Putting It All Together- part 2

This post will not be nearly as long as the last one, even though it covers more days, most of them are the same, painful days. When I got home I thought it would be so wonderful to be in my own bed. Only it really hurt to get myself on the bed, and situated some what comfortably. I mostly had to have someone help me, and go really slow. I spent my days either siting in a recliner or in bed. Moving between the two with the walker. On, Sunday a home health nurse came to see me, she didn't do much. On Thursday I saw my neurologist for more pain meds. The painful back spasms that started in the hospital have not stopped yet. They are not all consuming, but they caught me off guard since I never knew when one would start, or how long it would last. The days were long and boring. I'm glad we had Baby to keep me company. I couldn't cook dinner on my own, I could sit at the table with a pillow behind me and do the prep stuff, but usually Joseph did the cooking, or taking in and out of the oven part. My neurologist suggested the Laser Spine Institute to me. I had to have blood work done for approval for them to see me. Because of that blood work it was discovered that I am diabetic. At first the doctor wanted to try just changing my diet to see if the blood sugar numbers would go down. Met with the doctors at Laser Spine Institute and they decide I'm not a candidate for their type of surgery. Basically the only thing that can help control my pain is pain meds. The rest of the school year flies by, before it ends, I have my blood work re-checked. My blood sugar numbers are worse then they were 3 months ago. Time to start medication for diabetes. My cholesterol number is really high now too. Added medication for that too. Sarah had her 8th grade promotion and Joseph graduated high school, but have gotten workman's compensation to pay any of my medical bills yet? No. I have not had any income since January, Pat is working 6 days a week, to make up for this drastic change in our income, or mine lack of. In June I had my hernia repaired which has been an ordeal all in it self. Finally in July I start receiving social security again. For myself and the girls, now that Joseph is 18 I don't get anything for him. In August I figure out that workman's comp has denied my claim. I never got the denial letter in March! I have to file an appeal. Which drags everything even longer. Hearing was set for November, deposition in October. I met with a para legal who helped me by getting a hold of the worker comp rep who told her my case was compressible. I also get a letter from my neurologist who confirms that my back was not broken on Oct. 2010 when I last had an MRI, and clearly the fall in January caused the fracture. The deposition was horrible the lawyer wanted to know my whole life medical history. Near the end I started to cry. I just want the stupid medical bills paid. About a week goes by and he calls with a deal that workers comp will pay my bills and anything I have paid out of pocket. The hearing is canceled, thank goodness I so did not want to have to go to court. At the same time this is all happening Social Security decides that they would like the money they paid me while I was working and earning more than $1000 a month. Amazingly, someone who used to work for Social Security had just visited my bible study group and I was talking to someone else about the whole thing and she overheard, she suggested that I offer to pay a little each month, they usually agree to that and I won't have to get a line of credit or loan to pay them back. Pat went with me when we met my case worker. I offered to pay $50 a month and she agreed that would be fair, she had a copy of all our monthly bills so she knew how little money we have. Thank goodness that was over and settled fast. Thank God that woman came to bible study and got involved in the conversation. Back to workman's comp. The lawyer does write out a settlement in the middle of November. Which I have to agree with and have notarized. Then it went to the judge, and the judge approved it, and I get another letter from the lawyer agreeing with the judge I approve the settlement, and once again have to have notarized. Now it's December 18th and I am still getting bill collectors calls. Worker's comp should be paying off all those bills soon. And the around $500 Pat paid out on some of the bills will be reimbursed to us, by those places we paid. I can't believe it's been almost a year. The cold weather seems to affect the pain in my back. It hurts more now that it was. I also have to not do too much in the same day or I'm in loads of pain. Walking long distances and standing for a long time really hurt too. Pat is still working 6 days a week. We are still paying catch up on a lot of bills. I also had to apply for long term disability from the state, and they just started paying me $50. Which isn't a lot, but that is exactly the $50 we cut my social security. Thank you God for that blessing too!

