I've been wanting to update for a while but haven't gotten a chance, so here's the rundown:
Weight loss medication saga: Remember how I was trying to get a prescription for Wegovy, a weight loss medication? Well, it turns out my insurance does not cover anything weight loss related so Wegovy is not an option for me as it is $1500/month. My doctor had a back up plan ready in case that happened so she prescribed phentermine. I tried it for a couple of weeks but it raised my blood pressure too much so I had to discontinue it. It also made me feel pretty weird - heart racing, "out of it" feeling, nauseated, etc. The only thing I liked about it is that it did give me a little energy boost, but I didn't notice that it did anything in terms of appetite suppression.
I just went to my hometown doctor last week and told her everything I've gone through in the last few months to try and get this weight loss medication. I shared my recent health screening results and she re-prescribed Ozempic, which is the same medication as Wegovy but it is marketed for type 2 diabetes. I had already been denied Ozempic once as I don't have T2D (yet) but she resubmitted it saying she would detail in the Prior Authorization that I have metabolic syndrome and insulin resistance. I even stated that I'm well on my way to T2D and she said, "oh, there's no doubt about that." While I've seen the numbers and everything for myself, hearing a doctor say that made me even more worried about my health, although she said my numbers aren't "terrible". Umm if I'm on my way to T2D then that seems terrible!! So anyways, she gave me a glimmer of hope about getting Ozempic, but those hopes didn't last long as a few days later, I got the denial letter electronically.
SO - no prescription, BUT - I do have a plan. I asked my doctor if she had any Ozempic samples left as she had given me some a year ago, and lo and behold, she had 1 singular sample left that she gave to me. The sample would last me 1 month. My mom's best friend also got a sample that she doesn't want, so if I take her sample, then I would have 2 months of medication. My mom was also prescribed Ozempic back in the fall but as you may remember, it wasn't a good fit for her (it gave her explosive and terrible gastrointestinal issues). So, my mom no longer has an Ozempic prescription but she has 3 months of medication that she didn't use and she gave it to me. So, between the 2 samples and my mom's unused medication, I have 5 months of Ozempic. The way Ozempic works is you gradually have to increase the dosage each month. The samples have the two initial doses (.25 mg and .5 mg) and my mom's medication is 1 mg. When I did the sample last year, I lost 6 lbs in 2 weeks on the .5 mg dosage.
I know there has been a shortage of this medication for people who actually have T2D and please understand I'm not wanting this medication as I think it'll be a "magic pill" to help me lose weight. This isn't purely about weight loss - my weight is the number one driver of all my current health problems and I need something to help me get started with weight loss as I have been unsuccessful on my own. I realize I am very lucky to even have the 5 months of medication that I have and I'm going to use it to my full advantage while also making positive changes in terms of diet and exercise. I will be happy with ANY amount of weight loss but with 5 months of medication, I might actually be able to lose a good bit. I hope I do.
Spring Break: My week long break from school was last week and it sure went by in the blink of an eye! My mom had cataract surgery last Monday and it went well. She now has 20/15 vision in both eyes!
I met up with my bff Brittany on Tuesday after she got off work. We met up at a local beer garden that had a taco food truck, so we got tacos (fish tacos for me) and chips and salsa for dinner. I always have such a good time with her. She shared that she broke up with her boyfriend, so she's single again. She and her boyfriend actually dated for 3 years in the past and even lived together, but he was an alcoholic and she just couldn't deal with him anymore. He recently went to rehab and they reconnected when he got out, but I guess lately they just haven't been getting along so they agreed to go their separate ways for now, although they still text and talk. I just have so much fun with her because she makes me laugh so much. She said that she's basically in a relationship with me since I'm the only other person in her life. She said we are yin and yang because she's black and I'm white, she's left-handed and I'm right-handed. Despite being different, we just go together so well!
