TRAVEL Advice needed ☺️

[lozboz25]

Last month, going through Heathrow, and Dubai, there were no requirements to have liquids in clear bags. I haven’t checked in the regulations have actually changed, but will do before we travel back.

Oh really.
When I was at the travel agent, they rang TUI who the holiday is booked with, and they told us that all his liquids have to be in a clear bag and we aren't allowed more than 100ml and if we are taking more than that I will need a doctors note stating why we need so much and what condition he has. His insulin for his pump comes in 10ml vials. And I'm not too sure how many ml's are in the pen cartilage.

 

[Lucyr]

I've seen some flasks on Amazon to keep the insulin cool and I thought it was a great idea, specially for the pens. I need something that is going to last at least the 9 hour flight and the hours we will be waiting at the airport - plus the coach ride to the hotel which is a hour. So I need something that going to last more than 12 hours.

No you don’t need something that will keep insulin cold for more than 12 hours. It’s fine at room temperature for a month.

 

[AndBreathe]

Oh really.
When I was at the travel agent, they rang TUI who the holiday is booked with, and they told us that all his liquids have to be in a clear bag and we aren't allowed more than 100ml and if we are taking more than that I will need a doctors note stating why we need so much and what condition he has. His insulin for his pump comes in 10ml vials. And I'm not too sure how many ml's are in the pen cartilage.

We were surprised, and in fact, it was not as we approached the machines that I remembered I hadn’t done that bit. No need. Nor was there any need to remove laptops etc from bags.

I know there is an enormous machine upgrade programme at Heathrow, so maybe we got lucky.

You’ll more likely fly from Gatwick, unless you are on a charter flight, so probably better safe than hassle at the last minute.

 

[SB2015]

Just remembered ….

I take all my insulin in a dumpy soup thermos flask. If I need to put my insulin in a fridge the flask goes in and it is protected from being in the wrong position. I only do this for very long trips. If it is under 28 days I avoid using the fridges and just use the frio bags where necessary.

 

[helli]

As @Lucyr mentioned, you do not have to worry about insulin on the flight and travelling unless you intend to put it next to a radiator. Insulin is fine at room temperature for a month. Planes should not get too hot and, provided the insulin is not in direct sunlight, it is fine in your hand luggage travelling to and from the airport.
I recently travelled to Dubai (for work ... not my holiday destination of choice) and forgot to take my Frio wallets. Despite it being 50 degrees outside (it was 39 degrees in the outside bar at midnight), my insulin was fine.

As for putting the insulin in a clear plastic bag, the 100ml limit is on EACH item. You can take more than 100ml of insulin if you want as well as 100ml of shampoo plus 100ml shower gel and 100ml of sunscreen in your hand luggage. Provided it is in a clear plastic bag.
Some airports (e.g. Schipol and Dublin) have bought in new x-ray machines which do not require you to take laptop and liquids out of your bag but this technology has not been rolled out to all airports so I still keep my clear plastic bag in my hand luggage. It is a well travelled bag.

As @SB2015 suggests, it may be a good idea to avoid hotel fridges - they are not always the most reliable and there have been stories of insulin being frozen. For a normal holiday Frio wallets (or just an air conditioned room) is sufficient.

It is very easy to over think the problems of travel but airports are very used to dealing with people with diabetes with all our little sharp and liquid paraphernalia. Plus, our insulin is pretty robust nowadays.

 

[Thebearcametoo]

The letter from the DSN with the hospital header will be fine for travelling. No need to pay your GP to write one. You can get a sunflower lanyard for him and all of you should be able to go through security on a shorter queue.

As others have said frio pouches are good for keeping insulin cold. Yes you can keep insulin out of the fridge for a month and it’s fine but as you’re taking multiple spares it’s worth keeping it cool imo.

You can get sticking plasters to go over pods and Libre to help keep them in place - we use the ones from type one style most often and they stick really well.

Think about storing any sharps while you’re there. Any lidded box is fine for temporary storage but you might want to talk to the hotel about disposal. You can buy small sharps boxes on Amazon and the like if that’s better for you.

Being in and out do the pool a lot may mean the Libre doesn’t keep connected so you won’t get alarms in the moment so encourage him to finger prick or reconnect every so often.

My kid would run high in heat but some people run low.

It can be hard to make adjustments for different food, routine etc so you’re likely to have highs and lows. Just go with the flow and aim for good enough control not perfection.

