When you don't expect a phone call to keep you updated because you know that not everything is in yet, it seems like you get unnecessary updates all the time. But, when you are anxiously waiting by the phone to hear that you got the final approval, it seems like forever before that call ever comes!
I waited all week and never heard anything. So finally on Sunday, I shot our Animas rep an email asking if they have heard from the insurance company yet. I wasn't really expecting to hear anything back, but this afternoon my phone rang and my caller ID showed "Animas Pump Company"! I didn't get too excited because I expected Nick to be calling to say that he got my email but has not heard from the insurance yet.
There are times when I love being wrong! They were calling to say that we have our final approval and we can get everything set up so that they can ship the pump out! I am beyond excited!
Ellee seems to finally be on board with this new concept! She has asked me a few different times about when we'll get it. I know that it will be a rough first few months, change is always rough, but she is a such a strong person and adapts so well. Diagnosis was rough and getting use to the shots. Then we got use to the shots and transitioned over to Pens instead of syringes. Change is always scary, but some times change is for the better! We like the pens, but the time has come to move onto the next step in order to get tighter control!
Now to call the doctors office and set up our next appointment for them so that we can start using this thing!
Monday, September 12, 2011
Friday, September 2, 2011
First Day of School
After the horror stories I've heard and read about schools not being very cooperative in dealing with diabetes routines and treatments, I was nervous to send Ellee to school last year. That fear quickly melted away after meeting with the school nurse and other staff. I can't say enough about how impressed I was with everyone there! Knowing that Ellee was being taken care off made it easy to prepare for school this year.
What I wasn't prepared for was sending Dani to preschool! She was ready for it, and she needs it. She is also an independent girl and it's good for her to get out for a few hours to do things on her own, instead of being a tag along for Ellee's things. I will admit that it was unusual to just to fill out school papers and medical forms without attachments of additional instructions that is required for T1D!
But school went great for both girls! I had to drop Ellee off along with all of her medical supplies. It was so neat to see all the excitement and energy of all the teachers and students!
At lunch, I met Grandma & Dani at preschool. I was sure that it would be a fight to get Dani out of the car, but nope, she grabbed her book bag and was ready to go in! Everything was fine until we got to the classroom. I think for the first time in her life she was nervous! She didn't get clingy and she didn't cry, she just kind of stood there like she didn't know what she was suppose to do. I took her over to put her supplies in her box, then Mrs. M told her to get a toy and have a seat at one of the tables. As she looked around for a table toy, Mom and I stepped out.
In a few hours it was time to get Dani from preschool, then home to wait for Ellee to get off the bus! Dani was so excited to see me, gave me a big hug then said "Mommy, guess what?! I behaved!!!" I asked what they did today and she pulled off her book bag to pull out the picture she drew! Then she told me all about the snack they had! I love the excitement, I just wish I could bottle it so that it lasts throughout the whole year!
We waited for Ellee to get home, so that we could run up to Lima to pick up her new glasses. I was disheartened to hear that her right eye was getting weak, but I knew that these new glasses should help her out tremendously. As Ellee got off the bus, Dani ran out to greet her as if it had been years since they last saw each other! Nothing will bring a kid down faster from the "first day of school" high than telling them that we are going to go get her new glasses. I hate when she complains about wearing glasses, but I know that wearing them will only help in the long run. After they were adjusted to her, I think she realized how much they help her out, even though she won't admit it!
What I wasn't prepared for was sending Dani to preschool! She was ready for it, and she needs it. She is also an independent girl and it's good for her to get out for a few hours to do things on her own, instead of being a tag along for Ellee's things. I will admit that it was unusual to just to fill out school papers and medical forms without attachments of additional instructions that is required for T1D!
But school went great for both girls! I had to drop Ellee off along with all of her medical supplies. It was so neat to see all the excitement and energy of all the teachers and students!
