About 7 months ago, my husband (then fiance), Chris, and I packed our bags and moved clear across the country from Orange County, CA, to Philadelphia, PA. He started pharmacy school this past fall.
Moving here has been a challenge, to say the least. We live in a 320-square-foot studio (temporarily, for a year), and it’s basically a glorified dorm room. I’m talkin’ mini-fridge, two-burner stove, no oven, tiny sink with no garbage disposal, etc. It’s been especially a challenge for me because I LOVE being in the kitchen and whipping up meals, so I’ve gotten really creative without an oven to work with (or much space, for that matter).
Because of this, we ate out a lot, which surprise surprise made by blood sugars go INSANE. I’d be 260+ one hour, and three hours be in the 50s. It drove me nuts, and it still happens. The food here is definitely different than in California, and I had major issues counting carbs for an accurate bolus.
Add planning a wedding in the mix, and well, let’s just say I kind of strayed off path for a few months. Diabetes burnout, they call it.
On January 10, 2009, I married my best friend in a church in Newport Beach, CA. I even posted here a few times asking people for advice on where to put my OmniPod (I settled on my upper thigh, held down by the infamous Spanx, and all went well). Our wedding day flew by, and the next day, we were back in Philly, honeymoon on hold because Chris has classes the Monday after and I didn’t have enough vacation time from my new job.
Three months later, my blood sugars are still whack (my most recent A1C, taken about a month ago, is 6.9…good, but I want to get it lower). I’ll wake up sometimes at 3am and be in the 40s. One time Chris even had to wake me up-- he woke up during the night and realized my side of the blanket was soaked in sweat. My bg was somewhere in the 30s. I’ve been so up and down during the day that I’ve taken to carrying a jug of glucose tablets in my messenger bag; those 10-tab packs won’t get me through anymore!
Right now, it’s open enrollment with my work’s health insurance plan. It’s getting me thinking about switching insurance plans (from a POS to an HMO; I’ll explain in a bit). I work for a university, so my medical benefits are generally very, VERY good. I’m thinking about asking my endocrinologist about getting on a CGM to catch my lows before I land in the ER or something. The Dexcom Seven Plus looks interesting to me, but I’m open to other options (read: it depends what my insurance covers).
Regarding switching, both the POS and HMO plans are covered by Keystone Health Plan East. The POS covers durable medical equipment at 90% after meeting the $100 deductible. The HMO covers it at 100%, given that it’s medically necessary and after a pre-approval process. The pre-approval process scares me, as I’ve heard stories of people doing up to third-level appeals (!!!) to get their supplies.
Switching would save Chris and me about $70 a month in premiums, but if $70 eliminates the headache of appeals and jumping through flaming hoops, I’ll gladly fork that over. Chris is relatively healthy, thank God, so all this switching and headache would be for me. I’m thinking, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it…but 100% coverage on durable medical equipemtn is VERY tempting. I’m not sure what CGM brands Keystone covers, or if they even cover CGMs, but I don’t want to run into any roadblocks with this. Next month, I’ll be hitting my 16-year-anniversary (1-year-anniversary with the OmniPod on April 30!). I figure, anniversaries call for presents and celebration; why not try and get a CGM for the milestone? LOL
I have no idea who reads my blog here, but umm…what do you guys think about this whole insurance switch thing?
good luck if you ever do decide to tell your current significant other or future ones!