Medication and other things

A pretty Teton Valley sunrise

A pretty Teton Valley resident at Grand Targhee

I have to tell you all that the last week as been awful. I decreased my hydrocortisone too much immediately post race. I also messed up when filling my med trays and put in half the amount of Florinef I needed. Why this happened, I don't know, Brain Fog?? Within a few days of the Vineman, I decreased my HC from 25 to 22.5 mg/day. Decreasing that much post big effort was too much. Usually I let myself feel bad for a day or two and then I increase my HC. OR by the third day I get so out of it that I forget to increase my HC entirely and wonder why the heck I can't focus on anything and why I feel so bad!!! I increased by 10 mg/day for 2 days and then 5 mg for a day. I'm staying at 25 mg/day until well after my next race, a 50 mile foot race at Grand Targhee on September 1, 2007.

I have a couple of suggestions for anyone who feels bad that wants to feel better:

• Sleep consistently at normal hours. For example, go to bed every night at 10 pm and awaken at 6 am.
• Take meds at consistent times EVERY DAY, even weekends! Take AM dose of HC at the same time every morning. Try taking morning HC 30 minutes before getting out of bed if your stomach can handle it. You'll be surprised at how much more alert you'll be when you get out of bed.
• Eat well and eat regularly. Eat healthy foods.
• Don't drink too much alcohol.
• Exercise if you can. Exercise consistently. If you can walk to the end of your driveway, try to do it consistently. Set a goal to walk a little further the next week, if you can.

Insurance & Medication Questions

Do you have answers to the questions below? If so, please scroll down to the bottom of this post and comment. Go ahead and comment anonymously if you'd like to. I'd love to hear some opinions about this topic.

I don't know how sick people keep track of insurance claims. As a relatively healthy person who has to visit the doctor regularly, it can be overwhelming. It seems that the insurance companies are out to screw the patient as often as possible. It starts with making contacting them by phone difficult by not providing the phone number on the correspondence. Once you do contact them, you get a confusing phone menu. When you finally contact a person, you are transferred to a supervisor! How does someone who is very ill or very old navigate the maze of insurance companies when he/she has a problem?!

I don't get it.

Same goes for the medications. Why are some drugs reimbursed for men and not for women? Testosterone is a good example. Why is compounding not covered by some medical plans? For some of us, compounded creams are a better choice for a drug we will have to take for the rest of our lives to it doesn't have to pass through the liver. Some of us have plenty of drugs that have to pass through our livers for the rest of our lives (hydrocortisone, florinef, levoxyl)! Why are so many pills white and little?

Pictures

I've had some crappy days. My body's tired from the Vineman. In an effort to rest, I didn't run 3 of the last 4 days. It stinks but it's the best I could do! The day I did run, I napped 3 hours during the day. I haven't taken a nap in 6 months! I must have needed it.

Paul on Cold Springs Trail in the rain on Saturday

Me on Cold Springs Trail in the rain on Saturday

The aftermath of running in the rain

Dolly the Wonderdog. Picture taken by Zane the super photographer


Dolly needs glasses

A smoky Idaho sunset