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My DH and I are bringing our niece to WDW in Sept. This will be her first visit to the park and she is very excited. She is a diabetic and I'm hoping that this post will reach other T1D families that may have some suggestions/tips you could share with us. Thank you in advance for your ideas.
We've been taking my T1D son to WDW for years now. First time we were pretty nervous, but WDW makes it all easy. Keep in mind they can't tell you carbs on most things so you'll need to make sure that either you stick to what you know or are a very good guesser. You can also look online for comparative things. Make sure you have the tablets in case she goes low. Juice can get expensive in a hurry! Water is great for highs and you can get a cup free at most any concession area. Though highs are generally not the issue! Because of the excitement, altered sleep schedule, and different foods check sugars often because there will usually be a lot of ups and downs. And, overall, just go with the flow and you'll do great!
Thank you, Strmchsr! I appreciate your response. I am a bit nervous, but I really want her to have the opportunity to experience WDW.
I'm curious though. Will WDW allow us to bring snacks into the park with us for when she runs low?
Yes, absolutely. Unlike most amusement parks, WDW has no problem with you bringing outside food or drinks in. The only requirements are things like no glass containers, no alcohol, etc. But bringing in snacks or juice for lows is fine. As I mentioned before, I would really recommend getting a bottle or two of glucose tablets. That's what works best for our son. It's easy to carry and generally gets into the system faster than food. Plus it's less expensive than a bottle of juice. If you have any problems at all, remember that there's a first aid station in each park. You can get someone there to help you.
I don't know if your niece wears a CGM or not, but one issue I bump into while in the parks is that my typical symptoms go overlooked and I hit pretty low before I realize it. I'm already hot and sweaty, there's a glare on everything, and I can get shaky from just the excitement levels and crowds everywhere. I am often in the 40s before I realize something's wrong. Of course, a CGM will alert much sooner, but if she doesn't have one, keep an eye on symptoms, or check her levels more often than normal.
You did not mention if she is wearing a pump or not, but regardless, if she needs to keep anything cold or needs a clean quiet place to check BS or to change her pump site, the first aid stations in the park are wonderful. The nurses that run them are great. You can leave insulin in their fridge if needed. The only drawback is that they are sometimes a hike from wherever you are. Before my DH got his pump we used them all the time and just planned ahead if we needed to go back to use whatever they were storing for us.
DH runs high there insteaad of low (usually) but we keep skittles and smarties handy as they don't melt and he doesn't like the glucose tabs. We try to keep breakfast as similar from one day to the next to at least start out with known carbs. He usually gets a yogurt and an apple for breakfast and maybe a juice, just so we know the amounts. also, we try very hard to eat dinner early so that if the numbers are off he can get them in line before bed.
The first aid stations are really great but can be inconvenient depending on where you are in the park. One thing that has been a blessing for my daughter in the parks is the FRiO cooling pen wallet to store her insulin pens. I found them at CVS locally but amazon has them too for about $30 i think. You just activate it with cold water & it will keep the pens cool for up to 45 hours.