Provider education on autism

vergil96 said:

This is certainly not a good direction. As someone said, "Medicine knows everything about disease and nothing about health".

I don't know what you mean specifically, I'm not saying it's what you said, but I have encountered a lot of emphasis on understanding stress from the perspective of... not addressing its causes, but "just be less nervous" kind of approach, offering perhaps relaxation techniques, CBT and "it's all just your cognitive bias, be more positive", antidepressants. Autistic people certainly face more stress and trauma, but it means we have to address the causes of the stress, not the stress itself alone. We need to acknowledge our sensory and cognitive differences and treat our nervous systems with kindness and care they deserve. In my experience "mood improvement" resulted in making things worse, because the real problems were being swept under the rug and the heap under the rug grew until it was too late.

Of course, if we're talking about other accompanying mental health conditions, the issue looks different and those require different measures. There are studies showing altered neurogenesis in autistic individuals and different connctivity between neurons as the cause. Our brains have a different structure, it results in a different perception - and it's fine and worth accommodating.

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Agree. Too much emphasis on treating symptoms. "We have a pill for that." sort of mentality. I run across this every day. I am mired up to my neck in this mentality. We have a system that financially rewards treating symptoms. There is no money in actually fixing problems. The pharmaceutical companies and their bribes to medical schools and even directly to physicians, all run amok.

Neonatal RRT said:

Agree. Too much emphasis on treating symptoms. "We have a pill for that." sort of mentality. I run across this every day. I am mired up to my neck in this mentality. We have a system that financially rewards treating symptoms. There is no money in actually fixing problems. The pharmaceutical companies and their bribes to medical schools and even directly to physicians, all run amok.

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I think it's a combination of that and I highly suspect that a lot of people become General Practitioners simply because they're not bright enough to study medicine seriously, they go in to the profession being licensed to write prescriptions and simply do not have the type of minds capable of truly diagnosing anything.

This story has nothing to do with Autism:

I had recently moved down to Melbourne and started a new job. Late one afternoon I put my back out quite severely, vertebrae displacement, something that happened to me quite often when I was young. Being in a new city meant I needed to find a new chiropractor and most won't touch you without seeing a recent xray first.

Unable to sleep that night and in severe pain I decided I could make things run more smoothly if I went to the hospital emergency department and got an xray first, so a 4:00 am I presented to the emergency department of the Prince Alfred Hospital in Melbourne - remember this is free for Aussies. The drive to the hospital was truly torturous, unable to move my arms without triggering muscle spasms and unable to turn my head from side to side at all.

When I wandered in to the emergency department I was the only patient, that part was good, I got to see a doctor straight away, a young woman. I explained my situation to her very clearly and concisely and she questioned what I meant by "displaced vertebrae". I took my shirt off and told her to examine the spine at the top of my back between the shoulder blades. I know from experience that this displacement is clearly visible but I told her anyway to probe my spine with her fingers.

She did, then she sat back in her chair and pronounced "That's not a displacement, it's just a contusion. I'll give you some pain killers and a sick note.". I asked her if she even understood what the word "contusion" means. She got stroppy and asked me what I thought it meant. "A contusion is an unexplained lump. As I have just gone to great lengths to give you a detailed explanation you can not class it as a contusion. I don't want your drugs or your sick note lady, I want an xray.".

She got upset and angry and started ranting at me, then she said she'd give me a two day sick note. I shook my head in disbelief, apologised for wasting her time (sarcasm) then started walking, hobbling, limping out of there. It seemed to take a minute or so for her to realise I really was walking away.

I was about 15 metres out of her office and headed towards the exit when she started screeching at me, her yells naturally brought security guards running. The security guards turned in to the corridor just in time to see her come running out of her office, she poked me in the back still yelling and screaming at me and waving a box of pills and a sick note. The poke in the back really hurt and I was already quite angry by this stage, I turned around and bellowed at her, full voice, "I don't want your drugs lady. What I wanted was a competent bloody doctor!".

The security guards pissed themselves laughing and I hobbled out of there. I parked outside a chiropractic clinic that I knew opened early, and when they opened I was first in the door. I explained the drama I had gone through trying to get an xray and assured the chiropractor that I had unusually large spacings between the vertebrae and that he wouldn't cause me any harm, that's how come I used to put my back out so often in the first place. The chiropractor was thankfully a huge big man strong enough to manipulate the spine without causing pain and I was back in perfect working condition and without pain in just a few minutes. And I was back at work on time that morning.

I would have done the same thing only difference would have preferred a physiotherapist to the chiropractor.

Outdated said:

I think it's a combination of that and I highly suspect that a lot of people become General Practitioners simply because they're not bright enough to study medicine seriously, they go in to the profession being licensed to write prescriptions and simply do not have the type of minds capable of truly diagnosing anything.

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Q. How much influence does the pharmaceutical industry have on medical school curriculums?

A.
AI Overview
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The pharmaceutical industry has a significant influence on medical school curriculum, often funding research, sponsoring continuing medical education programs, and providing speakers, which can potentially lead to bias in the information presented and influence what topics are emphasized in the curriculum, raising concerns about conflicts of interest and over-promotion of certain medications; however, medical schools are increasingly implementing safeguards to mitigate this influence.

Key points about pharmaceutical industry influence on medical school curriculum:

• Financial support:
  Pharma companies provide substantial funding for research projects, faculty positions, and continuing medical education programs at medical schools.
  
  
• Speaker bureaus:
  Many pharmaceutical companies maintain speaker bureaus where doctors are paid to present information about their products to medical students and other healthcare professionals.
  