My mom's best friend, Cindy, (the one with the Ozempic) impulsively booked a room at the beach and invited me and my older sister to come along (mainly to drive her and help her get around as she is 73 and disabled). We were there for 3 days, 2 nights. We had a great time and the trip went well overall, although it made me sad to see how much Cindy's mobility has decreased. She has very bad arthritis in her knees so she uses a cane to get around. She's also had heart problems for a long time (had to get stents a few years ago) and so she was very short of breath on this trip, requiring portable oxygen everywhere she went, even down to the pool! Just walking very short distances had her breathing heavily. She, like my mom, is also a type 2 diabetic and she has been overweight for many years. She also does not follow a diabetic diet and she has never followed through with her cardiac rehab or physical therapy or anything. Seeing how bad off she is further encouraged me to get my health on track so I don't end up like that.
Anyways, we ate at one of our favorite ocean front restaurants for lunch on our first day and then checked into our hotel where we immediately changed into our swimsuits to go jump in the heated outdoor pool. This hotel is actually the same one Brittany and I stayed at back in January! Cindy liked the sound of it as the outdoor is heated and has a zero entry (no steps, it just gradually becomes deeper), which is good for her as she can't really bend her legs lol. That night, we went to a dive bar for raw oysters and crab legs and I found a pearl in one of my oysters! We then stopped at a grocery store for chocolate ice cream which we proceeded to eat on our oceanfront balcony, looking at the ocean and the moon.
The next day, we enjoyed the free, deluxe breakfast that the hotel offers. I'm talking eggs, grits, sausage, and a waffle maker! Very indulgent and so, so good! After that, I hit the beach while my sis and Cindy stayed in the room as Cindy was tired and Angel had work she needed to do virtually on her computer (she's a medical coder). I ended up being out on the beach and in the ocean (which was quite cold) by myself for 3 hours! I had told Angel to bring the sunscreen down when she came as I had forgotten mine, but she never did come so I ended up getting very sunburnt. Since it wasn't super hot, it was deceiving how much sun I was getting. Let's just say I got burnt to the point that having the sheet on me at night to sleep was painful. Ouch! I haven't been that burnt in a while. What hurt the most were my legs! They got BAKED. Luckily, it has all mostly turned to tan now though I still have a few sensitive, painful spots. I can at least wear pants again without being in agony lol.
Angel and Cindy FINALLY came down to swim in the pool (Cindy can't make the walk to the beach) and we got cocktails from the poolside bar. We swam for a while and then got ready to go to another one of our favorite seafood restaurants for dinner. It was delicious and even more enjoyable because it wasn't crowded and there wasn't a long wait to be seated. After dinner, we once again sat on our balcony, looked at the moon, and ate chocolate ice cream. A true DREAM!
On our last day, we had one last deluxe breakfast and then went to nearby outlets for shopping. Cindy bought this motorized chair for this purpose and boy was that thing heavy to heave out of her car. There is no way she would be able to lift it on her own! Luckily, the chair unfolded easily and once Cindy was in the chair, she was off! It was actually kind of touching to see someone with such limited mobility be able to shop, get around, and enjoy herself like anyone else with the help of this motorized chair (called a Zoomer).
