Update: I called the VA to discuss my ChampVA health insurance. The line was busy for about two hours and when I finally got through I was on hold for 30 minutes. (Oh, Marshall, why didn't I realize how great it was that you made all these kinds of phone calls?)
My expectations were not very high but the guy I ended up talking to was very helpful and took a lot of time with me. He found my paperwork (evidently it all gets scanned in when it is received so it is accessible to the VA but it isn't considered "filed" until it is processed) and he said that the VA was running about 4 months behind in processing paperwork but when he has someone on the line like me they can expedite things. So he says he expedited my paperwork and that by Monday I should be in the system.
It will still take 21 days for me to get my pharmacy card. He told me to call back if I don't get it. But he found my first claim and said he was expediting that, too. I will believe it when I see it, but I got the feeling that everything was being taken care of. Yay!
And I got to thinking tbat there MUST be a moving company in a state like Colorado that is capable of doing a mountain move. I'm going to make a few more phone calls. But not today.
This weekend I signed up for a yoga retreat. I hope it is as calming and meditative as I want it to be.
Thursday, October 22, 2015
Today is phone call day
I hate making phone calls. Marshall always handled that. So I got a little behind and decided to get caught up today. Yuk.
But first of all, I went to see the Veterans Service Officer because he learned that the VA will give me one more benefit -- burial expenses -- even though there wasn't a burial. This benefit is a one-time limited amount payment to help the family of a deceased veteran handle whatever end-of-life costs may arise. So we filled out the paperwork for that today. He also said the family is entitled to some sort of tribute letter from the President so I filled out the paperwork to get three of those letters (one for me, one for his sister Audrey and one for daughter Tanya).
Then I came home and started the phone calls. The first call was to the monument company to check on the status of the headstone. They told me that the reason it is taking so long is because I ordered a special kind. I didn't realize that. It will probably be another month or two. I also asked him about the military marker and he told me to fill the forms out again and he would submit them to the VA again and we'll see what happens.
Then I called ChampVA -- my free VA supplemental health insurance -- to find out why I still haven't received my card and why they aren't honoring my claims. They told me it's because according to their records I still have health insuance with another company. I told them that I hadn't had other insurance since Marshall died and I have filed the proper forms with the VA twice now advising them of that. They told me I needed to argue that point direcly with the VA itself. They gave me a number to call and I've been trying to call for the past two hours and there's always a busy signal. If I can't get this straightened out in the next month I'm going to go ahead and buy separate health insurance. I don't have the patience level for this. But I will continue to try to call the VA.
So then I started calling moving companies to get a quote on hiring movers to move me to Thornton when the time comes. And guess what? No one will come up here where I am. It's too remote and the roads are too narrow and rough. That means I will have to move myself. It's not like I haven't done it before, but....ugh.
I called U-Haul and the only truck they've got that I would feel comfortable driving is about 16 feet. The cost is 90 cents a mile (that would be about $400) and $30 a day. So for a weekend trip that would be about $500. Remember the old days when you would just get a bunch of friends together and buy pizza and beer? Ha. But this is doable. I'm not crazy about it, but it's doable. I think I'm going to have plenty of time to get moved while my present house sits on the market so if I can afford it, I can rent the truck several weekends in a row and make it a slow move. I can get a few Westcliffe friends to help me load the truck and a few Denver friends to help me unload (you know who you are....) :)
I've been thinking about Marshall all day today and the tears have been flowing. I guess that will happen periodically, especially when I am planning to move away from our favorite home.
No more phone calls today. Time to pack more boxes.
But first of all, I went to see the Veterans Service Officer because he learned that the VA will give me one more benefit -- burial expenses -- even though there wasn't a burial. This benefit is a one-time limited amount payment to help the family of a deceased veteran handle whatever end-of-life costs may arise. So we filled out the paperwork for that today. He also said the family is entitled to some sort of tribute letter from the President so I filled out the paperwork to get three of those letters (one for me, one for his sister Audrey and one for daughter Tanya).
Then I came home and started the phone calls. The first call was to the monument company to check on the status of the headstone. They told me that the reason it is taking so long is because I ordered a special kind. I didn't realize that. It will probably be another month or two. I also asked him about the military marker and he told me to fill the forms out again and he would submit them to the VA again and we'll see what happens.
Then I called ChampVA -- my free VA supplemental health insurance -- to find out why I still haven't received my card and why they aren't honoring my claims. They told me it's because according to their records I still have health insuance with another company. I told them that I hadn't had other insurance since Marshall died and I have filed the proper forms with the VA twice now advising them of that. They told me I needed to argue that point direcly with the VA itself. They gave me a number to call and I've been trying to call for the past two hours and there's always a busy signal. If I can't get this straightened out in the next month I'm going to go ahead and buy separate health insurance. I don't have the patience level for this. But I will continue to try to call the VA.
