Rotten Doctor Visit Today. Now What?

[targs66]

I'm afraid this is just a bit of a rant...

Went to see my GP today. I tend to avoid going b/c I felt like he's made it very clear that he doesn't think anything of my health issues. (He tends to say things like "you should take up swimming!" when I try to explain my problems.) My goal was to see if he would order any sort of tests for my increasingly painful left leg and arm, numb/tingling left foot, weakness in my left side... and so on.

Long story short - he insisted I was terribly depressed and that would explain everything. I probably made it worse by saying, yes, I'm depressed; I'm familiar with depression. I tried to point out that it's highly unlikely that is what makes me so unsteady on my feet or causing what seems to be nerve pain in my left limbs, and that I felt we needed to rule out physiological problems; that I've been depressed in the past and that it didn't cause these weird neurological things... he said it wasn't helping that I was being "confrontational" and not giving him a chance and that he was willing to order some blood tests, but that "these things take time." After going back and forth - not shouting, but me trying to get him to acknowledge that just maybe the physical problems weren't caused by depression - he said maybe it was best if I find another doctor to look at matters through "fresh eyes." I calmly said, yes, I agree, and we shook hands and left. My husband came with me, and afterwards said the GP was being unreasonable and that I did the right thing - but that I probably shouldn't have acknowledged that I was depressed.

Unfortunately, I've looked on the NHS site for GPs in our area, and the ones that get decent ratings aren't taking new patients. It takes weeks, if not months, to do the paperwork to switch - and then you may be stuck with someone who is worse than the last one. (This is my second GP, and the first one was actually worse than this guy.)

Rant over. Just feeling so discouraged.

[Rachel Cox]

Email them all! it's my new best approach. Appeal to their intelligence and ask them for help... see who will take you on. i hope you find someone soon who will be good to you. It makes all the difference in the world.

I am truly sorry that you are having such a sucky time. That doctor doesn't understand the most important things about his practice. All the best in your search for better.

Hugs.

[diamondcut]

Who is your specialist consultant? maybe you should bypass your GP and get your POTs Dr to write to your GP after your consultations.

i am lucky as i have a very good GP in the UK, but sometimes they are not willing to listen or help unless another Dr has put it in writing to them that they feel you maybe have Nueropathy or request for your local practise to perform specific bloods and urine. Thats how i got around difficult GP's. For instance i got my cardiologist to write to my GP requesting a 24 hour urine and some other bloods like vit D, cortisol etc.

I totally agree that if your GP is not prepaired to listen then do not waste your time and energy getting mad and angry and upset, all it does is effect how you feel inside and makes you worse. I would look for another GP, take some print outs on Neurally mediated hypotension, and things that you think are effecting your balance and limbs. And make it clear you are depressed becuase of your physical problems that you are not getting any help with thus far. I make a rule that the first few minutes of a new dr you can tell by their manner and general interest if they are there to help. A lot of GPs are very uneducated when it come to dysautonomia. Its sad but true, and a lot will not listen to a mere patient after spending how many years practising general medicine. What is it they say about GP'S they know not a lot about everything. Having said that i am so lucky with mine!

I hope this helps.

What area are you in the UK? where i am it is not hard to change Dr's.

[diamondcut]

Email them all! it's my new best approach. Appeal to their intelligence and ask them for help... see who will take you on. i hope you find someone soon who will be good to you. It makes all the difference in the world.

I am truly sorry that you are having such a sucky time. That doctor doesn't understand the most important things about his practice. All the best in your search for better.

Hugs.

I totally agree with that one. i emailed 10 Immunologists and only had 2 back, but i did get one in the end!!

[HopeSprings]

<_< <_< Annoyed on your behalf. Hope you can find someone who will take your medical complaints seriously.

[corina]

I'm very sorry targs66, I wish I could send you my doctor to help you.

I like Rachel's idea of emailing different docs, appealing to their intelligence might do the trick! Or like Diamond suggested, trying to find one via your specialist might be a good idea!

[targs66]

Thanks so much to all of you, seriously!

The email suggestion is very good, thanks. I'll look on the NHS websites to see if I can get email addresses.

Maybe this sounds ridiculous (or maybe it's a comment on how useless this GP has been) but I don't have a specialist or consultant here in England. I was diagnosed in the States - I ended up paying a heck of a lot of money several years ago to visit docs at Johns Hopkins during a visit to my parents (in DC). The (now ex-) GP was not interested when I came back with a diagnosis of neurally mediated hypotension, and when I gave him a list of docs in England who specialize in dysautonomia, he refused to give me a referral, saying "well, you've already been diagnosed" and that I should exercise more. (Ok, I'm going to stop talking about him...)

Anyways, I agree that I've got to just put this behind me and move on (am feeling better than I did last night). I worked this afternoon and asked a colleague for recommendations, who gave me a few names of local GPs, so i'll start making calls tomorrow to see if I'm in their area. (I live in a small town in the northwest, not far from Wigan.) Guess I've just got to do the leg work and see if I can find someone decent.

Thanks again for the suggestions/support. It really helps!