Friday

Today is dedicated to car maintenance and groceries.
I had an oil change, which also lead to brake pads replaced. Then went shopping at Sprouts Market for some things I can't get at home.

What I ate today:
Rosuvastatin 5mg
Letrozole 2.5mg
2 cups coffee
Ocuvite multivitamin
one 600mg Calcium + D3 10 mcg (400 IU) supplement
1 cup oatmeal + dried cranberries
toast with almond butter and jelly (310 calories)
salmon + avocado roll (450 calories) (26g protein)

24 oz water

8:30 AM weight: 110.7 lbs

Fit app: afternoon walk
Heart Points
miles

thursday

Woke up to the smell of the first firing-up of the heater in the house.
It is 51 degrees outside this morning. The forecast high today is 71 degrees. Welcome, Autumn.

There is a medical webinar on Webinar on Sleep and Cardiovascular Disease that I plan to watch this evening at 6:00pm.
There are two other public events at art galleries tonight that I would enjoy a lot more - one just around the corner and one in Winston-Salem - but it all depends on how I feel about showing up alone and leaving the house with disapproval from MonsterMustDie. He has no interest in being around people and, although he does not forbid me from going out alone, he definitely kills any ambition I have very effectively. Maybe I can convince him to go out with me.

The rest of my day is empty.
I really need to find a job or side-gig that will work with my medical schedule and allow me some social activity + income.
I'm not quite to the point of having time to schedule a regular gig but I think I will be as soon as I get past the Endoscopic Ultrasound I have scheduled mid-October. Then, it should be just a couple of 6-month check ups to monitor things and I hope to keep progressing in physical therapy to where all I need to do is daily maintenance.

What I ate today:
Rosuvastatin 5mg
Letrozole 2.5mg
Ocuvite multivitamin
two 600mg Calcium + D3 10 mcg (400 IU) supplement
2 cups coffee
Amy's Brown Rice + Black-eyed Peas bowl (300 calories) (9g protein)
3 oz rotisserie chicken (156 calories) (24g protein)
Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Almond Butter Cups (210 calories)
Yellowtail + avocado roll (215 calories)
2 pieces Smelt Fish Roe (Masago) (82 calories)
1 cup chamomile lavendar herbal tea

48 oz water

Fit app: afternoon walk
30 Heart Points
1.78 miles

10:15 AM weight: 110.5 lbs

Had a deep ache start in my right hip at 9:05 AM. Seemed to be already faded by 9:10 AM. All I was doing was standing upright, watching YouTube while eating breakfast.

Wednesday

I had a physical therapy appointment with Kevin this morning. I needed to ask him about my schedule before I left because I had to go online to schedule this appointment. He was going to have someone at the front desk check and schedule my next appointment but she was out and no one knew what time she was coming back. Kevin had asked her to phone me back to schedule and I never got a call so I had to schedule it myself, which seems fine but I need to know what he wants to do going forward on my therapy appointments. He said we will re-evaluate next week and figure out where to go from here.
I had a good session with a PA who is actuall a High Point University student. I asked him about pro-bono physical therapy at HPU and he assured me that I could probably qualify for it. I had thought it would be only for sports-related medicine.

What I ate today:
2 cups coffee
Rosuvastatin 5mg
Letrozole 2.5mg
Ocuvite multivitamin
two 600mg Calcium + D3 10 mcg (400 IU) supplement
1 cup Oatmeal + dried fruit + cinnamon + honey (150 calories)
Chobani key lime Greek yogurt (140 calories) (11g protein)
Bolthouse Protein Plus (290 calories) (30g protein)
1 Orgain 30g protein shake (160 calories)
1 cup grapes (104 calories)
3 ounces of rotisserie chicken without skin (160 calories)
1/2 cup Chex Mix (120 calories) (2g protein)
Advil Dual Action - Acetaminophen 250mg, Ibuprofen (NSAID) 125mg
toast with almond butter and jelly (310 calories)

60 oz water

Fit app: evening walk
45 Heart Points
2.71 miles

10:00 AM weight: 109.1 lbs

Tuesday

I think I need to put everything stressing me aside for a week or two and deal with it later to let my head clear.

