Wednesday, August 01, 2007

The stupid monster

We will be leaving on Sunday to go on a mission trip to Myrtle Beach, SC. While we are there we will be spending a day at a water park.



Riley loves water parks. He loves the slides and the lazy rivers and the wave pools. He'll spend the better part of the day in the water.



Our other trips to water parks were before the ugly monster named diabetes entered out lives. That stupid monster has a way of complicating things.



So, I have some questions for my invisible internet friends out there. Have any of you been to water parks and how did you handle your diabetes while you were there?



I was corresponding with another mom of a child with diabetes today (Hi Becky!) and she was saying that when they went to a water park they left his bag at the first aide station with his meter and juice in it.



What to do with the pump is not a big deal. He swims and bathes with his pump on. So, we'll just keep it on like usual.



But, I have been stressing over his sites. I'm worried that with his pump site staying wet the whole day the site will come out. I really, really do not want to do a site change in the middle of the water park. We use IV prep before putting his sites on. He's only had one site come out due to swimming and he swims pretty much every week. But, he's never in the water more than a few hours at a time.



Now, I'm stressing about what to do with his meter and his fruit snacks for lows. I don't want to leave them somewhere on the other side of the park and have him go low and me not have anything with me.



I know I could buy a very cool fanny pack;-) Then, I'd have everything with me, but what do I do with it when we get on the slides or get in the pool? Should I just leave it in the little receptacles they have there and hope it doesn't get stolen?



So, how do I keep the stupid monster from ruining our time at the water park? Any tips you have would be greatly appreciated.

11 comments:

Shannon said...

We use IV 3000 transparent dressing and place it OVER the infusion set and cut out a little section where the tubing clips into the set.

That holds up to water really well. If you don't have it, I'm sure you could swipe a few from your hospital.

Can you buy a little back pack (like for hiking, or biking) that you can stash supplies and just place at a table near where you'll be slipping and sliding around?

I hope you find a plan of attack that's convenient!

Anonymous said...

What about something like this where you could put some glucose tabs or fruit snacks in to keep them on you and water-safe. Obviously, you couldn't have the one from that site by this weekend, but something similar...

P.S. I also love water parks - but I think I am too old for them now because I can't find anyone to go with me! :)

Scott S said...

Although I went to Myrtle Beach myself on Memorial Day weekend (and yes, I even went to the water park there), since I haven't worn my insulin pump, I didn't need to worry. However, when I was pumping, I had problems with sites surviving normal perspiration during the summer and daily showers. I would strongly recommend you prep the sites with something a little more adhesive than simple IV prep, my favorite was Skin Tac H (you can get a box of preps for about $20 at www.brucemedical.com/skintach.html and have them FedEx it to your hotel). I would also recommend packing many more extra sites than you think you'll need just in case they don't hold up!

Anonymous said...

Fruit snacks in their packages are already waterproof... maybe you could buy a fanny pack and put some in it, and just wear it everywhere... even in the water. It would get wet, but the fruit snacks wouldn't. If he doesn't need a whole pack of fruit snacks, you could just throw away the extras.

Have fun!! :)

Carey said...

Sorry, we have no experience with this. Have a great time!

Penny Ratzlaff said...

Shannon,

I have plenty of IV 3000. We got it when we first got the pump, but I've only used it a few times. I tends to give Riley a rash, a big rectangle-shaped rash.

sara,
Thank you for the tip. I may see if I can find one of those. And, if you're going to be anywhere near Myrtle Beach I would love to go to the water park with you.

Scott and ISOB,

Thank you for the tips.

Carey,
Thanks. I plan to have a blast. Hopefully I'll have lots of pictures to share.

Shannon said...

Aw that stinks. Sorry I couldn't offer better help.

A pharmacy has got to have something that helps make the set stick better.

Anonymous said...

Skin-tac works like a charm. It is really sticky and I believe his site will stick. I think you can buy it at any pharmacy. I have heard of Mastisol, which I have not tried because Skin-tac works so well, and Tegaderm placed over the site, as well. It is a pain pushing the needle in after prepping with Skin-tac though. Harder to insert site than usual. Have fun at the water park! P.S. Place juice and/or those large individually wrapped lifesavers inside a zip lock baggie and wear it in a water-resistant fanny pack.

Anonymous said...

P.S. you can place the large individually wrapped lifesavers inside an empty film cannister or pill container and stick it in your bathing suit bra if you really don't want to carry a fanny pack. They are 4 grams apiece just like the glucose tabs and they won't get wet due to the plastic surrounding them.

Sarah Russo said...

We went to Sesame Place, and granted we're not on the pump, but we just planned to check after every 2 rides, and did it back at the lockers. You could also bring a small stroller and store the diabetes stuff in a bag attached to that. Julia has a baby sister, but she ended up so tired that she rode back to the car in the stroller and we carried the baby LOL.
Her sugars were great...we kept worrying they might spike with excitement, or plummet with the amount of exercise, but they stayed pretty well regulated! Have fun, and good luck. Thanks for asking this question though...these are some great ideas for when she joins the pump club.

Anonymous said...

Glucose gel in the tube is sealed, you break off the tip when you want to use it. It is completley water proof and is very small. A type 1 dad of a child at our school, who noticed my daughters pump, told me he always carries one around in his pocket and has taken it river rafting with no problems. A lot of boys swim trunks comes with little pockets. I also have a pair of board shorts that have a little pocket that I wear as a bathing suit bottom.

Good luck.

kathy