Posted by jerrympls on March 16, 2006, at 2:38:06
In reply to what's so wrong with doctor shopping?, posted by mike99 on March 15, 2006, at 17:54:52
> I really dislike the connotation 'doctor shopping' has gotten. Sure some do it for inappropriate reasons, but many don't.
>
> I have no problem admitting I have and will continue if necessary to doctor shop.
>
> Perhaps big brother is getting a bit too big.I agree. Especially for those who have hard to treat depressions, etc - one HAS to doctor shop because we all know there are some horrific docs who somehow got through medical school only to see patients suffer at their own hands.
Back to hard to treat cases - you've got to doctor shop. Why? Because there's only one person who can truely be your advocate and that's you. Most of us on this board have done more research into meds and med combos than a 4th years psych. resident - and even many professional pdocs. WE know what works and what doesn't work for us (med wise) and we get to the point where some really off-off-off-lable meds NEED to be employed. So we bring our printouts of various studies, etc. to each doctor appointment and all we have to do is catch the initial expression of the doctor glancing at our research to know if he/she is threatened by it or open and willing to listen and learn. Rarely do we find an open-minded/talented/patient-oriented/not on the defensive doc on our first or even 5th new doc. We have to make a HUGE effort to travel, battle insurance, battle our illnesses to find a good doctor- THUS WE DOCTOR SHOP.
Now I know the original tone of this thread and the mention of doctor shopping prottained to those who go to different docs to get multiple Rx's of certain scheduled meds. So I may be ogg on a tangent with my view of doctor shopping. Either way, whether it be to obtain multiple Rx's or to "try-out" or interview doctors until we find one that's human - both acts are going to be seen as suspicious. Meaning - if I travel within a 100 mile radius to "interview" 4 diffferent pdocs - that's seen as "bad" doctor shopping - even tho it's not to obtain multiple scripts. Am I making any sense?
I just think it ridiculous that we're chastised for tryign to find decent medical care. Therapists, counselors, friends, etc are always telling us we have to advocate for ourselves! Stick up for ourselves! And then we do and are almost categorized as if we're criminals.
It took me 7 psychiatrsits to finally find hope in the 8th. Psychiatrists are always telling us to educate ourselves about our meds and our illnesses - but when we show signs of intelligence it's seen as disrespect towards the doctor. Plus THEY are the ones who keep saying "Psychiatry isn't an exact science - it's an art."
And one last thing - what REALLY irriates me is when pdocs don't keep up on the latest treatments/meds, etc. They rely on the continuing falacy of the serotonin-imbalance ONLY model for depression. 90% of pdocs out there have no clue about thestudies showing the role of hyperactivity of the LHPA axis in major depression and other psychiatric disorders. Treatments employing antiglucocorticoid meds (ketoconazole) have shown to bring a complete remission of symptoms in those who are treatment-resistant (see http://www.psychosomaticmedicine.org/cgi/content/full/61/5/698).
OK -- I've ranted enough. Thanks for listening.
Jerry
poster:jerrympls
thread:616983
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20060315/msgs/620847.html