4 Tips for a Fun Summer Adventure

I’m always inspired by our MiniMed Ambassadors. A group of people who don’t let diabetes hold them back. Recently, Ambassador Phyllis, went on a safari in South Africa. She of course had her MiniMed 670G system with her throughout the trip. We asked Phyllis to share some of her special photos with our community along with a few tips she learned on her journey.

I enjoy traveling and exploring new places and the thrill of an adventure. Whether a local day trip or a big adventure like my recent trip to South Africa. With each new trip, I learn new things about my diabetes and the diabetes management tool I’m using. This trip was especially exciting as I took along my new MiniMed 670G system. Here are a few tips that I learned on my trip that I wanted to share with the diabetes community.

I am a planner by nature. I’m happiest when I have a project or three in the works and the same goes for travel planning. Figuring out what to do, where to eat, the best areas to stay, is part of the adventure for me.

Connecting flight tip: If you have a connecting flight be sure to do some research on the city/country of connection, so you can have translations of your medical supplies and insulin pump, if needed.

Lodging tip: I have retinopathy in both eyes and have trouble seeing at night. My eyes don’t adjust quickly from light to dark. For this reason, while on safari for five days I opted for accommodations with an en-suite bathroom.   

I didn’t want to risk having to find my way in the dark… and let’s be honest, I also feared peeking out of the tent and just seeing a set of animal eyes blink at me, and not being able to tell what it might be from a distance.

Adjusting to travel tip: Adjusting to a change in schedule and climate can impact my diabetes management. My safari included several sunrise game drives starting at 6am with breakfast afterward, usually around 10:30am.

Getting up at 5:45am was tough, but worth it to see giraffes this close. Since breakfast wouldn’t be for several hours, I made sure to have protein bars with me at all times.

Change in activity tip: Make sure to keep your system calibrated! Even on safari in Kruger National Park, calibrating the MiniMed 670G system was a piece of cake and helped me stay in range during hours of sitting and waiting for the animals!

Or, if more active, make sure to set your temp target. In this picture, I was feeling on top of the world after a short hike in the Blyde River Canyon Nature Reserve in Mpumalanga, South Africa. The exercise temp target helped me stay in range during and after the hike.

No matter where life takes me, a little planning and the MiniMed 670G system helped keep my glucose levels in range so I have one less thing to worry about on any adventure. The flexibility and features of the MiniMed 670G system helped me to be able to focus on the trip and less about what my blood glucose was doing.

Important Safety Information

The Medtronic MiniMed 670G system requires a prescription and is intended for continuous delivery of basal insulin (at user selectable rates) and administration of insulin boluses (in user selectable amounts) for the management of Type 1 diabetes mellitus in persons, fourteen years of age and older, requiring insulin as well as for the continuous monitoring and trending of glucose levels in the fluid under the skin. The MiniMed 670G System includes SmartGuard technology, which can be programmed to automatically adjust delivery of basal insulin based on Continuous Glucose Monitor sensor glucose values, and can suspend delivery of insulin when the sensor glucose value falls below or is predicted to fall below predefined threshold values.

The Guardian Sensor (3) is not intended to be used directly for making therapy adjustments, but rather to provide an indication of when a finger stick may be required. All therapy adjustments should be based on measurements obtained using a home glucose monitor and not on values provided by the Guardian Sensor (3).
Pump therapy is not recommended for people whose vision or hearing does not allow recognition of pump signals and alarms. Do not use the serter on products other than the Enlite sensor or Guardian Sensor (3). Medtronic cannot guarantee the safety or efficacy of this product if used with other products. The reservoir is contraindicated for the infusion of blood or blood products. Infusion sets are indicated for subcutaneous use only and not for intravenous (IV) infusion or the infusion of blood or blood products. Insulin pump therapy is not recommended for those who are unwilling to perform at least four blood glucose tests per day. As insulin pumps use rapid acting insulin only, BG testing is required to help identify rapid glycemic deterioration due to insulin infusion occlusion, infusion site problems, insulin stability issues, user error, or a combination of these. Pump therapy is not recommended for people who are unwilling or unable to maintain contact with their healthcare professional.

The safety of the 670G system has not been studied in people with impaired kidney function. Please let your healthcare professional know if you have kidney disease so you and your healthcare professional can determine if the potential benefits of using the system outweigh the risks. The safety of the 670G system has not been studied in pregnant women, people with type 2 diabetes, or in people using other anti-hyperglycemic therapies apart from insulin. Please let your healthcare professional know if any of these conditions apply to you so you and your healthcare professional can determine if the potential benefits of using the system outweigh the risks.

For complete safety information, please consult the appropriate User Guide.

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