Eating out for a week on holiday

Status
Not open for further replies.
JohnnyRam

JohnnyRam

Well-Known Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 1
Before I was diagnosed in late November I had already booked a week in Austria starting end January, half board in a hotel. Prior to my diagnosis I wouldn't have given a week of hotel breakfasts and dinners (and lunches out too) a second thought - other than to think that will be a nice break. Now the combination of eating food for a week that I haven't prepared (combined with being active all day as I am going skiing) seems like a minefield.

Any tips on managing this? I haven't tried any carb counting apps - are there any that help with this kind of thing? I've read various posts about 'splitting' insulin injections where a meal has a pretty high carb level. I am also going to ask the hotel to give me a list of all the meals for the week to help me plan. Any pointers gratefully received!
 
When out or on holiday I just eyeball food & have rough guess at carb estimate then bolus, sometimes get it bang on sometimes not, if high later correct it if low have glucose to hand or have yourself desert.

Obviously if food is fatty or high in protein a split dose will be needed, but that's just same as being at home.

It's only week so enjoy & don't stress to much about it all.
 
Last edited:
If it's a continental buffet breakfast you should be able to fill up on meat, cheese and eggs which should keep you going for a good while.

As @nonethewiser says, it's only a week.
 
All good advice thanks. And I certainly intend to enjoy!
 
My advice would be to monitor your levels closely. If you have a Libre make sure you have a spare with you and make sure you have lots of hypo treatments. Accept that you will make mistakes but don't let diabetes dictate what you eat or do and don't beat yourself up when it happens - correct and move on.

If you want carb counting apps, Carbs and Cals maybe helpful because it shows you a picture of a meal and the number of carbs. Personally, I find it too tedious to use every time I eat so go for the eyeball and correct technique. If you know the menu beforehand you may get some idea but until you see it in front of you, you don't know the portion size
 
Thanks @helli - yes been using a Libre since last week and have been advised to double up on everything. I'll take a look at Carbs and Cals but I am leaning that it's all about trial and error
 
I am starting to dislike the phrase "trial and error" and am thinking of adapting it to "trial and learn".
I think "error" sounds like a bad thing but if you can learn from it, it is a good thing.
I know it is only a word but using more positive words can help with mental health.

(Sorry, that was not meant to be a mini lecture and I realise it was off topic.)
 
Sure. Fair point. The healthcare team use it a lot.
 
If you are out all day please make sure you have plenty of hypo treatment with you and consider settling your alarms slightly higher than usual so you have a bit more warning of going low. It is slightly nervewracking your first time travelling with type 1, but it gets easier. Keep all your diabetes kit with you in hand luggage, just do your best with bolusing bearing in mind the increased activity, but ultimately enjoy your trip and have a lovely time
 
Exercise will have an effect on your blood sugar, but for me, just being at a higher altitude also has a lowering effect, as the body is working harder generally. You may find you have to lower your basal for the first few days. I always hypo at night if I don’t, as the body tends to take glucose out of the general system to replenish the liver overnight, if it’s used it up from the liver during the day (layman's explanation, I’m sure it’s more technical than that).
 
Thanks @Robin, the nurse told me that going skiing 'plays havoc' with diabetes (sounds more alarmist than she meant it - she was talking about herself as she is a T1 and going away the same week) because of altitude and adrenaline - I will ask her about lowering basal as I have an appointment before I go.
 
As you are skiing perhaps think about reducing your basal, it's better to run high than end up hypo. After all nothing to stop you doing a correction at meal times.
Enjoy your holiday.
 
Hi @JohnnyRam how did you get on? Any lessons learned?
I'm just heading out now for a week and reaching for the graphic equalisers to try and get the adjustments to all the various inputs right.... Potentially pretty confusing but I'm determined not to let this thing dictate my life!
 
Hi @Toooldfortype1 I had a great week thanks - though exhausting at times! You don't say if you are going skiing or otherwise having an active week, because that level of activity made all the difference. I just went with estimating insulin doses and found the activity level meant I could take significantly less than I would at home, given the hearty lunches I was having. I did find that by the end of the skiing day my BG was pretty low, despite snacks - usually not much above 4mmol/L. It's a good idea - as recommended above - to set your low BG alarm a little higher than you might otherwise. Evening meals (and the odd beer) meant I was usually quite a bit higher by bed so I didn't find it necessary to reduce my basal dose (but that was relatively low in the first month or so and my healthcare team have since increased that anyway).

Whatever you are doing, enjoy. I took the advice of others on here not to stress about it - obviously keeping an eye on the libre and ensuring you have plenty of hypo treatment to counter the inevitable drops is essential, but otherwise I found I adjusted pretty quickly to less insulin to keep BG levels in a good place overall.
 
All sounds very fair, thanks very much. And miles easier to treat the highs and lows than when at home 😉
Appreciate the perspective
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top