Congrats, j mercer, on your success in dropping the evil habit.
My turn next, hopefully coming soon to a kittyman near you...............

And the money saved has already found a hole to drop into.
Just got back from the oral surgeon. Not good news.
My two front upper incisors are toast.
Years of bone loss has them barely rooted anymore. The one on the right has been splinted with a wire to stronger teeth aside of it for many years now. They both have to come out at this point, bone grafting done to stabilize things, and a temporary mouthpiece with two teeth on it for some months whilst the bone grafts heal. And then I have to decide whether to get titanium pins and implants or a bridge or some other removable mouth insert to replace the dead teeth.
All of which amounts to thousands of dollars of work........I mean, many thousands.
Just to get to the first stage of extraction, bone grafting, and temporary partial insert is going to be around $2500.00 out of pocket. The replacement stage will cost many thousands more.

As my dearly departed Uncle Don used to say, "Old age is a dirty trick that mother nature plays on us."

Meowsigh.

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"Time is simply the mechanism that keeps everything from happening all at once."

Years of bone loss has them barely rooted anymore.

What's the reason for this?

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The mind is a weird and mysterious place

Years of bone loss has them barely rooted anymore.

What's the reason for this?

Genetics, age, and a number of years that I was remiss in proper cleanings at a dentist.
The right tooth of the pair never grew in quite right, and had a defect right at the gum line that was troublesome from my 30s onward. It resulted in fighting off gum infections with antibiotics many times over the years.
This slowly resulted in my gums receding in that area and bone loss in the jaw at the root of the tooth.
And years of smoking is not conducive to healthy gums either.

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"Time is simply the mechanism that keeps everything from happening all at once."

Just to get to the first stage of extraction, bone grafting, and temporary partial insert is going to be around $2500.00 out of pocket. The replacement stage will cost many thousands more.

I'm very sorry to hear that. No dental insurance at all?

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The mind is a weird and mysterious place

Just to get to the first stage of extraction, bone grafting, and temporary partial insert is going to be around $2500.00 out of pocket. The replacement stage will cost many thousands more.

I'm very sorry to hear that. No dental insurance at all?

Yes, I have some dental coverage, but the per year caps leave a lot to be covered out of pocket. I'll get a start on it this year and then finish up next year. I'll exceed the limits both years no matter what.

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"Time is simply the mechanism that keeps everything from happening all at once."

Tweeted by Joan Jett 17 hours ago.............................
"42 years ago today, Joan Jett, Sandy West and Kim Fowley started The Runaways."

Meowmemories.
Meowsighandyouknowwhy............................

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"Time is simply the mechanism that keeps everything from happening all at once."

JJ is playing a winery near us in a couple of days. Eric and I are not really fans, so we're not going but I hope she has a fun show.

JJ is playing a winery near us in a couple of days. Eric and I are not really fans, so we're not going but I hope she has a fun show.

Joan Jett & the Blackhearts Aug 9 Wente Vineyards.
Oh, meow. Wish I could be there.
Have not seen her live since the very late 70's or the very early 80's down at Summerfest in Milwaukee.

Meowsigh.

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"Time is simply the mechanism that keeps everything from happening all at once."

Well..............................................
I'm off to see the shrink.
I weaned myself off of the bupropion because it was doing little for me.
The escitalopram however is showing some progress in elevating my mood :).
However, tapering off the bupropion is now leaving me rather sleepy and low on energy. So I asked my doc if she could change my scrip.
But, the GP says I am now out of her jurisdiction when I requested her to substitute the DRI Modafinil, instead of the NDRI bupropion.
Stuff is crazy expensive. But all of my research indicates it would be exactly what I need right now.

So, I'm off to see the shrink.

MeowI'mnotcrazy.

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"Time is simply the mechanism that keeps everything from happening all at once."