 

[PattiEvans]

It is a good idea to get a holiday loaner from Omnipod. Or take your 2nd PDM. I think you mentioned you had one? I have one as they replaced them some while ago when there was doubt about the batteries. However, in case you need to use it, do take with you a list of his basal amounts throughout the day and all the other settings as you will need this information to set the spare up.

Apart from that, I wish you a lovely holiday.

 

[lozboz25]

Just remembered ….

I take all my insulin in a dumpy soup thermos flask. If I need to put my insulin in a fridge the flask goes in and it is protected from being in the wrong position. I only do this for very long trips. If it is under 28 days I avoid using the fridges and just use the frio bags where necessary.

Thank you. Yes you're right. I think I was over thinking things, specially keeping the insulin safe. I will get some frio bags. X

 

[lozboz25]

As @Lucyr mentioned, you do not have to worry about insulin on the flight and travelling unless you intend to put it next to a radiator. Insulin is fine at room temperature for a month. Planes should not get too hot and, provided the insulin is not in direct sunlight, it is fine in your hand luggage travelling to and from the airport.
I recently travelled to Dubai (for work ... not my holiday destination of choice) and forgot to take my Frio wallets. Despite it being 50 degrees outside (it was 39 degrees in the outside bar at midnight), my insulin was fine.

As for putting the insulin in a clear plastic bag, the 100ml limit is on EACH item. You can take more than 100ml of insulin if you want as well as 100ml of shampoo plus 100ml shower gel and 100ml of sunscreen in your hand luggage. Provided it is in a clear plastic bag.
Some airports (e.g. Schipol and Dublin) have bought in new x-ray machines which do not require you to take laptop and liquids out of your bag but this technology has not been rolled out to all airports so I still keep my clear plastic bag in my hand luggage. It is a well travelled bag.

As @SB2015 suggests, it may be a good idea to avoid hotel fridges - they are not always the most reliable and there have been stories of insulin being frozen. For a normal holiday Frio wallets (or just an air conditioned room) is sufficient.

It is very easy to over think the problems of travel but airports are very used to dealing with people with diabetes with all our little sharp and liquid paraphernalia. Plus, our insulin is pretty robust nowadays.

Thank you! I was panicking about the insulin as I've been told it is going to be 30 degrees over there, so I was panicking about keeping the insulin safe. So I'm glad you message to say your insulin had been in higher temperatures and was still ok, so you have put my mind at ease. Thank you.

 

[lozboz25]

The letter from the DSN with the hospital header will be fine for travelling. No need to pay your GP to write one. You can get a sunflower lanyard for him and all of you should be able to go through security on a shorter queue.

As others have said frio pouches are good for keeping insulin cold. Yes you can keep insulin out of the fridge for a month and it’s fine but as you’re taking multiple spares it’s worth keeping it cool imo.

You can get sticking plasters to go over pods and Libre to help keep them in place - we use the ones from type one style most often and they stick really well.

Think about storing any sharps while you’re there. Any lidded box is fine for temporary storage but you might want to talk to the hotel about disposal. You can buy small sharps boxes on Amazon and the like if that’s better for you.

Being in and out do the pool a lot may mean the Libre doesn’t keep connected so you won’t get alarms in the moment so encourage him to finger prick or reconnect every so often.

My kid would run high in heat but some people run low.

It can be hard to make adjustments for different food, routine etc so you’re likely to have highs and lows. Just go with the flow and aim for good enough control not perfection.

Thank you. I will get him a sunflower lanyard. Thank you for your advice. I will take it all on board. You have put my mind at ease.
My little boy runs high when the weather is hot. When he was diagnosed his team said type 1s usually run low, but my little boy didn't.
I'm going to try manage everything, not to worry and have a good time, but I struggle as I'm constantly worrying about him and what his bloods are doing and so on.

 

[lozboz25]

It is a good idea to get a holiday loaner from Omnipod. Or take your 2nd PDM. I think you mentioned you had one? I have one as they replaced them some while ago when there was doubt about the batteries. However, in case you need to use it, do take with you a list of his basal amounts throughout the day and all the other settings as you will need this information to set the spare up.

Apart from that, I wish you a lovely holiday.

