Diabetic’s at Sea

I have been a Diabetic now for almost 27 years of my life and some customers ask me how I cope with this whilst away on my cruise holidays. And to be honest, I would always answer the same way in which you would enjoy a normal holiday. Being a Diabetic type 1 does not restrict me or stop me from enjoying my cruises as long as you follow these simple guidelines.

• Always take your blood testing kit so you can regularly test your blood levels.
• Whether your type 1 or type 2, always take an up-to-date prescription with you.
• Enjoy as much or as little food as you like, however, this is cruising so we always over-indulge with food.
• Try not to over-do it with alcohol, however, we all like a drink.
• Some cruise lines will cater to Diabetic menu’s when it comes to desserts and cruise lines such as Fred Olsen have a wide variety of choice.
• If doing plenty of activities or using the gym on a regular basis, then why not treat yourself to a non-diabetic dessert. We can treat ourselves from time to time!

Once when I was onboard a cruise, my blood levels got really low after returning from an excursion and I was taken to the medical bay where the onboard doctor treated me with glucose and helped gain my blood levels back up. Normally with any assistance or treatment from the medical bay, you would see a small fee for this, but the cruise I was on did this all free of charge. Not sure if all cruise lines would do this for free.

I think being a Diabetic type 1 or type 2 should not restrict anyone from enjoying their cruise holiday as long as you keep checking your blood levels and watch what you eat and drink. And I’m sure many of you who have Diabetes will agree.