What I ate today:
2 cups coffee
Rosuvastatin 5mg
Letrozole 2.5mg (may have accidentally taken two this morning but I doubt it. One pill separator was open and missing it - probably fell out.)
Ocuvite multivitamin
one 600mg Calcium + D3 10 mcg (400 IU) supplement
Healthy Choice Creamy Spinach & Tomato Linguini (250 calories) (10g protein)
Ocuvite multivitamin
two 600mg Calcium + D3 10 mcg (400 IU) supplement
Ardens Garden Green Energy Machine juice (130 calories)
Trader Joe's mini spicy pumpkin samosas (510 calories) (18g protein)
Chobani key lime Greek yogurt (140 calories) (11g protein)

36 oz water

Fit app: afternoon walk
52 Heart Points
3.19 miles

10:00 AM weight: 109.8 lbs

Monday worries

I had another night of not sleeping well because of anxiety. I am too twisted up over the bill from Novant for a non-existant physical exam that I will probably have to wait until next year to get, if I can find a doctor who has time to see. I thought it was an odd visit when I came in and all she did was pull up my pre-existing records. I don't even know where to start to make this right. I am waiting for forms to come in the mail from Medicare and I will probably need help filling them out correctly. I'm just a ball of stress over this.

What I ate today:
Rosuvastatin 5mg
Letrozole 2.5mg
2 cups coffee
Bolthouse Protein Plus (290 calories) (30g protein)
1 cup Oatmeal + dried cranberries + cinnamon + honey (150 calories)
Ocuvite multivitamin
two 600mg Calcium + D3 10 mcg (400 IU) supplement
Magnesium citrate supplement 336 mg
St. John's Wort 700mg
Ardens Garden Green Energy Machine juice (130 calories)
Trader Joe's Mushroom & Black Truffle Flatbread (390 calories) (13g protein)
Trader Joe's dark chocolate almond butter cups (210 calories)

48 oz water

No walk tonight. It was raining all day.

10:30 AM weight: 109.8 lbs

sunday

The new exercises I've been given are really hard on my hips. I'm gonna have to break up my routine into more sessions.
We went to Home Depot this afternoon and bought a couple of pots of fall mums to put out in the front of the house.

What I ate today:
Rosuvastatin 5mg
Letrozole 2.5mg
Advil Dual Action - Acetaminophen 250mg, Ibuprofen (NSAID) 125mg
2 cups coffee
1 cup Oatmeal (100 calories)
Arden's Garden juice (130)
1 cup grapes (104 calories)
1 Orgain 30g chocolate protein shake (160 calories)
2 fried chicken fingers from Publix

40 oz water

10:15 AM weight: 110.2 lbs

Anxious

Couldn't sleep last night. Woke up from 3:00AM - 6:00AM before going back to sleep for two more hours.

What I ate today:
Rosuvastatin 5mg
Letrozole 2.5mg
2 cups coffee
Ocuvite multivitamin
two 600mg Calcium + D3 10 mcg (400 IU) supplement
1 Orgain 30g protein shake (160 calories)
Pumpkin Pancakes (290 calories)
Sushi salmon + avocado roll (380 calories) (13g protein)
1/2 cup Chex Mix (120 calories) (2g protein)
1/2 cup grapes (52 calories)

40 oz water

Fit app: afternoon walk
24 Heart Points
1.86 miles

10:15 AM weight: 111.8 lbs

Failed by Novant and Medicare

I spoke to Novant Health this morning and they say my bill of $589.82 is correct. I have to pay in full by October 21, 2025. This was my Welcome to Medicare appointment, which is Not Free and required no actual physical examination or tests.
I phoned Medicare again afterwards.
Welcome to Medicare appointments are not free and do not require a full physical examination.
Novant says they are finished with their review.

I phoned Medicare after this and they said I can file an appeal to this through Medicare. The man I spoke to said Medicare sid he would me a form to fill out to appeal the decision. I don't have much time to do this before October 21.
He said it looks like Novant filed everything under an outdated code that has not been in use for two years.

