good for you! i'm glad you didn't give up.
in the medical field it's document, document, document.

i worked many yrs in NICU's. i always kept good written notes. and, left out the emotional but always tried to chart the objective, not the subjective.
one day i was told that it was my good charting that kept a family from suing us. we made no mistakes.

that's what the court looks for too. notes from md's etc.
and an extra added bonus is that you may learn interesting things from reading your dr's notes. i've found many with inaccurate charting. some were so wrong that i called the office & had them changed. like; one dr said i had coronary artery disease and i don't. didn't want that in my records. i made him change it.

your description of a notebook is a great idea to keep organized.