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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 10 of 10. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Dan Perkins on January 4, 2005, at 14:23:36
I just started seeing a new pdoc and I'm a bit nervous about telling him that I get a lot of my health information from the internet. In my experience, doctors can get a bit defensive and feel kind of threatened that they are not the only source for medical information.
How do I tell my doctor, for example, that Effexor is out of the question for me because of all the horrid first-hand accounts that I have read about the drug on this and other websites??? Or how do I tell him that I'm not interested in trying Cymbalta, because most people's (calm down, I know there are some exceptions) experiences with it seem to be pretty underwhelming and that the only advantage I can see to taking it is that it hasn't been around long enough for all of the problems it causes to be known about???
I'm kind of rambling here, I just want to hear how others of you have told your pdocs about things you have read online.
Posted by Phillipa on January 4, 2005, at 16:52:26
In reply to How do I tell my doctor?, posted by Dan Perkins on January 4, 2005, at 14:23:36
Funny you should ask! My husband called my pdoc today because I am driving him crazy with how bad I feel. I'm only on 5mg of Cymbalta now, and no one has suggested anything else. I've tried all the popular current ones the pdocs like. Did he care? Nope, all he says is to "Stay off the Internet". Even after my husband said that we had also heard good things about meds. His final comment "Are you suicidal?" . So what if you can't function. Sorry, I'm rambling. Phillipa
Posted by tensor on January 4, 2005, at 17:49:01
In reply to How do I tell my doctor?, posted by Dan Perkins on January 4, 2005, at 14:23:36
Hi Dan,
I can't tell you how to do, although i never have any problems with doctors when i refer to internet, but i can be pretty convincing. However, i remember when i asked my pdoc for clonazepam for social anxiety, we tried AD's but they didn't work. She said she never have heard of treating people with social anxiety with clonazepam. But i knew, thanks to internet, that this was routinely done. And it was a drug ending with -pam, which equals forbidden to some pdocs. I said to her that i can send you the references and articles that support this. I ended up mailing her 20 pages, she read them, i got the med.
Best wishes,
Mattias
Posted by woolav on January 4, 2005, at 20:22:42
In reply to Re: How do I tell my doctor? » Dan Perkins, posted by tensor on January 4, 2005, at 17:49:01
Hi, just wanted to say if you have the right pdoc, they should be encouraged that you are doing your own research. I always tell my pdoc that i talk to other ppl on sites like this and tell her what side effects, etc that ppl have with certain meds and she said she was proud of me for "doing my own research"...
Good Luck
Posted by Dan Perkins on January 4, 2005, at 20:41:26
In reply to Re: How do I tell my doctor?, posted by woolav on January 4, 2005, at 20:22:42
I agree with you 100% that a good pdoc would encourage me to do my own research and not feel threatened by it, but doctors like that are few and far between and I don't really have the stamina to try out 100 pdocs before I find one like this.
> Hi, just wanted to say if you have the right pdoc, they should be encouraged that you are doing your own research.
Posted by KaraS on January 4, 2005, at 23:59:05
In reply to Re: How do I tell my doctor?, posted by Dan Perkins on January 4, 2005, at 20:41:26
I would go in armed with PubMed abstracts. Those are a little bit harder to dismiss - though if your doctor is determined, he or she will find a way around those as well.
Posted by Wildman on January 5, 2005, at 5:57:25
In reply to Re: How do I tell my doctor? » Dan Perkins, posted by KaraS on January 4, 2005, at 23:59:05
In the past, whenever I wanted to introduce some info from the web into a conversation with my pdoc, I would preface it with a disclaimer that "because I am new at this, I am trying to develop the vocabulary that will help me explain what I am experiencing to you".
I have had great luck with this, as the doctor can see that I am _trying_ to help myself, and want him to understand what I am experiencing more clearly by using a common vernacular.
My pdoc has been very receptive to this so far, and it has been a great time saver during our sessions - I can explain myself more clearly because of the information I have read.
Hope this helps.
Wildman
Posted by banga on January 5, 2005, at 10:40:09
In reply to Re: How do I tell my doctor?, posted by Wildman on January 5, 2005, at 5:57:25
This is a very important discussion. Although I have had less problems with my pdocs--lucked out I guess--I did have huge problems with regular docs and bringning in information. Some may feel threatened, but I think many have an attitude that people in general are not discriminatory in terms of what they believe and what they dismiss in what they read.
It is a tough balance. When I did bring in various articles to my doc to discuss, her eyes glazed over and her subsequent comments made it clear that she pegged me a hypochodriac and her mind went to what her med training said about treating hypochondriacs "be patient, understanding, allay their fears as much as possible, and refer them to a psychologist." In other words, she was extremely condescending and discounted everything I said subsequently as neurotic concerns.So bringing in info can backfire. I have gone to a happy medium--bringing in perhaps one or two brief sources. They often dont have the time (or dont want to take the time ) to read it all.
I think you have to feel out the situation if you can. Dan, it may be easier to convince them, NOT to push a certain drug than convincing them that a certain drug is THE one to try next.
I do worry that my new pdoc will soon become annoyed with my comments starting with "Well from what I have heard..." I agree with another posting that it is wise to beofrehand think of a phrase that sets up the pdoc's attitude positively--not feeling threatened, not feeling you are simply following the latest trends and rumors, but also not overwhelming with your own gathered research. A balance so that you appear an informed client, yet not one that intends to take over your own care (that can really rub them the wrong way).
If I look back at my latest strategy, I whink I try to pull them into a discussion. Like "I have read some research articles and also seen some self-reports that Effexor can have really bad withdrawal effects. What have you seen in your work?" It sets it up that you are informed, but you are respecting their work. If they for instance say that they have seen no problems with Effexor and they wish to presrcibe it, you nevertheless have set up rather comfortable ground on saying that you do not feel comfortable taking this med in the big picture; you can then add "I have heard of a drug "X" that seems to have worked better for people in this respect. What have you seen in your practice?"
Definitely not a sure-fire way, but so far it seems to have worked for me.Dan you have one thing working for you--forgive me for this angle--but truly, being female sets up a person very much at risk being labeled a hypochondriac, more so than a male. This is certainly not always the case, but I was smacked with this problem in the face more than once. I can be naiive in that way. On the other hand, I could imagine a male is more at risk in being perceived as taking over, not listening to advice. So it is prudent to even take this indto account in terms of how they might misperceive you.
I think you are very wise in being careful about how you present yourself to your pdoc, and I for one would love to hear from others about what has worked for them.
Posted by johnnystats on January 10, 2005, at 12:14:49
In reply to How do I tell my doctor?, posted by Dan Perkins on January 4, 2005, at 14:23:36
I've found the best way to get the meds you want is to bring in NO information at all. Memorize it all before hand, like you're practicing for a speech. Simply ask "what would you think about trying so and so for ..." This gives the pdoc a chance to spew his medical knowledge while you get a greater understanding of his medical know how about the condition you want to treat.
Posted by sgoose on January 11, 2005, at 3:01:33
In reply to Re: How do I tell my doctor?, posted by banga on January 5, 2005, at 10:40:09
> I think you are very wise in being careful about how you >present yourself to your pdoc, and I for one would love to hear >from others about what has worked for them.
lets hear it! i've been on adderall and dexedrine for two years now and i need help talking to my dr. about desoxyn cause the dexedrine i'm now on is not getting it done. i know this can be a very touchy subject but i feel i have the right to try it. no history of drug/alcohol abuse whatsoever, no criminal record. what to do?
This is the end of the thread.
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