Traveling with Diabetes

Last week, I was in Walt Disney World for Spring Break. Going on vacation is always a challenge since I am eating food that does not fit in my regular diet. I have a few strategies for managing my diabetes while on vacation. First, I do not play a guessing game with my blood sugar levels. I find time to test my blood sugar such as when I am waiting in line for rides. Another tip is it is okay to enjoy eating different food on vacation but, trying to stick to your normal diet will prevent blood sugar levels from going too high. My last tip is plan ahead. If you know you will be on your feet all day, bring the appropriate snacks and extra insulin since you cannot predict how the blood glucose levels will be for that day. Transportation can also be tricky such as air travel. I keep my diabetic supplies in one bag which I put in one bin during TSA checkpoints with a note from my endocrinologist that says I am allowed to have these supplies with me at all times. This way, airport security can see right away that I have diabetes and will not interfere with their procedures. I also take my insulin pump off and put it in a bin so it will not interfere with the metal detector.