I need to set the kitchen timer...

“My recipe for dealing with anger and frustration: set the kitchen timer for twenty minutes, cry, rant, and rave, and at the sound of the bell, simmer down and go about business as usual” - Phyllis Diller

Day 130

I definitely need an attitude adjustment today -- we'll have to work on that!

It has started off the perfect way to go with my mood -- a crazy, and very unusual for here, LOUD thunderstorm woke me up. I had really hoped for some extra sleep this morning as my work day started at 6 AM yesterday and we all know what a morning person I am NOT. I worked a very frustrating 13 hours and didn't accomplish half of what I needed to do so am looking forward to a lot more tedious work this weekend to try to get at least half way caught up for some critical Monday deadlines. Yuck yuck yuck.

I should be elated -- I received insurance authorization for my surgery late yesterday afternoon. Perhaps I am ungrateful, but what a pain it was to get it!! I spoke with my surgeon's office Thursday and was told basically to go away and they'd let me know when they receive approval -- you know how that would not work for me. So I called the insurance company and was able to sleuth out my case manager. Good thing I did...

She started the conversation off with a we have until Friday to get back to your surgeon within our service level agreements. I said great, that's tomorrow -- how's it going. She paused, and then agreed to do some more research. Came back on the line a couple of minutes later with a whole new attitude -- a most apologetic one. She had forgotten to assign me for review. Sigh. So had I not called, who knows when this would have finally been done. She promised my surgeon would hear from them the next day (yesterday) and we parted ways.

3 PM comes and goes yesterday so I called the surgeon's office and they still hadn't heard. Called the insurance company and actually got the case manager on the first try (took a dozen attempts Thursday -- you know I wasn't going to leave a voice mail message for her to call me back). Went through the whole thing again -- then remembered me apparently from the day before -- put me on hold, came back with congratulations -- you've been approved. Like I'd won the lotto or something. Said surgeon would be called before end of day (which was rapidly approaching). Also said she showed an admission date of October 3 (a Saturday -- seems a bit odd) and discharge date of October 5. I told her I expected it to be earlier and she said no problem, just let her know the new dates to update the file.

Called the surgeon's office and they said they couldn't do anything without something in writing from the insurance company. Sigh again. No one trusts or believes anyone, do they?

While we were chatting my cell phone rang. Put the surgeon's office on hold and it was the coordinator from the Valley Care program saying they'd just heard from the surgeon's office and I'd been authorized for surgery. Apparently the ladies at the surgeon's office don't speak to one another!! I thanked the coordinator, got back on the line with the surgeon's office and was told they were having a bad day and that since the other lady knew what was going on she would have to call me back Monday and couldn't schedule anything until then.

Oh well, what's one more weekend of waiting? A lot to me, I'll admit. Today is 130 days since I started this and it seems absurd that I still don't have a definitive date. It is so difficult to plan anything, but I'm doing the best I can. I ordered my cough buddy and my first medic alert bracelet (purple of course!) so two more things off that prep list. Still a bunch to do.

Fingers crossed that Monday I'll be able to post a definitive surgery date... and hopefully one in September. I find it difficult to think the surgeon would schedule a Saturday procedure!