Two more days and I’ll be switching to Medicare from my safe and secure insurance policy that has brought me thus far. It’s a bit daunting learning all the Medicare language. And because I’m not 65 yet, my options are more limited. Apparently, once I turn 65 I will have more options and insurance will be cheaper. Apparently.
In case you are trying to dance 💃🏻 through this maze as well, maybe this will help you out. Here’s what I have learned so far as it pertains to me.
Medicare has three main parts. Part A covers in-patient, with a $1,550 deductible. Part B covers doctors, tests, and specialists with a monthly premium based on your income, a $233 deductible, then Medicare pays 80% of all costs. Part D covers drugs. (There is a Part C, but that’s basically a combination of A and B in what’s called an Advantage Plan. I’ve been told to steer clear of those, and my doctor isn’t sure they would be covered, so I ruled out Advantage.)
In order to avoid paying the $1,550 deductible for Part A, and the 20% coinsurance for Part B, you have to have a supplemental insurance plan. I wish the letters aligned with the stars, as it can get confusing. Basically, to cover Part A deductibles, you have to get Plan B or higher. To cover the Part B coinsurance, you have to get Plan A (or higher). In Texas, you can only get Plan A if you are under 65. There was some disagreement about this, but I’ve double and triple and quadruple checked. The Medicare.gov website even says State Farm provides Plan G, but in reality they don’t. My local State Farm said they don’t provide any supplements, but it’s probably because she didn’t want to quote $20,000 per year for Plan A. Yikes! 😳😳 No thanks.
I will have to pay Part A $1,550 deductible if ever I go into the hospital. We are praying that doesn’t happen. This last surgery was hopefully the last one for me. I don’t know if I could handle another, to be honest. This is part of the reason we opted to do it now rather than later. If ever I’m in an accident and have to go to the hospital, I may be reaching out to my friends in a GoFundMe account. 🤪😁
All insurance companies provide the exact same supplements. Plan A is Plan A regardless of who provides it. And the doctors take it no matter whose plan it is. Insurance companies can charge whatever they want, however. That may range anywhere from $300 to $1700 per month. So basically, whoever provides the insurance for the lowest premium wins. It is up to the consumer to do the research.
I set out calling multiple insurance companies, then I discovered the Medicare.gov website also lists insurance companies and how much they charge. TransAmerica had the least expensive premium at $336.18, so I sent off the application today, and they confirmed they received it. They are a solid company, with a good reputation, and met my insurance friend’s approval test as well.
Something else I learned. Once I pick an insurance company, I’m pretty much stuck with that company. So I am praying I chose wisely. The reason is because I am currently in what is considered a “one time only guaranteed issue.” I don’t have to pass any medical tests or underwriting questions since I’m new to Medicare. If ever I decided to switch, I would have to go through underwriting. Guess what, I won’t be switching!
Plan D will be through Cigna. After multiple calls to brokers and Medicare, they were the best option at $23.10 per month. You can input your medications into the Medicare.gov website and their formula shows you how much it will cost by different insurance companies. Again, Plan D is the same for all companies, but their cost isn’t necessarily the same. Cigna won. There is a hefty deductible for most companies (which I won’t meet by the end of the year), but it will save me some money over paying for my medications out of pocket.
I kinda chuckled when I chose Cigna, because that’s who currently provides my insurance. They have been really good to me, although they tried to send me out of the MD Anderson network to get my chemo. They won’t have any say in that because infusions fall under Part B, not Part D, since it’s given in the infusion center. I will likely be moving to a mail-order pharmacy for drugs as it is cheaper. Honestly, this seems like it would be easier anyway.
I’m still crossing my fingers and toes as we wait to see if all this pans out the way they say it should. We might have to pay over $500 premiums per month plus deductibles, but at least we won’t be paying $2,500 per month for Cobra any more, in addition to coinsurance. (We still have to pay for Cobra for Tim until the end of the year, but thankfully my part is removed.) I’ll keep you posted as I discover more about this whole Medicare dance that I am now a part of.
Some of my faithful followers (or follower as it may be; there may only be one of you 🤪😂), are wondering about the whole surgery and recovery I just went through. I’ve been updating on Facebook, but here it is in one place for those of you who don’t see my posts or are curious on the chronology of events.
Tuesday, June 7. Surgery #1. SURGICAL LAPAROSCOPY WITH PARTIAL COLECTOMY, REMOVAL OF TERMINAL ILEUM, AND ILEOCOLOSTOMY. That’s a long way of saying I had surgery due to a large polyp in my colon. It was not cancerous, thank God! But I was glad we did it. I was in a lot of pain, even to the point of massive belly spasms if I was touched with the slightest feather.
