r/comics • u/TheNectarineDiaries • Jun 19 '26

OC Why didn't you say so?

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Best medical advice I ever got was to bring a man to your appointments

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5.3k

u/CocoCookieDraws Jun 19 '26 edited Jun 19 '26

even when I bring my sister they say more than when I'm alone. for some reason doctors are scared when you're not by yourself. I wish doctors were more proactive instead of the patient having to fight to get tested. I wouldn't have confirmed POTS with a tilt table test if I didn't push my doctor for tests

edit: woah I didn’t expect to get so many comments. thank you for them, it’s nice to know I’m not alone in this (and thank you, comic artist). 

My diagnosis: For those curious about my POTS diagnosis, since January I’ve had a test with about every specialist you can think of. I got sick in November with a really bad flu, I don’t know if it was Covid or something else, but I definitely got  screwed over. I had my tilt table last week, and the common misconception among doctors is that they can just test you in their office. my doctor and two cardiologist said they didn’t think I had POTS (no it's not anxiety SHUT UP I KNOW WHAT MY ANXIETY FEELS LIKE. stop telling me that because I'm a 22 year old woman. I swear, telling women they have anxiety when they have a medical problem is exactly the same as telling them they have hysteria). but at the time they tested me, I was hydrated and taking salt. before my TTT I fasted, no food, no water, and stopped taking my vitassium (salt pills) the day before. the nurse literally told me that they wanted to see my baseline, how my body functioned without hydration holding me up. If you think you have POTS or anything else, please advocate for yourself. You’re worth it.

edit 2: diagnostic criteria for pots is a rise of 30 bpm within 10 min of standing, and it has to be sustained for a certain amount of time (not sure the exact amount of time) and the absence of a ≥ 20 mmHg systolic or ≥ 10 mmHg diastolic bp within the first 3 minutes. and no, you do not need to faint to have POTS

for me, I had a 40 bpm increase and my bp increased by 20 systolic I think?, so I have hyperadrenergic POTS, or hyper pots. there are different types of POTS, and treatment varies between them.

adding bolding to make it easier to see the sections you wanted to read

1.3k

u/Soupeeee Jun 19 '26

Ya, as a guy, backup is good. Trying to be both uncomplaining to be a good patient AND still being assertive enough to actually be listened to is difficult, let alone when medical staff don't take you seriously to begin with.

I think it's sometimes bad for me, it can't imagine how bad it is for others.

545

u/North-Pea-4926 Jun 19 '26

Yep. Complain too much and they think you are just being dramatic. Don’t complain enough and they brush you off.

How about believing that I wouldn’t take the time, energy, and money (USA) if it wasn’t serious and just running the test!

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u/lexkixass Jun 19 '26

Complain too much and they think you are just being dramatic

Or drug-seeking. 🙄

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u/b00w00gal Jun 19 '26

Got called drug-seeking once for asking the doctor to please listen to my lungs and not just send me home, after six weeks with a cough that wouldn't go away. Ended up in the ER three days later with walking pneumonia, wheeeeeee. 😭😭😭

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u/MimicoSkunkFan2 Jun 19 '26

My favorite is when it's some kind of women's issue they always tell you just drink juice and try to reduce your stress, and have you considered maybe losing another 5 lbs?

Like never mind that I'm within the normal weight range and it turns out I actually need two surgeries to fix what's wrong. Wankers.

24

u/Farranor Jun 19 '26

That's happened to me too and I'm a man. I don't know if it would need surgery to fix because I just gave up on fixing it.

6

u/MimicoSkunkFan2 Jun 19 '26

I'm sorry but I have to doubt that you needed an gynecological surgeon, sir.

Find the doctor who'll fix your shit though my dude, life is too short to mess with "Graduate of the Obscure Sixth-Rate College of Medicine" type of doctors like that.

3

u/Farranor Jun 20 '26

😄 My bad, I didn't mean the same medical issue, just the generic medical solutions even though there may be an underlying issue that might call for surgery. In my case, trouble sleeping. I got several prescriptions for Trazodone (didn't help) before they listened to me saying I think it's a breathing/sinus issue, at which point I got a sleep study. Their conclusion: I don't have sleep apnea, but if I do have trouble sleeping, it's because I'm fat.

Both my dad and my sister have needed septum correction surgery.

1

u/MimicoSkunkFan2 Jun 22 '26

Fair enough!

It's good they did to sleep study but it sounds like a lung / oxygen test might have been a better than worrying about snoring, because it's pretty well known that mild asthma can cause poor sleep... but because you're a guy, they assumed snoring not asthma. Sorry you got stuck in a gendered assumption with your doctor too!

And I hope someone can figure out a fix for you, chronic insomnia is fucking brutual (esp when you hit 45+ ouch)

3

u/wazzup-notemuch Jun 20 '26

Yup. If you're even mildly overweight, doctors will blame EVERYTHING on being fat. You could break your leg, have the bone visibly sticking out of your skin, and they would still tell you to lose weight.

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u/TrulyOutrageous42 Jun 19 '26

It's absurd that this isn't just a form of malpractice.

45

u/PixelOrange Jun 19 '26

I mean, it can be, but that requires doing a lot of work and money to report and sue. 

7

u/b00w00gal Jun 19 '26

I filled a complaint with Kaiser that went nowhere; that seems to be the extent of patient power in America, tbh.

5

u/Aadarm Jun 19 '26

It's worst if they put that you have drug seeking behavior in your medical history, that will follow you around forever and make every doctor after look at you differently.

5

u/b00w00gal Jun 19 '26

Yeah, that's what happened. When I went to the ER, the doctor there asked me about my "history of drug use." I didn't have that history, the first doctor straight up made it up. Thankfully the second doctor still treated me, but it completely wrecked my medical history.

I've had to explain why that note is in my chart to every doctor since, and I know they don't believe me. I've never asked for pain medication, not even once, but I can't get a doctor to actually do their job because one person decided to lie about me a decade ago. It's super fucked.

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u/futuretimetraveller Jun 21 '26

I have a cousin who was homeless for a good portion of her life. She went to the hospital multiple times for things like sore throat, fever, and pain in her muscles. She was kicked out almost every time for being "drug seeking."

