I’ve made it a habit to take a short walk around the city (New York) during my lunch break after eating. Today I trekked towards the World Trade Center site, which always triggers strong thoughts and emotions.
Today, I thought “am I prepared?” Not necessarily for massive, tragic events like the one that happened here, but any unexpected situation which could disrupt my diabetes routine. I’ve been taught that:
• I should have extra food, glucose tabs, etc. with me everywhere I go. Just in case…
• I should always carry an extra vial of insulin, syringe, infusion set, and battery everywhere I go, in case my pump fails. Just in case…
• I should have plenty of extra test strips, extra batteries, and even extra meters with me (especially on long trips). Just in case…
• I always should keep Ketostix with me, everywhere I go. If my blood sugar is high, I have to know if the pump isn’t delivering and I’m in danger of DKA. Just in case…
• I should always have an ice pack available, so my spare insulin doesn’t go bad during a mid-summer power outage. Just in case…
Quite honestly, all of this is a bit much, and my pockets aren’t big enough to carry all of this extra stuff with me. However, emergencies happen all the time and we are left stranded away from home. And I don’t just mean major catastrophes like 9/11 or Katrina. Flight delays, traffic jams, power outages, illness – these things happen all the time.
My co-worker was working in Tower 1 when it was hit. Fortunately, he evacuated safely and walked several miles to his mother’s home in Brooklyn. All of his possessions were either lost in the tower or at home in New Jersey.
If it were me and I managed to escape, I’d probably have suffered a severe hypoglycemic attack while fleeing, or would have run out of insulin or supplies in the days that followed.
So I think – how prepared am I? How prepared should I be?
What supplies do you carry with you at all times – just in case…