Are you afraid of your doctor?
I totally agree. But it seems many people don't look at it like that.
Kelly
Please note: I AM NOT A DOCTOR. If you want medical advice, talk to your doctor. Whatever I post, there is probably some surgeon or other health care provider somewhere that disagrees with me. If you want to know what your surgeon thinks, then ask him or her. Check out my blog.
I am so fortunate in that I adore all of my docs.... PCP, Surgeon, Ortho... EVEN GYN.
The only doctor I dreaded was my old GYN - the appointment wreaked havoc with me anyway because of my past, but even though my therapist called the doc office every time I went, it was total rushed, nothing but a number nightmare. The last time I went to him I left in sobs, dry heaving and nearly passing out from terror. I found a new doc and he is super kind, patient and talks personally to my therapist instead of letting the receptionist take a message.
I stayed because I figured I was better off with the devil I knew than the devil I didn't
The only doctor I dreaded was my old GYN - the appointment wreaked havoc with me anyway because of my past, but even though my therapist called the doc office every time I went, it was total rushed, nothing but a number nightmare. The last time I went to him I left in sobs, dry heaving and nearly passing out from terror. I found a new doc and he is super kind, patient and talks personally to my therapist instead of letting the receptionist take a message.
I stayed because I figured I was better off with the devil I knew than the devil I didn't
Nope. I barely even know my doctor. My PCM is a physician's assistant--a young guy who advocated hard for me when my insurance was giving me the runaround. But I haven't seen him since my surgery and only saw him a couple times before it. So we're not too familiar.
My surgeon is awesome. The only people I get a LITTLE afraid of (or, rather, nervous about contacting) are my surgeon's nurse practitioners because sometimes they poke fun at me for asking silly questions. When I had my drain removed and I was leaking copiously from the incision (literally, soaking a sanitary pad every hour or two), I had a momentary lapse in sanity and thought my pouch had developed a leak and was draining from my abdomen. (I know. I'm a moron)
Anyway, when I called and asked about that, they literally laughed at me. And when I went in for my follow-up, she brought it up and laughed a bit more. That kinda stung. But she was right, I was being ridiculous. But it does make me more hesitant to ask them when something comes up that might be a really dumb question.
But afraid of them? Nope. I haven't done anything to make me afraid of their criticism or judgment, and they're looking out for my health, so there's nothing to be afraid of, in my opinion.
My surgeon is awesome. The only people I get a LITTLE afraid of (or, rather, nervous about contacting) are my surgeon's nurse practitioners because sometimes they poke fun at me for asking silly questions. When I had my drain removed and I was leaking copiously from the incision (literally, soaking a sanitary pad every hour or two), I had a momentary lapse in sanity and thought my pouch had developed a leak and was draining from my abdomen. (I know. I'm a moron)
Anyway, when I called and asked about that, they literally laughed at me. And when I went in for my follow-up, she brought it up and laughed a bit more. That kinda stung. But she was right, I was being ridiculous. But it does make me more hesitant to ask them when something comes up that might be a really dumb question.
But afraid of them? Nope. I haven't done anything to make me afraid of their criticism or judgment, and they're looking out for my health, so there's nothing to be afraid of, in my opinion.
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Check out my video blog! www.youtube.com/user/HappilyShrinking/videos
Highest weight: 269. Surgery weight: 233. Goal weight: 144, and then we'll see..
Check out my video blog! www.youtube.com/user/HappilyShrinking/videos
Highest weight: 269. Surgery weight: 233. Goal weight: 144, and then we'll see..
Laughing at you when you ask a question is not looking out for your health. It's rude and unprofessional. Even if it does seem like a silly question, they should encourage patients to ask questions because if you don't know something, you should ask. Laughing when patients ask questions discourages them from asking. I think it's terrible that they act like that.
Kelly
Please note: I AM NOT A DOCTOR. If you want medical advice, talk to your doctor. Whatever I post, there is probably some surgeon or other health care provider somewhere that disagrees with me. If you want to know what your surgeon thinks, then ask him or her. Check out my blog.
About 10-11 years ago, I was having severe fatigue for a period of months. I read up on the internet and determined that the likely cause was auto-immune. Based on the fact that my mother had hypothyroidism, I figured that was as good a place as any to start. However, I knew my TSH would test within normal ranges, because it always had in the past.
We had just moved, so I wanted to try a new doctor nearer to my home. I went into the office, and explained my symptoms. I told him that my mother was hypothyroid and that I thought that would be a good place to start. I also told him that I wanted a full panel bloodtest, rather than the simple TSH, because I wanted to either rule out hypothyroidism completely or know enough about the problem to appropriately treat it. He refused, and I asked him what his plan would be if the TSH came back within normal range. (I also asked him what he believed the normal range to be). He told me that if the TSH came back normal, he would test for other conditions.
I left the office.