It took her mother (my aunt) going to the ER with her for someone to finally take her serious, but even then, it was a struggle. She ended up having a seizure in the waiting room and nurses were saying she was faking it and were calling security to try and get her thrown out again. My aunt kicked up such a fuss about the way they were treating her and threatened to sue, and it was only then that the nurses would admit her.

My cousin was finally seen by a doctor..... and diagnosed with tertiary syphilis. If it was caught earlier she could have completely recovered, but now the damage done to her brain and organs will never heal and it likely will kill her.

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u/kwirky88 Jun 19 '26

A doctor did that to my wife. She went into emergency due to trouble breathing and the emergency physician treated her like a pill seeker and prescribed pain killers stronger than OxyContin. She complained to the health agency, because she needed an inhaler, not opiates.

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u/North-Pea-4926 Jun 19 '26

If you are in pain and want anything stronger then OTC Tylenol then you MUST be a druggie!

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u/not_now_chaos Jun 19 '26

Also if you are in pain and clearly state that you don't want any pain killers, that you have a low drug tolerance and a family member with an addiction to pain meds, and that you want to know and fix the source of the pain, not just cover it ...then you also must be a drug seeker faking pain.

Zero sense. So exhausting. (Also people struggling with opiate addiction are in pain. Their pain is real.)

7

u/Any_Western6705 Jun 19 '26

Having a really high tolerance to pain killers is also just annoying, when all the prescribe is the lowest ibuprofen and you tell them "this won't work." They act like you are crazy

9

u/Puzzleheaded_Ad_3137 Jun 19 '26

Especially if you're anything younger than a boomer

7

u/tagoniki Jun 19 '26

2 separate instances, once recovering from surgery and another time I had 3 broken ribs. I was denied at the pharmacist! So I just had to rawdog the pain

14

u/Bloodless10 Jun 19 '26

Oh I got that when I had appendicitis! I wasn’t hamming it up the waiting room, so I got seen after some guy that wanted his ear disimpacted. Then I got stuffed on a bed in the hallway. After the MRI people got significantly nicer.

When I went to urgent care prior, they asked if I wanted an ambulance and they called ahead to make sure I got seen soon. I waited for 4 hours.

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u/JayKazooie Jun 19 '26

Dude, second time I went to the ER for my rotten, infected, half-done root canal, they got me into a bed within a couple hours (couple hours shorter than the previous time) but then after I explained how good my pain tolerance was and that it was a 9 very quickly approaching a ten, it still took half an hour (ten minutes of which I was actually sobbing) a tube in my arm, and a pregnancy test before they got me any pain management.

I've had eye infections requiring things jammed in my tearduct, chronic piriformis syndrome, ten missed anesthetic injections in the tonsils from a butterfingers dentist, foreign objects and infections I've performed surgery on myself for, and the rare cluster headache. This was the first time my wife of 9 years had ever seen me cry from pain.

And then the dose they gave me literally wore off before I made it back to the car.

Brian Reagan told me I just had to say 'eight' 😢

5

u/MimicoSkunkFan2 Jun 19 '26

Even though I already have amazing drugs since I got hit by a drunk who fucked up my back for me... so the fact that I can feel anything extra should be more concerning to you doc :p

I find it makes a big difference if you go to an urban or Suburban hospital where that's an issue and a rural/farm area hospital where they know that people don't come in unless it's absolutely a crisis

3

u/BellacosePlayer Jun 19 '26

I had someone make a comment about me play acting my pain while waiting for an acute care slot to open up, turns out once they did the tests, that tune changed dramatically.

also I didn't even ask for pain meds and took all of 1 of the ones I got because it turns out I ended up passing the kidney stone while trying to pee for the lab test.

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u/ilanallama85 Jun 19 '26

I’ve learned to always throw out a number one or two higher than I actually think when they ask for a pain scale. I dunno how much of that is misogyny and how much is just they assume EVERYONE exaggerates their pain and if I don’t it can’t really be “that bad.”

1

u/Much_Fact_8574 Jun 19 '26

Yeah it's the ladder

3

u/Old-Badger-7367 Jun 19 '26

Seriously! It's as if I go there to waste MY time and to suffer more while being gaslit?!

Like no, I'd rather not be there at all 😫😭

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u/MisterMysterios Jun 19 '26

Agreed. While I heard it is worse for women, having someone with you - especially in very vulnerable situations is good for everyone.

A little story of mine: In my mid-20's, I needed a seriouse surgery on my ankle. The hospital knew of my allergies, especially that I am allergic to Novalgin (a rather popular painkiller here in Germany). It seems the information didn't reach the station, because post surgery they gave me that shit. My mom knows all my symptoms and can see even mild reaction simply by a look on my face. Hell broke loose even before I woke up, and I got a medication I did not have issues with.

3

u/Aposematicpebble Jun 19 '26

God, being allergic to dipyrone must be stressful

10

u/MisterMysterios Jun 19 '26

Better than what my foster mom (putting the foster here to show that my Novalgin-allergy has nothing to do with her issues) has. During her last surgery, it was discovered that she cannot be given anything other than opioids or Ibuprofen. It was one of the cases where they started the surgery, but no matter how much they gave her, she started to wake up, until there were danger of respiratory issues. It was not a fun time.

1

u/TransGirlIndy Jun 20 '26

As someone who's navigated the medical system perceived as both, it's definitely worse for women. Be thankful the women of the world don't just collectively rage because of how messed up it is.

4

u/socialistrob Jun 19 '26

There's also the added benefit of two people paying attention who can both ask questions. It's easy to forget or misremember something and doctors often aren't great about using terminology that patients can understand.

1

u/Handsome_Keyboard Jun 19 '26

Remeber, youre paying them. You cant be too ascertive if you know somethings wrong.

1

u/D3monGod Jun 19 '26

I always always backup and support for my ex and had to get used to them asking me to leave the room. Her condition caused her to bruise easily so they always thought something was up. It was annoying at first but then I was thankful father were checking on her. Anyway, I learned from her, bring backup and fight for yourself.

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u/AdCurrent7674 Jun 19 '26

The one time I went to urgent care for a chronic UTI without my husband that had the chart projected on the screen. I was describing the symptoms I was having. The nurse froze at “foul smelling urine”. I repeated foul smelling urine. The nurse looks at me and says “I don’t want to put that because it sounds bad” and made a gesture like I should be embarrassed.

