The femara pick-up

.. because I just wouldn't be me if this went off without a hitch.

So I went to pick up my femara script today. It was a two-step process because I needed a refill on my metformin, and the femara was a new prescription... and at my pharmacy, you just don't do those together. No, no, no.

So I got there, took a number (for the new script) and headed over to the refills line. Got my met without a hitch, and tried to ignore the construction noise while I waited for my number to be called (I was B527, they were on B514.. that was a lot of construction noise). Half an hour later, I was up. I went to the little window. The pharmacist scanned my ID, high-tech military facility and all, and told me to have a seat while he got my pills.

I'm mentally high-fiving myself - this is way too easy.

Why yes... yes, that was too easy.

About 5 minutes later, the pharmacist calls me back up there. See, this is the part where he is supposed to hand over my drugs... only, he's not holding a bottle, just a printout of what I'm supposed to get.

Uh-oh.

"Have you ever taken this before?" he asks, looking at me with the utmost sympathy. (If the light bulb had gone on in my head at that moment, I'd have understood the sympathy)

Nope, sure haven't.

"It's just, I've never seen this dosing schedule before, I think I should call your doctor" he says, and now he's looking at the paper, which clearly says two pills, once a day, days 3-7.

No, that's right, I talked to my doctor, that's what he wanted... and it hits me: The pharmacist is concerned because he thinks it's unusual for me to only be taking my breast cancer drug for five days. (hence the sympathy)

Oh, says I, it's not for cancer purposes, it's for fertility.

The sympathy falters and now he's giving me that look that makes me wonder if there's spinach in my teeth or something.

On top of that, the construction noise has suddenly ceased... and my mental reflexes being what they are, I'm still speaking at construction-level. Oh yeah, I'm getting interesting now.

"I didn't see any indication for that in the paperwork"

Well, no you wouldn't, it's off label use.

.. and now he's looking at me like I've got a whole field of spinach in my teeth. The kind with e coli, no less. And the guy at the window next to me (with the two little ones, maybe a year apart in age) is looking at me like I'm the most interesting thing he's seen in weeks. Yes, well, I do so like attention.

So I offer him (the pharmacist, not my window-mate) my doc's name and number, rattling them off like they're memorized (because they are), and take my seat while he calls to confirm that the weird lady who doesn't have breast cancer really does need femara. Window-mate is still looking at me... I was half-tempted to tell him I wasn't contagious, and even if I were, he doesn't have ovaries and can't catch what I've got.

DocNH came through for me, verified my script and I left... but not before the pharmacist got in one last "I've never seen it used for that".

Well, what can I say? I like to be original.