And the Hits Just Keep On Coming...
Today was a completely nutty day. I'm so far behind with grading at school, which is really stressing me. We just started a new unit, so there are a lot of very active teaching days. I don't know why movie and television directors depict teachers sitting behind their pristine desks quietly grading papers while the students work. In my experience, that's not anywhere close to reality. We have all of 50 minutes each day to try to catch our breath, return phone calls and emails, plan curriculum, make copies, and grade. Add in the fact that I've had to head to doctors' appointments nearly 10 times in the last month, as well as before/after school meetings, and it's no wonder I had to restart my blood pressure medication!
So anyway... I've been a bit anxious lately because I feel like I'm drowning at work and just need a good 2-3 days of uninterrupted work time to catch up. That's the irony of education... so much of our job doesn't even involve children, so one of the most valuable things for a teacher is a solid few hours with no one in her classroom.
All week, I've felt like a dog chasing its tail, running from place to place and appointment to appointment. In the midst of all this, I noticed on Monday that my right eye was a bit blurry. I figured my contacts were old - no biggie - and I would just put in a new pair. I put in some new contacts on Tuesday, but I still had the fuzzy blurry halo wonky eye thing going. So I switched to my glasses and wore those for 2 days, thinking it must be allergies. When things hadn't improved last night, I took my blood sugar to see if that was causing the problem. It was high, but not crazy, so I took some insulin and hoped for the best. Again today, my eye was still blurry, so I called my opthamologist for an appointment. When I went to see him, he confirmed my suspicions and fears. I have steroid-induced cataracts in both eyes. This Friday I have another appointment with them to get my eyes measured for surgery. Then, I will need to pick two dates in the next couple of months to have the surgeries done.
One "up" side of the cataract surgeries is that my vision should be permanently corrected in the process. I'll probably elect to have the multi-focus lenses implanted so that I won't have to use glasses for reading or computer use. However, since insurance only covers the cost of the basic lenses that correct far-distance viewing, I'll be responsible for the difference in cost, which is about $2500 per eye. In addition to all the other medical bills, that's a little overwhelming, but I don't want to cut corners with my vision, and it's not like an "upgrade" will be easy down the road. So, I'm just going to have to suck it up and pay the cost.
The other big development today was a call that I received from UT Southwestern. I had called to sign up for a dialysis training class so I'd know what to do with my catheter, which was scheduled to be surgically installed on Friday. Today the nurse called back and told me that their process was for me to have an appointment with the PD clinic first, where I would learn about PD and begin getting approval for PD in my home. Then, after the approval was finalized, I would get a catheter surgery done, either at UTSW or with my surgeon here in Plano. After the catheter was done, then I would go to a training class at the PD clinic to learn how to administer dialysis to myself and keep the catheter clean.
Their process makes sense because I wouldn't want to go through a surgical procedure without having the proper approval. If, for some reason, it was determined that I'm not a good PD candidate, or my home environment isn't suitable, I don't want to have gone through a needless procedure. So, the other decision I had to make today was to hold off on the surgery and cancel Friday's appointment. Instead, I'm going to wait until I can get in for the meeting/class at UTSW, and then I will most likely have one of their surgeons do the catheter procedure. Since UTSW is going to be the hospital that will do my transplant, it is probably a good idea for me to begin to transition the major elements of my care (dialysis and any surgeries) to them.
Today when the eye doctor told me I had cataracts in both eyes, I started laughing. He looked at me like I had lost my mind, and I told him that at this point, all I could do was laugh. After all, any side effect, no matter how rare or unusual, seemed to hit me. It's so sad and absurd that it's actually very funny. Like I told him, you either laugh or cry when you've been through all that our family has been through lately, and I'm tired of crying...
So tomorrow, I'm going to buy myself a lottery ticket. Considering the slim odds of me having all the complications I've had, it might be worth the $1 gamble to test those odds at a majorly big payout. Hopefully this will be the last big blow for a while, and things will start to smooth out and calm down soon. I know I could use a break...