I got another phone call at 11:11AM from Novant Billing (corporate) telling me their review is final and their coding is all correct. They will not be speaking to me again about this.

What I ate today:
2 cups coffee
Rosuvastatin 5mg
Letrozole 2.5mg
Kind protein bar (220 calories) (8g protein)
Amy's Pad Thai (410 calories) (11g protein)
Ocuvite multivitamin
two 600mg Calcium + D3 10 mcg (400 IU) supplement
1 slice sourdough toast with lingonberry preserves (188 calories)
1 cup green tea
1 can Campbell's chunky classic chicken noodle soup (260 calories) (19g protein)
1 handful of salad greens added to soup
1 cup hot cocoa (150 calories)

60 oz water

Fit app: afternoon walk
25 Heart Points
1.59 miles

10:00 AM weight: 109.8 lbs

thursday

I hope Novant Health phones me today and clears the bill they sent me yesterday. I will not be going back to them again.
Meanwhile, I am still looking for a new primary care physician and I have missed every chance, all three that I had potentially set up, to have a Welcome To Medicare examination. I'm sure it will be impossible to schedule a physical examination between now and October 17, which is my deadline for that.

What I ate today:
2 cups coffee
Rosuvastatin 5mg
Letrozole 2.5mg
Ocuvite multivitamin
one 600mg Calcium + D3 10 mcg (400 IU) supplement
1 cup Oatmeal (100 calories)
Amy's Brown Rice + Black-eyed Peas bowl (300 calories) (9g protein)
Arden's Garden green energy machine juice (130 calories) (2g protein)
1 gimme seaweed snack pack (25 calories) (1 g protein)
1 Aleve Back & Muscle pain tablet (NSAID)
brown rice (218 calories)
fresh cooked black eyed peas (207 calories) (12g protein)
1 cup broccoli (35 calories)
1 cup lavender + chamomile tea

40 oz water

Fit app: afternoon walk
48 Heart Points
2.79 miles

10:00 AM weight: 109.3 lbs

Wednesday

Argh! I had the time and possible recovery provisions set aside for my Covid vaccination today and I just got this email from CVS: Please reschedule your appointment:

Hi Julia,
We're sorry. We had to cancel your appointment on Wednesday, September 24, at 2:30 PM due to an unexpected issue impacting our location. We know your time is important. We're committed to giving you the best care.
We hope you'll reschedule with us soon.

My healthcare problems did not stop there today. I got a large suprise bill from another health care provider today.
I scheduled a Welcome to Medicare appointment last month with a new Primary Care doctor because my original PC has not spoken to or seen me, even when I needed treatment, in years. I don't even know if she's still there - for all I know, she's dead.

This was supposed to be a FREE check-up, taken within my first year of Medicare that I started last October.

I made an appointment with the closest doctor I could find outside of Atrium, Doctor Perry (no relation), who got great ratings on Google. When I went in, there was no examination. She just pulled up my records from Duke and previous Atrium test results. We chatted for about 30 minutes. I just got a bill today for $589.82. I have been on the phone all morning. -
1st to Novant, who said Medicare denied the claim.
2nd to Medicare, who said it was not filed correctly and Welcome to Medicare appointments are supposed to be absolutely free and include a full check-up with examination, labs, etc.
3rd back to Novant who said this was a problem I needed to call that doctor's office for.
4th the Dr.'s office, who sent me to their billing department.
5th Billing where I spoke to a young woman named Crystal who first said Medicare only pays $3.00 for Welcome to Medicare, actually. Then I told here exactly what the man I spoke to at Medicare said and she told me she could only put the bill on hold until it is reviewed at Novant Healthcare. She said the Novant Health review will take 2 to 3 days to do.

What I ate today:
Rosuvastatin 5mg
Letrozole 2.5mg
2 cups coffee
Kind Breakfast Protein Almond Butter cookies (220 calories) (8g protein)
Chobani key lime Greek yogurt (140 calories) (11g protein)
L-Arginine L-Citrulline complex 1000 mg supplement
fresh cooked black eyed peas (207 calories) (12g protein)
Sautéed Japanese (Hakurei) Turnips With Turnip Greens (158 calories)
3 oz rotisserie chicken (156 calories)

60 oz water

Fit app: Evening walk
34 Heart Points
2.24 miles

10:00 AM weight: 111.1 lbs

At least I can look forward to a Zoom visit with Brian and Laura tonight with expected complications.

tuesday

Today, I had physical therapy at 10:30AM with Kevin.
I woke up with a very slight headache that started before going to bed last night. After physical therapy, the headache was gone completely.