I said “Sir I work in healthcare that’s is the proper term put it in the chart.” (I am a microbiologist)

This was then followed by my urine test coming back negative. I fought the doctor hard. I told them to send it for culture. We went back and forth. I told them I knew what a UTI smelled like and I could even tell them what bacteria was growing.

I finally convinced them when I forced the doctor to look in my chart and she that I had a history of UTIs that would grow in culture but not flag on the over the counter test.

I honestly don’t get why I had to fight so hard, I am the one paying to have it sent for culture anyways. It came back with E coil just like I told them it would

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u/Exciting-Mountain396 Jun 19 '26

Being told your symptoms are too unladylike for your chart, good grief.

14

u/KayD12364 Jun 19 '26

What is the point of a chart if they dont look at it

1

u/AdCurrent7674 Jun 21 '26

Exactly 😅

16

u/Aquatic_Rainbow Jun 20 '26

“I don’t want to put that there because that sounds bad”

Foul smelling urine has to be one of the better symptoms urgent care workers get 😭 how the hell are you going to be a nurse and so grossed out about smelly pee that you don’t even want to write it down in the patient’s chart?

3

u/AdCurrent7674 Jun 21 '26

I was like sir, why do you think I am here??? It is bad… that’s the point

2

u/Aquatic_Rainbow Jun 21 '26

Exactly!!! Where else and who else do you tell about nasty symptoms to get them treated?? Imagine being so judgmental you forget you’re there to help people with unconventional medical problems, not just scoff at them for developing said problems like a human does

I’m really sorry that happened to you

2

u/AdCurrent7674 Jun 21 '26

He had been flirting before that. It felt objectifying. It was like he wasn’t letting me be sick because it would ruin how he saw me.

3

u/siberpup2077 Jun 20 '26

That's awful. In a weird way though, it's almost reassuring that a professional like you was also dismissed. It confirms that it really isn't anything other than misogyny.

3

u/AdCurrent7674 Jun 21 '26

Yeah like a month later I went in with my husband who was sick, his flu test came back negative and he had been sick for longer than 48 hr and they gave him medicine just incase it was the flu. “It probably won’t help but it won’t hurt, better to be safe.”

1

u/siberpup2077 Jun 21 '26

I'm so sorry 💜 it's extremely unfair

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u/shellbullet17 Gustopher Spotter Extraordinaire Jun 19 '26 edited Jun 19 '26

for some reason doctors are scared when you're not by yourself.

Oh I can help with this! It's this magical thing called liability. Basically if the Doc is with you alone it's you vs them if an argument or discussion every comes up and their records will only back what they said. Making it look like they did everything correctly. But when there's a witness they have to take everything as seriously as they should.

Source: paramedic. I see this particular encounter a lot

193

u/Angsty_Potatos Jun 19 '26

Annnd this is why I bring my emotional support husband with me to the doctors

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u/shellbullet17 Gustopher Spotter Extraordinaire Jun 19 '26

Always a good idea. As long as we aren't doing anything invasive, like cracking open someone's ribs, and the guests are allowing us to work with the patient, I invite support humans to be a part of our care. It makes the patient feel better

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u/Angsty_Potatos Jun 19 '26

I bring him because I have a zero percent success rate of doctors actually listening to me when I warn them about my white coat syndrome. 

Without fail, they take my vitals and then get super concerned, which causes my BP and heart rate to skyrocket more and no amount of me explaining that this is just what happens when I go to the doctor gets thru to them. 

I have long term resting BP and heart rate data when I'm home and not in the middle of panicking at the Drs office. They are both great and well within normal range. But no one believes or listens so I have to make my husband explain it and verify everything like I'm a child 💀

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u/shellbullet17 Gustopher Spotter Extraordinaire Jun 19 '26

so I have to make my husband explain it and verify everything

While I am sorry you are having these issues this is a great practice to have. Medicine is at it's heart, science and we love data. So the more confirmed reports we have the quicker and more aggressively we can act on something

That being said your doctor should believe you when you say something the first time

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u/Angsty_Potatos Jun 19 '26

My brother is a nurse and it was actually his suggestion that I take my bp and heart rate morning and night for a while to establish a baseline so that I had numbers to back me up in the office when I got push back. He was sure that showing them where I was normally over the course of a few weeks would be enough. Womp womp

16

u/shellbullet17 Gustopher Spotter Extraordinaire Jun 19 '26

Unfortunately we will always always always get our own vitals

That being said a good doctor should be able to tell someone who is health conscious and trying to do the right thing and is nervous apart from someone with an actual problem

2

u/Angsty_Potatos Jun 19 '26

I definitely understand they need to take their own reads. 1000%. But it's when everything is thru the absolute roof and the look at me like I'm a second away from death when I explain that this is NOT my baseline. This is no where near where I usually read at true rest. And they give me the "thats bullshit look" and don't believe me when I say my resting heart rate is usually in the upper 60s. That I'm not tachycardic regularly. That my blood pressure is normal. And that I have current proof of that. And can they please please just give me 15/20 min and retake it when I calm down a bit and try to not trigger me into even higher readings, that gets to me. 

4

u/cross_the_threshold Jun 19 '26

While this is like 90% shitty behavior on the doctor's part the 10% where it isn't is that taking blood pressure, while trivial, can be prone to over or under reporting BP if you do something like use the wrong cuff size. I had a nurse take my BP with a too-small cuff and my BP was like 140/100, I said that that was unusually high and my BP is normally in the 100/60 to 110/70 range and she didn't believe me (I get it tested regularly as I have a regular doctor appointment for other things).

Regardless multiple consistent readings and a quick "show me how you take your blood pressure" comment would clear up the possibility of a mistake, so they should believe you and also commend you for taking readings at home so they actually know what your BP is.

2

u/Angsty_Potatos Jun 19 '26

Exactly! My brother showed me how to do it correctly and I'd have gladly demonstrated just so we could all be confident in the base line. But alas 

2

u/BCCommieTrash Jun 19 '26

Hey! Just this year I got a hand me down smart watch with a bunch of monitors and when I recently changed a med a week later it pointed out a change in pattern and was able to go talk to my pharmacy. (It's nothing to worry about too much, largely because I'm monitoring! Automatically.)

