[mrsmith]

So, I have been almost recovered for a while now, just ear ringing. The other day I was having severe chest pains, and was extremely dizzy, so I went to the hospital. (children's because I am under 18).

I was extremely clear, telling them my brain is hyper sensitive and I am having some serious brain injury problems. They were fairly gentle, doing different tests on my heart. Then a doctor came in, told me my heart was fine, and the dizziness was probably related to my concussion issues.

Then they did the normal neurological testing, checked my pupils, that kind of stuff. But then the doctor said, "let me move your head," so I let him, and he started turning my head back and forth, fast, having me watch his nose. I said I didn't feel comfortable with this, but he continued. It wasn't like snapping fast, but it was too fast for me.

Has anyone else had any experiences like this? I am tempted to cancel all my medical appointments.

[berkeleybrain]

Hi there, I'm so sorry you needed to go to ER. I'm even more sorry you weren't listened to.

I'm not a medical doctor, but it sounds like he was testing you for BPPV (Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo). By moving your head back and forth, if you have BPPV, it often triggers the dizziness.

NOnetheless, he should have explained the procedure afterwards. Best of luck, and you can demand answers to why they are testing and what they are looking for.

[mrsmith]

Oh, I see. That makes a lot more sense now.

Do you think movement like that back and forth could have hurt me?

[EsthersDoll]

Hi mrsmith, I think the dr wouldn't have done it if he thought it would've hurt you and they usually know a lot about that stuff.

Some Dr.'s have very poor bedside manner, or the ability to talk with and relate to patients. My stepdad is a Dr. and I've seen him fire Dr.'s very sharply for lacking this skill.

It sounds like the Dr. you had trouble with at the ER had very poor bedside manner.

I think not trusting that Dr is a good idea, but try to have an open mind when it comes to new Dr.s. Some of them are very good and extremely helpful and they have amazing bedside manner.

I actually feel very lucky to have three VERY GOOD Dr.s - my primary care physician, my neurologist and my endocrinologist. Without them I wouldn't be doing anywhere near as we'll as I am now and there's a lot of hope I'll get even better if I continue to see them.

So try not to cancel all your medical appointments because of one bad Dr.

[Lightrail11]

Originally Posted by EsthersDoll

I actually feel very lucky to have three VERY GOOD Dr.s - my primary care physician, my neurologist and my endocrinologist. Without them I wouldn't be doing anywhere near as we'll as I am now and there's a lot of hope I'll get even better if I continue to see them.

So try not to cancel all your medical appointments because of one bad Dr.

My experience with doctors have been similarly positive. Not only would I have died without the intervention of a skilled neurosurgeon (shout out to Steve Chang MD!), some very talented, caring, and compassionate MDs, PhD’s and therapists put Humpty Dumpty back together again and guided me through my rehabilitation.

I wouldn’t cancel future medical appointments because of one appointment that was a bad experience. I’ve had procedures that were uncomfortable, but that doesn’t mean there wasn’t a legitimate medical reason for it. That may have been the case with the back and forth motion you describe. Even so, one experience might cause me to change doctors, but it wouldn’t change my overall feelings toward the medical community as a whole. After all, I owe my life to them.