DIABETES SURVIVALIST-How prepared are YOU?

Usually when I think of survivalists, I think of the extremists featured on shows like Doomsday Preppers and a few other survival-type shows I’ve seen briefly in passing. But after developing diabetes in 2010, I started to think of the ‘what ifs’. I never really had any interest in learning about a survivalist lifestyle or mentality. The first time it crossed my mind was last year after a tornado hit nearby and wiped out power in my neighborhood for a good half-day, and it turns out I was one of the luckier ones. I sat there, worried, not opening the refrigerator because my insulin was inside. When your power is out due to an outage like that, you don’t know how long it’s going to be out. An hour? A day? A few days? From that storm, some areas around me went without power for three days. What if that had been my area? What would I have done?

When I think of being a survivalist, I don’t think of it in terms of government conspiracy theories and the like. In fact, it’s not a government shake down or a terrorist attack that I worry about daily; I worry about the things that are more likely to happen to me- being affected by an act of nature, maybe one bigger (think Hurricane Katrina), that may displace me from my home temporarily, or have me without power for a long period of time. There’s a reason I stockpile diabetes supplies as best I can. You never know if something were to happen wherein no one would be able to access pharmacies or get the supplies they need, when they need them. So it’s better to have them now, before you need them. I have stockpiled samples of lancets given to me by doctor’s offices, and also paid full-price cash for extra vials of insulin (nice that it has a lengthy expiration date) and lancets and test strips, just so I have extra on hand. In a previous blog entry, I showed you pictures of my ‘betes stockpile.

Today I bought a book at Barnes & Noble. It’s called How To Survive The End of World As We Know It by James Wesley Rawles. The title sounds a little bit extreme, I know. I liked this book over others I saw because it’s a little less extreme than some of the others (read: less weird). It has a section just about diabetes, and what you can do to keep your insulin cold in the event of a catastrophe. He also talks about the importance of stockpiling your diabetes medications and supplies as best as you are able. There are other chapters that talk about refrigeration, medication, foods to stock up on, and even creating your own “bug out” bag, which is like a big backpack that is pre-packed with necessities in the event you had to leave your house NOW. I will be creating my own version of a ‘diabetes bug-out bag’, filled with insulin, supplies, carbs (glucose tabs, juice boxes), first-aid kit, non-perishable gluten-free foods, and then other essentials that are not diabetes-related, like dog food for my pet. That way, in an emergent situation, I could just grab my bag, run to my fridge and grab the insulin (I always have cooler bags pre-cooled in the freezer for this) and put everything in my bag and get the H* out of the house.


I think it’s a good idea for us as PWDs (or really, anyone with any ailment that requires medication or special care) to be prepared for an emergent situation, whatever it may be. This is a good book that I recommend you reviewing for ideas. It’s even available at the library, if you don’t want to buy it, and also available on Amazon for about $11.50. The author is also the founder of the website www.survivalblog.com, which I had never heard of before picking up this book today. This book is, in my opinion, a must-have for every well-prepared family.

I am interested in hearing if anyone else has already started their own version of preparing for any level of crisis, and if so, would you share with us what you’ve done so far? How do you feel about creating a “plan” for these types of situations, or creating a ‘bug-out bag’? Share your thoughts.

I’ll be sure to show you my amateur version of a ‘betes bug-out backpack soon and you can tell me what you think of it (what it needs, doesn’t need, etc.)