Lolgreens Up, Lol-Mart Down

[xifeng]

So I had my assorted body parts put through their paces today. Didn't manage to do bloodwork, since I have stealth veins; I'm pale, so they're visible through my skin, but they're buried deep and have a tendency to roll. There's a limit to how many times I can be stuck before it becomes an exercise in futility, so the nurse gave up and stopped after trying to stick me twice. On the one hand, this means I was spared a huge mound of gauze forming a visible mound under the sleeve of my sweater. On the other, it means they had to write me an order for bloodwork, so I now have to hie me to the lab at some point during the next week or so (if I wait too long, the meds and their effects will be visible in my system).

This ought to meet my deductible for the year.

Also, I am going to cut this next bit for TMI so you can skip it if you don't enjoy listening to WTMI (way too much information, all the time!).


So we had the Plz Get Me Reliable Birth Control That I Don't Have To Think Too Much About talk, since I can't afford Essure on my current income and no insurance provider I have ever been covered with has ever covered any kind of birth control for me, ever. (Because, as we all know, women don't have the right not to have children, but Viagra? That shit is srs fucking bsns. I like men and everything, but it's not like they need to be running around with a tent in their pants all the time, whereas it is in the best interest of society at large and my mental health and bank account in particular that I not reproduce.)

Basically, my options are two: Norplant (the long-term commitment doesn't bug me, obv, but it is a surgical procedure DO NOT WANT) and Depo. I'm going for Depo, after I a.) call around and find out who has the best price, since I'm going to have to pay out of pocket, and b.) well...

Nurse: Okay, remember that when you come in to have the Depo shot administered, you have to be on your period.
l33: Right, but I have PCOS, and I don't menstruate without the hormones, so if we wait for me to start, we're going to be waiting a while.
I got a prescription for Provera (= MOAR PROGESTERONE). Result!

Also: Lolgreens' low-cost generics are cheaper than Lol-Mart's, 4 srs. I got 3 months' worth of metformin for $3.75, which is less than it would have cost at Lol-Mart. (Granted, I have to drive into Newburgh to get it, but even so, Lol-Mart already rules enough of my life and I feel no compulsion to allow it any further access, the end.)

In short: Squee.


[/TMI]

In re: the events of yesterday, I don't know how I'm feeling yet. It's going to take a while. I'm not overly worried, though; I'll get there. One Day At A Time or some such.

OH AND ALSO. I am reading The Far Side of the World (Patrick O'Brian) for the first time and omg I am in looooove. I liked the movie (Master and Commander), but the book is just squeeful, and omg I love Aubrey and Maturin and I'm about halfway through and the whole thing is just so awesome for serious.

If you wrote something exactly to my taste, it would be...well, it would be the Iliad, probably, but it would definitely be a historical boys' book with blood and thunder and so on. :D

Comments

[pixelation.livejournal.com]

My lolmom tried Depo once and had a three month period. O.O I hope it works out much better for you!

[shake-the-stars.livejournal.com]

I am not looking forward to that part (it's likely, as the amenorrhea from the PCOS and the being-off-my-meds from no insurance tend to interact in horrific ways at first). She did warn me about potential spotting after the first shot; given that they're 3-4 months apart, I'm really not looking forward to that. D:

Why must female partses be so complicated? DDD:

[samanosukesgirl.livejournal.com]

One year ago for me when I had my period last. I SENSE JEALOUSY!! But don't be.

[shake-the-stars.livejournal.com]

I'm not a big fan of having a period. I just don't want to die of uterine cancer, which is one of the potential side effects of not having one.

There's really not a whole lot to choose from, being female, is there?

[samanosukesgirl.livejournal.com]

GREAT. SOMETHING TO LOOK FORWARD TO. ;; I dun think it's cancer 'cause i have no other symptoms.

[shake-the-stars.livejournal.com]

DON'T LIE, I KNOW HOW BAD YOU WANT CANCER because then your boyfriend would visit you in the hospital and NEVER LEAVE YOUR SIDE.

I doubt it's cancer, either (because I can diagnose you over the Internet!). It's probably just plain old regular PCOS, especially if you're not medicated for it.

[samanosukesgirl.livejournal.com]

He can cry over me as I lie in bed. HE'S SO ROMANTIC. ♥ And you know, he said he's clingy when he's in a relationship.

I was on something that made me have my period AGAIN IN TWO WEEKS AFTER I HAD IT and another that made me pee bright yellow. THAT was cool.

[shake-the-stars.livejournal.com]

Awww. ♥

IT WOULD HAVE BEEN COOLER IF YOU HAD PEED BRIGHT PURPLE. Why don't we ever get the cool meds?

