Posted by Elizabeth on October 26, 2001, at 11:45:51
In reply to Re: Looking for some advice before I see the psydoc, posted by Gracie2 on October 24, 2001, at 0:39:26
> I disagree about not being totally honest with your psychiatrist. In the first place, doctors
> have no reputation for being stupid.You've probably heard this one before, but...
What do you call the guy who graduated at the bottom of his class in medical school? "Doctor."Yes, they're generally smarter than the average person. That doesn't mean they're perfect or above prejudice. They're human beings; they have weaknesses like the rest of us. And they're not all alike; two doctors can be as different as any two people.
> In the second place, you are there to establish a relationship with him on which he will base your treatment; a dishonest relationship will result in treatment that may be unneccessary for you.
It's sad, but total honesty may result in mistreatment also.
> When you walk into a new doctor's office, you are a blank slate to him; once you tell him about your experience and education, he can talk to you on your own level; otherwise, he must assume you know nothing about psychiatric medication or treatment.
A lot of psychiatrists talk down to patients uniformly. I've even encountered a few who assume that a knowledgeable patient must be a drug addict or otherwise non-trustworthy.
When I was in the hospital for ARDS (adult respiratory distress syndrome -- I was comatose) back in February-March, the doctors in the hospital decided it must have been a benzodiazepine overdose after they heard about my history of depression and since I had tested positive for benzodiazepines. (I had taken Klonopin the night before, *and* the paramedics had given me Ativan at the scene!) My boyfriend (who is a neuropharmacologist by training, and who also, of course, knows me very well) felt that this was not what had happened, since I hadn't been depressed (and I don't hesitate to talk to him when I am feeling depressed). He told them that he thought they should not jump to that conclusion, but instead should do a quantitative tox screen that would show how much of what I had taken. They refused, and the diagnosis of benzodiazepine overdose remained. As a result, when I woke up I was treated as though I was suicidal and could not be trusted (even though I was obviously doing fine emotionally and there was no reason to believe that I was depressed). I wasn't allowed any privacy except when I had to go to the bathroom -- even when my family was visiting me. (And yet they refused to give this supposedly dangerous suicidal patient any sort of antidepressant. As a result, I started getting depressed -- not suicidal, just sad and anergic -- before I was able to go home and start taking my meds again.)
I've been able to get doctors to trust me and to accept that I'm more sophisticated than the average patient, but it often takes a lot of time and effort. As such, I'm cautious about what I say to a new doctor until I get to know him/her better (and until s/he gets to know me better, too).
Just my personal approach (and FWIW, it's always worked for me).
-elizabeth
poster:Elizabeth
thread:81980
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20011025/msgs/82344.html