Anon - It can be very difficult, and frustrating, to get medical support for a multi-symptom situation when most doctors today specialize in specific areas. There are some things you can do to advocate for yourself and gain support.
One is to do research to understand your own conditions better. Raynaud's phenomenon, for example, has been seen with a number of conditions, including rheumatic diseases (scleroderma, rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus), hormone imbalance (hypothyroidism and carcinoid), trauma (frostbite, vibrating tools), medications (propranolol [Inderal], estrogens without additional progesterone, bleomycin [Bleoxane] used in cancer treatment, and ergotamine used for headaches), nicotine, and even rarely with cancers. You can find more information here: http://www.medicinenet.com/raynauds_phenomenon/article.htm
Second, whether we like it or not, the time we get with doctors is limited. Having a concise, easy to read and understand list of symptoms, perhaps even including a timeline, can help the physician deal with the patient's condition as a whole more easily.
Also, it may take several appointments to go through the entire list. It may also take going to several doctors, and may take quite a bit of time.
It takes a lot of work to advocate for yourself, but in the long run it's worth it.
Comment Reply
Anon - It can be very difficult, and frustrating, to get medical support for a multi-symptom situation when most doctors today specialize in specific areas. There are some things you can do to advocate for yourself and gain support.
One is to do research to understand your own conditions better. Raynaud's phenomenon, for example, has been seen with a number of conditions, including rheumatic diseases (scleroderma, rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus), hormone imbalance (hypothyroidism and carcinoid), trauma (frostbite, vibrating tools), medications (propranolol [Inderal], estrogens without additional progesterone, bleomycin [Bleoxane] used in cancer treatment, and ergotamine used for headaches), nicotine, and even rarely with cancers. You can find more information here: http://www.medicinenet.com/raynauds_phenomenon/article.htm
Second, whether we like it or not, the time we get with doctors is limited. Having a concise, easy to read and understand list of symptoms, perhaps even including a timeline, can help the physician deal with the patient's condition as a whole more easily.
Also, it may take several appointments to go through the entire list. It may also take going to several doctors, and may take quite a bit of time.
It takes a lot of work to advocate for yourself, but in the long run it's worth it.
Good luck to you.
January 27, 2011 - 12:31pmThis Comment
Reply