So then I started calling moving companies to get a quote on hiring movers to move me to Thornton when the time comes. And guess what? No one will come up here where I am. It's too remote and the roads are too narrow and rough. That means I will have to move myself. It's not like I haven't done it before, but....ugh.
I called U-Haul and the only truck they've got that I would feel comfortable driving is about 16 feet. The cost is 90 cents a mile (that would be about $400) and $30 a day. So for a weekend trip that would be about $500. Remember the old days when you would just get a bunch of friends together and buy pizza and beer? Ha. But this is doable. I'm not crazy about it, but it's doable. I think I'm going to have plenty of time to get moved while my present house sits on the market so if I can afford it, I can rent the truck several weekends in a row and make it a slow move. I can get a few Westcliffe friends to help me load the truck and a few Denver friends to help me unload (you know who you are....) :)
I've been thinking about Marshall all day today and the tears have been flowing. I guess that will happen periodically, especially when I am planning to move away from our favorite home.
No more phone calls today. Time to pack more boxes.
Tuesday, October 20, 2015
I almost forgot...
Marshall's patient advocate at the University -- Wendy -- just bought herself a motorcyce (see photo -- a CanAm, a 3-wheeler wih the two wheels in front). As soon as she takes her safety riding courses, she and I will meet for rides. And once I have moved, we can get together often. How fun! Marshall would be tickled to death about this. He knew Wendy was looking for a motorcycle and he had really wanted to still be alive when she got one.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Electrophysiologist
Today I saw the electrophysiologist. This visit wasn't what I wanted it to be.
He went over everything with me and basically said he agreed with my first doctor and that the medication I'm on is what he would prescribe as well. But he clearly favored surgery. He said I was a good candidate for the ablation surgery because my Afib is not advanced yet. My episodes are short-lived and don't come often. As time goes on, the chance of success with ablation starts diminishing.
However he said my risk for stroke is about 3% which sounds small but he said that is significant. He thinks I should think about being on Eliquis (an anticoagulant) instead of aspirin but we will talk about that in January. He told me that he does about 25 to 30 of these ablation surgeries every year and he's been doing it for about 8 years, so he does have a good amount of experience. He also said the cryogenic surgery(freezing) is better than the radiofrequency (burning) one.
I told him that coffee was one of my triggers and he said he seriously doubted it. Supposedly there is a large body of research that proves that not only is coffee not a trigger but that it actually protects from excessive episodes. (Since I love coffee so much and hated like heck to give it up, I decided to test his "proof" and when I left his office I went to lunch and had coffee with my lunch -- and so far so good. I would be ecstatic if I could have coffee again; however, I am pretty sure that it is a trigger for me. But maybe it was the sweet roll -- and accompanying adrenaline rush that comes with it -- I had to have with the coffee! We'll see...)
So for those of you who are caregivers, I strongly advise that you keep up with your doctor appointments. It is hard to do -- you don't want to leave the side of your loved one, you almost feel guilty -- but it is so important to your life later on to keep your health up to date. The doctor agreed with me today when I asked if this Afib could have come to life because of stress. You want to avoid something like that happening to you.
Anyway, at one point in my time with the doctor he started telling me he had other patients waiting and that we were actually encroaching on another patient's time. I didn't appreciate that. It got me nervous and I forgot some of the questions I wanted to ask.
So now I am even more confused than I was. Why can't life be a little simpler?
After I left the doctor I went back to the ophthalmologist's office because I hate my new glasses. They are too dark and too big. But it is very hard to pick out new glasses when you are too blind to see what you look like with the new glasses. So they said I could pick out new frames. I emailed Tricia and she called me with Facetime and I walked around the store putting glasses on so Tricia could see them and we picked out a good pair. I should have them next week. (Thanks, Tricia!)
Tomorrow the real estate agent is supposed to come over and take a look at the house so he can see what all the new upgrades look like (paint job, decks stripped and restained, new windows, new front door, paint touched up on the inside, etc.). Then the house should be officially on the market by the end of this week. I have been steadily packing boxes, there's no rush but every little bit helps. But I am tired and am looking forward to a few days with absolutely nothing on the schedule.
Still having trouble with ChampVA paying my pharmacy bills. So far I haven't heard anything about the doctor appointments I've had so i am cautiously assuming that those got paid. I'm a little nervous about that. I don't want these bills to build up into something I can't handle. I guess I'll try to call them tomorrow and see what they say.