Wednesday, June 8. Surgery #2 (Emergency Surgery). I had a sudden drop in hemoglobin and hypotension overnight. My blood pressure was 70/40 at one point. They started giving me bags of blood. I have O-negative blood, which primarily requires O-negative even though I’m a universal donor. In an emergency I can receive O-positive, which they did at least once due to a blood shortage. Dr. You wrote an exception that said, “Patient O Rh Neg transfused with O Rh Pos blood due to temporary unavailability of Rh compatible units.” People were asking if they could donate blood in my name, but she didn’t think that would matter. I could have sworn I saw an AB bag come through, but I must have dreamed that one. 😂🤪
They gave me about five bags total over night. It didn’t correct the problem, so I went in for a second, emergency surgery. Dr. You told Tim he might want to be here, so he came to the hospital and waited while I was in surgery. Nobody kept him informed as it was an emergency and they didn’t have him on a text string. Surgery was successful, and Dr. You said she was glad she had gone back in. They found a large hematoma with a hemorrhage, in the lining below my belly button. This is likely why I had all the belly pain.
She cauterized the bleed, made a bigger incision to remove the hematoma near the pelvis, and believed she had fixed the problem. I had two more bags after surgery for a total of seven. Plus a bag of plasma. Fortunately they were on top of it. Their quick response prevented what could have been a very serious or even fatal situation. This set my recovery time back a bit because of the back-to-back anesthesia, but we were back on course.
She’s not really sure why I had the hemorrhage. She said there are a lot of tiny blood vessels in that area. I have lots of scarring from my DIEP flap, so that could have contributed.
Thursday. June 9. They moved me to PACU, the step-down unit from ICU. The nurses are so attentive here. The room is small and uncomfortable for Tim as we can’t really talk very easily. I will be here for several days before going to a regular room. I have four incisions on my belly, with the largest being near my pelvis where they removed the hematoma. I’m so thankful there are no drain tubes! Just dissolvable stitches with steristrips.
Friday. June 10. I’m still on a liquid diet. Ice chips are my friend and I’ve been living on popsicles and jello. Honestly if I never see another jello again, I could live with that. I still have a catheter. I can barely move. Tim has come to visit me every day so far. It’s a long drive, and he has to navigate the whole parking system. It’s a pain, but he does it anyway. The nurses are so helpful, as well as the techs. They draw my blood regularly and bring me medicine for the pain. It’s tolerable, but I’m getting hungry for some real food.
Feeling a little down emotionally, due to some family related issues. There is a lot going on with our kids, Tim’s mom, his jobs, and of course … this. Being in the hospital makes it hard, because I can’t really do anything to help. I feel so helpless and Tim is taking on all the burdens. I’m looking forward to getting out.
A very cheerful Physical Therapist came to visit me late in the day. She was way too cheery for me today. I just want to eat 🙄. She had me doing some leg exercises and walked me all around the building. She’s trying to convince me to use a walker, which I did, reluctantly. I didn’t get tired as easily, but I really don’t like the walker. I feel like an old lady using it. It’s hard to listen to someone with a bubbly personality when you just want to crawl in bed and get under the covers. I told my doctor about that when he came by later and he chuckled.
Saturday, June 11. Day five in the hospital. We got up early, changed my gown, and moved me to the chair. Wow. We take so much for granted, like a simple move from the bed to the chair. It’s much harder than it looks. I had some trouble getting deep breaths due to the belly pain and it’s restricting. I’m doing my breathing exercises, and I ordered breakfast. Hot tea and a popsicle. Still on a clear liquid diet and waiting for the . My face is super puffy from all the weight gain. I’m hoping it comes off!
Tim came to the room and we worked on our research project for about an hour. There was a fire drill that lasted for at least ten or fifteen minutes, and had us wondering whether we would need to leave the building. Crazy…
Did my breathing treatment, meds, took another walk, then they finally moved me to a regular room. At least the window is bigger and I can see more than a parking garage. I see the blue sky and a rooftop of another MD Anderson building that has some type of garden up there. Intriguing. I’m walking better but still very tender in the belly. I’ll be watching church online tomorrow.
I am having difficulty breathing, so they did a chest x-ray. The tech came to my room and did it right there in my bed. It was done in 2 minutes. Amazing technology. Result: “The bilateral basilar atelectasis or pneumonia and small pleural effusions.” I saw the picture when he took it, and I thought it looked like half of my lung was missing. Basically I was full of fluid. My lungs were concerning, so I’m trying to do the breathing exercises more regularly. They want me to do ten per hour, but I sleep a lot so I know I’m not doing nearly enough. So. Tired. Fluid. Everywhere. I was gaining weight and it wasn’t coming off. So hard to breathe. So hard to stay positive. So hard to stay motivated to do the breathing exercises. They want me up and moving, so I’m walking around the nurse’s station 5-6 times per day. It takes a LOT of effort, but I know the adage, “no pain, no gain.”
