Do you fear Doctors?

[Ronald Zeeman]

My attitude is trust until you give me a reason not too, every bell curve has two sides . I'll determine fo rmyself which side you the doctor are on.

 

[tripleU]

Yes it is. Stress causes all sorts of things that are uncontrollable. I hate the dentist, so I stopped going 20 years ago.

I need to, my teeth have cavities as my mom says.

 

[tazz]

Medical care in general is variable. Some doctors and nurses are fabulous and others are crap. Even the fabulous ones are sometimes limited in what they can do by funding and workload.

Individual incompetence at least can be fought - although I admit it can be difficult and I don't blame anyone for not bothering to fight.

The bigger issue for me is the systemic stuff.

For example the issue that really bugs me is the systemic lack of respect for the patient's right to refuse treatment. Nurses and doctors ALWAYS seem to assume that they are telling you what's going to happen rather than asking for your permission to proceed.

 

[AspieChris]

For example the issue that really bugs me is the systemic lack of respect for the patient's right to refuse treatment. Nurses and doctors ALWAYS seem to assume that they are telling you what's going to happen rather than asking for your permission to proceed.

I once had a surgery (one of several). A few days later, I wanted to leave the hospital. They said I COULD NOT LEAVE. As if it was some sort of jail.

I’m a stubborn S.O.B. Tell me what I can’t do and I’ll prove you wrong. Ultimately, I stayed. But the look on the nurse’s and Dr’s faces was unbelievable…. like I was defying God himself.

 

[Outdated]

I once had a surgery (one of several). A few days later, I wanted to leave the hospital. They said I COULD NOT LEAVE. As if it was some sort of jail.

I relate to that so well. Thank you for giving me a such big smile so early in the morning.

I told them that if I wasn't allowed to leave then they were going to have to call the police. Then I turned to the very large orderly that they brought in to intimidate me, I cocked my head to one side and asked "Really?", he looked embarrassed and walked away.

I react very poorly to people trying to force my will.

I need to, my teeth have cavities as my mom says.

Ask if you can have laughing gas. (nitrous oxide) It really does make the dentist fun.

 

[Outdated]

A little story for @AspieChris :

That winter I suffered a really bad bout of bronchitis, so bad that I went to see a doctor. He did all sorts of tests, I had to cough up oysters into a jar for him, urine samples, and a whole series of blood tests. He wanted me to go to hospital and it took quite a bit of talking to make him understand that I had to work, if I didn't go to work I wouldn't be able to pay rent and then I would be a lot worse off. I eventually worked this out for myself, people that are prone to bronchitis shouldn't smoke bongs, it was the water going into my lungs that was causing all the problems. I changed back to smoking dope in a pipe and the bronchitis cleared up.

Then the doctor phoned and asked me to come and see him to discuss some anomalies in my blood test results. When I got there he told me that he could only find one problem with me, but it was a very serious problem, I had an erratic thyroid gland. Sometimes it was working normally, sometimes it was running double time.

There was a standard procedure to fix this, cut half the thyroid gland away so that when it's over active your body gets the right amount of hormone, then take hormone replacement pills when the thyroid is behaving normally. I knew two people who had already gone through this procedure, within two years they both developed thyritic cancer and died, one of them a single mother that left behind a 5 year old and an 8 year old.

I told the doctor that I wouldn't be doing that. The doctor got a bit cross with me, he said that what I had was a life threatening situation and that if he wanted he could phone the police and have me escorted to hospital. I panicked, and threatening a lad from Salisbury with police involvement was not a wise decision. Across his desk I could see the back of a framed photograph, I leant over and picked it up.

I glanced at the photo, I was right, it was a picture of a woman and two little girls, I gently placed the photo back in it's place and said "If you want to feck with my life I reckon I could really feck with yours!" The doctor suddenly looked as scared as I was and he apologised to me, I left quietly.

 

[Misty Avich]

I don't really fear doctors but I try to avoid going unless absolutely necessary. I hate phoning up for an appointment and I hate waiting in the waiting-room. I have the NHS app but it doesn't let you book appointments online. Also I find it challenging to fit appointments around work and other life demands. So that's why I sometimes avoid going to the doctors unless I'm suffering enough to take time off work or if it's something that's really worrying me.

 

[Gift2humanity]

Pain sucks. The human body wasn’t designed to hurt all of the time. I have 20 screws in my spine and permanent nerve damage in my spinal cord, so I’m speaking from experience.

I found Kratom a few years ago and it changed my life. It got me off oxycodone (tons of oxy). Today I take Lyrica and Kratom. Kratom is for my general aches and pains. Lyrica for the nerve pain. And I finally don’t miss my oxy. It took me about a year to get past the physical withdrawals, and another year for my brain to finish recovering. The prescription opioids actually created pain everywhere in my body, just so that I needed a pill to stop it for a short time.

Sorry you have so much pain and congratulations on getting off oxy.
I started taking kratom for depression last year and I am still on it, a few months after I started it, I got horrible side effects, it's been more trouble than it's worth for me, to be honest, due to the mental side effects. I need to dose on waking so it takes over my life.