At lunch, I met Grandma & Dani at preschool. I was sure that it would be a fight to get Dani out of the car, but nope, she grabbed her book bag and was ready to go in! Everything was fine until we got to the classroom. I think for the first time in her life she was nervous! She didn't get clingy and she didn't cry, she just kind of stood there like she didn't know what she was suppose to do. I took her over to put her supplies in her box, then Mrs. M told her to get a toy and have a seat at one of the tables. As she looked around for a table toy, Mom and I stepped out.
In a few hours it was time to get Dani from preschool, then home to wait for Ellee to get off the bus! Dani was so excited to see me, gave me a big hug then said "Mommy, guess what?! I behaved!!!" I asked what they did today and she pulled off her book bag to pull out the picture she drew! Then she told me all about the snack they had! I love the excitement, I just wish I could bottle it so that it lasts throughout the whole year!
We waited for Ellee to get home, so that we could run up to Lima to pick up her new glasses. I was disheartened to hear that her right eye was getting weak, but I knew that these new glasses should help her out tremendously. As Ellee got off the bus, Dani ran out to greet her as if it had been years since they last saw each other! Nothing will bring a kid down faster from the "first day of school" high than telling them that we are going to go get her new glasses. I hate when she complains about wearing glasses, but I know that wearing them will only help in the long run. After they were adjusted to her, I think she realized how much they help her out, even though she won't admit it!
Almost There
If the customer service after we get this pump is half as good as the customer service we are getting now, then I will be thrilled! Our rep from Animas has been amazing at keeping us updated on our application progress! He has called me to keep me in the loop even when there hasn't been any new news, which is something that I never would have expected!
Monday (the 22nd) was our quarterly Endo appointment, as well as the day that Grandpa had his open heart surgery from a heart attack he suffered on Wed, the 17th. I was hoping to hear something before we had to go to Dublin for our appointment, but he wasn't out before we had to leave. With being nervous about my Dad's surgery and the hassle and disappointed we had with this whole pump process, I'll be honest that I was ready to lay it all out there with the doctor about how I honestly felt about it all. I did not expect this appointment to go so well.
I guess it just goes to show that when you expect the worst, when things go better than that, it's a pleasant surprise and puts you in a good mood! The nurse started off by telling me that they signed and faxed (with confirmation) the pump paperwork over a week ago and even pulled up the paper to show me! I really wasn't expecting that, but it would explain why the insurance company went ahead and released the information. I made a call to Nick and left him a message that they have already sent the approval over but were more than willing to resend it if he would give them a call on Tuesday morning.
I was ready for the doctor to give me a hard time about us being ready for the pump, but instead, she addressed the multiple lows we were having. Her A1C was still higher than they would like, but it dropped from the last visit. I was very disheartened to hear that this number was till high, I thought our control has been better and most of her meter readings have been within range, if not on the lower range of the scale. I can't help but think that this is one of the many reasons that we are ready for a pump.
After the appointment, I called Uncle Jason to find out that Grandpa came out of surgery and they said he did very well!
Part of the appeal of this doctors appointment was that I told the girls that we would pick out their backpacks after we were done. It's so hard to give them complete control to pick something out when you aren't that fond of their choice! That is the main reason I waited for backpacks till I made it back to Target with the girls, because I was not fond of all the bags that I found around Lima. But the girls did good, Ellee picked out a purple bag with butterflies and an orange kitty (with matching lunch box), and Dani picked out a "Hello Kitten" bag. And no, it's not "Hello Kitty", she was quick to correct that it's "Hello Kitten"!
It was late when we left Columbus and I can't say that I was surprised that both girls fell asleep. It was a very hectic, and emotional day.
Monday (the 22nd) was our quarterly Endo appointment, as well as the day that Grandpa had his open heart surgery from a heart attack he suffered on Wed, the 17th. I was hoping to hear something before we had to go to Dublin for our appointment, but he wasn't out before we had to leave. With being nervous about my Dad's surgery and the hassle and disappointed we had with this whole pump process, I'll be honest that I was ready to lay it all out there with the doctor about how I honestly felt about it all. I did not expect this appointment to go so well.