Sunday, June 12. Wish I could go to church, but online will have to suffice. They removed my catheter which was a huge help. (They did that right about the time Tim started preaching Shh don’t tell him ). Still having trouble breathing, and my belly is swollen with so much fluid. So they did a CT scan of my abdomen. That’s the worse one I’ve ever experienced. Drinking the contrast nearly made me sick, and I had trouble laying flat and breathing. I could not hold my breath for the whole ten count, but they said it was okay. They did find lots of inflammation, including my gall bladder. At this point they are thinking it will settle down as the fluid begins to pass.
Tim came to visit me after church. He came bearing gifts and cards from the church family. A beautiful prayer blanket was knitted by Mrs. Gonzalez, who prays over every stitch as she makes them. It’s beautiful and meaningful as well. I am reminded I am covered in prayer whenever it is near me.
By the end of the day, I was passing liquid poop. Tim gave me a high five at five. I’ve never been so happy to poop. Then they let me take a shower and wash my hair. Yes, I did it myself with just a little help from hubby. He does deserve much credit. He is such a trooper. I love him and appreciate him so much. It’s not easy getting in and out of the buildings here. Amazing how much more human you feel after a shower.
I was up walking six times today including the CT adventure. I’m still on a clear liquid diet until tomorrow at least. I’m hoping I get some soft food like mashed potatoes or oatmeal sometime tomorrow. That would make my day. I haven’t been extremely hungry because of the the inflammation, but mashed potatoes sound really good right now.
Monday, June 13. Day 7 in the hospital. I did not feel well today, so I wasn’t feeling like posting. I was disappointed when the doctor said the poop was only one step. I still needed to pass gas. Still on a clear liquid diet for another day. Just a general overall yucky feeling. Smells, alcohol prep, even lovely perfumes were upsetting. I think I just need some real food in my belly. It’s been more than one week since I’ve had any real food.
The nurses change shifts every 12 hours, at 7:00 AM and PM. They always look at my incisions and share a report with the next nurse at the shift change. Most of the nurses are pretty good, attentive and helpful, but one nurse has a very thick dialect and I can’t understand most of what she says. I’m sure it is frustrating for her, but just as much for me. I was glad when her shift was up. The nurses and techs come in a variety of ages, ethnicities, and levels of experience.
Everyone who comes in wants to look at my belly. I’m thinking of charging admission. 😂
Tim wasn’t able to visit me today because of multiple meetings and work commitments, so I was not only feeling yucky physically, but a little emotionally drained as well. I was “tucked in” by my night nurse, who is older than some of the others. I have her had for a few days now. She cradled my head in her hands, kissed me on the forehead, and said, “I love you.” She will never know how much that meant to me, to hear those words just before going to bed. Nurses do not get enough credit for all they do.
Tuesday, June 14. Today is much better! I woke up before the sun when the lady from vascular access came to work on my port. She was interesting, with a spiked hairdo and fun conversation. We had a nice chat about Hall & Oates, amongst other bands from my era which she has seen. She knew who Charle DeChant was, also known as “Mr. Casual,” which was impressive to me. He plays saxophone for Hall & Oates, and I got to know him when he played in our band in Orlando from time to time. Love to hear him play!
Anyway, she was here because they are having trouble getting blood return from my port. It flushes fine, meaning it can receive fluids, but it must go both ways or there is probably a clot preventing the return. The needle was scheduled for removal tomorrow anyway, so she removed the needle from my port and inserted a new one. Still no blood return. TPA (medicine) was inserted to break down any potential blood clots or fibrous something or other. Wait three hours and try again.
Used the bathroom (this is becoming a regular occurrence now) then went for a walk. Three laps this time. I am very slow but I keep my head up and so far no falls.
My doctor came in around 5:00 AM and said he was bumping up my diet…FINALLY!! He had to staff it with the team to write the order, so I waited and waited. I could envision eggs, oatmeal, toast, and maybe even a banana. It took three hours for the order to go through, but I finally got to order my real food. Starting slow. Just a few bites of each. Just a flavor change. Even though the eggs were cold, it was a nice change of pace. If I do well on this diet, I might get to go home tomorrow.
So the Hall & Oates lady went home for the day, and another vascular access specialist came up and tried again. Still no blood return. Second dose of TPA was inserted, then we waited another three hours. No blood draws or medicine in the port during TPA. My port has had a beating this week. I think it is starting to rebel. In the meantime, I got flowers delivered to my room from the Parkgate Church family, and I talked to some friends. That cheered me up.
But the BEST news of the day came when I learned that our #6 Jedi was born at 8:14 AM! His birthday is June 14, 2022, exactly 13 months to the day after his big sister Mikayla. Jaxson weighs 5 lbs 11 oz, is 17 3/4in and head is 13in. She was 36 weeks, 4 days. He’s a tiny thing! Mommy and baby are doing well, and I can’t wait to see them both. This was taken right after birth, at the beginning of the “golden hour.”
Wednesday, June 15.