He went over everything with me and basically said he agreed with my first doctor and that the medication I'm on is what he would prescribe as well. But he clearly favored surgery. He said I was a good candidate for the ablation surgery because my Afib is not advanced yet. My episodes are short-lived and don't come often. As time goes on, the chance of success with ablation starts diminishing.
However he said my risk for stroke is about 3% which sounds small but he said that is significant. He thinks I should think about being on Eliquis (an anticoagulant) instead of aspirin but we will talk about that in January. He told me that he does about 25 to 30 of these ablation surgeries every year and he's been doing it for about 8 years, so he does have a good amount of experience. He also said the cryogenic surgery(freezing) is better than the radiofrequency (burning) one.
I told him that coffee was one of my triggers and he said he seriously doubted it. Supposedly there is a large body of research that proves that not only is coffee not a trigger but that it actually protects from excessive episodes. (Since I love coffee so much and hated like heck to give it up, I decided to test his "proof" and when I left his office I went to lunch and had coffee with my lunch -- and so far so good. I would be ecstatic if I could have coffee again; however, I am pretty sure that it is a trigger for me. But maybe it was the sweet roll -- and accompanying adrenaline rush that comes with it -- I had to have with the coffee! We'll see...)
So for those of you who are caregivers, I strongly advise that you keep up with your doctor appointments. It is hard to do -- you don't want to leave the side of your loved one, you almost feel guilty -- but it is so important to your life later on to keep your health up to date. The doctor agreed with me today when I asked if this Afib could have come to life because of stress. You want to avoid something like that happening to you.
Anyway, at one point in my time with the doctor he started telling me he had other patients waiting and that we were actually encroaching on another patient's time. I didn't appreciate that. It got me nervous and I forgot some of the questions I wanted to ask.
So now I am even more confused than I was. Why can't life be a little simpler?
After I left the doctor I went back to the ophthalmologist's office because I hate my new glasses. They are too dark and too big. But it is very hard to pick out new glasses when you are too blind to see what you look like with the new glasses. So they said I could pick out new frames. I emailed Tricia and she called me with Facetime and I walked around the store putting glasses on so Tricia could see them and we picked out a good pair. I should have them next week. (Thanks, Tricia!)
Tomorrow the real estate agent is supposed to come over and take a look at the house so he can see what all the new upgrades look like (paint job, decks stripped and restained, new windows, new front door, paint touched up on the inside, etc.). Then the house should be officially on the market by the end of this week. I have been steadily packing boxes, there's no rush but every little bit helps. But I am tired and am looking forward to a few days with absolutely nothing on the schedule.
Still having trouble with ChampVA paying my pharmacy bills. So far I haven't heard anything about the doctor appointments I've had so i am cautiously assuming that those got paid. I'm a little nervous about that. I don't want these bills to build up into something I can't handle. I guess I'll try to call them tomorrow and see what they say.
Monday, October 19, 2015
Dermatology appointment
I'm trying to catch up with all my health issues/doctor visits that I ignored pretty much for the past three years.
I've been using the chemotherapy cream on three areas (hand, arm, leg) for the past three weeks and today was my followup visit with the dermatologist. The spot on the leg hadn't changed at all and she said that meant it definitely wasn't cancer so no further treatment was necessary there. The one on my hand she wasn't sure about and wants me to continue the cream for another week at least.
But the one on my arm did all kinds of weird stuff this past three weeks. It got inflamed and grew and then calmed down. She said that meant it was definitely cancer but she said it went through its steps and does not need further treatment. Now I need to put steroid cream on it for a week to calm it down. I go back in three months for a final exam.
On the way home I had a sad moment -- when I turned onto County Road 255 close to home I was thinking, "I wonder what Marshall wants for dinner," and then immediately was jolted to reality. I really miss him. I still can't believe he's gone.
Tomorrow is my appointment with the electrophysiologist so I can get a specialist's opinion on the whole atrial fibrillation thing. I still get episodes periodically and it will be interesting to see what he has to say about my present medication schedule.
I've been using the chemotherapy cream on three areas (hand, arm, leg) for the past three weeks and today was my followup visit with the dermatologist. The spot on the leg hadn't changed at all and she said that meant it definitely wasn't cancer so no further treatment was necessary there. The one on my hand she wasn't sure about and wants me to continue the cream for another week at least.