I guess it just goes to show that when you expect the worst, when things go better than that, it's a pleasant surprise and puts you in a good mood! The nurse started off by telling me that they signed and faxed (with confirmation) the pump paperwork over a week ago and even pulled up the paper to show me! I really wasn't expecting that, but it would explain why the insurance company went ahead and released the information. I made a call to Nick and left him a message that they have already sent the approval over but were more than willing to resend it if he would give them a call on Tuesday morning.
I was ready for the doctor to give me a hard time about us being ready for the pump, but instead, she addressed the multiple lows we were having. Her A1C was still higher than they would like, but it dropped from the last visit. I was very disheartened to hear that this number was till high, I thought our control has been better and most of her meter readings have been within range, if not on the lower range of the scale. I can't help but think that this is one of the many reasons that we are ready for a pump.
After the appointment, I called Uncle Jason to find out that Grandpa came out of surgery and they said he did very well!
Part of the appeal of this doctors appointment was that I told the girls that we would pick out their backpacks after we were done. It's so hard to give them complete control to pick something out when you aren't that fond of their choice! That is the main reason I waited for backpacks till I made it back to Target with the girls, because I was not fond of all the bags that I found around Lima. But the girls did good, Ellee picked out a purple bag with butterflies and an orange kitty (with matching lunch box), and Dani picked out a "Hello Kitten" bag. And no, it's not "Hello Kitty", she was quick to correct that it's "Hello Kitten"!
It was late when we left Columbus and I can't say that I was surprised that both girls fell asleep. It was a very hectic, and emotional day.
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Making progress
I've given up hope on getting an insulin pump before school starts because I'm 99% sure the doctor won't sign off on it before we meet with her on the 22nd. After the last conversation with the pump rep, Nick, he said the insurance company was at a stand still because they needed the doctor's approval before they would even look at numbers.
The bad thing about my office is that my cell phone reception isn't the greatest. I did manage to set up an appointment with Ellee's new teacher to go over my "plan of action" for managing her T1D while at school. Shortly afterwards, I get a phone call that for some reason my phone drops, but does send it to voice mail!
It was another rep from the pump company telling me that they were able to get the cost information from the insurance company and wanted to share the cost break down with me! Really?!?! I immediately called back only to get his voice mail, so I'm anxiously playing phone tag with him!
I'm nervous and excited at the same time! I'm sure this will be quite a bit of out of pocket cost, but it will be worth it. You make sacrifices for your kids and this is no exception! And thank goodness for Health Savings Accounts!
The bad thing about my office is that my cell phone reception isn't the greatest. I did manage to set up an appointment with Ellee's new teacher to go over my "plan of action" for managing her T1D while at school. Shortly afterwards, I get a phone call that for some reason my phone drops, but does send it to voice mail!
It was another rep from the pump company telling me that they were able to get the cost information from the insurance company and wanted to share the cost break down with me! Really?!?! I immediately called back only to get his voice mail, so I'm anxiously playing phone tag with him!
I'm nervous and excited at the same time! I'm sure this will be quite a bit of out of pocket cost, but it will be worth it. You make sacrifices for your kids and this is no exception! And thank goodness for Health Savings Accounts!
School Prep
It's hard to schedule doctor appointments 3 or 6 months in advance because you just don't know what is going to be going on. I lucked out with both the Dentist and Endo and happen to schedule them before school started. Okay, by the skin of my teeth I lucked out on the Endo appointment because it's 2 days before school starts! Since I was taking the day off of work for the dentist, may as well try to schedule Ellee's eye exam for the same day.
The girls have been running fevers off and on all last week with no other symptoms. I figured Dani's was from her teeth, and even felt around to confirm it, but it didn't explain why Ellee was the same way. To my surprise, the hygienist that worked on the girls informed me that Ellee is cutting her 6 year molars! And just when I thought I thought I was done with teething kids, I was proven wrong! But it's exciting to see that the girls keep growing up before my eyes!