I will definitely get a 2nd one. I've already screen shotted all his ratios just incase anything happens but I will also write them down.
Thank you so much

 

[SimonP]

As for putting the insulin in a clear plastic bag, the 100ml limit is on EACH item. You can take more than 100ml of insulin if you want as well as 100ml of shampoo plus 100ml shower gel and 100ml of sunscreen in your hand luggage. Provided it is in a clear plastic bag.
Some airports (e.g. Schipol and Dublin) have bought in new x-ray machines which do not require you to take laptop and liquids out of your bag but this technology has not been rolled out to all airports so I still keep my clear plastic bag in my hand luggage. It is a well travelled bag.

I didn't think medicines needed to go in the bag, I certainly never bothered to decant my insulin into the bag with other stuff like contact lens solution and shaving cream, I'd simply tell the X-ray people I had insulin and sharps in the bag and that I'd take them out if they wanted me to.

 

[helli]

I didn't think medicines needed to go in the bag, I certainly never bothered to decant my insulin into the bag with other stuff like contact lens solution and shaving cream, I'd simply tell the X-ray people I had insulin and sharps in the bag and that I'd take them out if they wanted me to.

Some security staff let it be whereas others are a little more concerned.
Thinking about it, they only have our word that the contents of the vial is insulin rather than something dodgy/explosive.
If I had insulin within pens, I would not put the pens in the bag. I do put unused cartridges and all vials into my clear plastic bag.
Occasionally, I forget and the security guy has taken an unbagged vial out of my luggage. Some airports seem to be more concerned about it than others: Newcastle airport has stopped me more than once.

On the other hand, I do not tell them about my diabetes (or sharps) as needles and lancets are too small to be of concern and mine are all secured (either unopened or in a sealed sharps container).

 

[SimonP]

Conversely I always tell the staff I'm diabetic, I get the feeling they are usually zoned out and don't even hear what I say, but I'd prefer to have told them so if they do decide to go digging around because they find something "suspect" (like my libre) I can happily tell them I already warned them.

I'm rather more slap-dash with my used sharps and generally just put them in a (sealed) plastic bag - they're in the middle of my bag (and actually usually in the hold unless I'm travelling light with cabin baggage only) so I won't get stabbed by one (though I have had this with a record bag I used at uni - I did wonder what the pain was while walking until I noticed the needle sticking out the back!) but the X-ray staff might do if they go poking around, so I may as well give them some warning (and perhaps they will ask me to do the unpacking at that point so I can make sure everything goes back in that came out, which can be a concern if you're carrying lots of electrical odds and sods.)

This usually works, though on one occasion I did have a rather officious security official (I suppose it's in the name) in Bristol iirc who insisted on unpacking my bag despite the sharps warning (he was safe, there were only unused needles, I was on the way out), and then insisted on seeing my doctor's letter (which I think is the only occasion in many years of regular flying all round the place that anyone has ever shown any interest.)

I carry my insulin in a cool bag (with ice/ice packs, we're been here before), so I have sometimes taken the coolbag out of my carry-on bag and sent it through on its own, but was told at some point I didn't need to bother with medication so from then on left it in the bag as there are then fewer things to try to collect at the other end (children, their bags, etc.)

 

[helli]

@SimonP I guess it is not just people with diabetes who are all different - it is also airport security staff.
It is best to cover the obvious bases, potentially expect more and be friendly and polite at all time because these guys have a lot of power.
I have had a few annoyances over the years but they have never been more than annoyances and are very rare.

 

[Sally71]

The only time we ever flew anywhere with our daughter was when she was 9, we went from East Midlands and they got very snarky about us not wanting to put the pump through the full body scanner. They said the guy that was in it at that moment had a heart pacemaker and he was fine. Maybe so, but we’d been told by both DSN and pump manufacturer that it must NOT go through, and as daughter’s life depends on it we don’t want to risk it thank you. So I got my letter out - which instantly made them decide they’d better do what we asked, without even bothering to read it. They took the pump around, swabbed it for explosives and so on and then gave it back. Daughter didn’t like that, but look at it from their side, they are trying to keep everyone safe and she has an electronic device with liquid in it… Hopefully as pumps become more commonplace this sort of thing won’t happen so much!

Coming back the other way the Italians couldn’t care less, although both times the Frio bag did cause some concern, the gel inside must show up as suspicious on the x-ray. But as soon as we got it out they were happy and didn’t even want to look inside.