  
• Curriculum content:
  Concerns exist that the funding and speaker programs may influence the curriculum towards emphasizing certain drugs or treatment options over others.
  
  
• Ethical considerations:
  The potential for conflicts of interest is a major concern, as doctors may be more likely to prescribe drugs from companies that have financially supported their education.
  
  
• Transparency and regulation:
  Medical schools are increasingly implementing policies to ensure transparency regarding pharmaceutical company funding and to minimize potential bias in education.
  
  So, my point here is that the practice of Western medicine, certainly in the US, is heavily influenced in favor of treating symptoms with pharmaceuticals, not getting to the underlying causes of disease, and certainly not in any way, shape, or form in the business of teaching doctors about health, nutrition, and disease prevention.
  
  

Ronald Zeeman said:

I would have done the same thing only difference would have preferred a physiotherapist to the chiropractor.

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There's a lot of quacks in the chiropractic industry, the very first chiropractor I ever saw was the head of the Chiropractic Board of Australia and he told me to be very wary of them. He said if they advertise things like being able to cure migraine headaches and digestive problems then they are quacks and don't go near them. He also said that a chiropractor should never cause you any sort of pain and if it hurts then the chiropractor is a bad practitioner and that I should walk away immediately and never go back.

His advice held true throughout my life. I've met some truly talented chiropractors and I've come across many hopeless idiots too. The best chiropractor I ever met was at a horse agistment, he was working on horses and I said I wished he could do the same for me. I didn't even have to lie down, he put one burly arm across my chest and picked me up off the ground and used his free hand to push vertebrae back in to their correct positions. Click clack crack and no more pain. I was really grateful and offered to pay him but he refused, he said the agistment had retained him for two days and I was just part of the service.

Neonatal RRT said:

So, my point here is that the practice of Western medicine, certainly in the US, is heavily influenced in favor of treating symptoms with pharmaceuticals, not getting to the underlying causes of disease, and certainly not in any way, shape, or form in the business of teaching doctors about health, nutrition, and disease prevention.

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I suspect that this is even more so the case in Australia than the US because here it's illegal for drug companies to advertise. The only way they can influence opinions is by getting hold of young trainees and brainwashing them early.

It's also illegal for doctors and lawyers to advertise here.

I meet a number of therapist after the stroke really impressed with them they all had master degrees really liked my conversations with them, they liked me in return.

Neonatal RRT said:

@WhitewaterWoman As it relates to autism and inflammation:
1. Methylation pathways
2. Cortisol pathways
3. Homocysteine pathways
4. Antioxidant pathways
5. Insulin pathways

Treat the underlying mechanisms and you can impact the chronic inflammation, blood pressure, cholesterol, metabolic syndrome, etc.

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You should write papers on the physiology of autism! I would read them

What I have found is that I have a different umwelt than the doctors (and actually everyone else). That means that they cannot understand what I am requesting. It's not their fault. They don't have the same umwelt to be able to comprehend what I'm saying.

I have trauma level sensitivities they simply cannot relate to.
One is the feeling that my ownership of myself is denied or disregarded. Their testing, treatment and evaluations, etc. all make me feel like I am their property, as if I am a piece of livestock or lab rat. This is extremely traumatic to me. I try to express this and it has always been dismissed. This made me dread any medical visit even when the next visit was a year away. Additional anxiety was added with each visit, regardless of the time span between visits. It was a life threatening issue because I am a type-1 diabetic thus I am dependent on a doctors visit for insulin prescriptions. Earlier in life, this was not a problem because insulin was affordable and available over the counter. a prescription was not required. Then greed became the trend blackmailing me to pay for doctors visits if I wanted to continue living. I did not need the visits as many years passed with no doctor at all. I was doing just fine. I just need to be able to buy my insulin.

A couple of years ago, I decided to try something. I wrote and mailed a letter to my new doctor. It was a four page letter. Everyone told me it was a waste of time, because no doctor will take the time to read a four page letter. My thought was that if a doctor does not have the time or interest to learn about me, then I don't want them as my doctor anyway.

The letter explained about my sensitivities and listed the things they could do to alleviate the trauma. When I arrived for the scheduled visit, I was astonished to find that the doctor did indeed read the letter - thoroughly. She asked questions that proved she read and studied it with interest. She was totally compliant and would not do anything without discussing it with me to ensure it would not be a trigger. If it was a trigger she would simply not do it or do something else that was not a trigger. Then I found that not only did the doctor read the letter, but that all the nurses, staff and even the office staff read it. The doctor gave me a big thank you for helping them understand to better serve their other autistic patients.

Then I did this with my dentist - with the same result. It's now a pleasure going to my dentist.

Unfortunately, this did not work with my optometrist.

I should point out that my doctor is not a classic medical doctor. She is a lifestyle doctor. A Lifestyle doctor receives the same schooling and training as a classic medical doctor, but with extra training on the causes of illnesses instead of only treatments. I feel she is the only "real" doctor I have ever visited.

daniegirl6224 said:

What is your experience in how providers have handled your autism?

What do you wish your providers knew about your autism?

What things would help you in meeting with providers?

What do you think they should be educated about?

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What is your experience in how providers have handled your autism? - see above.
What do you wish your providers knew about your autism? That autistic's have a different umwelt and sensitivity levels. They have differences in their parietal lobes (the sensory level regulating part of the brain.)
What things would help you in meeting with providers? For them to understand my sensitivities and respect me as a person and to not act as if they are the owner of my biology.
What do you think they should be educated about? thorough education in umwelt and the parietal lobes regulating functions. They should understand everyone's perceptions are not all the same and they should respect that.They should understand that due to their own unwelt, that they cannot understand, but they certainally can respect.