I managed to do well on a full diet for a day, so they discharged me today. Funny, I only had two meals really. Breakfast and then spaghetti for a late lunch. I only ate a few bites as I still feel very, very full.
We are staying at the RV for about a week, as I have some follow-up appointments downtown and we didn’t want to go too far away from the hospital for a few days. Just the drive to the RV made me sick to my stomach. I threw up, but once that was over, I started feeling much better.
Our RV looks like a hospital, with a wedge on my bed, breathing treatments on my nightstand, and multiple bottles of pain killers on the bathroom sink. I’m only taking them as needed. Fortunately my pain is under control.
Watermelon tastes really good. I’m trying to keep my fluids up, but my belly still feels really full. I have yet to pass gas, but I still have several bouts of diarrhea per day. Slowly feeling better, day by day. I slept 12 hours after I got home, without any pokes or prods in between.
Thursday, June 16. Today was a full day. I started a class called “Active Living After Cancer.” I thought this would be a good time to do it since I need to start getting active again after my surgery. It’s a virtual class on Zoom, and they are sending a package with all kinds of goodies in it. They wanted us to “walk” for 2 minutes in class, but when they turned on the video it was more like Zumba. 🤪😳 I couldn’t even do 2 minutes. I have a goal to work up to.
Our son and daughter-in-law surprised us with a quick visit to introduce us to our newest grand baby, Jaxson Timothy West. They have been waiting to make the announcement because they wanted Tim to hear firsthand that they named the baby after him. What an honor and a blessing!
He was released early from the hospital because there was a gas leak outside the building. Fortunately, he had already passed his hearing test and car seat test. Apparently the moms were all gathering in the lobby because they could smell propane. They started discharging them all, including little Jaxson and Bree.
I am still providing supervision for a couple of LMFTs who are working toward licensure, so I had two sessions this afternoon. They were very accommodating and understanding of my surgery and recovery. I was pretty tired after that, but it felt good to do something productive and helpful. What a full day!
The church has decided to bring us meals for a few days. That was such a blessing! We had kids meals from Olive Garden tonight. I was a little concerned about the spaghetti after yesterday’s fiasco, but I mostly ate the noodles and only a little sauce. I ate one shrimp. Only about three or four bites and I was finished. No problems keeping it down. I’m sure the other day was due to transporting home, and of course Olive Garden has much better food anyway. The kids meals were the perfect size. Tim ate the rest of mine and we had grapes left over for a snack.
Friday, June 17. I farted!
Friday, June 17. The picture captioned above says it all. 😂😂😂 I finally started passing gas, and while there was no “plop, plop, fizz, fizz,” it was such a relief! My system is taking a while to figure out the new structure, but it’s finally getting it. Our church friends brought us caprese chicken with rice, fruit salad, bagged salad, and homemade focaccia bread. It was nice to have company and chat for a few minutes. This was the first time I ate more than just a few bites. Nearly a whole meal!
Saturday, June 18. Getting stronger every day. But it’s slow going. I feel like I’m about 5% better each day, on a scale of 100%. I still haven’t left the RV, so my walking consists of walking from the living room to the bedroom and back (about 20 steps). We’ll get there! Tim turned on the golf, which is always good for a nice nap. 😂
We had a wonderful meal of comfort food brought to us for dinner, including potato soup and club crackers. Again, nice to hang out with friends for a few minutes as well. Those crackers lasted me a few days, and they came in handy whenever I started feeling a little hungry or queasy on a long drive. They also brought a small carrot cake. Oh my! Let me say this was absolutely delicious, although I still can’t handle a lot of sweets.
Sunday, June 19. Father’s Day! Typically we would have a day out, and enjoy some time together as a couple, maybe even with some kids. Today would not be a typical Father’s Day. I would stay in bed and watch church online while Tim was preaching. We did finally venture out of the RV together and went for a dinner at Panera Bread. We didn’t want to go anywhere that would take too much effort to walk in. I had mac and cheese, with plenty left over for dinner tomorrow. I thought I had bought him a card, but honestly I couldn’t find it anywhere. Oh well, there’s always next year. OR, we can celebrate the Australian Father’s Day in September. 🥰😁
First dinner out after surgery. Happy Father’s Day sweetheart!
Well, that’s the update from surgery to my first meal out. The following week I continued to get stronger. We finally got to move back to our home in Conroe on Wednesday. I weighed myself on my home scale, and I’m down about ten pounds from what I was prior to surgery. I can see it in my face. I’ll take it!
Tim left on Thursday for Arkansas to visit his mom who has been ill, and then on to Kansas City to a friend’s wedding. I couldn’t go, but I’m okay. I had several doctor’s appointments which various people drove me to until I could drive myself, in addition to treatment. I had my follow-up with my surgeon (Dr. You) on Friday June 24th, and she discharged me from surgery! Yay! I’m officially free, just continuing with recovery. No restrictions, except I can’t lift for another 4 weeks. She said by July 4th I should be feeling pretty normal.
