Posted by WaterSapphire on September 1, 2008, at 4:54:22
In reply to Re: I feel dejected because of my one nephrologist » WaterSapphire, posted by Phillipa on August 31, 2008, at 20:15:45
Hey there,
Racer, please forgive the length of my post...but I am more detailed sometimes that others lol.Because of my emotional issues, I very well have had a hard time coming to terms with a lot of this (the doctor that is). When I first saw the doctor, I explained to him that I had been having abnormal salt cravings at times and had even gone so far as to drink pickle juice and hot sauce. He waved his hand and said it is not unusual for the normal american diet to contain so much salt. Well, I thought ok. But, I still felt I had abnormal salt cravings beyond the norm regardless of the cause and because of having had hypokalemia in the past with low magnesium levels I was concerned. He was an electrolyte researcher, and I felt he was my best bet for help because I had on my own gotten great improvements from taking magnesium and potassium, but having to struggle with them each day. On the first appointment he did not tell me to watch my salt intake, or to do anything for this 24 hour urine test. So, when I did the test, and he got the results back he was beyond belief and flabbergasted. (Please, forgive me if I have said this before.)He was like...Michelle...this is beyond textbook. This is all because you eat too much salt. I was like "I told you that I have abnormal salt cravings at times and that when I took the test, I had gotten into the pickle juice." I also clarified to him that I had been going to the little gal's room too much, was thirsty too much, and losing too much fluid. He got loud with me, and this is what hurt my feelings...the sorta yelling with "You are in denial, the only problem is is that you eat too much salt and you are wasting everything out with it". This small tirade of his went on for a bit. He told me to eat less salt. He told me smugly to post this sheet on my fridge so I would never forget and handed it too me with the numbers. See, it was so beyond normal that I was beyond what is normally in the texbook. I was supposed to go back and see him, and to get another test weeks down the road once I was not eating so much salt. I had lost the script and when I had asked the nurse at the office to have it resent they never sent it to me again. I was told to drink lots of water and not eat hardly any salt. He gave me no guidelines for milligrams, but immediately like the good patient I went home and really started looking at food labels even moreso. Because of my mind that works like an ongoing computer for certain things like obsessing over what I am eating, I usually am very good about counting what I have eaten for the day with sodium. When eating really low sodium, I got very weak and had to drink gatorade.
When eating middle of the road amounts of sodium, I still ran into the problems here and still had to take magnesium and potassium. So I went to a different nephrologist, and she was well...not helpful but I have another test to get run if I so choose. I would rather go back to him. I just felt so ashamed and humiliated because I was honest with him. I always so honest that it gets me in trouble. So, I put this here to work through this as well as for everyones help cuz I appreciate others feedback. I know so much, that emotionally I am not "normal" and that my reactions to certain things do not follow the typical every day person's. I am oversensitive to everything. SO, I am hoping after this endo. appt. my pcp is having me see this week, maybe if he runs some tests, then I can make a decision of where to go next. I am so scared. I am content, but scared of going to this new doctor. I had high blood pressure resistant to medication up until a few weeks back when it was high normal. I was told not to eat less that 2500 mg a day by my internist. He had to have gotten all my old labs by the last appointment I had with him. This week, I am going to get a bp cuff script hopefully from the specialist. As for the rest of it, I don't know. I feel kinda silly. But, I would rather be silly on here and get your honest opinion :)
Thank you by the way. I will try to keep it less wordy next time. I have to work on getting more concise...Have an awesome labor day
poster:WaterSapphire
thread:849401
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20080826/msgs/849636.html