The state of things today

 

This picture may not mean much to you, but I actually felt the need to snap it because it's the first time in many many months that I *almost* have all the right dosages of my medicines. I feel like this is the perfect image to represent just how messed up things are right now, and I know it's not just me.

We should play pandemic Bingo. The free space in the center says "you've had something cancelled", since that's happened to every single one of us. Maybe there's a space for delta and omicron. At lot more of us could put a chip on omicron, right? Ate a meal in your car?  Showed up at a store or restaurant only to find it closed at a very normal time and day? Something costs twice what it used to? My favorite right now would be a space that says "had to go to 3 different stores to find something basic like noodles". 

I think we'd all have a blackout game. So many things are rough right now. I remember when I first started blogging about the pandemic I only could guess at what some of the ripple effects would be. You can't just stop the world and then get it back going again apparently. 

I guess I'm just wanting to put some of this 'on record'. Something to look back on. There were some moments where it felt like things were getting back to normal, but it really never has. The story of my medicine really stems from pandemic related problems. We got here and established care with my PCM, which i was already at the point of needing refills by the time I even got that first appointment. Since then it's been a battle to get the right medicines and the right dosages due to mistakes, long wait times between appointments and referrals going through. All paperwork is SLOW due to everyone being understaffed. I got some of my meds the first time and then when it was time for another refill my PCM had quit. They didn't tell me until I called and asked why my refill wasn't being processed. The only way to get my medicines (while still waiting for my first appt with the pulmonologist) was to go to an urgent care... filled with people testing for covid. The urgent care doc put in for all of my meds, and then the pharmacy was out of stock of half of them! What? Before I knew it it was January and I finally got to see a pulmonologist who promptly fixed my antibiotic meds, but i still don't have a PCM who can fill all of my other meds. Ugh. I'm getting closer!

Have you had similar woes with every day things? We even had to take our dog to the vet for an urgent visit and I called our vet's office on base and they don't have any doctors in for month. That makes NO sense! Then you wonder if they're sick, or if somewhere else was so understaffed that they got pulled there to help. It's just really been a wild and bumpy ride that no one gave us dramamine for so I'm nauseated and want to get off. We might just have to get used to the ride...