the next step

[kitanzi]

People may well be sick of my ongoing medical crap - I certainly am - so be aware that's what's behind the cut tag.



The bad news - $20 copay per visit, two visits per week, and the insurance company is saying four weeks, plus the therapist agrees that if it's a bone spur this won't do any good. However, he's familiar with the insurance company and agrees that they do this all the time, and there's not much point in fighting it.

The good news - he's not stupid, and volunteered the information that if this didn't appear to be providing any relief in a couple of weeks worth of appointments then he would send an official note to my doctor to give the insurance company saying so.

So, the upshot is that it may turn out to be a waste of time and money after all, but I was probably just as well not fighting tooth and nail with the insurance company on it, and it will be cut short if it does prove to be so. The PT guy is also very nice, though he seemed very tired and not much sense of humor. On the other hand, I overheard a bit of conversation suggesting he had already worked 12 hours by the time I got there! I think I'd be much less pleasant under those circumstances. It was a first appointment, so it was mostly evaluation, ultrasound and passive movement (he seems oddly impressed with just how screwed up it is - kept saying "This is a bad shoulder." "This is an unhappy shoulder." No kidding... I'm an unhappy shoulderuser.) So this the shape of my weeks for the next few. I also have exercises for at home again, and repeated admonishments to not strain it and use ice a lot. Pretty much what I already knew. *sigh*

Comments

[gingicat]

*hugs you gently* I hope it provides at least a little relief in the interim.

[kitanzi.livejournal.com]

I hope so too... I also got another cortisone shot Tuesday, and it's helping a bit though less so than the first time around. I'm hoping that doesn't mean this has become less a question of inflammation and more a question of scar tissue, but it very well may. Still, if so, the surgery would take care of that too. *shrug - in PT approved fashion!*

[filkerdave.livejournal.com]

*hugs*

[teddywolf.livejournal.com]

*gentle woolfhug*

[catalana.livejournal.com]

Best of luck with it - I'm glad you got a reasonable therapist, even if it doesn't look like it'll do a lot of good. *gentle hug*

[deborah_c]

I'm glad it's at least starting out along the path to getting sorted out! Lots of hugs...

[celticdragonfly.livejournal.com]

Yeek. Do therapy twice a week, do all these exercises, but don't strain it. I'm reminded that I need to feel grateful that I'm recovering from surgery!

Good luck getting through this.

[kitanzi.livejournal.com]

I will assuredly do every damn thing the PT tells me to, promise. Did you have a similar condition, or something different for your surgery?

[celticdragonfly.livejournal.com]

Coccydynia, leading to a coccygectomy.

http://www.livejournal.com/users/celticdragonfly/tag/coccyx tells the story from the bottom up.

[kitanzi.livejournal.com]

OUCH - for both the tailbone pain and the awful pun! (Actually it's a very good pun. Was it intentional?)

[celticdragonfly.livejournal.com]

Um.

/spends a couple of days trying to get the chutzpah to claim "why of COURSE it was intentional! I'm brilliant like that."

/fails, due to innate honesty.

But after having something like this, and having heard and said SO many of this kind of pun, it's easy to do it subconsciously.

[bardling.livejournal.com]

*hugs*
Wishing you all the best with this - and soon...

[atalantapendrag.livejournal.com]

*hug*

Damn insurance companies...

I'm glad the PT guy is nice, at least.

[kitanzi.livejournal.com]

Yep, though I expect he'll turn cheerfully sadistic once we get to doing more advanced exercises in the office. That's part of the job description, after all.

[autographedcat.livejournal.com]

Damn insurance companies...

Stupid tannins....

[kitanzi.livejournal.com]

Is this going to become another catchphrase? *G*

[poltr1]

Yeah, it sucks boulders that insurance companies call the shots in health care now. Let the doctor or the PT guy duke it out with 'em.

[annonynous.livejournal.com]

'they do this all the time, and there's not much point in fighting it.'

[refrains from obvious rant on U. S. health care system]

'he would send an official note to my doctor to give the insurance company saying so.'

Let us hope The Wheels of Insurance don't grind too slowly.

'kept saying "This is a bad shoulder." "This is an unhappy shoulder." ...'

That's sort of what the repair guy said when our fridge went on the fritz a while back. The roofer may
have been saying the same thing when he was stapling tarps onto our roof earlier this week. Oh, the
fridge repair guy also thanked us for the privilege of working on such a fine, old appliance. [gd&rmf]

"use ice a lot"

Do you have any of those cold packs you put in the freezer and use in coolers? They might be less
messy / cumbersome than actual ice in an ice pack.

Sigh. At least there's some good news about your shoulder. Seems not to be the season for good news.

Ann O.

[kitanzi.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I have one of those refreezable ice packs which is a real life saver. It's even good for taking along to work. ACat just told me from the Massfilc mailing list that Lois had another surgery on her foot? Good god... I hope she's recovering well. (I unsubbed from that a while ago, so I hadn't seen, sorry!) Please give her careful hugs for me?

[annonynous.livejournal.com]

Done, and please thank Autographed Doc for letting you know.

Ann

PS - Want any of the snow that's falling up here? :(