11

u/bendar1347 Jun 19 '26

My cardiologist is having me check my BP at home daily for the exact stated reason that it is a more accurate data set than at the office because you are not stressed out about being in the doctor's office.

4

u/shellbullet17 Gustopher Spotter Extraordinaire Jun 19 '26

A good doctor will do this and believe the data especially for someone that actually cares about their health.

I hope your heart is ok!

2

u/bendar1347 Jun 19 '26

Doing better, thanks!

3

u/awkward_teenager37 Jun 19 '26

Omg the BP thing KILLS me. I’ve been seeing my psych for years now and without fail, my heart rate will speed up every time I get my BP taken. And EVERY time they look at me incredulous, say it must be an error with the tool, try it again, and it’s normal. I try to tell them to just do it twice, once to get my nerves out of my system and the second for the actual reason, but it’s always the same shocked expression

2

u/Angsty_Potatos Jun 19 '26

I tell them if they look worried and confused it will set me off more and to take it again at the end of the visit and to please just not react to the initial reading. 

And like clockwork that look at me like "omg this is off the charts!" And my brain goes "turn that bitch up to 11 boys, were probably dying. Better fucking panic more!"

5

u/Cael-Bryant Jun 19 '26

I think everyone needs emotional support humans. But it seems a lot of the time society and work related stuff doesn’t allow us to have or be one.

3

u/BaconGristle Jun 20 '26

Been my fiance's emotional support idiot for 7 years and we finally got the laparoscopy in March that confirmed what every single doctor always said wasnt there.

3

u/BaconGristle Jun 20 '26

She's deaf and has bad anxiety with hospitals and doctors, so at first I wasnt comfortable appearing to "insert myself" in the room and being a loud voice when she wants to make sure something is emphasized. But adding the official apparel to make my role as golden retreiver clear helped a lot.

We'd still use virtual interpreters, so her words would be her words, but it was depressing to me how much less it felt like her doctors heard those words from a stranger on a screen. Over time it was clear why she would beg me to come with.

1

u/HulkeneHulda Jun 21 '26

I love that hat <3 

1

u/Legitimate-Syrup1006 Jun 21 '26

I'm sorry, but "emotional support husband" suggests you have other husbands for other roles in your life 😂

32

u/Soulus7887 Jun 19 '26

I think context is also important. There is a certain implication that having someone else in the room brings whatever the context is.

If a patient came in on their own they are probably at least mildly okay. If a patient had their spouse take time off work to come in with them the concern is immediately more severe just because the opportunity cost of the visit is higher. Let alone the potential that the patient couldn't drive themselves due to their sickness.

This goes both ways though too. Farmer gets dragged in by their wife? Probably nothing immediately concerning. Farmer comes in on their own? HUGE red flag.

41

u/Ajibooks Jun 19 '26

If a patient came in on their own they are probably at least mildly okay.

This is scary to me. I've read that studies show people with families live longer lives, but I thought that was about motivation to maintain healthier habits, not medical discrimination. If you're deciding how sick I am before I even speak, that isn't fair.

I don't have anyone to go anywhere with me. I also don't drive. I had to go twice for gall bladder attacks before they removed it.

7

u/AyJay9 Jun 19 '26

You need a medical binder. Print out relevant medical files - your history, namely. Medications. Have tabs. Make it look intense. The goal is to have an object that says Things Are Serious and I Will Get Answers.

I've heard from other folks this worked. It did for me. Finally got answers for my joint pain after 8 years on my first visit with the binder.

4

u/Ajibooks Jun 19 '26

Thank you, I'm grateful for the advice and glad to hear you got answers!

(This is a joke) - I am a lesbian but I could decorate the binder to look like a husband. Balding head, aviator glasses, mustache. Refer to it as "my husband" - e.g., "if you consult my husband, he says I've already tried that medication and it was ineffective..."

Then they will refer me to psychiatry 😄

1

u/wazzup-notemuch Jun 20 '26

Ah, yes. Documentation. Another liability threat.

Why do we have to be our own doctors and lawyers in order to be listened to?

9

u/Confident-Mix1243 Jun 19 '26

How about "farmer says his wife made him come in"?

6

u/platinummyr Jun 19 '26

Then he's got hours to live, if the doc doesnt help

8

u/Szwejkowski Jun 19 '26

How about women farmers? They get the 'oh shit, this must be serious' treatment, or you do save that for men only?

18

u/ilanallama85 Jun 19 '26

Women trumps farmer so they are just being dramatic and probably were working too hard on their cute little “farm.”

2

u/Moist_Drippings Jun 19 '26

This is making me feel a lot better about the times I’ve had someone with me due to anxiety, lol. Granted, in most of those cases it’s been after reaching a dead end with another doctor and I think the person I wound up with was actually great about listening, but better safe than sorry.

75

u/VivaZeBull Jun 19 '26

I went with my roommate when she had an issue with her arm, the Dr grabbed her arm and tried to straighten it and I almost stood up and grabbed the dr herself to make her stop. I was like “girl do these people not ask before they touch you?” And the dr looked at me funny and I was said “even my hairdresser and masseuse ask me if it’s okay to do something and I am there for that service”.

Then I told the dr that’s what causes my roommate intense pain and the dr proceeded to apologize to me… dude, you almost re injured someone in your care.

27

u/KNdoxie Jun 19 '26

Yeah, I should have brought my husband with me when I went to an ortho surgeon after falling and breaking a bone in my elbow. I was in horrible pain, and the guy comes in, yanks the splint off, and starts trying to straighten my arm. I yanked back, and told him the hospital said it was broken. THEN he goes out of the room to look at the x-rays from the hospital.

7

u/TheSweetKiwi Jun 19 '26

Omg, the doctors used to apologize to my dad instead of me, and explain to him instead of me what will happen to me during pre-surgery appointments. I am 33, and this was last year…

-12

u/Hutu007 Jun 19 '26

As an orthopod resident if I have to ask every patient if its okay I touch them… you go to the doctor to get examined or not? Does your hairdresser ask you if it’s okay to touch your hair? Wtf?