Putting It All Together- a journey from January 4, 2011

January 4, 2011, I was working at a local elementary school and I took 2 students to lunch at 11:40 AM. One was a new student and one I had been working with for a semester already. Lunch did not go well, the new student is a six year old with multiple handicaps, He was not use to eating in a large cafeteria with many students. He could not feed himself, and what I did manage to put into his mouth he ate like an animal. He had raisins in his lunch I thought if I gave him a few at a time, like feeding a toddler he would be able to fed himself. He grabbed all that a put down and shoved them towards his mouth. More fell onto the floor and surrounding area than anywhere else. The other student that was with me was mad at me for giving all my attention to the other guy. When I was helping the second student I'll call C, the new student (K) grabbed at his messy noodles in some weird sauce and made a huge mess and I mean huge! It was unbelievable that I got him and the area cleaned up to go out side for recess. At 12:10 PM, as we were walking outside a teacher offered to assist me on the playground. After our wonderful lunch, I gladly said "yes". C had been swinging on the special "red" swing everyday during recess, prior to this day, he knew that's what he wanted to do. The new student would not do anything, and we (the teacher and I) were concerned that he might run away from us or throw sand. We moved C from the swing and K was very happy on the swing. C of course was upset. I felt badly for him. Beside the red swing is a regular child's swing. I first thought C might sit on my lap to swing, he is unable to use a regular child's swing developmentally. As soon as I sat down I knew that was a very bad idea. As I was steadying C on the soft turf and I was standing, I lost my balance because of the design of the soft turf ending and sand beginning design of the playground. I probably would not have fallen, but there was a student laying in the sand under the swings. I fell backwards onto my back because of his leg sticking out. I was in pain instantly. The teacher that was with me sees me in the sand and asks "am I OK?", "No" I respond. She asks if we need to call 911. Without giving it any thought I responded "YES!" I in the worst pain I have ever felt in my life, and I've had my share of painful things. The whole time I am on the sand the little boy is saying over and over, "I'm sorry my leg was there, I'm so sorry", did I mention he kept saying it over and over again. It was breaking my heart. I wanted to get up and tell him it's OK, I'll be alright, but I couldn't move to do that and it really hurt me not to be able to. The time 12:15 PM. I tried rolling onto my side trying to get relief from the pain. I'm not sure how much time it took for the paramedics to get there, it seemed like an eternity, with staff and students looking on. Luckily, the principal acted quickly and had the students return to their classrooms. When the paramedics got there, they rolled me on my back, ow, please don't touch me, but help me is all I'm thinking. They attempted several times to start an IV, so they can give me something for the pain. After failing to start one they shoved the needle with morfine in my arm, it didn't seem to help at all. They strap me on the gurney and start rolling towards the ambulance. I thought I was going to fall. One of the paramedics noticed I was uneasy said "you have a thousand straps holding you, your not going anywhere". I doubt it was a thousand! In the ambulance before we started going anywhere they wanted to get an IV going. After a few more attempts they got a poor one, but they got one. On the way to the hospital they had to give me oxygen because I wasn't breathing normally, a usual side affect they said of the pain medication. Time just seems to blurr quite a bit from this point on, I remember, my husband finally getting to the hospital, I remember someone wanting to cut my pants off, talking to a doctor, having a CT scan, 2 co-workers bringing me my purse and car keys, my in-laws stopping by for a few minutes, learning I was going to be admitted to the hospital, getting into the room at 11 PM. But really those 11 hours went by really fast, I really must have been drugged. I do not remember when they told me I had a compression fracture. The next day I had an MRI, and met with lots of different doctors. One wanted to fit me for a plastic brace, one wanted to put cement in my back with big needles, one was concerned that my blood levels were too high. I just did what they all wanted me to do, so I have this plastic binder that I brought home from the hospital that I have never worn, and don't even know how to put it on. I managed to get my blood levels normal enough to have a cement procedure. Two things that doctor didn't tell me is that I would be laying on my stomach while he did this, and I would be awake. I still would have done it, because he said that afterwards I would be pain free immediately, Sounded amazingly wonderful to me. He didn't tell me when I would have it done it either, he would just come get me when there was time, either Thursday afternoon, or Friday morning. Seems like I barely agreed to it, and he comes and takes me to the basement for the procedure. It seemed kinda scary going down to the basement, even though it was brightly lite, it was the basement, scary things happen in basements, I don't know why I had things like Frankenstein and weird labs were going through my head. It was very painful when the doctor is hammering into my back, maybe if I was wearing earplugs it wouldn't have seemed so bad, because then I couldn't hear what he was doing, I think I should suggest that to him. With each whack I just squeezed my eyes as tight as a could, at some point I thought "why are you not done yet"? The whole thing took less than an hour, but let me just say that when someone it whacking holes in your back, and sticking huge needles in those holes it seems a lot, a lot longer! That evening one of my co-workers brought me some beautiful flowers and visited with me for a long time. I was thinking any time now the pain will be gone. Not that night. Friday morning I woke up having horrible back spasms. Not pain free yet? Friday afternoon C's mom came to visit me. She was so glad I was OK, she felt horrible that I fell. He son had nothing to do with it. Yes, I helped him steady himself, which caused me to loose my balance, but really if the playground was design was better, and the other little boy wasn't laying under the swings, I probably wouldn't have fallen. I did learn that, I had not done such a wonderful job steadying C, because he also fell, but in an apposite direction of me. He was left bruised, down his leg. I felt terrible, I really cared about C a lot. Anyway back to no pain relief all day Friday, saw the doctor who did the procedure who said sometimes it takes a few days to get better. No! That's not what you lead me to believe before? Saturday morning they wanted to discharge me from the hospital, but I had to be able to walk 50 yards first. PT ordered a walker for me to use, and helped me get steady with it and walk the hallway. It took forever to walk 25 feet, the 25 feet back to my room didn't seems as far? My theory on that it for the first 25 feet, I had not idea where the stopping point was, all I see it a long hallway, and the not knowing when I could turn around made it seem much longer. The way back I felt a little bit more confident and I had the end in sight. Amazingly I showered on my own, for the first time in 4 days, and was dressing when my kids came to get me from the hospital. Coming up soon: recovery at home.

