Window Shopper

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A few months ago, we acquired a new puppy. She was about 5 weeks old at the time and very active. As little as she was, she got into everything we left out. One day a couple of months later, we went out to go to the store. It took quite a while since we had several stops to make. And when we came home, there were things torn up all over the floor including a few things from the trash. Nothing seemed to be wrong so we cleaned up the trash and torn up things around the floor. Our puppy looked none the worse for wear. Our cat appeared to be nervous around the pup though. At this point, the cat was now smaller than the pup so it was no wonder the cat had gotten worried about our puppy.

Later that evening, I noticed some small bits of something that were about the same color as the carpet strewn around the floor. My memory clicked in to the fact that I had picked up a medicine bottle that she had chewed but I thought it was the one I had thrown away the day before. The small bits were actually a cholesterol med that I am taking. She had evidently chewed on several before we found the pills. We could not account for 7 of them. She was none the worse for wear but it could have been quite dangerous for her.

My advice is when you have medications, vitamins, diet pills or anything like that, put them up high so that a pet cannot get to them. See, we had been used to an older dog that knew better than to get into such things. The meds were in what we thought was a safe place. However, this puppy could go places you would not dream she could get to. We had to do some changing in our thinking. It would be no different than if you had a new baby in the house. When they get mobile, or even before they do, put meds in a place where they cannot be reached. I saw a blog today that suggested putting meds, OTC meds too, under lock and key. I agree even with pets. Do yourself, your family, your children and your pets a favor and put such items out of reach of little fingers and teeth.

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For those of you who do not take any type of meds, this will seem possibly trivial but for those of us who are on medications 24/7/365 it is a pain in the posterior and other places too. This has been a running problem for me for years. You go to the doctor, he/she gives you a prescription that, sadly, you have to take every day of the year.

The rub? Each and every prescription is written for a 30 day supply of medication. That’s great. Has anyone looked at a calendar lately? There are 4 months of the year that are 30 days long (April, June, September, November). There is one month that either has 28 or 29 depending on whether it’s a leap year or not (February). And there are 7 months of the year that are 31 days long (January, March, May, July, August, October, December). Clues anyone? Those are the months when you will find that you do not have enough medications to make it through that particular month. Why is this?

1) Because the doctors are not about to change it. They have done this for years and are not about to stop it.

2) Because the government, in it’s ridiculously infinite wisdom (Laughing so hard she falls to the floor laughing hysterically), has decided that they are not going to pay for medications for more than 30 days at a time. Never mind that it is going to hurt people. It’s just done that way.

3) Because the drug companies like it that way. No known reason other than it’s always been that way. Got any ideas why they would want it that way?

4) Because the insurance companies are not about to pay for more than 30 days at a time.

The reality is that for 7 months of the year, I am coming up short on the medicines I take because most of the months are 31 days. I am not alone in this. And people on Social Security are hit particularly hard with this. I should know. The government, as in Part D insurance, will NOT allow anyone to get their meds early, no matter what. I have run into that several times now. And in effect, I have lost 7 days of the year on medications. Now, the doctor requires me to take them every day of the year but he doesn’t apparently feel the need to write a prescription for every day of the year. Even if he did, the government would not allow me to have it before the day it’s due to be renewed. Well, I have gotten it a couple of days ahead. There is not a lot of leeway there.

How about some sanity here. Doctors, government, insurance companies….GET A CLUE!!!! People on lifelong prescriptions, I realize that this is not an earth shaking problem but it is a problem. It needs to be addressed. Call or write your congressperson about this. This is insane! And really, really stupid.

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