Vlog: Do You Have a Problem Keeping Medications in Stock?

 

Hello!  Here's another vlog for you.  It's about troubles with the pharmacy keeping medication in stock.  I have had this problem.  Loved the pharmacy staff, but they couldn't keep one of my medications in stock, so whenever I called for a refill, they had to order it.  It was frustrating, so I ended up calling around to other pharmacies to make sure they carried all my medication and found one that I felt comfortable with.  It was closer to my home and they carried the medication I needed.  Have you ever had trouble with getting the medication you need?  How did you resolve the situation?  

My Thoughts On Magnificent Monday and Health Care

It's Monday.  Over on Instagram, I post Magnificent Monday each week.  I ask how people plan to make their Monday magnificent and then offer up how I plan to do the same.  Well, today I had nothing.  Zip. Zilch. Nada.

No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't think of any way I could make Monday magnificent. Mondays have become hectic, unproductive, and frustrating to me.  I plan, I make lists, I psyche myself up.  Then, Monday comes and I am behind from the start.  How does this happen?  

It's not just that I've never been a Sunday person either, so I don't have the gumption to get ready for Monday.  It's not that I dislike my job:  I love it.  

I seriously think it's because I've battled so many sicknesses this year.  The sicknesses most likely came as a result of sleep issues.  I haven't slept very well for a bit, something I think I inherited from my mother.  Once I turned 50, my sleep became choppy at best, and non-existent on the worst nights.  

Other than heredity, the sleep issues just might be caused by the health care debate (Ha!  Did I say debate?  What debate?  It's an all-out war by the looks of it through media reports.

Warning:  Political talk ahead.  I normally don't talk politics much in my blog, but this is a very personal issue, so here we go.

Being that I have a pre-existing condition, I'm very interested in how this all plays out.  Will I go bankrupt trying to pay for my health care costs?  Will insurance companies be required to cover me?  And, if so, will the premiums be so high that I can't afford coverage?  And, if I can't afford coverage, what happens if I have to have surgery?  How will I pay for my medical supplies and doctor's visits?  And medication!  Oh, don't get me started on the cost of medication.  

I just heard that people with pre-existing conditions will be covered under the new proposed health care plan put forth by the House, or so they say.  Okay, so they offer coverage, but at what cost?  It's fine and dandy to say that people with these issues will be covered, but if the costs of health care are astronomical and the coverage minimal, what is the point?  It's not helping anyone except to line insurers' pockets.  

Something else I heard troubled me.  Some politicians are saying that people with pre-existing conditions are cheating the System and/or that they don't deserve to be covered because they didn't take care of themselves.  I, for one, was born with my pre-existing condition.  I didn't cause it.  My mother didn't cause it by anything she did.  It just happened.  And, the government is lumping me in with all these supposed "cheaters" and "lazy people"?  That is offensive to me.    I have never cheated the System.  I would never let my coverage lapse for no reason.  Why should anyone have the right to charge me more for restarting insurance coverage?  That reeks of requiring people with pre-existing condition to have insurance at all times in order not to be charged more--a mandate, in other words.  The very thing that they didn't like about the Affordable Care Act.  That is two-faced, in my opinion.

That we are the only industrialized nation that doesn't provide universal health care is bad enough, but then to blanketly blame the people who need health care the most for their own problems is horrendous.  Lawmakers, and their supporters, seem to have forgotten that these are human lives they are casting aside.  Oh, but they are all for supporting the anti-abortion cause.

This isn't over.  The Senate still has to get into the action.  This will come to an end eventually.  We'll 
figure out what to do about our own individual health care needs.  I hope that each of you will be able to get the health care that you need.   

I welcome your input.  What are your thoughts on the current House bill?

Are You a Country or City Person?

Photo of the Welcome to Las Vegas sign my hubby took recently.

I used to dream of moving to a high rise apartment in a big city.  Chicago.  New York.  LA.  Didn't matter where, really.  I was brought up in the country on a dairy farm.  It was a beautiful area, surrounded by rolling hills, gurgling streams, shimmering lakes, and miles of green (ah, but winter, that's another story, and one of the reasons I live in the desert now).  I felt safe, maybe too safe.  All I wanted to do was go; get away to a more "exciting" life.  Maybe get lost in the sea of people there where I could be myself and no one would take notice.  Or maybe someone would notice me and I'd love it.  I did tend to fantasize about making it big, being a star.  Haven't we all done that at some point?

Now I couldn't imagine living in a sprawling or towering metropolis.  I don't fancy living in the country either, although I love going for hikes in the mountains, and breathing in the fresh air and sharp yet sweet scent of pine.  I prefer living in the smallish city where I am now.  I can get the medical care I need, enjoy the 300+ days of sunshine we get each year, take in the vibrant local arts scene, shop for most things I need, and for the rest Las Vegas isn't that far away.  I can get anything there, including many things I'd rather not!  Each time I approach Vegas, the hair at the back of my neck stands up, I become very aware of my surroundings, and I'm constantly on guard.  There is definitely a big city vibe going on there.  I couldn't live like that every day.  I don't think I could get used to it either.  Although I wouldn't want to live in the country again, I am a farm girl at heart.  I don't like how I feel in any big city--nervous, closed in, crowded out, hurried.

Me at my favorite spot on the shores of Lake Champlain, 2009.

That's okay, though.  Things change; circumstance, health, ideals, opinions, perferences--they all change over time.  It's better to change, in my opinion, than hold steadfastly to the norm that is keeping me stuck, stifling me.

Which are you, country or city?  Have you always been?  Have you changed your preference over the years?