“HELP!” Nancy exclaimed. “When I call I keep getting passed around from one person to the next, and no one seems to know how to help me. Can you help me?” She was confused, frustrated, under stress, and desperate for some straight answers from anyone who would help with her problem. Nancy needed help enrolling in a Medicare prescription drug plan.

The Medicare drug plan enrollment procedure can be cumbersome and complex. Sometimes a Medicare enrollment form gets “lost” in the computer world of cyberspace, as computers make errors. Just like people, I guess computers are “human,” too.

None of that mattered to Nancy, she just wanted the enrollment procedure to work properly. She didn’t care whose fault it was or who was to blame. She just wanted help paying for her prescription drugs, and Medicare was supposed to help her, not give her more stress.

I know how stressful the process can be, as I’ve heard from too many people who are having the same issues. For millions of Medicare beneficiaries, the enrollment process has worked flawlessly. Unfortunately, it hasn’t work flawlessly for everyone.

For some reason, the stress that the Medicare issues have caused reminded me of Catfish and how he dealt with his stressful problems. He was always having trouble, too, but he never let it get him down. In fact, he never complained, his demeanor rarely changed even when he was having a bad day. He seemed the eternal optimist.

Catfish was a mixed breed dog, a “mutt” really. His master was a friend of mine. My friend told me that Catfish chased cars and almost got run over each time. He occasionally ate things he shouldn’t eat and got sick.

Adolescent boys threw rocks at him, and a little old lady threatened him with her cane because Catfish had done his duty in her yard. Never the less, Catfish maintained his positive disposition. He jumped on anyone who paid him the least amount of attention. When he became tired, he would lie sleeping in the sun.

Nancy got help for her Medicare problems from our office, and now she seems much more relaxed and confident. But, she might have felt better from the start if she had known about Catfish, and how he dealt with stress.

We all have our “dog days.” But, how dogs handle their troubles can teach us a lot about living our own life. For instance, keep a positive disposition and take a nap when you need one in a sunny, comfortable spot. It won’t make your troubles go away, but it may help you feel better about them.

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