The Tooth Fairy Hates Me

Yes, I really think the Tooth Fairy has it in for me. I went to the dentist yesterday to have my teeth cleaned. I had put it off twice due to scheduling conflicts and didn't want to put it off again even though I didn't have any money. After all, today is payday and I figured I'd give them a cheque dated for today and then I'd have to juggle somewhere else on the bills.

It usually costs me about $50 to $60 for a cleaning. This time, because I'd put it off, they had to do more scaling, etc. I pretty much had a heart attack when the girl at the front desk asked for $159! Uh, that's 3 times what I usually pay. Unfortunately, there was nothing to do but pay it. My hubby's extended medical/dental plan will reimburse us $127 of that, but it will take a couple of weeks to arrive. I'm already looking at about a $500 shortfall without that extra cost and extra time.

Plus, I went to the doctor for my H1N1 shot and to talk to her about how my asthma has suddenly flared up out of the blue. I've had 2 attacks in 2 days when I normally have 2 or 3 attacks per year! And, even then, it's usually something like cleaning for Pesach that triggers it with dust and strong cleaners and exertion. The first time I was just playing with Dear Child on the bed, trying to tickle her while she held my hand. The second was when I carried the baby into the house from the car because she was asleep. I do both those things all the time without a problem.

So, I ended up getting the seasonal shot instead (because they were only given 80 doses for people with underlying conditions and those were *gone* by the time I got there) and a prescription for Ventolin and a temporary cortico-steroid called Flovent. I couldn't fill them yesterday because I didn't have any money. Today I'll find out how much they'll set me back. Again, the extended covers a lot of the cost but there will be some outlay. At least they deduct the plan amount and I only pay the difference. The problem is that I wasn't planning on needing prescriptions when I made my list of bills that Must Be Paid. And I still have to find time to go back to the doctor when they get more of the H1N1 vaccine in. At least it's free. Well, except for the time I lose at work, of course.