10

u/McIsaac Jun 19 '26

You might want to reconsider your profession choice if these little gestures are too much for you already. Doing well to confirm the stereotype here buddy.

And I'm not even taking in account of dealing neurodivergency amongst your patients. People go to the doctor for examination yes. That doesn't mean they are directly prepared to get touched. Look at it as a form of social foreplay.

And yes a good hairdresser will ask and walk you through some steps. If my hair gets washed they sometimes want to use some menthol solution. Pleasant for most, but it feels like torching my scalp off for me. So it's nice to have the opportunity to have a decision on what happens with my body.

You could have seen the earlier comments as a learning opportunity about social expectations from patients. But you chose to dismiss them and take the lazy route. Showing exactly what this topic is about.

Do better.

8

u/sneakyDoings Jun 19 '26

Just hold your hands out, look them in the eye and ask "can I?" Or something similar. It isn't hard or time consuming. You are going to be working with human beings, not furniture

1

u/FiberPhotography Jun 21 '26

my PCP and all my specialists, ask to touch me, both verbally and with hand gesture, at every appointment and procedure.

you should find a new profession.

357

u/Varderal Jun 19 '26

Thank the lawyers that made our Healthcare (usa) cost so much! Malpractice suits! Oh and rhe insurance companies playing doctor. Even if your doctor says you need a test the insurance can go "we dont think so".

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u/[deleted] Jun 19 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

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u/Easy-Musician7186 Jun 19 '26

"To young" is such a shitty form of saying "Don't bother me" imo.

I know 3 people with herniated discs before they reached 30 years.

28

u/Mondschatten78 Jun 19 '26

I went to school with a guy who had a heart attack before he turned 18, he was put on a heart transplant list not long after.

No one is too young for testing imo.

5

u/ClancyBShanty Jun 19 '26

I've been waiting for months for my cardiologist appointment despite the fact my older cousin dropping dead of a heart attack and heart trouble running rampant in my family. Finally seeing him on Monday though, WOO!! And I'm in my 40s

8

u/High_Hunter3430 Jun 19 '26

I was 25 with my first one

2

u/Sizanllikew Jun 19 '26

My 15 year-old kid just had back surgery last year for a herniated disc. No injuries, no sports, thin as a rail. We have no idea how it happened.

1

u/CoSh Jun 19 '26

Most people have herniated discs and are asymptomatic.

Doctor is just trying to get you better using the most conservative method that works. Sometimes that means doing nothing because many herniations heal or become asymptomatic on their own.

Tell them you have persistent sciatica, it's significantly affecting your quality of life and it hasn't got better in months. They'll put you through pain and anti-inflammatory treatments first, and/or physical therapy and if it doesn't get better after a few months then ask about a discectomy or spinal fusion.

1

u/Justisperfect Jun 19 '26

That's also the reason why the age to get things like this seem higher. If you say everybody who are less than the expected age  that they are too young, the statistics are biaised. Plus, it's an average so there are people who will get symptoms before or after the expecting age.

1

u/AmberKinza Jun 19 '26

Got mine at 19.

24

u/tacoman2488 Jun 19 '26

Hey so im rare disease haver like 4 in a million 4 out 5 of which are women but im man and on top of that mine presents atypically. Id recommend telling them exactly what tests you want done and pester them till they fucking do them. Just cause its rare doesn't mean its impossible

17

u/tacoman2488 Jun 19 '26

You deserve adequate Healthcare so make em gove it to you

1

u/Most_Mountain818 Jun 19 '26

I don’t know how useful it is since I’m very lucky to be healthy, but I’ve heard that if you ask them to document in your chart the fact that you asked for a test and they denied it that it can be helpful in getting them to change their tune.

1

u/Long-Broccoli-3363 Jun 19 '26

They don't want to deal with insurance denying it too.

So you say there's no way except bloodwork, to see if I have this particular problem, if I don't have active symptoms. But the insurance won't approve the bloodwork unless I already have the thing you're trying to diagnose, so I actually have to wait to get worse, or have these symptoms to get bloodwork approved?

..."yes"

"I'd like to mention, I forgot earlier, I have these symptoms."

4

u/Wild_Marker Jun 19 '26

Same for arthritis despite it being on my family genetics

I had arthrosis diagnosed at 33. Get better doctors! A doctor not believing in disease is like a farmer not believing in ham!

Took me like six months of horrible pain to get the diagnosis, not because they wouldn't believe it, thankfully, simply because they didn't think of checking for it, until someone did. Had to take some heavy pills while being prescribed "go to the gym" and that eventually helped me switch to lighter pills (just paracetamol).

1

u/Long-Broccoli-3363 Jun 19 '26

Plus arthritis can be mechanical in nature anyway. I have had a SLAPP tear in my shoulder since I was 20, I've had arthritis in that joint since my late 20s, cause the bone just kinda goes wherever it wants bouncing around in the joint causing arthritis.

3

u/Try-To-Support-78 Jun 19 '26

Not sure if you're going to an orthopedic doc but i had the same until one daybwhen I sleeping and woke up paralyzed and couldn't move. It took 2 days and i got most of the feeling back bit not all. I still get treatments. Also I test negative for all those other things like lupus etc but all my symptoms match 😑 I am an odd body.

3

u/hfsh Jun 19 '26

Non-specific lower back pain is marvelous, isn't it?

At around 19 I started having back pain. Cue almost year or so of random physio exercises, orthopedic doctors that barely examined me, and being constantly brushed off by the GP who even suggested homeopathy at the point I was no longer sleeping due to the pain.

An acquaintance recommended a physio at the national Olympic training center that happened to be nearby, two minutes of examination and she walked to the phone, called my GP and started yelling at her for not catching that there were entire muscle groups not functioning in my legs, and that I needed to see a neurologist immediately.

The neurologist took one look at me in the waiting room, and admitted me on the spot. Within a day I was moved to another hospital and woke up pain-free (i'm sure the morphine helped) after about ten hours of neurosurgery removing the large slow-growing tumor that had been compressing my spinal cord.

Needless to say, my GP was quite shocked and came by later at home to apologise, which I guess is something at least.

2

u/nafurabus Jun 19 '26

I started PT a few months ago for my lower back issue and its crazy what targeted daily stretching and loading has done to ease the pain and discomfort that I had just been living with.

