Posted by bleauberry on May 31, 2009, at 14:18:37
In reply to Re: I 've given up hope » bleauberry, posted by Frustratedmama on May 30, 2009, at 19:52:01
You are so correct, it is like running into a brick wall trying to find a doctor to help find the origin of the depression. Their training is extremely too rigid and narrowly scoped to deal with that. The easy way out is, "See a shrink".
When I say dig for answers, I don't mean see specialists. That is actually the WORST thing to do. What I mean is personal research. Personal trials and errors of your own discretion.
Probably the best doctors to help in this area are ones who call themselves Integrative MDs. Their training is more rounded in the complex whole body view. While none are experts, they are at least familiar with all the things behind depression that other doctors aren't. They also commonly work with you as a partner in a cooperative manner, not as a dictator. And they often do no rely on tests alone. They go by hunch, presentation, history, and experiment, with tests just being part of the overall picture. For example, even in the face of apparently normal thyroid numbers, if they have a patient with an average temp in the 97's, thyroid is likely to be tried, and throw the test out the window. You won't see that happen with a specialist.
Besides, very few "tests" that any doctor or specialist can do are going to be much help. Most have inaccuracies, built-in flaws, built-in bias by the interpreter, and miss the bigger picture. Thousands of people who have Lyme disease, for example, tested negative, and are today walking around (or not) with labels such as Fibromyalgia, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, or Depression, when they are actually severely ill from a bacteria attacking their joints and brain. Just one example. I could list many many more.
> Just wanted to say that I agree with your take; however, I was SURE it was something else and have had extensive testing done (thyroid, RA, lupus, lyme, MRI's, EEG's, allergies, homeopathic tests, etc). All of the "specialists" agree that it is "psychiatric" in nature. One doc (a mean spirited rheumatologist) looked in my chart and said "You don't have RA, why are you here? You are bi-polar and should be seeing a shrink". I responded that my doctor said I had low IgG and IgA levels and had referred me to him. He then shook his head and said "Unless you are in and out of the hospital several times a year with pneumonia, I see no reason for you to be here with a simple immune deficiency. Follow up with a good shrink." So, sometimes, digging for anwers can be hurtful- just saying......
poster:bleauberry
thread:898348
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20090531/msgs/898640.html