Journey to Kilimanjaro and Beyond - Page 2
Perhaps even more significant than the physical training to prepare for the trip was the psychological and emotional transformation that occurred among the participants, even before boarding the plane for Tanzania.
6 Days before departure
Mt. Kilimanjaro is known as "the roof of Africa," rising from the plains at its base through five ecological zones up to 5895m at its summit known as Uhuru Peak. The way up is a physically and mentally demanding hike which can only be completed with extensive training and the patience to persevere, one grueling step at a time.
The team made it to Kibo Hut (4700m) in 4 days, taking time to acclimatize on the way. The final ascent was to be done in one final 10-hour hike through the night to reach the summit with enough time to return to Kibo the same day. With one of the team members suffering an ankle injury already and another sick from the altitude, things did not look good for everyone to make it. To make matters worse, the team discovered that a diabetic's insulin sensitivity is much lower in conditions of high altitude, so they needed to increase their insulin dosing along the way, but not too much so as to prevent any episodes of hypoglycemia which could have been fatal, particularly when combined with nausea and vomiting.
The effects of altitude were felt by everyone. Apparently, it's like "going for a workout and trying to breathe through a straw," or as another team member so aptly put it, "It feels like you're going to die!" Weakness, headache, nausea, loss of appetite, dizziness, and disturbed sleep are all common symptoms of altitude, and for a person with diabetes, those difficulties are compounded by the struggle to manage blood sugars and the need to keep insulin from freezing at extreme temperatures. The odds stacked against this team were unimaginably high.