We had to wait for Dr. Dan to finish up with another patient so he could check Dani, and needless to say, the girls got a little rambunctious, and goofy!
Before heading over to our afternoon appointment with the eye doctor, we went to Ellee's new favorite place to eat... Cracker Barrel! I think it's only because she loves playing checkers!
The eye doctors was a mad house when we got there! Very busy and it was going to be a few minutes before they got to us. I had Ellee look at frames and see if there was one that she liked. She was acting very sleepy, so I had to check her sugar to make sure she wasn't low (160, so she was just tired).
The eye exam didn't go so well. I could tell during the initial check of reading the chart that she obviously was struggling with her right eye. After Dr. D finished up, she showed me the results and it made my heart sink. Her right eye doubled the script strength and was becoming lazy. She wants us to patch her left eye once a day for the next six months to see if that strengthens it any.
Is this diabetes related, or just bad luck in the genetic draw? I don't know. I'd like to think that if it were the diabetes, that it would effect both eyes, not just the one. At this point, I guess it doesn't matter. What matters is to work on it and try to prevent any further damage.
I'm glad I had her pick out a pair of glasses before we saw the doctor. We had to wait our turn to order the glasses, and both the girls were obviously tired. Dani tried to curl up in a chair and fall asleep, but I was afraid, she'd roll off and Ellee was already curled up in my lap. I adjusted Ellee over to one leg and had Dani crawl up onto my other leg. Both girls fell asleep with their heads on my chest and were out! I did get quite a few "awwww!!!"s. It was a great feeling to have both girls snuggled up against me sleeping, I just wish we were at home in our chair and I was able to kick back and take a nap with them!
The gal that ordered our glasses for us was great! She was very sympathetic and told me that I could sit there and let them sleep as long as I wanted to. She did everything she needed to do on her end before she needed Ellee away to take measurements.
2 appointments down, one more to go!
The girls have been running fevers off and on all last week with no other symptoms. I figured Dani's was from her teeth, and even felt around to confirm it, but it didn't explain why Ellee was the same way. To my surprise, the hygienist that worked on the girls informed me that Ellee is cutting her 6 year molars! And just when I thought I thought I was done with teething kids, I was proven wrong! But it's exciting to see that the girls keep growing up before my eyes!
We had to wait for Dr. Dan to finish up with another patient so he could check Dani, and needless to say, the girls got a little rambunctious, and goofy!
Before heading over to our afternoon appointment with the eye doctor, we went to Ellee's new favorite place to eat... Cracker Barrel! I think it's only because she loves playing checkers!
The eye doctors was a mad house when we got there! Very busy and it was going to be a few minutes before they got to us. I had Ellee look at frames and see if there was one that she liked. She was acting very sleepy, so I had to check her sugar to make sure she wasn't low (160, so she was just tired).
The eye exam didn't go so well. I could tell during the initial check of reading the chart that she obviously was struggling with her right eye. After Dr. D finished up, she showed me the results and it made my heart sink. Her right eye doubled the script strength and was becoming lazy. She wants us to patch her left eye once a day for the next six months to see if that strengthens it any.
Is this diabetes related, or just bad luck in the genetic draw? I don't know. I'd like to think that if it were the diabetes, that it would effect both eyes, not just the one. At this point, I guess it doesn't matter. What matters is to work on it and try to prevent any further damage.
I'm glad I had her pick out a pair of glasses before we saw the doctor. We had to wait our turn to order the glasses, and both the girls were obviously tired. Dani tried to curl up in a chair and fall asleep, but I was afraid, she'd roll off and Ellee was already curled up in my lap. I adjusted Ellee over to one leg and had Dani crawl up onto my other leg. Both girls fell asleep with their heads on my chest and were out! I did get quite a few "awwww!!!"s. It was a great feeling to have both girls snuggled up against me sleeping, I just wish we were at home in our chair and I was able to kick back and take a nap with them!
