New Doctors are Challenging for Long-Term Patients - Video
Those of you who follow me may have gleaned that I've been having trouble getting a psychiatrist. Basically, I was finally allowed to see one and she threw up her hands, told me to give up and that I was never going to get any better. This is one of the worst things I have ever been told, and personally, I think is unacceptable on pretty much every level.
However, yesterday I managed to see someone new, and this poses its own challenges.
I Hate Meeting New Doctors
I could write thousands of words on why I hate meeting new doctors. They want to dredge painful things up, you have to spread your life open like a butterflied tenderloin and you have to convince them that you are who you appear and you're not playing some game. (Fun game. There's a reason why people prefer Trivial Pursuit and not Doctor Pursuit.) Crazy people, are never to be trusted, it seems.
So today's video is a little about the worries and hassle of seeing a new doctor. It really just scratches the surface of a process I have gone through more than ten times.
You can find Natasha Tracy on Facebook or @Natasha_Tracy on Twitter.
APA Reference
Tracy, N.
(2010, October 13). New Doctors are Challenging for Long-Term Patients - Video, HealthyPlace. Retrieved
on 2024, December 22 from https://www.healthyplace.com/blogs/breakingbipolar/2010/10/new-doctors-are-challenging-for-long-term-patients-video
Author: Natasha Tracy
This is so true, Natasha.
Like you, I (mostly) present as a very well-spoken and intelligent person. This is often misconstrued as doing-well, regardless of how 'broken' I might really be at the time.
I think this might be because those of us that have lived with mental illness for a long time have learned to cope in these situations; and as a coping-mechanism we've learned to 'appear' to function well. In my case, this mechanism is very useful for both accomplishing whatever task I need to, and in maintaining my privacy (hiding my 'disorder').
And what you mentioned about recalling history is spot-on. Unfortunately my memory is spotty, at best. I don't remember what kind of sandwich I ate yesterday, let alone how temazepam or seroquel affected me 2 years ago.
Now if only we could get the Doctors of the world to watch this...
Thanks for sharing,
Glen
Hi Glen,
Yes, it's frustrating. It takes doctors quite a long time to really believe me and not just look for outward signs.
And really, why do they insist on asking questions about meds from years ago? Isn't that what medical records are for? I would like to know why doctors think it's acceptable to ask, be annoyed when I don't know, and then be too lazy to look it up themselves. Why bother taking all the notes if you're not even going to look at them?
- Natasha
Medical records can be notoriously messy and hard to wade through at times, especially if you've gone between several providers. Have you thought about opening a PHR so you can keep the records yourself? I'm sure you could get a few blog posts out of it at least...
Sorry, I'm not familiar with that, what is it?
- Natasha
Personal Health Records like Google Health (http://www.google.com/intl/en-US/health/about/index.html) or Microsoft Vault (http://www.healthvault.com/personal/index.aspx) or WebMD PHR (http://www.webmd.com/phr). Also some sites like PatientsLikeMe.com have similar tools where you can track meds, moods and doctors visits.
Oh gosh, that would be an obscene amount of work for me. And really, trust Google? Microsoft? WebMD? Not likely. I'm a techie-geek and I'd be the first one to admit that these things can get hacked even through great security.
- Natasha