

[JennyB]

My son is a diabetic teenager and he found the frio wallets very easy to use. Just remember to soak the in cold water every couple of days or so depending how warm it is.

Have a good holiday :) xx