How can I complain??
Nancy, Can't imagine dealing with this when my kids were younger. Luckily my boys are 23, 19, and 12. The older 2 were a tremendous help with their younger brother this summer when their dad got sick. My biggest worry is that the middle one is in college and I'm concerned about the finances. My husband used up much of his sick time over the summer and we had to go a month without any income until he could jump on long term disability. Things are better now but how do you manage? Even though we've got medical insurance, there are all these copays and prescription drugs. It seems like I just refill the 3 month supply of one drug and it gets dropped or they switch him to something else. Do you worry about the health of your kids? Have they been tested for this same problem? My 23 yr old continues to have the worst diet and he is the most similar to his father. He can eat anything but doesn't gain a pound. Not much I can do except push the healthy stuff on him as much as I can (without him knowing it!) The hard part is I don't know what the doctors should look for in them. One other question for eveyone . . . has anybody ever heard of a link between lyme disease and coronary artery disease? One of my husband's visiting nurses after surgery mentioned that to me. My husband was diagnosed with lyme back about 8-10 years ago and my oldest son was diagnosed just 5 yrs ago. My son still has some lasting issues - he was left undiagnosed for 3+ years. They are both in the woods all of the time - hunting and fishing and we live in an area that has a high incidence of lyme. That's another reason I worry about my oldest son.
Maria, I answered within your letter.......... My Waiting for disability is rough.If he got social security disability ( Raymond does) he would qualify for medicare at least, and their new prescription drug plan does help a lot. Our medication changes a lot too, and trying to keep a current list is hard when we have a lot of other things going on( I homeschool, and my 2 older kids have learning disabilities) The best thing I can tell you about the drugs and co pays is go generic as much as possible, and check into getting the drugs free from the companies. Go to their web sites. Most of the popular drug companies have a plan where you can get lower cost or even free meds. Each company has different reqirements, and you surely will be able to qualify for something. Save your receipts. You can get a tax break for a lot of medical things. In short,we can't manage without God, and when we forget to rely on Him, we relize how little we can do without His help. I'd be more of mess then I am now, if not for that! Yes, This type of disease seems to come on earlier with each successive generation of the people who have the trait. My kids have pretty good odds. My family's health as far as heart disease is very good. I can't eat all I want without gaining anything ( my problem is loosing!)but,I eat a lot of fruits and vegetables.I am overweight, but my cholesterol is fine, my blood pressure and pulse tend to be low, and my ekg and stress test are fine. We have had our oldest 2 tested. our middle son, Harley has fine cholesterol. Our daughter, Trinity has slightly high cholesterol, and has had chest pain and palpatations a few times, but nothing has been found.Rowan, our son who is 4, has not been tested. Many people who develop cholesterol problems later in life were fine as children, and high childhood cholesterol does tend to lower itself by adulthood.But Yeah, I do get scared for them sometimes. I try not to go there. I got enough to think about here and now. I haven't ever heard that, but I am sure it can happen, lyme disease can mess you up pretty good. Hunting and fishing and whatever else they do out there in the woods is very good for them, though. Don't discourage it. Despite its risks, this is probably what makes them feel most alive. ( I love being in the woods too!) Nancy