Quote:
Originally Posted by alice md
That was exactly the point I was trying to make. You have two rare diseases, so quite likely they have never seen someone like you. Your illness did not fit their knowledge and experience, so therefore it did not exist.
Psychiatric problems, on the other hand, can be as bizarre as you like. There are no criteria to make this diagnosis other than that you have troubling symptoms (which obviously you do if you are seeking medical help) and the ignorance of the physician you consult.
http://www.dsm5.org/proposedrevision...ion.aspx?rid=8
My personal opinion is that you are very fortunate that you no longer have to see them. |
I actually realized two things overnight. One is the point you were trying to make, which you did clarify for me. Thanks
The other is that in a way they did send me to many of the right doctors--they didn't send me to a normal psychiatrist, they sent me to one that was board certified in neurology. They also sent me to a neuro-opthamologist. And on my own I found a neurologist near DC. All these doctors just missed the actual problem. The neurologist probably got the closest by realizing it wasn't in my head, but said it was arthritis and I should be seeing a rheumatologist. At that point he pretty much followed me as a formality.
I actually saw two rheumatologist. One said I was lucky and it was muscular--but didn't tell me where to go from there. I guess she was right except for the lucky part. The other, unfortunately, said it was ankylosing spondylitis--which then took 5 years to prove that there were no changes in my spine.
Also, as I think back, one of the things that may have led them to believe it was in my head was that when I first sought medical attention, I hadn't slept for six or seven nights due to the pain. In addition to sending me to a psychologist, they started me on a steady stream of codeine. At the time I thought it was because I was in a lot of pain...I found out later that the medical center just handed out T3 like candy because it takes care of most ailments that people in college complain of (colds, sprained ankles, etc).