But the one on my arm did all kinds of weird stuff this past three weeks. It got inflamed and grew and then calmed down. She said that meant it was definitely cancer but she said it went through its steps and does not need further treatment. Now I need to put steroid cream on it for a week to calm it down. I go back in three months for a final exam.
On the way home I had a sad moment -- when I turned onto County Road 255 close to home I was thinking, "I wonder what Marshall wants for dinner," and then immediately was jolted to reality. I really miss him. I still can't believe he's gone.
Tomorrow is my appointment with the electrophysiologist so I can get a specialist's opinion on the whole atrial fibrillation thing. I still get episodes periodically and it will be interesting to see what he has to say about my present medication schedule.
Saturday, October 17, 2015
A rewarding day
Late yesterday, the Town Man from the town of Silver Cliff called me (in my capacity as a member of the Board of Pet Project). He had a stray dog that he had been holding for 7 days to see if the owner would claim the dog. Well, the owner didn't come forward after 7 days so the dog needed to go to a shelter. Pet Project doesn't actually have a shelter -- we are too small -- but we partner with other shelters.
So I agreed to take the dog to Denver (another long trip to Denver) and I picked him up this morning and headed to the Dumb Friends League. Look at this selfie. Isn't he adorable? And he was so darn sweet. He made the trip to Denver very well, so he's a good traveler.
Anyway, I got up to the Dumb Friends League and brought Doggie into the Intake Center. There were two people ahead of me so I was holding onto this highly energetic dog with all the strength I had (he needs some leash training, that's for sure). The two people in front of me were commenting on how pretty this dog was and I explained that the dog was a stray and I was relinquishing him to the Dumb Friends League.
Well, the woman that was ahead of me (Shelly) was there to have her dog (who was very old and very sick) put down. She said she was worried about how her two kids were going to handle it when she came home and didn't have their dog. She really took to this dog and asked if she could have him. (Interestingly, the other person in line -- a man -- said if Shelly hadn't asked for this dog, he was going to!)
I asked the Intake lady if it was okay if I gave the dog to this lady and she said sure, as long as I hadn't filled out any paperwork and as long as I did it off their premises. They did come out and check to see if the dog had a microchip and he didn't.
So I took Doggie outside and waited for Shelly to come out. She was crying a little but she perked up when Doggie ran up to her and licked her hand. I chatted with her for 20 or 30 minutes to get a comfort level that I was leaving this dog in good hands. She said she had a huge yard and two kids who loved dogs. She said she and her husband were big dog lovers and they would give this dog a good home.
While we were chatting, Doggie was sitting next to us nice and sweet, but a rabbit ran by and Doggie went crazy. He must have some hound in him.
I left there feeling really good. But these trips to Denver are zonking me!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
So I agreed to take the dog to Denver (another long trip to Denver) and I picked him up this morning and headed to the Dumb Friends League. Look at this selfie. Isn't he adorable? And he was so darn sweet. He made the trip to Denver very well, so he's a good traveler.
Anyway, I got up to the Dumb Friends League and brought Doggie into the Intake Center. There were two people ahead of me so I was holding onto this highly energetic dog with all the strength I had (he needs some leash training, that's for sure). The two people in front of me were commenting on how pretty this dog was and I explained that the dog was a stray and I was relinquishing him to the Dumb Friends League.
Well, the woman that was ahead of me (Shelly) was there to have her dog (who was very old and very sick) put down. She said she was worried about how her two kids were going to handle it when she came home and didn't have their dog. She really took to this dog and asked if she could have him. (Interestingly, the other person in line -- a man -- said if Shelly hadn't asked for this dog, he was going to!)
I asked the Intake lady if it was okay if I gave the dog to this lady and she said sure, as long as I hadn't filled out any paperwork and as long as I did it off their premises. They did come out and check to see if the dog had a microchip and he didn't.
So I took Doggie outside and waited for Shelly to come out. She was crying a little but she perked up when Doggie ran up to her and licked her hand. I chatted with her for 20 or 30 minutes to get a comfort level that I was leaving this dog in good hands. She said she had a huge yard and two kids who loved dogs. She said she and her husband were big dog lovers and they would give this dog a good home.
While we were chatting, Doggie was sitting next to us nice and sweet, but a rabbit ran by and Doggie went crazy. He must have some hound in him.
I left there feeling really good. But these trips to Denver are zonking me!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Friday, October 16, 2015
Contract got signed today
Another long trip to Denver today but the contract is all signed and I got to spend a few hours in the unit measuring and taking pictures and daydreaming.
I wore my "cremation" necklace today -- the one with some of Marshall's ashes -- so he could be there with me while I signed the contract. More tomorrow. Time for bed.
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