I drove myself for the first time, to run some errands yesterday (Saturday), and the steristrips finally fell off later today as well. The incisions look really good. I think they should be fairly invisible within a few months.
That brings us to today, and the end of this very lengthy blog. Tim drove all the way home from Kansas City last night. He stopped a couple of times to sleep, so we will probably go to bed early. We watched church online and we are going to go see an Elvis movie this afternoon.
I know I’ve said it a bunch of times, but I am so thankful for all the prayers, cards, texts, calls, messages, and gifts from my friends and family. I have a great prayer support network, who prayed for me even when I didn’t have the strength to pray for myself. I am looking forward to continuing to grow stronger, to the point that at the end of July we have a bike trip planned. More on that later!
Preparing for colon surgery is similar to a colonoscopy prep, with a few things added in for good measure. We came to Houston to be closer to the hospital, where we will stay in the RV until after I get out of surgery and have some time to heal. I woke up early when Tim was getting ready for work, and so it begins.
Yesterday I went to MD Anderson downtown after church to do my asymptomatic Covid test and bloodwork. Sunday at the cancer center looks verydifferent from any weekday I’ve been there. There was no line at the valet. The lobbies were empty. Very few people passed me on the mile-long walk between buildings. I was in and out in no time. It took me longer to walk through the skybridge than the actual visits. Tim barely made it to Panera Bread when he had to turn around and pick me up.
The phlebotomists took an extra vial to confirm my blood type, just in case I need a blood transfusion. My blood type is O-negative in case anyone is wondering. Everything came back normal, and negative for Covid, so we have a green light to go.
I’m also thrilled to see my Glucose Level is still in the normal range. I attribute this to the Holy Organic Basil and Black Cumin Oil. Look it up. There’s a lot of research on it. I’m a believer!
Today I’m on a clear liquid diet accompanied by the not-so-yummy Miralax/Gatorade solution which starts at noon. Tonight I’ll take a shower with the special cleanser before bed, and repeat in the morning. I’ll need to do laundry sometime today, because I have to sleep on clean sheets with clean clothes. This all helps decrease the risk of infection. I also have to take my antibiotics later tonight.
It’s a lot to remember. I hope I don’t forget something important!
Tomorrow is an early morning arrival time from what my surgeon told me. However, they will call later to confirm.
For some reason my blog is giving me fits this morning, so I’m going to close. I’m already hungry. I think it will be a long day, but I will use this time to focus on the goodness of God as well as all the people who are supporting me daily in prayer. I’m sure the day will be over before we know it. I’m looking forward to a nice nap tomorrow!
I’m currently on the second bag. I’ve finished Perjeta, and now I’m getting Herceptin. I have a new nurse today, and he is on top of it. We’re moving through treatment pretty quickly. Tim is in the building working, and I feel like I need a nap. 😂😂
My treatment was scheduled through lunch today, so I bought a “Think” high protein bar from the café to sustain me. I am a thinker, so it’s appropriate. It’s called “lemon delight,” but the bar looks nothing like the lemon bar pictured on the package. And, it doesn’t really taste like it either. The Atkins bars are more true to taste. I hate falling for false advertising! 😫 I bought it because it has zero (0) sugar.
Speaking of sugar. They draw blood every time I come, so I get to watch it on a regular basis. Today, my glucose was in the normal range! I wasn’t fasting and it’s still normal. It’s the first time in a very long time. I’ve been 100-110 in the “at-risk” range for a while, which is just above normal, but it has been slowly creeping up. I was concerned it might turn to diabetes some day, since it’s so common in my family. This was a nice surprise. Maybe those new supplements are working. 😁
I hear my BD AlarisTM Pump is beeping, so I should be going home soon. Have a wonderful day everyone! And remember, you are only as sweet as you THINK you are!
Dr. Kovitz, my medical oncologist, called me today. Apparently he spoke with my surgeon and they decided I can go ahead with my infusion on Thursday. The surgeon was following her regular protocol which is to stop all chemotherapy infusions before surgery. But Dr. Kovitz reminded her this is not chemotherapy (even though we call it chemo and it’s infused in the chemo infusion center). It’s immunotherapy. Dr. Kovitz said we really don’t know how long we would have to wait for it to get out of my system anyway. So…we are back on schedule for treatment this week.
Oh, did I forget to tell you I’m scheduled for surgery? 🙄
It’s been a busy week. We helped move our daughter’s family out of their apartment into a storage unit until their next place is ready. They can move in tomorrow. She has been staying with us (and her two kids) in the meantime. The kids are feeling the transition. They are five and three, and they are good at it. 😂 Did I say they can move in tomorrow? 😂🤪😂 She also starts a new job tomorrow. But that’s a whole other story for a different blog.