insurance, social security and hernia

It's been a rough day. I had to go do a deposition for the lawyer representing DVUSD. I was already emotional before I started because I do not like driving in unknown places looking for a building I've never been in before, and parking in a parking garage not knowing where the building is from were I parked, and hoping I'll be able to find my car again. I ended up being 15 minutes late :( I hated talking about all my medical issues with the lawyer, I fell at work it should not matter what else is wrong with me, or has been wrong with me since birth. I just feel like this whole thing is a joke from the insurance company (i.c.). I left crying. I'm sure they won't settle and I'll end up in court on November 2nd. The biggest issue seems to be that I never got the denial letter dated March 9th. I had been in contact with the insurance carrier all summer and when I finally learned I needed to appeal the denial is when the i.c. sent me a copy of the denial, some how I will have to convince the judge I did not receive the first notice. That is why I appealed later than 30 days. The claim should not have been denied in the first place and the i.c. told the lawyer I had this information on the phone. I told the lawyer this information this morning and showed him where she (my lawyer) wrote what the i.c. told her on my papers. The DVUSD lawyer is going to call the i.c. and verify this, he said he would call me back tomorrow, I hope he does, but I doubt he will, I'm sure days will go by before I hear from him. I was supposed to met with social security yesterday, only I got a letter on Friday that said, they would be closed on Monday, really it was a holiday and it took them to Friday to relive they would be closed? They wanted me to go in today to met with my case file worker, at the same time I had to be at the deposition. I left a message with them on Friday and today when I got home from the deposition, of course they did not call back, and the number listed on the contact info on the letter had a number that is no longer in service number, so I had to call an 800 number. I'm sure I'll get a letter tomorrow saying "where were you, and because you didn't come in we will decide your case" for you type letter. This makes me beyond crazy. Then to top off my afternoon, I saw the surgeon who did my hernia surgery in June. The area has not gone down since I saw her 8 weeks ago. Because it's trickier to just stick a needle in me and drain some fluid, because of the blood thinners, we decided I would wear the binder for 3 more months and re-check it, then go through the needle procedure. Even after she drains the fluid I will have to wear the binder. I am sick of the binder! Why can nothing be simple for me?