Unemployment: Month 7
Life is full of troubles. But there is always hope.
MEDICINE
One of the most difficult things that comes with being unemployed is not having health insurance. My husband and I both have asthma and have been successfully controlling it with a preventative medicine. We have been out of this medicine for several months and have not renewed our prescriptions due to cost. If we continued the medicine it would cost about $500 a month. With our income cut down to roughly 30%, prescription meds are just not an option.
We had hoped we'd both just be okay until we do get insurance again and can renew our prescriptions. But our asthma has gotten worse over the last few months, and now I'm quite sick. My husband thinks I have walking pneumonia but I'm hoping I don't. Whatever I have, I can barely breathe. I'm going to try to see my doctor this week.
Recently I went to the web sites of the pharmaceutical companies who make our prescription medicines. Most of them have annual programs that will provide your medicines if you cannot afford to buy them. Financially, we qualify for all of them. The next step, is printing out all the forms. I did that. Now, we need to fill them out and provide proof of unemployment (easy!), financial documents, and take them to the doctor and have THEM fill out and sign portions of EACH FORM. I haven't even been able to make the call to our doctor's office to make this request, as I know it's going to be a burden for them because they are always so busy.
Now that I'm sick, and have to make an appointment anyway, we'll give it a try this week. Hopefully it's not too late. Who knows how long the process will take. It's a huge blessing that these companies provide this service for low-income families, but it doesn't do us any good unless we apply. No matter how difficult it is.
MOVIES
One of the best things we have done for our family is signing back up with Netflix, so we can watch unlimited movies all month long for less than $10. With the added bonus of being able to watch free Instant movies through our Wii game system, that's even cheaper than the $1 rental at Redbox if we watch more than 10 movies per month. And Netflix has so many more movies to choose from, plus it's extremely convenient... unlike everything else in our lives right now.
We've used Netflix many times over the years, but always for short periods of time when our children are out of school and we have time to watch movies together. During the rest of the year, we used to take the kids to see movies at the theater maybe every other month. For a family of six, the tickets alone cost over $50 per movie, but boy was it fun. Add popcorn and drinks, and the cost goes up to $100. One of the best ways to save money when going to a movie theater (for folks who can still afford it) is to plan the trip to the theater shortly after having a family meal at home; so no one will be hungry. And yes, we brought our own bottles of water whenever possible.
We also loved going to our local Blockbuster from time to time. We enjoyed looking through all the new movies that had come out and deciding which one (or two) to bring home. But a monthly membership to Netflix also costs less than just two movie rentals at Blockbuster. This is helpful for us and everyone needing to save money, but the industry competitiveness has recently sent Blockbuster into bankruptcy. They have closed many of their stores, sending more employees into unemployment, along with most other rental companies. We feel bad for them, and that we are now part of the problem because we can no longer afford to support our local stores.
DEPRESSION
I read an article in our Atlanta newspaper last week that talked about the different issues facing the unemployed during the holiday season. One issue that I felt was really insightful was that families going through this tend to withdraw to themselves. They avoid friends, neighbors, and even family. (Of course we also recognize this as a sign of depression, which is common with unemployment.)
The article suggested making an extra effort to include unemployed friends and family in activities and having them over for dinner. It's a nice idea, and might help some, if they are doing well enough to respond. If they don't, I would suggest simply visiting them to bring some cheer to their lives, instead of trying to pull them out of their home where they will be reminded constantly of their situation.
Maintaining one's 'normal life' during unemployment can certainly be a struggle. There are just so many changes, adjustments, and losses. But for many families, that IS normal life.
PERSPECTIVE (The movie "Precious")
Recently, while the family was out and about and I stayed home sick, I finally got a chance to watch the very popular movie "Precious," that came out in 2009. If you haven't seen it yet I don't want to ruin it for you, but it is a very intense movie and I'm so glad I was able to see it. When watching the movie, it quickly becomes clear why the young actress who played the part of Precious won many awards, it was a brave and amazing performance. In the story, the 16 year old Precious has faced so much abuse and hardship it's a miracle she makes it.
Struggling to pay for medicines, doctors? Precious is pregnant with her second child, and has never even seen a doctor. She gave birth to her first child on the kitchen floor. Depression? Absolutely. This is a life of survival, with little to no joy. She didn't have friends, family who loved her, or support of a church or community to keep her spirits up. She was surviving alone on the human's sheer will to live, a will that has been placed in all of us for a purpose.
As the story progresses, a few very special people are brought into her life. Precious is encouraged, cared for and ultimately saved from a near hopeless life, or even death, with their help. Movies, hmmm, she's probably never seen one. Even though the story has a triumphant ending, the young girl Precious has a difficult life ahead of her, at 16 with two children, studying for her GED. I would love to see a sequel to this movie, with her life turning out all rosy and sweet. But we know that life is not all rosy and sweet.
"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." - John 16:33 (NIV)
Life is full of troubles. Life is also full of joy. The key is continuing to experience and appreciate the joy even when things seem hopeless. For that is one thing life is not, praise God. There is always HOPE!
Michelle Jones
http://www.michellejonesonline.blogspot.com
http://www.michellejonesonline.com
2 comments:
Michelle, My friend Brenda suggested I read your blog. I'm also unemployed and am learning to cope without health insurance. One of the things I did to help as ask my doctor to prescribe from the Wal-Mart $4 list. They were able to find a medicine from the list for everything I need! What's even better, you can get a three-month supply for $10 - just ask the doctor to write a 90-day script! Working with the drug companies is a great alternative as well, but this is much faster and still more affordable.
I know what it's like to be without health insurance...we haven't had any for years, but thankfully, we are rarely sick.
My son and his family (wife &3 kids) weren't so lucky, though. It seems like the kids were prone to sniffles and respiratory problems and my D-I-L has allergies.
Luckily, they have found an excellent husband/wife chiropractor team in town. Their practice is Bible-based and they offer 'scholarships', especially to those families who could otherwise not afford treatment. In return for greatly reduced fees, families may be asked to do simple errands or chores for the practice: taking trash to the dump, going to the post office, etc. Chiropractic has made a big difference in their health, and my D-I-L is now almost completely free from allergies. I would like to think there is a similar service in your area. My prayers are with you and your family...these are very challenging times but what doesn't kill us will make us stronger. God bless you.
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