So anyway... I've been a bit anxious lately because I feel like I'm drowning at work and just need a good 2-3 days of uninterrupted work time to catch up. That's the irony of education... so much of our job doesn't even involve children, so one of the most valuable things for a teacher is a solid few hours with no one in her classroom.
All week, I've felt like a dog chasing its tail, running from place to place and appointment to appointment. In the midst of all this, I noticed on Monday that my right eye was a bit blurry. I figured my contacts were old - no biggie - and I would just put in a new pair. I put in some new contacts on Tuesday, but I still had the fuzzy blurry halo wonky eye thing going. So I switched to my glasses and wore those for 2 days, thinking it must be allergies. When things hadn't improved last night, I took my blood sugar to see if that was causing the problem. It was high, but not crazy, so I took some insulin and hoped for the best. Again today, my eye was still blurry, so I called my opthamologist for an appointment. When I went to see him, he confirmed my suspicions and fears. I have steroid-induced cataracts in both eyes. This Friday I have another appointment with them to get my eyes measured for surgery. Then, I will need to pick two dates in the next couple of months to have the surgeries done.
One "up" side of the cataract surgeries is that my vision should be permanently corrected in the process. I'll probably elect to have the multi-focus lenses implanted so that I won't have to use glasses for reading or computer use. However, since insurance only covers the cost of the basic lenses that correct far-distance viewing, I'll be responsible for the difference in cost, which is about $2500 per eye. In addition to all the other medical bills, that's a little overwhelming, but I don't want to cut corners with my vision, and it's not like an "upgrade" will be easy down the road. So, I'm just going to have to suck it up and pay the cost.
The other big development today was a call that I received from UT Southwestern. I had called to sign up for a dialysis training class so I'd know what to do with my catheter, which was scheduled to be surgically installed on Friday. Today the nurse called back and told me that their process was for me to have an appointment with the PD clinic first, where I would learn about PD and begin getting approval for PD in my home. Then, after the approval was finalized, I would get a catheter surgery done, either at UTSW or with my surgeon here in Plano. After the catheter was done, then I would go to a training class at the PD clinic to learn how to administer dialysis to myself and keep the catheter clean.
Their process makes sense because I wouldn't want to go through a surgical procedure without having the proper approval. If, for some reason, it was determined that I'm not a good PD candidate, or my home environment isn't suitable, I don't want to have gone through a needless procedure. So, the other decision I had to make today was to hold off on the surgery and cancel Friday's appointment. Instead, I'm going to wait until I can get in for the meeting/class at UTSW, and then I will most likely have one of their surgeons do the catheter procedure. Since UTSW is going to be the hospital that will do my transplant, it is probably a good idea for me to begin to transition the major elements of my care (dialysis and any surgeries) to them.
Today when the eye doctor told me I had cataracts in both eyes, I started laughing. He looked at me like I had lost my mind, and I told him that at this point, all I could do was laugh. After all, any side effect, no matter how rare or unusual, seemed to hit me. It's so sad and absurd that it's actually very funny. Like I told him, you either laugh or cry when you've been through all that our family has been through lately, and I'm tired of crying...
So tomorrow, I'm going to buy myself a lottery ticket. Considering the slim odds of me having all the complications I've had, it might be worth the $1 gamble to test those odds at a majorly big payout. Hopefully this will be the last big blow for a while, and things will start to smooth out and calm down soon. I know I could use a break...
Hey honey~I got away from keeping up with your blogs this summer so I was playing catch up, let me know how the eye surgery goes, jason wants us to get the corrective stuff done, but I'm kinda terrified to let anyone near my eyeballs with anything :)...but honestly screw the money part and enjoy being able to see ALL the time, lol...I kinda dream of the day I can wake up and see perfectly and throw on a cheapo pair of sunglasses that are ridiculously stylish and over the top blingy and walk out the door :)~love you lady~Tomisha
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