We went to several stores and I noticed there was a jewelry store, so I went in to have my rings (engagement and wedding band) inspected and cleaned. The store was the same store I had purchased my rings from, so they had a record of everything. Well, while they were cleaning my engagement ring (and remember, I bought myself a new engagement ring last year, so it wasn't my original ring), one of the diamonds fell out! That sounds terrible but it actually was lucky because it turns out that the warranty that came with the ring only covers the diamond and not any metalwork (the diamond fell out due to a missing prong). Of course, there is a separate warranty for metalwork that has to be purchased within a year of buying the ring. So, I had no warranty and it was too late to buy one but because my diamond fell out in their cleaning machine, they agreed to send it off to be fixed for free. They said they would replace the diamond with another of the same color and clarity but I was like uhhh dig out the original one from your machine! They acted like they weren't even going to try and find it, but I made them look and they did find it, so the original diamond was sent off with the ring to be put back in. The sales girl was very good because she was like, you know, you could trade in your ring for a new one that has the full warranty! I was like well, the reason why I like my ring is it has a heart in the setting. She immediately whipped out a BEAUTIFUL ring that was similar to the one that was being fixed but just much bigger, shinier, more sparkly, and WITH a heart on the setting! The ring she showed me is originally close to $4000 but because they are an outlet store, it was discounted plus they would subtract the full amount I paid for my original ring from the cost, bringing it down to $2500. Let me tell you, I was very tempted. I just love sparkly rings! But I said no, let me just get my original ring fixed. I mean, I just bought it last year, so I can't upgrade again so soon! I mean, I COULD, but that just didn't seem right to me. Plus, even with my big raise at work, $2500 is still a LOT of money! I'm glad I said no but that hasn't stopped me from looking at rings again online lol. I need to stop lol. But it is good to know that I can trade in my ring for the full amount I paid! I wish I had known that last year when I bought 2 rings lol. I ended up selling the extra one on eBay when I could have traded it in, damn! The more you know lol.
After the outlets, we hit the road home and we hit several bad spots of heavy rain. It was wild because the weather at the beach had been perfect while we were there. Warm but not hot and sunny. As we got closer to home, it got colder and rainy. When we dropped Cindy off at her house, we all shrieked because we were wearing beach clothes (tanks, shorts, flip flops) and it was so cold, windy, and raining! Completely opposite weather.
Even though I had a long day of driving and traveling, I met up with Brittany for sushi after she got off work. We ended up closing down the restaurant! We had been there for 5 HOURS, from 5:00 to 10:00 pm! I'm telling you, we just have the best time together and time flies. She had me hysterically laughing talking about how bath towels aren't big enough to go around her whole body, leaving a large gap that shows her naked body. I laughed so much because that happens to me too! Regular bath towels are too small to go all the way around me so I always have to position the towel just right if I'm going to run across the hall to my bedroom at my mom's lol. Beach towels are the only thing big enough to fully go around lol. So that was my spring break!
Anniversary: I came home Saturday night and Nick was so glad to see me as I had been gone for 5 days. He even teared up and said he doesn't know how he'll make it when I'm gone for 2 weeks over the summer going to the beach and to Europe. He even said he's going to light a candle and turn on the show 90 Day Fiance while I'm gone so it feels like I'm still there lol. I thought that was sweet.
Yesterday, 4/9, was our 6 year wedding anniversary. Hard to believe! The day started off well with salmon bagels and a trip to a brewery. Things started to take a turn when we went to lunch at this nice place. Nick got into a negative headspace about his family and was just going on and on about them, complaining. I was like - umm it's our anniversary, can we maybe talk about us and be happy we're together? So that was annoying and then we ended up getting into an argument once we got home. I wanted to watch a show as I had been gone from home for FIVE DAYS but he wanted to play his video game, saying I had the tv to myself "all last night". He literally just got the tv all to himself for FIVE DAYS and all I'm allotted is one night?? No. I refused and continued to watch my show (it was only ONE show!). I told him I literally have been gone for 5 days and it's our anniversary, why can't you let me watch ONE show?? He's just selfish sometimes and doesn't get how he's coming across. So yeah, the evening did not end well. This July, we will have owed the house for 7 years and I have yet to have any weekend alone in the house because he never travels anywhere without me. That is beyond frustrating! Ugh, I just can't think about it anymore, it pisses me off. Men are SO dumb and annoying.
Conclusion: So, that's about all that's been happening as of late! I'll be going back to my home town next weekend as it's my nephew's 1st birthday! I can't believe he's 1 already. Time surely flies!
I'm back at work and on the home stretch to summer break. I counted and there are only 33 days left in the school year. I work 2 weeks after students and teachers leave, but that's fine because no one is around to bother me lol.
11:58 a.m. - Monday, Apr. 10, 2023