[dethorats]

Another fan of Aubrey and Maturin? XD You're like, the 30th person on my flist. One of these days I'll have to give it a shot.

And huzzah for lower cost generics! I don't get why I still have to pay $10 a month with insurance for generic Ortho-Tricyclin. I think the insurance company should be paying ME for not getting preggers and adding to their costs. But that would make sense and I suppose that's not realistic for this world of ours...

[shake-the-stars.livejournal.com]

You ttly should. It's historical and manly and there are vague undertones of slashy. YOU WILL BE ASSIMILATED.

Does your insurance cover any of the costs at all? Because I have never had insurance that covered hormonal birth control at all, except for the brief, glorious period where my then-doctor fired off a letter of medical necessity to the insurance office. XD

IKR. If anything, they'd pay less for you to have birth control, even over the whole of your sexually active/childbearing years, then they would if you got pregnant, went through the whole round of prenatal care, had the baby in a hospital (and we're assuming a normal pregnancy with no complications here), and then put them in the hole for the kid until it got old enough to have a job and insurance of its own. I AM NOT WITH THE UNDERSTANDING HERE.

[zyphryus.livejournal.com]

I was so surprised when I lived in England. I was temporarily on their health care and didn't have to pay ANYTHING for birth-control pills. I went to the doctor, they gave me stuff and sent me on my way - I asked how much - they said 'nothing of course, why would we charge for birth control??' as if it was the silliest idea in the world.

[shake-the-stars.livejournal.com]

Resolved: England RULES. Let's all go there. :D

Srsly, I would love to see universal healthcare (OMG SOCIALISM) here, or at least find an insurance plan that will cover birth control. Which costs them less, by the way, than it would for me to get pregnant, keep the brat, go through the whole round of prenatal care, and have a hospital delivery (and this is just assuming a normal pregnancy with no complications), thereby putting them in the hole for the kid as well.

Wtf, insurance.

essure

[rufinsky.livejournal.com]

You may want to check directly with your insurance company...My Mirena was NOT paid for (5yrs ago), but they have approved coverage for the Essure.
My doctor said most insurances will pay for it because it is permanent, and cheaper for them than paying for maternity care and labor/delivery.
I have really liked my Mirena, incidentally, even though there are alot of horror stories out there....I hope the Essure works for me as well!

Re: essure

[shake-the-stars.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the heads-up! I have had little luck getting coverage for birth control (a letter of medical necessity helps, as it's the standard of care for PCOS), so I assumed that sterilization was the same way. The only doctor in my area who performs the procedure is in my insurance network, which is a good sign. :D

I'm unfamiliar with the horror stories surrounding Mirena and other IUDs; I did briefly consider it but I'm not a big fan of non-permanent invasive BC. T'each her own.

Re: essure

[rufinsky.livejournal.com]

If you are at all interested in the Essure, I strongly urge you to call your insurance provider. I was so happy and surprised to find out it was covered!
As a precaution (you know insurance bastards), my dr suggests the patient AND his office call the company, to get verification. I was also told that when the office calls, they get full details regarding how MUCH the insurance actually pays.
Keep in mind the economic state...even insurance companies are feeling it, so they may be interested in preventing a pregnancy that they'll have to pay for moreso than in the past....
I would never have known of any problems with the Mirena until I started poking around online. Apparantly, only those WITH problems post...I am having mine removed after 4yrs, 11mos, and have no complaints other than not really knowing if I'll get a period. I was actually planning on another upon removal when my new dr (the one who inserted it retired, I now see his associate) recommended the Essure. Since my husband can't get 2-3 days off together to heal from the vasectomy we had planned on, it seems like a fit.
Like I said, I've had great luck with the Mirena, but am now terrified that I will bleed profusely for weeks on end after it's out! I am not reading any more posts about it...

Re: essure

[shake-the-stars.livejournal.com]

I will definitely do that. I probably won't do anything until the summer if it is covered (happy birthday to me; also, at that point I'll have been on hormonal BC for more than a month, which is a requirement for this particular doctor), but it never hurts to start checking around. The doctor who does Essure is in the network so she's probably familiar with their reimbursement procedures, but I'll definitely keep that in mind.

Haha, that's always the way with anything--people with massive problems or dissatisfied customers post early and often, and the rest of us just go about our business. Hopefully no profuse bleeding will attend the removal.

Re: essure

[rufinsky.livejournal.com]

Yes, you are correct. The unhappiest squawk the loudest! There probably are more of us, with few or now problems, that don't even think about it either way!
So I am keeping my fingers double crossed....those that I've seen with little/no issues WITH the Mirena had little/no issues with removal. I like those odds, but will keep all posted. Comes out 9am Thursday...it is now Monday.