I feel lucky that it took one doctors appointment, some X-rays same day, and then finding a convenient PT location with good reviews.

Insurance isn’t covering any of it though, thats a whole separate issue 🤦‍♂️

2

u/Justisperfect Jun 19 '26

One of my friend has polyarthrisis. A lot of people in their family got it. But they are 25. So the doctors tell them to just do more sports. It would cost too much to recognize they have such a disability this young.

1

u/lesgeddon Jun 20 '26

I've had severe arthritis since at least my mid twenties, you're never too young to get it especially if you're very physically active.

9

u/imapluralist Jun 19 '26

Sure, blame the lawyers for holding doctors to their own standard of care. It's not like the basis of this entire thread is the threat of lawyers that make the doctors do the right thing (both in the comic and in the real world).

3

u/ColdIceZero Jun 19 '26

No no, you misunderstand. Holding someone accountable for their misconduct is the cause of all these extra expenses.

If we didn't hold people accountable, then everything would be less expensive.

So the lawyers are to blame!

3

u/imapluralist Jun 19 '26

I see it now! Everything is extra cheap if we just dont look at what we're paying for.

0

u/Varderal Jun 19 '26

No misconduct sure. Its the frivolous ones that are driving up the costs. The malpractice insurance for a small allergist/immjnologist clinic is over a quarter million a year. There's where most of our Healthcare costs are. The rot is the pharmaceutical companies who'd rather trat than cure.

6

u/TheRussianCabbage Jun 19 '26

Bro they recommend MAID to para-olympic athletes. Insurance isn't the only bad guy out there.

3

u/greg19735 Jun 19 '26

i mean, those malpractice suits would mean they're more likely to do tests you don't need. Because they'd be covering their ass.

3

u/Allegoryof Jun 19 '26

Actually you can thank a lot of things, including doctors themselves for making it unnecessarily difficult to become a doctor unless you're already wealthy and difficult for foreign credentialed doctors to continue working at all (pre-trump, obviously since it's white South Africans only now lol). Blaming lawyers is too easy, don't let doctors off the hook for the physician shortage

2

u/ehs06702 Jun 19 '26

Malpractice suits are not the reason medical racism and misogyny are so prevalent.

Malpractice was not the reason I was accused of being a drug addict in the midst of a seizure and also called a liar for saying I'd never been pregnant at 17.

2

u/i_am_a_real_boy__ Jun 19 '26

It's not the lawyers. It's your for-profit insurance industry.

28

u/Lexx4 Jun 19 '26

Reading this comment section I have a new appreciation for my doctor. She’s super attentive and takes hella good notes.

5

u/-TropicalFuckStorm- Jun 19 '26

I’m an audiologist, not a doctor, but I like to pretend anyone other than the patient in the room is an examiner - doing things perfectly and to complete standard as they watch.

Passes the time.

4

u/supershinythings Jun 19 '26

My mother shepherds my brother’s medical appointments even now.

He is 62.

10

u/MarklRyu Jun 19 '26

I have been put through test after test after test for blatantly obvious POTS symptoms and despite everything coming back in support of that; my doctor will still consult her supervisor, who last time came in and said "I think you actually have celiac, here's how my patuents manage theirs."

I'm tired of getting blood tests done, my tilt table test came back "positive for POTS" grr

4

u/[deleted] Jun 19 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

1

u/MarklRyu Jun 19 '26

I recently moved states (February) so my new insurance starts July 1st and I'm scheduling to see a new primary the same day lol

Getting all my tests and stuff forwarded to hopefully avoid too much more blood being drawn but yeah... I needed to get on SSDI years ago, but between surviving, and that doctor, I'm hanging in there 😅

5

u/Ok-Bee7748 Jun 19 '26

Even that didn’t save me one time. I went in with my partner after having a seizure the night before (yes I’m aware I should have gone in sooner, I was 20 and dumb) and they heavily implied it was just an anxiety attack and sent me home with nothing!

Like bitch my lips had gone blue!! I also lock tf in when something stressful happens (freak out afterwards or before) and so I was totally calm the whole time. Hasn’t happened since, I’m 25 now, but holy shit these doctors are dumbasses.

2

u/cyrand Jun 19 '26

I fully expect that at this rate we'll have specialist law firms that will be specifically to hire medical lawyers who will come sit in Doctor's appointments with people.

2

u/awkwardlink Jun 19 '26

Hey so… I think I may have POTS. I tried not to believe it but after the last two years of very similar pots episodes, I’m pretty sure that’s what it is. Can I dm you about how you got your doctor to give you the tilt table test? Mine just keeps pushing the same old blood work over and over

1

u/CocoCookieDraws Jun 19 '26

so my doctor is great but only in the realm of “hey doc I want this test” and she goes “okay”

blood work is not enough. you need a cardiologist to rule out heart problems, then you get your TTT. my doctor didn’t think I had POTS and so did two cardiologists but guess what? they had me lie down and stand up for not the required time, AND I was hydrated and taking vitassium (salt pills). For the TTT you need to fast. turns out I don’t just meet the baseline of +30 bpm, I went to +40 bpm AND my bp rose so I have hyperadrenic POTS.

feel free to ask anything else! 

2

u/awkwardlink Jun 19 '26

Oh weird, your profile doesn’t have the little “start a chat” button to dm. I didn’t know that was an option 😮

But yea no I’ve gotten so many blood work draws that I think at this point it’s insane to keep doing it. I did however have a doctor notice my heart rate and blood oxygen levels were strange and they gave me an EKG, which turned out to be fine. I’ve also seen a neurologist.

But I see, I guess I’ll just be more direct and instead of telling my doctor I think I have pots, I’ll just directly ask for that test or refer me to a cardiologist.

Was there any at home test or symptoms you had that specifically suggested pots, if I may ask? I just have several different theories as to what might be making me dizzy/ occasionally pass out

1

u/CocoCookieDraws Jun 19 '26

EKG doesn't show POTS, only a TTT does. I've seen a neurologist, but he didn't know too much about it.

there is an at home test! download Tachymon if you have an Apple Watch, it'll help you track it better. the poor man's tilt table test is simple. lie down for 10 min. stand up for 10 min and stay standing. also I would recommend fasting with no water.

