So, I’ve been having some health issues for a few years. In 2012, I finally caved and went to see a doctor about them. I don’t like going to the doctor, more on principle than because it costs money. If I go to the doctor, I’m legitimately concerned or sick, and I know I’m not alone on that. I don’t read WebMD and assume that I have 18 different types of cancer because I have the sniffles. I do I read it yes, but I read it to see if I can educate myself on what some of the problems I have could be, and then schedule an appointment to see what he says given the symptoms.
Last year I went to the same doctor to revisit my issues and looking for more investigation. In my explanations, I noticed several eye rolls and a lot of head shaking and a very measurable amount of doubt in his voice about what I was saying. It left a sour taste, but things got a little better for me after and so I didn’t think too much of it. He gave me a diagnosis of NBC (placeholder name), and I went on my way.
Fast forward a few months to today. I had requested an appointment because I had a terrible few weeks over the holidays, and I’ve also been having some other, unrelated issues that I wanted to discuss. I was greeted to him not knowing a damn thing about what we had discussed just a few months prior, even though I know it’s in my record because I can see pieces of it published to a portal for patients. He still said that he thought I had NBC, but that it was a diagnosis of exclusion. There’s tests that can be done to rule out ABC, CBS, PBS, and so on, but those are expensive, somewhat invasive and painful, and probably not worth it…
Here’s my problem, “probably not worth it” doesn’t really feel like a good enough reason to not do it. When ABC, CBS, PBS all are very, very serious and potentially life-threatening conditions, I feel like it’s a good thing to rule them out and make sure that it’s actually NBC that I have. I’m in your office, concerned about my health, not because I’ve read stuff on WebMD or something, but because it’s affecting my ability to take care of myself and/or my family. I want to make sure that I have the ability to take care of myself in the best way possible, to make sure I’m able to reliably care for my family. I’m in your office, doing most everything but physically handing you a blank check and asking you to help me out for my sake and my daughter’s, and you decide for me that I don’t want the testing done.
When I asked about my second issue I wanted to address (pain in multiple pairs of joints), I pretty much got rushed out the door after I was told to “use common sense.” Doc, I’m not trying to run a marathon on my hands or elbows — the pain I have in my hips, elbows, and thumbs are not normal for me. If you don’t want to look, fine, but point me to someone who is willing. I’m not an idiot, I know what my body is telling me; that’s part of the reason I’ve gained back 25 of the 40 pounds I lost in 2013. I haven’t done things that were aggravating these joints, I’ve been using common sense, but it’s been over 18 months since this shit started and hasn’t gotten better. Help me out here, listen to what I’m saying and asking, and give me something more than just “use common sense.” I wouldn’t be asking you if I didn’t have a problem with the way I was feeling. When I say that I’ve literally had to change the way I walk to reduce the pain in my hips, take that as a sign that something’s probably not right with me somewhere. Please.
I did end up getting a referral to a specialist for my NBC, and I’m hoping that the specialist will be a bit more willing to discuss and work with me. And I did get another test or two for my join pain, but the exam left something to be desired.
Rant over. Until next time, stay short fans!