OK.....new doctor.
Had to go over my situation, as he apparently did not have enough time to go over all my comms with my other doctor.
This doctor is half GP, half phsych.
After much discussion, he agreed that it might help me and he would let me try the new med.
Prescription sent.
Walgreens put a hold on it.
Now they are fighting it out with the insurance company which may cover little or none of it.
Cash price? $573.49 for 28 pills.
OMG.

Meeeeeeeeeeouch.

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"Time is simply the mechanism that keeps everything from happening all at once."

It's a good thing you didn't need anything really expensive......

Healthcare in the US is broken, but we pay way more than any country on earth.
I would like to see us do what other countries do that don't have these problems.

Steve

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Warning, addicted to SETI crunching!
Crunching as a member of GPU Users Group.
GPUUG Website

It's a good thing you didn't need anything really expensive......

Healthcare in the US is broken, but we pay way more than any country on earth.
I would like to see us do what other countries do that don't have these problems.

Steve

Healthcare in the US is broken because our government, the health insurance industry, and big pharma are all in bed together.
Instead of regulating any of it, our government walks in lockstep with them and nothing improves.

And I didn't realize that big pharma was still doing alchemy.
None of my research has uncovered whether this stuff turns to gold before or after I take it............

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"Time is simply the mechanism that keeps everything from happening all at once."

That's a huge price to pay, but hopefully it will be worth it. My prayers are with you on that.

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The mind is a weird and mysterious place

Instead of regulating any of it, our government walks in lockstep with them and nothing improves.

Oh silly me. I was under the impression that republicans believed that regulation is bad, bad, bad.

Instead of regulating any of it, our government walks in lockstep with them and nothing improves.

Oh silly me. I was under the impression that republicans believed that regulation is bad, bad, bad.

Ouch.............quick kick to the groin. Now I'm gonna need some meds for THAT.

Meowmuttermutter.

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"Time is simply the mechanism that keeps everything from happening all at once."

OK.....new doctor.
Had to go over my situation, as he apparently did not have enough time to go over all my comms with my other doctor.
This doctor is half GP, half phsych.
After much discussion, he agreed that it might help me and he would let me try the new med.
Prescription sent.
Walgreens put a hold on it.
Now they are fighting it out with the insurance company which may cover little or none of it.
Cash price? $573.49 for 28 pills.
OMG.

Meeeeeeeeeeouch.

I hear you on that. I'm due for a colonoscopy in a few weeks. The prep kit is $378.00. For two doses that I need to take. I'm lucky my insurance paid for it.
Back when I first had to have the Hubble telescope treatment, You could buy the stuff right off the shelf for a few bucks.

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[/quote]

Old James

I hear you on that. I'm due for a colonoscopy in a few weeks. The prep kit is $378.00. For two doses that I need to take. I'm lucky my insurance paid for it.
Back when I first had to have the Hubble telescope treatment, You could buy the stuff right off the shelf for a few bucks.

I had that done last month and the prep kit (3 satchels plus 6 bottles of pre-opp fluid) cost me $73.50aud and I thought that was a bit on the high side. :-O

Cheers.

I have to say Mark that I thought your previous Lady doctor was excellent in telling you up front what was what, whether you wanted to hear it or not. Are you sure this new one , wearing 2 hats, will do the same? After all she did for you, I expect she is sad to see you move on.

Yes, the doctor I had been working with was very good to work with. A wonderful practitioner.

How this actually all came about was a bit circuitous.
She was filling in for my usual GP, who is older and was out on extended sick leave. The younger doctor handled my annual physical, and in the course of that, the usual discussion about smoking and cessation came around and she gave me a handout sheet on bupropion, which is also sold as Zyban for quitting the habit.

