Drawerful of pills

Here is my left-hand bathroom drawer. It holds my medications & supplements. I fill up the two seven-day pill planners every week. The white one is for morning pills and the purple one is for evening pills. Each of those little compartments, white and purple, is full of pills.

(Carpenters and architects, note the poor planning. The drawer is stopped from pulling out its full length by the toilet tank. You can see this on the left of the photo. It is a consistent annoyance in my life. And yes, that is my roll of toilet paper at the top of the photo. Thanks for noticing.)

Most of my medications I get on a 90-day supply, through the mail from a Kroger-based pharmacy. Supplements I get on an as needed basis, either through my local drugstore (probably lower quality) or through the upscale almost-all-natural grocery store (probably higher quality). Some meds, as needed prescriptions, we get at the big-chain pharmacy around the corner from us.

And I have pretty-darned-good medical insurance, which covers a great deal of our medications. I haven't even gotten a prescription for Lyrica, just using samples, so I've no idea how much it costs. Even before I count in that cost, my current meds are costing us roughly $100 per month. I haven't figured out the cost of the supplements, because I tend to buy 60-90 day supplies, and they are staggered throughout the year.

What supplements do I take right now?
I take: Calcium Magnesium Zinc - it keeps my doc from flipping out about the fact that I consume very little dairy.

A high-end multi-vitamin - because I love the fluorescent colored urine that it makes.

Alpha-Lipoic Acid - may help with nerve pain

Garlic - may help with cholesterol and circulatory issues, and we know that diabetes makes that more of a problem.

Co-Enzyme Q-10 - suggested by the sweet neurologist who did my EMG tests this week.

Are these the right supplements for you? I don't know. You should talk to your own health professionals. Decide for yourself what is right for you.

I should probably be taking a cinnamon or other diabetes-targeted supplement (meaning targeted for type 2).

But all my little pill compartments are full. I can't possibly take any more meds. Well, if I do get new meds, they should be tiny little ones.

Let's see if the doctor goes for that one.

I get frustrated by spending all this money on my diabetes care. What could I do for myself if I had an extra $100 per month? What vacations might I have taken? Could I have donated that money to a ministry or charitable program and helped people here in my hometown? Might I have donated for research on diabetes, or on ALS, or lung cancer? Or to a scholarship fund for students wishing to become endocrinologists? They are unanswerable questions.

This week I get my first ever crown. Dr. Parts tried to de-fang me by freezing the chocolate. The tooth broke but did not need a root canal. Dr. Parts won't believe me that chocolate, most chocolate, is best enjoyed at room temperature, so it can melt into the mouth. Oh well. He makes excellent seviche, so who am I to argue.

Bad night = Bad morning

I've been having some trouble sleeping lately. I've been staying up late, watching stupid TV, and eating bad things while I stay up late. I've been going to bed between midnight and one am, for most of the past two weeks or so.

Well, I'm not eating horrible things. They're Kashi granola bars. Sweet, but high in fiber. It's not like it's chocolate cake.

But, this morning my am fasting BG reading was 170. OOOOoooo-weeeeee!

The day before, the reading was 102.

My weight's been up this year, regained about 15 lbs (which was about what I had lost in 2006), so I am being careful, and watching the numbers -weight numbers- creep down.

So, again, back to basics.

(Again. How many times in our lives do we need to return to these lessons? For me, apparently, at least once more.)

What has worked for me in the past, regarding weight and health?

1. Record keeping, posted boldly, where I can see it daily.

2. Daily weigh ins. (not weekly, not monthly)

3. Pre-planning to have good food choices available to me. (As opposed to the chocolate muffins and egg-salad sandwiches from the vending machines and the breakfast burrito from the catering truck that visits us at work.) Meal replacement bars work well for me. I've tried Glucerna, which is targeted for diabetes, and Slim-fast bars.

Foot pain update...It's been a pretty good week. I find myself walking more at work. I did not cringe when I had to make photocopies of several complicated files, which requires standing for 10-20 minutes.

Pain Meds: We're decreasing the nortriptylene and increasing the Lyrica. I hope it doesn't increase my insomnia symptoms. I also bought more of the lipoic acid and bought a multi-vitamin with a great B-complex spread. Although I have stronger meds (percoset and oxycodone) I haven't taken one in the past two weeks.

Medical appointments: DIDN'T HAVE ANY PAIN RELATED MEDICAL APPOINTMENTS THIS WEEK! Well, except for the acupunturist, and I've been doing that weekly since the first of the year, it feels very normal. This week my treatment with my fabulous acupunturist was not very painful at all. It was as if the pain tide was out. Niiiiiice.

So, next week I gt to start with the psych pain appointments and the neurological tests (EMG). I am going to be pissed if they don't find something. In other words, we've been attacking this foot pain issue with a full-court-press since January. If some treatment that we've found (the acupuncture or meds or supplements) has been effective at correcting the problem, leaving nothing for the neurologist to diagnose, then I may lose a good chance at understanding the genesis of the foot problem.

We have to take our best shot in life, and work with the information that we have. That's all I can do here.

The Annual Exam 2007

Got my annual exam, which includes a quick physical exam, a pelvic exam and pap smear. Mine also included a mammogram and an ultrasound of one of my breasts. Yes, this was planned. No worries. I've had this particular lump since my middle twenties.

When doc came into the room and saw the OHSU pain clinic referral forms, she said, "You know, this doesn't fit into your physical today."

She listened anyway. She's giving me the referral. I also got the exams.

She gave me a prescription for another 30 percosets. She also gave me a prescription for nortriptylene, which is an older anti-depressant which is sometimes used for pain control. I'm supposed to take one pill at bedtime.

We talked about pre-labs. In other words, next appointment, I can call in about two weeks ahead of time and she'll order what labs she wants, I get the blood work done about one week ahead of time, and we can have the results to discuss, rather than a little note containing my numbers.

So, this evening, after work, I was in pain. Dr. Parts made dinner, beef hamburgers for him, boca burgers for me. With all the fixings, including fresh tomatoes and lettuce. Great stuff. I got the presciptions filled. I took a percoset and a nortriptylene. I feel okay now. I can feel the foot pain, but it's very distant.

Physician also gave me some good advice about the pain clinic. She suggested that I focus on trying to get a clear diagnosis, not simply pain relief, just in case the problem is a solvable one. It's excellent advice.

Now I just have to wait for the results to come in the mail. And for OHSU to take my referral and fit me in. OHSU says 7-10 days. If I get in within 30 days, I'll count it good.