I've always had yellow fuzzy vision when standing up when I was a kid. I just got worse generally in January. after taking salt, I don't have it anymore. taking salt was actually an indicator that I had POTS, because I feel like shit without it.

On bad days I have dizziness, sometimes nausea. I have brain fog, extreme fatigue, going from flat to standing makes me dizzy, bending down makes me out of breath, I'm either too hot or too cold, I do terribly in the summer (heat makes POTS worse), high-intensity exercise makes my chest hurt (not fully sure what the cause of that is). sometimes I have heart palpitations, but they did an EKG during the TTT and they found it was an extra heartbeat (so happy it was caught). They told me the best thing to do was ignore it, it's not dangerous. and my heart was scanned before so that confirms it. although when it happens I'm out of breath and it's uncomfortable but good thing it's not dangerous.

find a TTT referral sheet online for any hospital near you. I found it for a major hospital in my area and my doctor sent in the referral. be warned, it was sent like Jan-Feb and I did it June 9. And that's fast. Some people wait a year.

2

u/xANTJx Jun 22 '26

I don’t think I’ve met anyone with hyperadrenic POTS before. I have neuropathic POTS! Most people have hypovolemic POTS. You find the salt still helps? My cardiologist stopped pushing the salt so hard after the test results because it only really helps hypoPOTS.

1

u/CocoCookieDraws Jun 22 '26

oh my god the salt helps so much. without it I'm a mess

2

u/1568314 Jun 19 '26

I see this in most people facing professions. Individuals become objects that are part of the job when they get in their routine. Then they are like shocked out of it when a third party comes in.

Its scary to think how susceptible we all are to routine blindness. I heard a podcast once talk about a study on how much harsher sentencing judges give before they take their lunch break vs right after.

2

u/TrueMeasurement2873 Jun 19 '26

How’d you get them to do the test?!

1

u/CocoCookieDraws Jun 19 '26

because I’m lucky to have a doctor who does the tests I ask her to do. she literally told me she has no idea who to send me to (when i was early on in my journey of figuring things out) so i had to do the heavy lifting 

2

u/BethanyBluebird Jun 19 '26

Yeah. I still bring my mom to appointments sometimes... she's an ex-EMT and I have NEVER seen somebody verbally b-slap a doctor the way she has lol.

2

u/Constant-Plant-9378 Jun 19 '26

My wife has the opposite problem of POTS.

If she stands up too fast, her blood-pressure craters and she passes out.

When we lived in Illinois, took her to a cardiologist in Champaign who put her on a tilt table. Staff said they never saw anyone pass out so fast.

2

u/neonpurpleraven Jun 19 '26

Isn’t that exactly what POTS is? Glad she was able to get help!

1

u/CocoCookieDraws Jun 19 '26

POTS is when your heart rate rises by at least 30 bpm and stays there for a certain amount of time, with an absence of a 20 systolic drop in bp

2

u/Constant-Plant-9378 Jun 22 '26

Yep. My wife has had a few different diagnoses - none definitive.

Seems that if she stands up too fast, her BP just drops and then so does she. I guess there is some kind of 'Vagal Syncope' disorder where, instead of your body detecting the change in posture and briefly bumping up your pulse/BP - it does nothing and she goes faint due to her brain suddenly running out of O2.

I mean, it kind of makes sense. If your brain is suddenly not getting enough blood to keep it oxygenated, making you faint tends to render you horizontal, which equalizes your BP allowing you to regain consciousness.

Kind of a PITA when your system for keeping your BP up upon standing is wonky.

2

u/CocoCookieDraws Jun 22 '26

yeah I've heard of that. I had a vasovagal pre-syncope episode before (didn't faint, it was like pre-fainting) and it was hell.

hope your wife is able to figure out ways to help!

2

u/SmoothTurtle872 Jun 19 '26

You need Dr house. Just hope your okay with him breaking into your house and doing many many illegal acts.

1

u/CocoCookieDraws Jun 19 '26

god I wish I dr. house was real. imagine a doctor who would do anything to figure out what's wrong with you

2

u/SmoothTurtle872 Jun 19 '26

TBH, I feel like if you do whatever he says, you'd be fine, but half the time patients don't... And the other half they also lie a bit

2

u/violettheory Jun 19 '26

I'm convinced I have POTS, and managed to get a tilt table test after fainting at the top of a flight of stairs and ragdolling down them, but I failed the tilt table test. It was excruciating, worst feeling ever, I felt like I was on the verge of passing out for 20 minutes. I puked, almost pissed myself, my limbs went numb, but I never fully lost consciousness. Maybe I was fighting it without knowing it or something. My cardiologist said it doesn't matter how I felt, if I didn't pass out I don't have POTS. I don't believe him.

The tilt table test was hell, I'd rather lose a finger than do it again.

1

u/CocoCookieDraws Jun 19 '26

excuse me (to your doctor)? passing out is not a requirement for POTS. it's a 30 bpm increase in hr. that cardiologist is dumb

2

u/BarMenuSushi Jun 19 '26

Second time today someone has mentioned POTS on Reddit. I've never heard of it before, except as plain old telephone system.

1

u/CocoCookieDraws Jun 19 '26

wish it was mentioned more. literally no one has heard of it but it's become very common for people who got covid (and without covid of course, but covid made it more prevalent)

2

u/[deleted] Jun 20 '26

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2

u/CocoCookieDraws Jun 21 '26

I wish doctors didn't treat people as hypochondriacs. like why would I want to feel sick???

1

u/[deleted] Jun 21 '26

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1

u/CocoCookieDraws Jun 21 '26

wdym pots isn't rare

1

u/[deleted] Jun 21 '26

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1

u/CocoCookieDraws Jun 21 '26

oh I get what you mean now. yeah doctors would rather say we’re crazy than do their jobs

2

u/Dnbryant Jun 20 '26

It took so long to get my diagnoses POTS. I always got told it was stress and to try yoga, maybe lose some weight, here’s some anxiety meds that you said haven’t helped in the past. FFS

4

u/anitabelle Jun 19 '26

I took my adult daughter to the ER and we had been there for hours. They were calling people who arrived after us and were laughing and eating McDonald’s as they walked past. They did not seem in dire need of emergency care. Meanwhile, my daughter is doubled over in pain. So I calmly and firmly asked why it was taking so long. I went off on them the politest way I could but they knew I was not fucking around. They called her back immediately and took it very seriously. They actually ran CT scans and found a congenital defect that’s fairly serious. Years of me trying to get a diagnosis for her severe and chronic pain and it only happened because she was now an adult with a bitch mom. So they especially did not take her seriously when she was a child despite my constant efforts. I’m happy it was found but so disappointed in all those doctors in the past that just brushed her off. So even though she’s an adult, I will be going to future appointments while she deals with treatments for her condition. Someone has to look out for women trying to get medical care, even if it’s just a meaner woman.