Surgery, oh yeah.
My colorectal surgeon, Dr. You (not to be mistaken for Dr. Who), called me after the failed polyp procedure. She said we have two options. Since the biopsies did not show cancer (they are precancerous adenomas which may or may not turn into cancer), we can “wait and see.” In other words, go in every year or so and take more biopsies to see if progresses to something more. If it does, we will do surgery then.
OR …
If I “can’t sleep at night” because I’m concerned about it, or I just want to be certain, we can go ahead and do the surgery. Remove part of my colon, appendix, and of course the polyp.
I weighed the options. Hmmm. I don’t like the idea of waiting and watching something grow. We did that with my breast cancer the first time, and look where it got me.
And then Dr. You gave me the blueberry pancake analogy, a/k/a her “caveat.” That sealed the deal for me. After talking with hubby and friends, we all agreed.
What is the blueberry pancake analogy? I’m glad you asked.
Basically, when they do biopsies it’s like pulling pieces from a blueberry pancake. If they find blueberries, we know they exist. However, there is no guarantee there are no blueberries just because they didn’t find any in the biopsy. Her caveat is that. Unless we remove the whole pancake, we don’t know if we missed any blueberries. But don’t worry, she added. There are several stages before it hits the cancer stage. 😳😳
I like blueberries, but not when they are compared to cancerous growths. I didn’t like the idea of the slightest possibility that something could still be lurking underneath this giant thing. The only way to know for sure is to remove the whole pancake, er, I mean, polyp.
Besides, my insurance is changing to Medicare in July and we still don’t know what all that means. All my out of pocket expenses are currently met for the year with my current insurance, so we can let Cigna pay for it.
All that to say…we decided to go ahead and do the surgery. It’s scheduled for Tuesday June 7th at the downtown MD Anderson Cancer Center. I have pre-op in The Woodlands on Friday May 27th, a Covid test and labs on Sunday June 5th, bowel prep (of course), and then I’ll be in the hospital from June 7th until after surgery for 3-5 days (depending on how quickly I poop💩). It looks like recovery is about 6 weeks but she said I should be feeling pretty good after 2-4 weeks.
I will be speaking about my journey on Sunday, May 15th, in both morning services. It’s not about breast cancer (although I will share some pictures and stories of my journey). It’s not even about surviving or thriving (although those are good things as well). It’s about living life on purpose.
We will take a look at some heroes in the Bible, how their faith journey stayed strong in the midst of life’s suffering (and even death). We will also look at the sovereignty of God. One of the hardest parts about praying for healing is praying for God’s purpose. We want what we want, but it may not always be aligned with what He sees through his omniscient lenses.
Faith is trusting God regardless of the outcome.
If you want to come and hear me speak, I would love to see you in person at Parkgate Community Church, 3715 Preston Road, Pasadena Texas. Or you can catch the message online live at 9:00 or 10:45. (https://www.parkgate.church). The recording will be there for you to watch later as well.
Please comment below and tell me the “word” that stuck with you.
Oh yeah. I’ll be playing that beautiful Steinway as well. 😁
I don’t talk about our finances very often; that seems to make people uncomfortable. If that describes you, please stop reading and move on to the next blog. Don’t worry, I’m not asking for money. Just reporting on our situation.
I went on disability so I wouldn’t be so stressed trying to work full-time while doing all the treatment, scans, doctor’s visits, etc. I’m pretty sure I blogged about this decision already; if you want to know more, you can go back and look for the whole disability conversation. Or, let me know and I will fill in the details.
Anyway. Here’s how it works. You have to be on disability five months before SSDI will kick in. After that, you must wait another 24 months before you can get on Medicare. I was fortunate enough to have a good job, so my health insurance (COBRA) has been hanging on in the interim. Tim has always been on my insurance, as he has been unable to get group coverage on any of his jobs.
Since leaving my employment, COBRA has gotten quite expensive to the tune of $2,500 per month (yes, you read that right), especially after they extended us past the original COBRA period. It’s a lot better than paying more than $30K per treatment. Yikes! Needless to say, we were looking forward to getting on Medicare. (Now we just have to find insurance for Tim.)
Finally, after waiting 30 months, (Woo hoo??) I got my card in the mail a couple of weeks ago, it’s official. I will be on Medicare starting in July.
For some reason, we thought this would be the “answer” to our insurance dilemmas. It’s all very confusing, however. I have not taken any action as I have been waiting for more information. Then we saw an ad for a Medicare specialist in the Impact, a freebie magazine with updates about our local area. He’s been doing this for a long time, so we scheduled a meeting.
The first thing he helped us understand is that Medicare does cost money. First of all, you have premiums to pay (based on your income). He also said that people typically purchase a supp[lement because even with the government plans there are many costs that are not covered. If you purchase “medigap” supplements, it helps fill in the gap.
