Comments for Urocyon's Meanderings

Comment on Update: Dangerous abscesses, and hearing loss by urocyon

urocyon — Sat, 18 May 2013 11:53:27 +0000

I don’t see any way of doing that here, unfortunately. The comment notification e-mails should have a way of unsubscribing at the bottom.

Comment on Update: Dangerous abscesses, and hearing loss by arjun kanuri

arjun kanuri — Thu, 16 May 2013 02:44:31 +0000

After I initially commented I seem to have
clicked on the -Notify me when new comments are added- checkbox and from now on every time a comment is added I get 4 emails with the exact same comment.
Is there a means you are able to remove me from that service?
Cheers!

Comment on Quick hit: “Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Celiac Disease” by Freya

Freya — Thu, 16 May 2013 01:05:11 +0000

At one of my blood testings in recent years, my GP ordered Vitamin D level testing because she’d seen sufficient cases of deficiency that she was ordering it for everyone who was coming in for blood tests, regular or otherwise. Mine was one of the few non-deficient results she’d seen that year; now we know for sure that that’s not a contributing problem. I love my GP, and I love being in the Australian system, where we don’t have to pay out of pocket for any of these blood tests, so my GP can look at everything without worrying she’s bankrupting me.

Comment on More rambling on being the “wrong shape” by Amy

Amy — Sun, 12 May 2013 16:18:08 +0000

Being an inverted triangle myself with a large ribcage, I have always longed for “the right shape,” a willowy, small ribcage and curved hips. I’m glad to see you writing about this “wrong shape” “right shape” thinking that has become ingrained in culture.

If it is any consolation, I once put on a button-down sweater and asked my pear-shaped sister (yeah, we definitely took after different sides of the family) if I looked too much like a boy. She said “no,” then gazed downward, and added “I wish I had little hips like yours.” Whenever I start to beat myself up for my top-heavy body type, I remember that someone who looks “right” thought it was beautiful

Take care of yourself!

Comment on Trying to get some help by Allison

Allison — Sat, 04 May 2013 11:12:49 +0000

Hi uroncyon,
I was browsing on your gluten-free Southern Cook blog and it redirected me to this blog to read an article you re-blogged. Unfortunately, I don’t have much practical help and I certainly don’t know much about the UK system, but I can share your frustration of having to go to so much darned effort just to get a doctor who can understand the simple yet basic principle – that humans are individuals and not machines! Of course the drugs, might be fine (though I really doubt that) but still not working for you. It is amazing to me that with all of the info written on the holistic workings of the body with so many variables, we are still treated as “products in – same results out” by people who don’t seem to be relating to you as first a person and second is not listening to you when you try to explain something about yourself -of whom you are an expert at.

I posted a comment on your cooking blog (which I was so happy to find today) and I have been expatriated from the South (NC & GA) to living in China for just over 8 years. If there has been one thing I have learned it is how to stand up for myself – especially when it comes to dealing with doctors from around the world. My fifth child was born in Hong Kong and I had a British Dr. whom I thought I loved until she insisted I had diabetes based on my glucose tolerance test. Now I am not a doctor, but I have had four previous childbirths and glucose tests etc. etc. So when I asked for the results of my blood test, and had them reviewed by my previous OB/GYN at home, they clearly indicated I was not diabetic.

After trying to explain this to her several times and coming up against a brick wall, I finally let the whole thing go and trusted in my own research and the confirmation of doctors back home. She also tried to get me to take huge amounts of iron supplements that puzzled me (my blood work also confirmed I was not anemic) until I learned from her nurse, she had a lot of supplements in her office she wanted to get rid of. I also didn’t take the supplements, though unfortunately I did buy some of them until I started looking into the dosage.

So sorry to ramble like this but what I really wanted to say to you was to continue to trust your instincts!!! I have never been, nor am I now “anti-doctor” in anyway, but after so many times of dealing with this, you begin to realize that they do not know YOU as well as you do. You need to find a doctor, maybe even a homeopathic one who will listen to you and not make you feel inferior. This British doctor was I learned typical of others I have heard of from my British friends. The mentality is – you are the patient and they are the experts, you are not to question this. This is NOT what you need.

