Surviving SHTF With Diabetes

Contrary to popular belief, it is indeed possible to survive for long periods of time with serious illnesses such as diabetes. As a type 1 diabetic, I find it important to educate people on strategies necessary to survive. It will definitely take more preparation than it would take a normal person, but it can be done.

The first thing to do is to assess one's condition. Doctors will give you many different tools to try and keep you healthy. In my case these would be insulin pumps, continuous glucose moniters, etc.
Don't factor these into your planning. Instead, get down to the very basics of what you will need to survive. For a diabetic, you only need a blood glucose meter with strips for it, as well as insulin and syringes to inject it.

You can easily stock up on more than one blood glucose monitor, and most use simple batteries. They are small enough to fit into a faraday cage easily. The strips and needles to draw and receive blood can be cheaply purchased by the thousands, and one can get by testing as little as 2 times per day. SHTF, this could be even less.

Now onto insulin and syringes. Syringes can easily be stocked up on as well, and assuming one does not share syringes, they could be reused in a pinch.
The insulin is the hard part. As it is a prescription medication, one cannot stock up much. It is also difficult in that it requires cool temperatures (nothing above room temperature or so, but does not need to be frozen). The secret to stocking up is to buy cheap "human insulin" from Walmart (not sure why it's called "human insulin" instead of just insulin). Anyways: one vial can be purchased for 25 dollars, and a vial could last a month, maybe longer factoring in the reduced food intake and increase in physical labor post SHTF. A years worth of this insulin costs 300 dollars. This isn't super cheap but it also isn't insanely expensive. You don't have to buy it all in one go. Just by a vial here, a vial there, and it will add up. To keep it cold will be difficult but there are options. A generator could power a small freezer or refrigerator. If this is not an option, the vials should be kept somewhere naturally cool...maybe underground? Possibly even in a body of water (properly protected by plastic of course). My plan is to run a generator and keep a small fridge going but there are backups. If the insulin is kept below room temperature it will last for years. The walmart insulin is cheap, generally less reliable, and much less consistent than more modern insulins, but it is hardy and will last awhile.

This survival plan is far from perfect, and would require a good bit of planning. And it would become even more complicated if one's plan involves bugging out (my plan is to bug in, and barring a select few circumstances, this wouldn't change). But the key to survival is planning ahead, and if a diabetic does so well, there is no reason not to be able to survive for years. But the key points are: basic supplies only, and stock up on Walmart insulin and keep it cool.

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Surviving SHTF With Diabetes