What I ate today:
Ardens Garden Green Energy Machine juice (130 calories)
Rosuvastatin 5mg
Letrozole 2.5mg
2 cups coffee
Chobani key lime Greek yogurt (140 calories)
1 Orgain 30g protein shake (160 calories)
Ocuvite multivitamin
two 600mg Calcium + D3 10 mcg (400 IU) supplement
1/2 cup chex mix (140 calories) 1 Sanpelligrino soda (5 calories)
brown rice (218 calories)
fresh cooked black eyed peas (207 calories) (12g protein)
Sautéed Japanese (Hakurei) Turnips With Turnip Greens (158 calories)

32 oz water

9:15 AM weight: 109.8 lbs

I drove MonsterMustDie to a dermatologist appointment in Lexington, NC this afternoon. He had to have a couple of spots on his cheeks frozen off. One spot was pre-cancerous.
We are cooking together at home tonight.

monday

It's a clear day on the calendar for me.
I pulled the bins down to the curb for tomorrow’s pickup.
I made an appointment for the 2025 – 2026 COVID vaccine on Wednesday, September 24. I have nothing planned the next day so if I get a migrain for the shot, I am free to spend the next day or two in bed. I suspect the times I was sick after getting vacines, it was not Covid or the Shingles, but the Flu vaccine that I got at the same time as those previously. The first time I got a Covid vaccine alone, I had no unpleasant reaction whatsoever. This time, I am only getting the Covid vaccine so I'll have a good idea in the future what the culprit was.

What I ate today:
2 cups coffee
Rosuvastatin 5mg
Letrozole 2.5mg
1 serving mediteranean flatbread with hummus
3 oz rotisserie chicken (156 calories) (24g protein)
Ocuvite multivitamin
two 600mg Calcium + D3 10 mcg (400 IU) supplement
1 cup hot cocoa (150 calories)
Bolthouse Protein Plus (290 calories) (30g protein)
1 plate chicken nachos with cheese (500 calories)
Orgain 30g protein shake (160 calories)

44 oz water

Fit app:
44 Heart Points
2.93 miles

9:00 AM weight: 109.3 lbs

10:00 AM weight: 109.1 lbs
before drinking more water

Sunday

Sunny morning.

What I ate today:
2 cups coffee
Rosuvastatin 5mg
Letrozole 2.5mg
Oatmeal (100 calories)
Chips and Hummus (200 calories?)
Ocuvite multivitamin
two 600mg Calcium + D3 10 mcg (400 IU) supplement
1 cup cubed watermelon
Rotiserie chicken and broccoli (226 calories)

60 oz water

Fit app:
22 Heart Points
1.16 miles

10:00 AM weight: 110.2 lbs

saturday

My body woke me up at 5:30AM today.
MonsterMustDie has volunteered to clean the oven. If he cleans, I will cook the fresh produce we bought this morning at the farmer's market.

What I ate today:
1 Bolthouse Farms Protein Plus vanilla 30g (290 calories) (30g protein)
Advil Dual Action - Acetaminophen 250mg, Ibuprofen (NSAID) 125mg
2 cups coffee
Rosuvastatin 5mg
Letrozole 2.5mg
breakfast plate from Deep Roots Market - grits, tater tots, 1 piece turkey sausage
Ocuvite multivitamin
two 600mg Calcium + D3 10 mcg (400 IU) supplement
Orgain 30g protein shake (160 calories) (30g protein)
rotiserie chicken and broccoli

60 oz water

Fit app: Evening walk
37 Heart Points
4.23 miles

10:00 AM weight: lbs

I will say that using the ball as a desk seat didn't work in the end. I moved it to the den to try in front of the tv.