0

u/CocoCookieDraws Jun 19 '26

be mean. be confident. it’s the only way things will get done. you sound like an amazing mom!!

2

u/IlIlllIlllIlIIllI Jun 19 '26

It's because you can beat up the doctor easier with two people

0

u/CocoCookieDraws Jun 19 '26

okay you win for best comment 

1

u/Desperate_Leg_40 Jun 19 '26

Where to start...

1

u/JackPoe Jun 19 '26

Doctors won't even prescribe me anything unless I ask for it. I'm not trying to get pain pills. I have an ear infection and I can't hear anything and it's been a month.

1

u/Mklein24 Jun 19 '26

My wife goes to the doctor and is like "I was kind of uncomfortable" and I have to remind her that she was on the bathroom floor unable to move because it was so bad and she hasn't slept for more than 3 hours in 2 weeks.

1

u/alittleblueboy Jun 19 '26

The smallest symptoms you don't think matter can make an impact too. I went for a follow up at the cardiologist after going to the ER for heart palpitations. They checked to make sure everything was okay but didn't find anything that stood out.

Literally, as I was saying bye to the doctor, I mentioned to him, "oh by the way, I don't think this matters much, but for some reason in the wintertime my hands get REALLY cold."

The doctor paused and said "hang on, stay here, I'll be right back..." then brought back a heart monitor, and recorded my heart rate sitting and then standing. It went up at least 10 BPM. He immediately said "I figured! You may have something called POTS! Let's get you some extra testing then we can do a tilt table test."

If I hadn't said anything about what i thought was a minor symptom almost 10 years ago I never would have gotten tested. Advocate for yourself!!

1

u/Nuitsoleil Jun 21 '26

Can someone tell me what POTS stands for and what medical condition that is? Just a short comment would do 😊

1

u/CocoCookieDraws Jun 21 '26

postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome

1

u/Drachynn Jun 19 '26

It's exhausting having to fight so hard for our own advocacy.

Also a fellow POTS and chronic illness sufferer here, so I've had a lifetime of experience navigating this nonsense. Because of that, I accompanied my husband when he needed to see a doctor about his back pain because I knew what to ask for and ensure that he was properly taken care of when he was in too much pain to think about it. If only we all had people who could help.

1

u/CocoCookieDraws Jun 19 '26

yes another problem with being alone is that after some testsp you’re not going to have a sound mind. after my TTT I was so tired. after my colonoscopy and endoscopy i was loopy. I need someone to help me ask the right questions when I’m not able to after testing 

-4

u/Orcus424 Jun 19 '26

Most doctors don't really care. We have been brain washed into seeing medical shows where doctors actually care.

2

u/crazydude44444 Jun 19 '26

Just a ridiculous statement. Doctors go through at least a decade of extra schooling. Why would some spend over 10 years of their life, countless hours studying and stress, over $200,000 of debt, for something that they don't care about?

3

u/Most_Mountain818 Jun 19 '26

I don’t think it’s that they don’t care, but I think there is definite burnout.

1

u/crazydude44444 Jun 19 '26

Of course. I don't think any doctor or healthcare professional would say there isn't a burn out issue. But that is not the same as saying they don't care. Burn out is not solved by asking docs to "care more" it's solved through systematic means.

To have people, who's only exposure to the healthcare system is occasional and superficial, to say "Well I feel like I was brushed off because they didn't do X, Y, or Z" with no grasp on why X, Y, or Z would not be appropriate measures. Or to appy hindsight bias to something that is inappropriate.

Are there doctors that dont care? Of course, doctors are humans and all humans aren't beyond reproach, but to make such a statement as "Most doctors don't care" is ignorant at best and purposely dividing at worse. Most doctors get into medicine because they want to help and heal people. There are much easier ways to make money and much less stressful careers to devote your life to.

2

u/KNdoxie Jun 19 '26

Why would doctors go through all that and continually demonstrate behavior that seems to demonstrate a lack of caring? Do none of you SEE all the comments across all versions of social media, and reviews online? Are you in your own little world? Lots and lots of people are made to feel disregarded and ignored by medical professionals. Seems weird that so many people feel that way when doctors supposedly "care".

4

u/CompetitiveAutorun Jun 19 '26

This whole comic and thread is literally how doctors don't care lol.

But point it out and suddenly that's a problem that doesn't exists.

2

u/CompetitiveAutorun Jun 19 '26

To get money. This whole thread is how women are treated like doctors don't care.

1

u/crazydude44444 Jun 19 '26

Theres way easier ways to make money for less stress, liability, and time.

There will be health care providers that dont care, yes. But that is a far cry from saying "Most doctors dont care".

Also it needs to be said. Just because a thread exists of something doesn't make it objective truth. See r/paranormal for further evidence of that.

2

u/Lajinn5 Jun 19 '26

Medicine as a profession has a ton of saints and lovely people in it. It's also a field that attracts narcissists and psychopaths like flies due to being a socially prestigious career in a position of power over others. So there's plenty of doctors that care. There's also plenty that are there only for the prestige of being a doctor that don't give a rats ass about the people they're supposedly there to help (see the not uncommon political grifters with any form of medical degree).

1

u/crazydude44444 Jun 19 '26

Not that I agree with all of that but even that is much more nuanced than the claim "Most doctors don't care".

0

u/Orcus424 Jun 19 '26

Money. They might have started out caring in the beginning but when they finally start practicing the part of them that cares is pretty much dead. There are some that still care but that's not the majority.

0

u/islobojono Jun 19 '26

I have to yell at them. 😑