 

[Sablerose]

I once had a surgery (one of several). A few days later, I wanted to leave the hospital. They said I COULD NOT LEAVE. As if it was some sort of jail.

I’m a stubborn S.O.B. Tell me what I can’t do and I’ll prove you wrong. Ultimately, I stayed. But the look on the nurse’s and Dr’s faces was unbelievable…. like I was defying God himself.

I'm beginning to think stubbornness is an autism trait My husband is the most stubborn person I know, besides myself (and I also will prove the opposite is true when told I HAVE to do something)
Doctors don't scare me but most don't seem to really care anymore. Dentists ...This new one I have after not seeing one for over 40 years is actually very nice and not scary at all. (Though the smell still bothers me, but they all have that smell and I don't like the drill noise)

 

[AspieChris]

the drill noise

The drill….. Oh my God! And the smell of whatever they all use to disenfect their tools. It’s been 20 years for me.

Kratom isn’t technically an opioid, but it does basically the same thing as prescribed pain killers, so the withdrawals are very similar. You can try loperamide (Immodium) to get back to normal. It takes 4 hours to start working. But it’s not something you’d enjoy, so the ‘stimming’ effect of taking Kratom and feeling good can be easily broken. If you would like more information, PM me. Unfortunately I have become an expert on the whole situation, and I’m happy to help anyone I can

 

[AspieChris]

I don't really fear doctors but I try to avoid going unless absolutely necessary. I hate phoning up for an appointment and I hate waiting in the waiting-room. I have the NHS app but it doesn't let you book appointments online. Also I find it challenging to fit appointments around work and other life demands. So that's why I sometimes avoid going to the doctors unless I'm suffering enough to take time off work or if it's something that's really worrying me.

I had a regular Dr appointment every month for several years. The 3-4 days leading up to it each month was always murder. I hid it well, but probably not as good as I thought. It’s the anticipation of a change in my daily routine that I was stressing over.

 

[AspieChris]

Sorry you have so much pain and congratulations on getting off oxy.
I started taking kratom for depression last year and I am still on it, a few months after I started it, I got horrible side effects, it's been more trouble than it's worth for me, to be honest, due to the mental side effects. I need to dose on waking so it takes over my life.

Try this:

Need to dose on waking right? Keep doing it but add another routine BEFORE your dose. Drink 8 ounces of water and eat a banana or a slice of toast before your serving of Kratom. After a week of that, double your water and banana (or toast). The food and water will slow down the effects of the Kratom and provide another routine to start your day. After a couple of weeks, cut your morning Kratom dose in half. Eventually you’ll be desperate for a banana in the morning instead of Kratom.

I have never been able to take my own advice. However, my 15 year old son has had similar issues and this actually works. And it only takes 3 days for him (and myself also) to create tgat new routine.

 

[lovely_darlingprettybaby]

I don't really fear doctors but I try to avoid going unless absolutely necessary. I hate phoning up for an appointment and I hate waiting in the waiting-room. I have the NHS app but it doesn't let you book appointments online. Also I find it challenging to fit appointments around work and other life demands. So that's why I sometimes avoid going to the doctors unless I'm suffering enough to take time off work or if it's something that's really worrying me.

Yeah doctors rooms smell funny and sometimes you have to wait so long and it feels like there are germs everywhere in the room wafting around, on the magazines, on the chairs, sick people looking infirm.
It makes you sick even waiting in there.
Sensory overload

 

[lovely_darlingprettybaby]

A little story for @AspieChris :

That winter I suffered a really bad bout of bronchitis, so bad that I went to see a doctor. He did all sorts of tests, I had to cough up oysters into a jar for him, urine samples, and a whole series of blood tests. He wanted me to go to hospital and it took quite a bit of talking to make him understand that I had to work, if I didn't go to work I wouldn't be able to pay rent and then I would be a lot worse off. I eventually worked this out for myself, people that are prone to bronchitis shouldn't smoke bongs, it was the water going into my lungs that was causing all the problems. I changed back to smoking dope in a pipe and the bronchitis cleared up.

Then the doctor phoned and asked me to come and see him to discuss some anomalies in my blood test results. When I got there he told me that he could only find one problem with me, but it was a very serious problem, I had an erratic thyroid gland. Sometimes it was working normally, sometimes it was running double time.

There was a standard procedure to fix this, cut half the thyroid gland away so that when it's over active your body gets the right amount of hormone, then take hormone replacement pills when the thyroid is behaving normally. I knew two people who had already gone through this procedure, within two years they both developed thyritic cancer and died, one of them a single mother that left behind a 5 year old and an 8 year old.

I told the doctor that I wouldn't be doing that. The doctor got a bit cross with me, he said that what I had was a life threatening situation and that if he wanted he could phone the police and have me escorted to hospital. I panicked, and threatening a lad from Salisbury with police involvement was not a wise decision. Across his desk I could see the back of a framed photograph, I leant over and picked it up.