It turned out that I don't have hypothyroidism. It was an auto-immune disease, though. I had Stage IV endometriosis. A couple months after this appointment, I developed severe abdominal pain, and excessive bleeding. I went to my husband's doctor, and we had a CT Scan AND a full panel blood test. The CT Scan is not the best tool for diagnosing endometriosis, but it so happened that I had a blood blockage that happens with endometriosis. And ultrasound later discovered that I had a grapefruit sized cyst living on an ovary. No wonder I was so tired! Right?
Now, this doctor recommended me to a surgeon who was not bad... but I didn't like the fact that except for surgical stuff, all my care was handled by other doctors. I also didn't like the hospital she used for a number of icky reasons. So, when I needed another surgery, I found a new surgeon, whose office I liked (even if I was still not totally pleased with the hospital).
The point I'm trying to make, I think, is that you are a consumer. You get to make decisions about your care,and if your doctor isn't doing right by you, change doctors. But don't change because the doctor tells you the truth. Change because he doesn't want to treat your condition properly. Educate yourself about your condition. Question your doctor! And if his recommendations are different from what yours are, consider them.
I think it's hard to separate your emotions from your medical care... because it's your body, afterall. But, you need to not be afraid... and you also need to have the strength to make decisions that are based on what you KNOW to be true.
We had just moved, so I wanted to try a new doctor nearer to my home. I went into the office, and explained my symptoms. I told him that my mother was hypothyroid and that I thought that would be a good place to start. I also told him that I wanted a full panel bloodtest, rather than the simple TSH, because I wanted to either rule out hypothyroidism completely or know enough about the problem to appropriately treat it. He refused, and I asked him what his plan would be if the TSH came back within normal range. (I also asked him what he believed the normal range to be). He told me that if the TSH came back normal, he would test for other conditions.
I left the office.
It turned out that I don't have hypothyroidism. It was an auto-immune disease, though. I had Stage IV endometriosis. A couple months after this appointment, I developed severe abdominal pain, and excessive bleeding. I went to my husband's doctor, and we had a CT Scan AND a full panel blood test. The CT Scan is not the best tool for diagnosing endometriosis, but it so happened that I had a blood blockage that happens with endometriosis. And ultrasound later discovered that I had a grapefruit sized cyst living on an ovary. No wonder I was so tired! Right?
Now, this doctor recommended me to a surgeon who was not bad... but I didn't like the fact that except for surgical stuff, all my care was handled by other doctors. I also didn't like the hospital she used for a number of icky reasons. So, when I needed another surgery, I found a new surgeon, whose office I liked (even if I was still not totally pleased with the hospital).
The point I'm trying to make, I think, is that you are a consumer. You get to make decisions about your care,and if your doctor isn't doing right by you, change doctors. But don't change because the doctor tells you the truth. Change because he doesn't want to treat your condition properly. Educate yourself about your condition. Question your doctor! And if his recommendations are different from what yours are, consider them.
I think it's hard to separate your emotions from your medical care... because it's your body, afterall. But, you need to not be afraid... and you also need to have the strength to make decisions that are based on what you KNOW to be true.
Kelly, I wanted to share a recent experience with you. I was in the hospital with an infected gall bladder. The pain was horrible. I was on a pain pump of Diulod sp? and my surgeon came in and said he was stopping it because he felt I was using it too much. He clearly didn't understand how much pain I was in and I started crying. I was very scared of the pain coming back. He almost yelled at me to calm down. I think I threw him off guard when I started crying and he didn't handle it well. Luckily a nurse just happened to be in the room and she explained to him that I had a very rough night with pain and the previous 24 hours hadn't used the pump much at all. So he left and the nurse said, "he said to stop the pump, but he didn't say when... I get off at 7 tonight, it will be stopped then" Loved her!
anyway, long story short, the next day I let him know how I felt and that the pain was very scary and he let me know he was sorry for raising his voice and he only wanted me to calm down because the more I cried the more pain i was in.
I'm telling you this because I would never have addressed it with him the next day if you and the others on this board didn't post things like this. I felt empowered to speak up for myself for the first time to a DR.
anyway, long story short, the next day I let him know how I felt and that the pain was very scary and he let me know he was sorry for raising his voice and he only wanted me to calm down because the more I cried the more pain i was in.
I'm telling you this because I would never have addressed it with him the next day if you and the others on this board didn't post things like this. I felt empowered to speak up for myself for the first time to a DR.
I'm glad you addressed it with him. I assume most doctors want to help patients and care about their patients and don't mean to upset them or scare them or hurt their feelings. And if they don't intend to do that, then they probably want to know if they unintentionally do it so they can make sure they don't do it again.
Kelly
Please note: I AM NOT A DOCTOR. If you want medical advice, talk to your doctor. Whatever I post, there is probably some surgeon or other health care provider somewhere that disagrees with me. If you want to know what your surgeon thinks, then ask him or her. Check out my blog.
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