In December 2024, I took my first completely solo trip. I have always been weary of traveling alone. First, I’m a whopping 5-foot-1-inch-tall woman, which causes me to feel vulnerable. Secondly, I worry about having a low where I need someone else’s help. These have held me back from certain things and I decided I am in a place in my life where I needed to overcome this fear.
Fear of hypoglycemia
I have always been lucky (knock on wood) when it comes to challenging lows and had someone close by to assist or just sit with me to quell my anxiety. This being said, I have been very, very low. As a child, I was 17 mg/dl on two occasions and when I was pregnant with my son, I went down to 24 mg/dl. I used to take pride in this because I had never lost consciousness or required a full dose of glucagon.
But, when I became a parent, the stakes had changed. I was now in charge of other helpless humans, so I had to make sure I was fine all the time. This increased my fear of hypoglycemia, which is something PWD and their families grapple with often. This fear frequently leads to changes in behaviors related to diabetes management.1 It is also one of the leading barriers to people with T1D being physically active.2 I certainly feel that my fear of lows contributed to my decision to avoid solo travel for many years.
Determination > Fear
Despite my qualms, I took myself on a trip to a park that’s about two and a half hours away by car. I stayed in a tiny Air BnB all by myself. I still had people following my Dexcom data, when the WiFi was working. The Air BnB was basically a camper on a site with many other campers, so I felt good about having potential other humans nearby if there were some sort of emergency. I brought a plethora of snacks, low treatments, and arguably equally important, diet coke.
The parks nearby have lots of incredible hikes, and I love to hike. Do I hike routinely and have a great idea of how to manage my glucose levels? Of course not. But was I going to let that stop me? Heck no. I packed up my little backpack with fruit snacks, glucagon, peanut butter crackers, my glucose meter, water, and a backup battery for my phone. When I started the hike, I saw another solo woman and figured if she could do this hike alone without issue, so could I.
Whoops
I neglected to raise the glucose target on my AID system prior to arriving for the hike – which was a 30-minute drive from my Air BnB. I began ascending the stairs (because, of course, I picked a straight uphill hike wanting to see the views) and immediately set a 50% reduction for 2 hours. I should have done this prior to driving over, but that’s life sometimes, isn’t it? I started eating fruit snacks as soon as I got to the top, knowing I would need some carbs on board.
I had to stop and sit for about 10 minutes throughout the hour and a half hike. Was I frustrated that I had to stop? Absolutely. In the scheme of things did it matter? No. Somone else on the hike had T1D and recognized my Dexcom alert but kept going while I sat. The other solo woman was near me, and I told her that I was eating a low blood sugar snack, and she very kindly decided to stay with me for the rest of the hike. She had been a nurses’ aid and wanted to make sure I was “up right.” We chatted through the remainder of the journey and really had a nice time, and I thanked her multiple times.
Work through your fears
If I hadn’t gone on this trip and forgotten to plan properly for my exercise, I may not have had the same experience. But I’m glad to have gone through it. It taught me that even though I may be afraid, I am very capable of taking care of myself – even in extreme (ish) conditions. And, if I am afraid, it’s totally okay to put myself out there and talk to someone I’ve never met to help me feel more comfortable. Having people following my CGM data was an added layer of reassurance as well. (Shout out to my diabetes supporters!)
We can do hard things. And we don’t have to do them alone, but we can at times if we choose to. And when we succeed – we should feel proud.
- Development and validation of fear of hypoglycemia screener: results from the T1D exchange registry
- The Use of Automated Insulin Delivery around Physical Activity and Exercise in Type 1 Diabetes: A Position Statement of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) and the International Society for Pediatric and Adolescent Diabetes (ISPAD)
Written and clinically reviewed by Marissa Town, RN, BSN, CDCES