I glanced at the photo, I was right, it was a picture of a woman and two little girls, I gently placed the photo back in it's place and said "If you want to feck with my life I reckon I could really feck with yours!" The doctor suddenly looked as scared as I was and he apologised to me, I left quietly.

It is understandable.
I have had bronchitis before and I was sick as a dog.
I wish I could stand up for myself as well as you, I struggle to and autistics can get taken advantage of in medical situations.
I have and it is trauma for me.

 

[lovely_darlingprettybaby]

I relate to that so well. Thank you for giving me a such big smile so early in the morning.

I told them that if I wasn't allowed to leave then they were going to have to call the police. Then I turned to the very large orderly that they brought in to intimidate me, I cocked my head to one side and asked "Really?", he looked embarrassed and walked away.

I react very poorly to people trying to force my will.


Ask if you can have laughing gas. (nitrous oxide) It really does make the dentist fun.

Me too.
Police has hauled me to hospital and I was vulnerable and infirm and unable to fight properly for myself.

 

[Outdated]

I wish I could stand up for myself as well as you, I struggle to and autistics can get taken advantage of in medical situations.

I grew up in a very rough place and had no choice but to learn to stick up for myself. I'm not talking about the criminal element in the neighbourhood though, in many ways they were much more honourable than the adults who were supposed to be my protectors and educators.

From my own parents to teachers, doctors, and even the police. I learnt from a very early age to not just automatically do what other people tell me to. I automatically rebel against control freaks. From another thread:

A topic I feel very strongly about. Shamelessly stolen and converted from the Magna Carta:

Am I a human being with the power of conscious thought and the free will to act on that thought?
Or am I just a machine owned by the state? A machine that can be repaired and sent back to work or scrapped at someone else's discretion.

Try to subvert my will and you'll find an answer you don't like very much.

 

[tazz]

the Magna Carta

800 years old and still Britain's best contribution to the world.

You're welcome

 

[Ken]

Same here.

Every doctor visit adds traumas on top of traumas. So, last year, I had a thought. I would send my doctor a letter explaining my autistic sensitivities with the hope they might understand. I was told that it was too long and no doctor would read it. Well, that was also part of my test of the doctor. I felt that any doctor that doesn't have time to read a letter about my health would also not have time to be of any benefit to me. Additionally, if the doctor does not have enough interest or patience to read a letter about me then they would likewise not be interested in my health.

So, I sent the letter. When I arrived for my appointment, I was greeted with multiple thank-yous from my doctor and the staff. I found that not only did my doctor read it, but everyone in the practice read it; all of doctors, nurses and even all of the office personnel. The appointment went so much better and I was so amazed that people can actually be interested when given the information. The doctor thanked me for the letter because it would help them care for their other autistic patients. She said that was never taught in medical school.

Might be worth mentioning that the entire practice is all female; doctors, nurses, office - everyone. Perhaps that helps?

Attached is the letter I sent...

OK, so 24-October-2023 was my second visit since sending the first letter on March 5, 2023. Before my visit, however, I sent a second letter as a refresher and some additional information.

I can say with absolute certainty, that this October visit was the best doctor visit ever in my life. Again, everyone in the practice re-read my original letter as well as the refresher one. Everyone was extremely respectful and really knew and practiced everything in the letter. I couldn't believe how everyone retained all six pages of the letters. The doctor thanked me again for the letters and how much it has helped them with other autistic patients.

They never touched me without asking permission first and explaining what the touch is for and that a NO answer is OK. When some touching was done, it was always with an instrument, like a stethoscope, for example. Also every test or measure was done with respectful delicacy.

They made me feel totally welcome. The visit lasted one hour. Not the traditional 18 minutes. I was never hurried. They were extremely patient with me. I never felt pressured for anything.

In all my life, I have never communicated anything about my person to anyone that was taken so literally and so completely.

I don't mean to make anyone jealous, but I think I may have the best primary care physician on the planet!

Prior to this visit, I sent the same letter to my dentist and optometrist. No luck there. No one in either office read the letter. I asked the dentist, dental hygienist and everyone in the optometrist office if they read it and none even knew anything about it. So, I asked the person at the front desk, of both practices, if they received the letter I sent. They said, "Yes" with a very happy smiling face. I asked why no one ever read it. They said, "Oh that's OK, the letter is safely in your file." I reiterated that no one actually read it. Their response was just a shrug of the shoulders with a big smile.

Perhaps one thing that may make a difference; my PCP is a lifestyle doctor. The difference is that while they are a traditional doctor, they also study and pay attention to lifestyle causes and influences in ones health.

 

[Ronald Zeeman]

I do not fear doctors, I am not impressed with how they are trained rote learning. I have learned bring my wife with me my autism throws them for a loop. She lets them know do not assume. Things are not as they seem. I do my research before I seem them.

 

[Kaz2012]

Not scared of doctors...but dentist - totally petrified of dentists. Hardly ever go. Luckily I have good teeth and no cavities. I think it started with my grandmother who was a dentist (and an awful narcissistic horrible person) and when I was little I remember her yanking 2 of my infected baby teeth out. I remember it as a very traumatic experience so have hated dentists ever since.