It is getting close to THAT time again….you know the time when us ‘wimmens’ have to go to the doctor for the dreaded Pap smear and physical. I have a $20 copay that I need to pony up before I can even see Mr. MD but luckily this is part of the budget for the year. I have been contributing more this year to my Flexible Savings Account and since I can claim the copay to the doctor on the FSA online I will be getting the full amount as a reimbursement.

The FSA allows my employer to take money out of my paycheck before taxes and I am left with a smaller taxable amount. Yay!!! I then spend money on various things like prescriptions and copays and file a claim for those amounts. I get reimbursed for the amount spent and therefore I come out ahead since I will be paying less in taxes than if I had not started the FSA.

I only put in $60 last year and this covered the cost of my birth control but this year I am putting in $120 to cover the cost of doctor visits, birth control, dentist visits and sundry items like contact lens cleaner. I do not ‘need’ the contact lens cleaner since I got LASIK and now have perfect vision (hooray!!!!! I did spend a lot of money on it) but I do wear colored lenses every now and then just for a change. If I have any money left over then I will use it to claim for bandaids that I will be using to restock my first aid kit.

Now let me practice my relaxing breathing so I can be ready for the doctor. Here’s to having a boring and uneventful exam and with all tests coming back negative. After all I do NOT want to end up in the hospital again.