It’s just days away from Caleb’s second trip to Europe without me and my approach to preparation is not what it was last year. Although I’ve been putting things aside here and there, and he’s back to Looping as of a couple of weeks ago, it’s a significant change from the months of prep I did last year.
That’s okay, though, right? We learned so much from last year, so there is no reason to recreate the wheel. He’s got experience, so we’re both less worried. He’s traveling with people he actually KNOWS this year, staying in less remote areas and part of his trip is in England, so no language barrier!
I’ve got an emotional nagging inside of me telling me I haven’t put enough energy into this, but the logical part of me repeats the above paragraph trying to convince me there was no need.
The best outcome of Caleb’s trip to Europe last year is the huge advancement he took in self management. It’s like he was thrown into pool to sink or swim and he swam. He came back and continued to work autonomously. Where I use to consult with him on carb counts daily, there’s now rarely a time where I provide input, including the school lunches I pack. He used to text me daily and then that just stopped.
It’s a year later, but he seems like a decade wiser. Nevertheless, I welcome any wishes of luck and good fortune for this upcoming trip! I’ll still be anxious and not likely to sleep while he’s away - diabetes has a way of not allowing you to get complacent.
This is a wonderful post for you to be able to make. It sounds like Caleb won’t need any luck, just keep swimming. He will have a great time.
There may be some language barriers, like chemist = pharmacy, and if he needs a bandage, like what we would call a band-aid, in the UK, they’re called “plasters”.
I see this as a huge success in your drive to give Caleb what every parent wants for their child, an ability to succeed and cope on their own in the larger world, one that is not always kind or fair. It’s a graduation of sorts. I trust it’s one your family will celebrate.
Make a list of everything. Check it off when you lay it out AND when it is actually in his bag. (I went to France for two weeks and forgot to pack extra test strips.) Back ups…I carry an extra glucose meter and backup pump overseas. Keep insulin in his control…no unknown fridges.
Copies of everything. Scripts, IDS, passport, credit cards. Get a letter from his doctor, copy info of what TSA can do, put with his carryon. Know when to go through Tsa monitors.
It’s all about prep, back up, and knowledge.
It’s hard to travel with our tech. Be prepared. He will have a good trip!