Well, I would not have asked for the med for quitting smoking, but as I researched it and what it actually is, an antidepressant, I realized that perhaps a door had been opened for me and I decided to walk through it. I told her that I wanted to start it, not for quitting smoking, but to fight my lifelong battle with depression. She was OK with that, and so my journey began. I ditched the whiskey so as not to interfere with the new meds. She also added that if the bupropion alone did not help, that adding an SSRI might. So after some weeks, I asked her about options, she gave me a list, I did my research and made my choice. I started escitalopram (Lexapro), which has proven to be the key to my improvement!
As the bupropion was doing little for me as far as my depression goes and was having side effects that I did not like, I tapered off of it and stayed with just the escitalopram. The result was that as the burpropion slowly worked out of my system I was feeling better emotionally but the one thing that it WAS doing was slightly boosting my wakefulness. So I started to research what might help with my fatigue (which I had been complaining about for many years) and that led me to requesting the modafinil.
Unfortunately, this took me beyond my younger doctor's area of expertise and training, as it is not commonly prescribed, is an FDA controlled drug, and is typically used for treating narcolepsy. So using it as an adjunct for treating depression and for shift work sleep disorder are not rare at all, but are considered 'off label use'. And falls under the heading of psychiatric care, which she is not trained for. Hence, she had little choice but to refer me out to a doctor who had those credentials.
In doing so, she was actually still being very supportive. Because she was, as she did all along, still respecting my choice to chart my own course as much as possible. So I am still very grateful to her for setting me on a potentially life changing journey.

And as things progress, I SHALL write her a personal letter of thanks for having done so.

The new doctor is a bit more 'straight laced' shall we say. Being part psychiatrist, I supposed he is more used to telling his patients what they will do, rather than the other way around. It took some discussion and convincing him on my part that 'I' was in charge of my treatment and was going to determine it's direction under his supervision. And that I was in tune with my body and mind and was better equipped to evaluate the effects of my meds than he was. (Doctor's eyebrows went up a bit....LOL). But, he finally agreed to write the scrip as requested, and said that the modafinil is effective (actually admitted that he has used it on rare occasion when he could not get proper sleep due to work related travel) and said he would trust me to continue my alcohol abstinence. So, I think I have him properly indoctrinated into my playbook. But I shall not BS the doctor nor insult his training or intelligence. This is not about 'getting the drugs I want'. It is about getting where I want to be. If the new med does not work as I suspect it will, I will be straight with him and ask for further advice and direction.
He did also say that if I am seeing improvement in my mood from the escitalopram after 5 weeks, it's effect should continue to get better :). I did not ask him about increasing the dose from 10mg to the full 20mg yet. One thing at a time. I have another appointment with him in a month to evaluate the new med and any progress with the current one.

I can positively say at this point that my mind is more at ease that I can ever remember. More content. Less unnerved by minor setbacks in my life, and instead trying to find rational ways to deal with them. And it only took me 60 years to get here......................

I am absolutely convinced now that my brain chemistry has been out of whack since birth.
And I have joked over the years here about days when 'all of my little brain chemicals were playing nice together'.
And that they were very rare days for me.

I now know that was more true than I realized at the time.

So there you have it, the latest kittyman updates.
Meow meow meow!

EDIT............
I also hope that anybody reading this who has fought with depression as I have for so many long years finds the courage to ask their doctor about getting help.

I hope my discussion of my journey can give you the strength to start yours.

As you can tell from my story, there is no such thing as a 'happy pill' or magic bullet for depression. And it does not go away overnight. If first attempts do not work, there are other avenues. Don't give up.

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"Time is simply the mechanism that keeps everything from happening all at once."

Good for you Mark!

Congratulations on the continuing path to recovery, however slow it might be, taking and doing research on what *might* work best for you - NOT what the DOC "insists" on what is best for you. Sometimes these specialists are to rigid and will not listen to the patient.

These things do take time and a bit of experimenting to hopefully find what does / does not work.

Keep on roaring like a big cat or purring like a little kitten.

I know you can do it - one day at a time.

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Good for you Mark!

Congratulations on the continuing path to recovery, however slow it might be, taking and doing research on what *might* work best for you - NOT what the DOC "insists" on what is best for you. Sometimes these specialists are to rigid and will not listen to the patient.

These things do take time and a bit of experimenting to hopefully find what does / does not work.

Keep on roaring like a big cat or purring like a little kitten.

I know you can do it - one day at a time.

+1

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