The "Keeping Cool", edition.

Good Sunday morning!  My childhood friend, Addison, drove up from the Phoenix area yesterday to visit. We've been friends since we were 5-6 years old. We've had a great time reminiscing and telling stories. Some stories Dad didn't know!  Lol. And Addison was able to validate some of my more outrageous escapades to Brian. ;-D  I enjoyed looking at photos of his son...apparently his doppelgänger..and his grandsons...who he is crazy about!  

So what's been going on here?  Life and mundane stuff. We had issues with a component of the dialysis machine. Specifically the Pureflow unit. This sits under the cycler and creates the dialysate that runs through the machine. It's a surprisingly complex thing. At one point a technician came out to upgrade the software. Of course our unit wouldn't update so it had to be replaced. It's modular, meaning there are independent parts that work as a single unit when they're all put together.  The company had Brian swap out a part and sent him the new part. That didn't fix the problem. Eventually a new unit was sent...sans the controller that was sent earlier. The unit arrived Thursday. 

This didn't stop me from doing treatment, it just meant we did treatment like we do treatment when traveling. Using hanging dialysate bags instead of making the dialysate. But. We only had a 2 (recommended) day supply. We had to get a next day delivery of more bags of dialysate. The good thing was off days coincided during the week. Anyway. We're good now. Brian made a batch last night and I'll be good to go this evening. 

The other issue I had was getting my meds delivered. While waiting in the Atalanta airport I get a call from the pharmacy telling me my order, that I'd made before we left for Georgia couldn't be shipped because I needed to pay $600+. I immediately knew what this meant. Ok. I had applied for and was  approved for assistance for that particular drug in February. Remember when I was ecstatic when the cost went from $600+ down to $10?  What the heck happened here?  According to the billing department I was no longer in the plan. WTF?  I told them I was in the airport in Atlanta and they needed to call my social worker. An oh yeah I was down to my final 4 pills. >:-(

I didn't hear from anyone when I returned home, nor did I receive a shipment of pills. So I dig out my paperwork from the assistance fund and gave them a call. I was reassured strongly that I was indeed still on the plan and good through the end of the year...I need to reapply yearly. And that if the pharmacy is having a problem to give them a call. I call the pharmacy and we're all very pleasant.  Lol. I'm on a 3 way with the customer service rep and a billing rep. And I must say, the pharmacy documents every single conversation with everyone. They acknowledged they spoke with my social worker. But I guess they needed the kick in the butt to speak to the funding group. The billing lady said she'd make the call then would call me back. Of course I didn't receive the call back. 

I called the pharmacy the next day. I was told oh yes, the meds were sent. <eye roll>. This meant the issue had been resolved and sure enough. I received the meds yesterday. And the invoice reflected the correct cost of $10.00. But was this all really necessary?  Sheesh. 

Other mundane things. I am getting to be like the energizer bunny in deep water fitness. I have no idea where that is coming from, but i like it!  And out trainer is kicking our collective butts. We have different workouts but she keeps us near each other. (I like watching Brian workout) And she wants us to eat funny food.  Lol I can cut down and change a lot of things but some of that stuf?  Maybe not. 

Finally we went to Road Kill Grill to get our ribs and chicken for the holiday day dinner. I also got some hot sausages which came in handy when Addison showed up. Dinner!  So now I'm off. I need to get started with the potato salad. I'm making the grand attempt to make a small batch. Wish me luck!  Yeah I know. My trainer is gonna kick my butt for this menu. But it's the holiday <whine>. 

That's it. We're just chilling. And getting over a dialysis centric week!  Lol. And getting past the hottest June in Las Vegas ever. Ugh. Staying cool and hope you do also. Enjoy your day!  

System one is what happens when we travel

Pureflow is what we use at home

Pureflow component. 

That bag of fluid in the tub is the "homemade" dialysate. Yes, it's hooked up to our plumbing and the water has to be checked regularly. The contents of the bag are a prescription for me and it takes about 8 hours to make. And the. Brian has to check to make sure it's correct and contaminated. You can also see some of the various components.