My New Favorite T1D Travel Device
6 a.m. hits and my alarm clock goes off for Day 1 of our family vacation in 2014. I had put my spare insulin vial in the hotel fridge the night before along with an apple and yogurt that I wanted to have fresh for breakfast…
I opened the fridge door, and to my horror, my insulin vial had ice crystals frozen over the outside (which rendered it essentially useless).
Thankfully, I had the current vial I was using and was able to ‘play it smart’ to get through the vacation with only one vial of insulin, but I had a new “T1D lesson” burned into my memory from that day forward - be vigilant about the temperatures of my insulin.
Fast forward almost a decade later and it turns out, I wasn’t the only one that recognized the importance of temperature controlled insulin containers instead of relying on nothing more than “hope” with hotel freezers (or often a lack thereof).
I came across this new product recently that claimed it kept insulin in a tight range between 36-46 degrees Fahrenheit and I knew I needed to check it out.
See, I’ve been using devices over the years that keep insulin from getting “too hot”, but it was in a more generic form, like using a cooler with gel packs. While I could just toss in a thermometer to keep tabs on it (and I did), having the opportunity to toss my insulin in a temperature controlled device (that was actually meant for insulin) sounded like something I needed to check out.
The company with us type 1 diabetics in mind (and the one that created this magical temperature controlled insulin storage device) is called 4AllFamily.
I was able to get a hold of a few different versions of their devices, but the “Voyager” was my personal favorite (as I mentioned before, this kept temperature at a very specific - and safe - temperature for my insulin).
That being said, I also had a change to try out their “Explorer” container as well, which, though the use of a special cooler insert, is able to go through TSA and keep insulin cold for up to 72 hours (which I tested on a few different trips around, and outside of, the country. You can watch a full travel video of me using these devices if you CLICK HERE).
What was especially interesting though, is that the Voyager can be powered by an external power bank (that they also sell), which means that I could take it wherever I needed to without needing a wall plug all the time…
I even took it on a cruise to different countries!
Here’s the fun part - I ended up going on 4 separate trips (by boat, car, and 2 by plane) where I had a chance to test it out to the fullest!
Here’s the breakdown (and I used a thermometer to confirm temperature ranges):
Voyager: Best for travel where you might not have access to a fridge/freezer, but will still have power at least every few days to recharge the power bank (needed to keep the temperature controlled).
Explorer: Excellent for day trips (up to 3 days) in the car or in the mountains since it uses a frozen material to keep insulin “cool”.
Pioneer: An Amazing “portable fridge” that can be charged up and used without a constant power supply. It’s essentially the doomsday prepper’s dream as you can use it to keep insulin at fridge temperatures… even when the power is out (short term of course, unless you’ve got solar).
Bonus: they sent a doorknob reminder that tells you to grab your insulin before heading out the front door. As someone who’s literally had to go back from the airport because I forgot my insulin, this made me laugh and I LOVE it.
Diabetes can often feel limiting as we’re constantly in need to plan things out and “be prepared”, but having a device that’s on the lookout for my insulin (at least that’s what it felt like having something that literally adjusts the temperature to keep my insulin safe) was really nice to have reduce the mental load of this disease.
I reached out to this company and asked if they’d be willing to share a discount code with my readers (you) because of how incredible this device is and how much I love it.. They agreed!
If you’ve got travel coming up (or if you’re like me and just like being prepared for a power outage with insulin storage), click the link below and use code “ftfwarrior10” to grab 10% off of your order.
What’s interesting about diabetes is that it’ll never go away… but every year it seems that there are new innovations in technology (like this one) that reduce the mental load we carry.
Thanks to 4AllFamily for looking out for us (and our insulin), we love finding products that make our lives a little easier!
>> CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT THEIR WEBSITE (use code “ftfwarrior10” for a discount)
Keep up the Fight,
Matt Vande Vegte, CPT
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