The Flip Side of Yesterday: Today

Plumbing problems now under control. Overflow pipe replaced. New flex lines installed. Shower head repaired. And a bargain-rate (cheapskate) plan in place for replacing the ancient faucets.

Dennis at HealthNet never called me back yesterday, but it was late afternoon when I left the message. I'm giving myself a private mini-course on how to interact effectively with healthcare insurance employees. Lesson #1: Get your stuff organized before calling. Be ready to put your hands on necessary papers (explanations of benefits, claim refusal letters, etc.). Keep a running record of which insurance employee you last talked to, and when. Stay calm and be gracious. Don't raise your voice or interrupt. Exercise patience, restraint. Wait your turn. Understand that they are just regular people trying to do their jobs. If they aren't doing a good job, ask to speak to a supervisor, but be prepared to deal with roadblocks as you try to get to that supervisor. Supervisors are hard to get to, and even when you do finally get one on the line, they often turn out to be young'uns who know very little more than the peons. You have to be kind to them, and patient. You must be okay with repeating yourself seventeen thousand times. It's the only way.

I also figured out the maddening scanner problem that I was having yesterday, at a time when I was under the gun, trying to meet a deadline (more patience required). Finally, at around 8:30 p.m., I was able to email my son a bunch of his baby and toddler photos, in time for his circus troupe's video technician to incorporate them into their upcoming new show, a task he had to complete this morning. I worked on the scanner project all day, inbetween plumbers and HealthNet and green tea/Chinese herbs or fresh carrot juice breaks.

My son is The Bomb. He's heading off for Marseilles later this month, where he and the rest of his circus troupe members will begin a year-long tour of Europe, New Zealand, Japan and I forget where else. They'll also be performing in the closing act of the Winter Olympics in Italy. He'll be on TV! He's 22 years old and already supporting himself doing what he loves to do. Wow. When I count my blessings, he is at the very very top of my list.

Today I also plan to take a shower. Yay! My last one was Saturday morning. Then I'll pick a couple of things from one of my gargantuan to-do lists, and try to do them. Then I'm off to my first-ever MRI appointment at UCSF Medical Center. After that, if I have any energy left, I might try to drop by Overland Books on Judah Street to talk with Beau, the owner, about the Writing Salon readings that I'm trying to set up there for the coming year. How does "Memoirs in the Making" sound for the first reading theme?

I'm also plugging away at this "what's my treatment plan going to be?" question. The first thing I did when I woke up was pore over the website of an anthroposophical doctor who recently moved to San Francisco from back East, and now has an office in the Haight. It appealed to me (on a gut level) more than I thought it would, and more than Dr. Keith Block's Chicago Clinic does.

It's slow going, trying to choose the doctor whose hands you are going to put yourself in for the foreseeable future. Most women spend a lot more time choosing which hair salon they want to go to than choosing their primary care doctor. In fact, most people spend more time choosing all SORTS of things than they do choosing doctors. And if they have a serious illness such as cancer, they often spend even less time picking a doctor than they would if they weren't seriously ill, because they're feeling afraid and pressured to hurry up and get going on treatments.

More patience required. Patience and faith that I am on the right path. That I will find my way if I just stay in touch with my deepest instincts, listen to my gut feelings, and make choices based not on fear but on the best mix of mind/emotion/spirit and body wisdom that I can muster.

Comments

Oh, I too feel 100% better after reading this post, my dear Jane. You are doing a great job here and I am v. proud of you. Plus the news of your son is always a delight to read or hear about. And how nice of Luis to write! Thank you again for your honest and beautiful blog.
msmasmush

[Ms.K]

I'm so glad you followed up yesterday's post with this. I felt so anxious reading (yesterday) and worried and I didn't want to make things worse by telling you that or trying to cheer you up, so... well you know, I said nothing.
Love,
K

[Luis]

Dear Jane:

You are doing great with all the different tasks and problems you are working on. I want you to know that I am praying for you, health, business, house problems etc.

Keep up a good diet; flax is very important for your health, so don’t forget to include it in your diet.

6 month's ago, my family and I had the opportunity to visit San Francisco for our vacation, I forgot the streets, but our hotel was the Castle In. After several day's in SF, I visited a small laundry place that we found in our way to Fisherman’s Warf, this is where I found an add for your business; I visited your site, and I followed a link to your blog. In summary this is how I found you.

I will keep comming. Thanks.

Luis

Oh, I am glad your were able to shower, that will help you a bunch