Bad new. He said my options were limited until I reach 65. He said I could not get medigap supplements to cover all the additional costs. He seemed knowledgeable, and based on the information he shared, we got a bit discouraged. It looked like we were going to be out a LOT of money to pay for my healthcare costs.
I paused after starting this blog, and prayed. God, please help us discern your will. Help me understand all the ins and outs of Medicare, and help me find someone who can give me some good news.
The next thing I did was reach out to Medicare directly. It’s a government entity, so I was expecting long wait times with little support. As it turned out, my wait time was reasonable and the lady I spoke with spent nearly an hour helping me understand all our options. She didn’t seem to be in a hurry, and she provided me with some other numbers to call as well. As it turns out, we have lots more options than the other guy shared. Yes, I do qualify for Medigap insurance, and there is a number I can call to help me figure out the best plan and insurance company for me.
Here’s the interesting part. Insurance companies are not required to provide Medicare supplements to persons under 65. But some of them choose to do so. Maybe the companies the other guy sells for don’t do it, so that’s why he thought I couldn’t get it. I don’t know. But the Medicare lady gave me a list of possible providers. We just have to make sure my doctors are on all the plans.
Here’s another interesting part. The supplement you choose (for example, Medigap Part G) is the exact same coverage with each insurance company. You might pay $300 with one and over $1,000 with another. But you don’t get anything different from the more expensive company. No wonder people get discouraged! Apparently insurance companies are not limited to charging the same amount as the next guy.
So, it’s time to go shopping.
I’m still trying to matriculate through this Medicare maze, understand what they cover and what they don’t, and how to keep from going bankrupt in the process. I will spend more time on it next week. Some things can’t happen until at least June, so there’s still time to make decisions. But at least now I feel a bit more hopeful than when I first started writing this blog. Thanks to the Lord for answering my prayer.
Two people have rung the bell while I’m sitting here getting my treatment today. My room is right by the bell, so it startled me the first time. Clapping. Congratulations. Thanks for all that MD Anderson has done. Some women with metastatic breast cancer feel dejected when this happens. We will never be finished with treatment. We will never ring the bell.
Yet, I am happy for these people as they complete this part of their journey.
I’m a little tired today. Right after I took that picture I took a nap. It’s been three weeks since my last treatment, which usually seems to go by so fast. Yet this time it seems like a long time since I was here. Probably because so much has happened since last time. I had that failed procedure I blogged about, and lots of time spent with grandkids. Easter has also been in between somewhere. It’s been a hectic month.
I did get the biopsy result back for that colon polyp. It’s not cancer, but precancerous. They call it a tubular adenoma. He referred me back to the colorectal surgeon for a consult. That happens on Friday the 13th, and then we decide next steps. Most likely this means removal of part of my colon.
A Carolina wren couple has decided to make our bluebird box their home. And I came home to some beautiful roses in my planter out front the other day. Our grass and trees are loving the rainstorms. Everything is so green and growing. Spring is definitely in the air.
Life goes on. We are staying busy and living life. We are helping Parkgate Community Church until they hire a new pastor. I’m speaking about my journey in church on the 15th of May. It’s a message of hope. A message about Living Life on Purpose. Regardless of the storms. Regardless of whether we ever ring the bell.
As I’m sitting here thinking about all the storms we have faced, I am reminded of a quote I will share that week. It reminds me to look for color in the clouds.
If you’ve been keeping up with my blog, you know that yesterday I went in for a procedure to remove a large polyp in my colon. At first it looked like the polyp was about 2 cm, but after further digging and evaluating it is estimated between 6-7 cm. It goes around a corner where the colon folds. Apparently my body is good at growing things inside. 😪 I wish I could transfer my luck to the lottery!
There are only 1-2 doctors in the whole world who do this procedure. They send challenging cases to this doctor because he is very good at what he does. MD Anderson is noted to be best in the world. I trust them. Dr. Ge has a 95% success rate for removing difficult polyps, and he was quite confident going in that he would be able to remove it, with minimal risks.
He explained the reasons for staying on a liquid diet after the procedure, to avoid tearing or lacerations, etc. We don’t want all that “stuff” to end up inside. I wasn’t looking forward to the recovery time.
The reason this polyp is a challenge is due to the fold in the colon. It’s on the far right side of my body, and hard to access. Apparently, there is a lot of scar tissue in addition to some markers around this polyp, so it appears this one has been worked on before. It has been likely growing for a long time. It is probably a continuation or regrowth of the polyp I had the very first time I had a colonoscopy eight years ago, which my previous doctor had “removed.” Dr. Ge said he would not have let this go five years between colonoscopies. Lesson learned!
I was under general anesthesia and had a very nice nap. I couldn’t tell you what I dreamt. I was having a nice chat with the anesthesia assistant about the blizzard of ’78 in southern Ohio (he was born in Dayton, just 30 minutes from my home town). The next thing I knew I was waking up and it was all over. Dr. Ge waited until I was more awake to talk to me, and then he went over 15 pages which document the procedure with pictures. It’s pretty cool, really, what they can do with those cameras and toys.