The gal that ordered our glasses for us was great! She was very sympathetic and told me that I could sit there and let them sleep as long as I wanted to. She did everything she needed to do on her end before she needed Ellee away to take measurements.
2 appointments down, one more to go!
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Still Waiting
If the customer service after you get a pump is anything like their customer service during the application process, then I believe that we made the right choice to go with the Ping! Yesterday afternoon, the Animas rep called me just to touch base!
I wasn't expecting a call any time soon since I forewarned him that the doctor was probably going to drag her feet until we meet with her on the 22nd. But he called to let me know that the insurance won't take any paperwork until they have the doctor's paperwork. That means that they won't figure up how much they will cover and what our co-pay is yet. I'm disappointed by this because I was hoping that if we could get everything covered on the insurance end and in place, then when the doctor signs off, we could get the pump that much sooner... but no dice.
I think Ellee is starting to come around to the idea of the pump. She knows that we can do away with the Lantus shots which she wants more than anything. While we can't get it through to her that it's less shots and less pain, I think she's starting to process it a little bit. I don't expect that to come right away since it took me a while to accept it. But I'm hoping that once we are on this for a month or two, that she will realize that this is all for the better.
In the mean time, it looks like it will be a week and a half wait till our doctors appointment before anyone can take the next step.
I wasn't expecting a call any time soon since I forewarned him that the doctor was probably going to drag her feet until we meet with her on the 22nd. But he called to let me know that the insurance won't take any paperwork until they have the doctor's paperwork. That means that they won't figure up how much they will cover and what our co-pay is yet. I'm disappointed by this because I was hoping that if we could get everything covered on the insurance end and in place, then when the doctor signs off, we could get the pump that much sooner... but no dice.
I think Ellee is starting to come around to the idea of the pump. She knows that we can do away with the Lantus shots which she wants more than anything. While we can't get it through to her that it's less shots and less pain, I think she's starting to process it a little bit. I don't expect that to come right away since it took me a while to accept it. But I'm hoping that once we are on this for a month or two, that she will realize that this is all for the better.
In the mean time, it looks like it will be a week and a half wait till our doctors appointment before anyone can take the next step.
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
A little closer!
I can't explain how excited I am right now! I just had an Animas Pump Rep call me! I submitted the paperwork Friday before I left work to get the ball rolling and didn't really expect to hear anything till the end of the week.
I'm still not holding my breath, but he said every thing looked good so far! They have to check with the insurance company about a program to see if we are enrolled, and they have paperwork that has been submitted to the Endo's office.
That's where I'm not holding my breath. I've not had to make as many phone calls to the Endo's office over the entire 2 1/2 years since Ellee was diagnosed as I have in the past 3 months dealing with this insulin pump. The pump rep told me that he had to wait to hear back from the doctor's office, so I briefly explained that if he gets it in a few days, great, but I wouldn't be surprised if Dr. C holds off on it till she sees us on August 22. I'd love to get into the office with a pump before school starts, but knowing my luck nothing will happen that fast.
Never the less, I am still excited! I know the first few months will be rough, but I hope that by Thanksgiving or Christmas Ellee will realize how much better this is than our current "Daily Injection Therapy".
I'm still not holding my breath, but he said every thing looked good so far! They have to check with the insurance company about a program to see if we are enrolled, and they have paperwork that has been submitted to the Endo's office.
That's where I'm not holding my breath. I've not had to make as many phone calls to the Endo's office over the entire 2 1/2 years since Ellee was diagnosed as I have in the past 3 months dealing with this insulin pump. The pump rep told me that he had to wait to hear back from the doctor's office, so I briefly explained that if he gets it in a few days, great, but I wouldn't be surprised if Dr. C holds off on it till she sees us on August 22. I'd love to get into the office with a pump before school starts, but knowing my luck nothing will happen that fast.
Never the less, I am still excited! I know the first few months will be rough, but I hope that by Thanksgiving or Christmas Ellee will realize how much better this is than our current "Daily Injection Therapy".
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