I love your Southern Gluten free blog and I am so sorry you are having difficulty with your health. I would just encourage you to continue with your own research and keep looking until you find a better match for you. Do they have Nurse practitioners or MDs who are sympathetic to alternative treatments? I might look for that as opposed to a strict MD. But again, I have no idea about the system there. I do know you are wise to question this attitude. Keep writing as it has helped me over the years clarify my own thinking and document when I am feeling “crazy” and wondering if it is me or if my gut feeling is right on the money.

Take care and let me know how it goes. I will keep reading your blogs.
Blessings,
Allison

Comment on Trying to get some help by urocyon

urocyon — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 19:25:55 +0000

Much appreciated. I only found out when I got the last smear test thing in the post that the last one had apparently dropped me, but I hadn’t made an appointment in like four years at that point. I did get some “we’re not accepting new patients” or “you’re not in our catchment area” (yeah, right, we’re in nobody’s catchment area!) brushoffs when I was trying to find a GP before, but going to the surgery in person instead of ringing discouraged that. (Besides the hearing/auditory processing having gotten to the point that I am just not doing voice calls if I can help it at all, so I pretty much need to show up in person.) I am hoping, though, to sign up somewhere with online appointment booking and refill requests available.

But, yeah, actually finding some kind of new GP shouldn’t be the major problem, more trying to deal with them afterward. *wry smile*

Comment on Trying to get some help by The Goldfish

The Goldfish — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 17:13:19 +0000

Accessing and changing GPs varies according to your local practices – there is a lot of geographical variation around procedure, but it is always possible to change. I’ve dealt with various different systems and moved around a fair amount. I’d be very happy to help you with this. My e-mail address is the name of my blog at Google’s mail service.

Comment on “A Letter to Patients With Chronic Disease” by Monica Cassani

Monica Cassani — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 14:08:43 +0000

that letter pissed me off too…I wrote something about how to find doctors that might not cause so much harm…I’m getting better at finding tolerable consultants…which is how I consider them now:

Medical compliance? Adherence? No. My MDs are my PARTNERS
http://beyondmeds.com/2012/01/30/compliance/

I’m so sorry you’re having a hard time right now…I’m reading your new post right now…wanted to see what this one was…and yeah…that letter made me upset too…

Comment on “A Letter to Patients With Chronic Disease” by urocyon

urocyon — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 13:10:21 +0000

I’m glad that you’ve had some better experiences with younger doctors. So far, it’s been hit or miss for me, but that may be something to look for when I am finally able to look for another one.

My husband hasn’t registered with a GP at all in the over a decade he’s been living in the UK, and has only sought any kind of medical treatment once even though he’s needed it more. (That elbow must really have been hurting…) He doesn’t have any chronic conditions he can’t manage on his own–like problems with a repeatedly dislocating shoulder from his own bendiness, which targeted strength training “fixes”–but some really bad medical experiences from ending up on a burn unit as a little kid. There are all kinds of reasons to avoid medical settings, and I can’t help but wish it were considered more common and understandable as it increasingly seems to be with dental work. And we’re back around to intent not being magic; traumatic experiences are traumatic, even if they’re “for your own good”.

Comment on “A Letter to Patients With Chronic Disease” by urocyon

urocyon — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 12:55:43 +0000

Yes. I didn’t go into that very much, but very much yes. That’s also the thing about chronic illnesses: most of them effect more than one body system, because your body is a bigger system. As I’ve written before, somewhere here, it’s also more than a little scary realizing that you’re better at spotting and working with patterns than at least 90% of people working as physicians. (And that’s a generous estimate.) It’s not the patient’s fault if you’re unable or unwilling to handle the complexity that is a body.

ETA: This also reminds me of all the excuses for misdiagnosis or total lack of proper diagnosis/”it’s all in your head” from patients presenting with “nonspecific” symptoms. Sure, it may look “nonspecific” if you can’t or won’t see it as part of a larger constellation pattern of symptoms. Even when the patient is telling you about the characteristic pattern, and you insist on viewing everything as totally isolated. /ETA

I am all for making lists and setting priorities, but making it a scared, overwhelmed, and chronically ill patient’s responsibility to not overload a doctor with information, sounds like a great way to get someone killed or disabled by a preventable complication.

Exactly.