Anyway, he showed me the steps he took to try and remove it. He tried several methods and techniques as well as some expensive tools that other gastroenterologists don’t have access to. Long story short, after two and a half hours he realized it was not going to happen. He removed some pieces of it, and a couple of other polyps as well which they sent to pathology. I should get those results back in about a week.
I apologized for messing up his success rate. 😪 😫 He chuckled. He said this is the reason he gets all the tough cases. But he admitted he had never seen anything like this in all his years of working. (He looks young, so I’m not sure how long that is 🤪.) It was definitely something that he wasn’t expecting. Who knows, I may end up in some medical journal because of it.
The next step is go back to the colorectal surgeon for another consult. There was some talk about whether it is worth doing the surgery due to my current metastatic breast cancer diagnosis. I was a little offended by that, to be honest, as I believe I have a lot of years left! I don’t want this thing to turn into colon cancer. That’s how my grandfather died. But what are the risks of that?
Here’s what I found on Healthline. According to the Colon Cancer Alliance, the risk of developing colon cancer is one in 20. Doctors screen for this type of cancer by looking for polyps in the colon and rectum. Like most forms of cancer, early detection can make a big difference in survival rates. If identified at the local stage, the five-year survival rate is 90 percent. However, if identified at a later stage when the cancer has spread, the five-year survival rate is 12 percent. PSA: Get your colonoscopy!
So much to consider. If we do it, we will schedule surgery to have part of my colon removed. Stay tuned and I’ll keep you posted. The upside? I get to eat today with no restrictions.
We never give up. Our bodies are gradually dying, but we ourselves are being made stronger each day. These little troubles are getting us ready for an eternal glory that will make all our troubles seem like nothing. Things that are seen don’t last forever, but things that are not seen are eternal. This is why we keep our minds on the things that cannot be seen.
The past few weeks have been a bit of a whirlwind. I went off of Facebook during the Lent season and quite frankly enjoyed the break. Several people told me they missed me, and wanted an update on my medical progress while I was gone. I also missed chatting with the ladies in my metastatic breast cancer support group, and providing encouragement to newly diagnosed women as well.
I’m back, but it may look different. I may not be quite as active on my home page as before. I hope to be more active on my Books by Lucinda group. I’ll be blogging here more regularly (not everyone is on Facebook anyway). In addition, I’m giving more attention to other projects. And certainly, not last or least, my family has been keeping me busy. “Je suis très occupé!”
Here’s a quick recap of the last few weeks (in addition to living with cancer) since I didn’t post on Facebook.
We went to Orlando for the Exponential conference and saw some of our friends.
We took another quick trip to Arkansas to see Tim’s mom (her health is declining).
I attended a professional conference in Fort Worth for Texas marriage and family therapists.
I walked through the bluebonnets.
We had several grandkid visits, including a sleepover with the girls.
We celebrated birthdays.
We attended multiple services for Easter and enjoyed our family Easter.
We helped at a kids event at our church.
I spoke at a Relay for Life event (fund raiser for the American Cancer Society), and attended one of the main events.
I hope you enjoy the pictures! Please comment below! Also, if you subscribe to my blog you will get notified when I post something new. I promise I won’t sell your email address.
À la prochaine…until next time!
Sisters and Cousins are the best!Rise up with Jesus, Easter event at churchRuss, Denys, Dawn and Rob. Such good times with all our “old” friends.Orlando friends! Bob, Arlene, and Cheryl. We ate at a wonderful Mediterranean restaurant.Beautiful lights at the Mediterranean restaurant.Bluebonnets and Indian Paintbrush, Ennis, on my way back from the TAMFT conference.Alison turned seven, so we took her for a horse-back riding lesson. All Texans should ride at least once! She’s a natural! The trainer had her walking over obstacles and turning within the hour.Relay for Life. Thanks Cherie for being such a good friend!
. My face is super puffy from all the weight gain. I’m hoping it comes off!
). Still having trouble breathing, and my belly is swollen with so much fluid. So they did a CT scan of my abdomen. That’s the worse one I’ve ever experienced. Drinking the contrast nearly made me sick, and I had trouble laying flat and breathing. I could not hold my breath for the whole ten count, but they said it was okay. They did find lots of inflammation, including my gall bladder. At this point they are thinking it will settle down as the fluid begins to pass. 
I’ve never been so happy to poop. 
Then they let me take a shower 
and wash my hair. Yes, I did it myself with just a little help from hubby. He does deserve much credit. He is such a trooper. I love him and appreciate him so much. It’s not easy getting in and out of the buildings here. Amazing how much more human you feel after a shower.
delivered to my room from the Parkgate Church family, and I talked to some friends. That cheered me up.
