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Review clinic anticipation

Lynz84

Lynz84

Well-Known Member
Messages
344
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Hi Guys

Do any of you still get a bit apprehensive for your reviews at hosp? I dont know why I do! I feel if my sugars arent perfect that il be judged as a bad diabetic. I try so hard but as you guys know its sometimes an untameable beast!
 
Hi @Lynz84 ,

I don't believe in such a thing as a "bad diabetic."
Is there someone who could go with you? Sort of have a chat with while you wait. Take the mind off it all.?
 
Hi Jaylee

I feel silly asking! Im 33 and shouldnt feel nervous but for some reason I do!
 
Lynz84 said:
Hi Jaylee

I feel silly asking! Im 33 and shouldnt feel nervous but for some reason I do!
Click to expand...

It's not silly at all.. I've been at this game for nearly 41 years & still get the odd bit of pre-nerves..
 
I always get nervous before appointments which will be why my blood pressure is always higher than at the GP. My nerves stem from being badly treated by junior doctors decades ago. There seemed to be an assumption, in those days, that the diabetic was a liar and a cheat. Mostly it was inferred, but 5 weeks after diagnosis, when I was doing everything by the book, a doctor told me I was cheating in my diet. That's when I knew I was on my own (we didn't have DSNs in those days).
Since being referred and accepted for the insulin pump, things have been much better. I feel as if I am believed, but perhaps that's because I ask to see my consultant so that I don't have to risk seeing a junior doctor!
 
dancer said:
I always get nervous before appointments which will be why my blood pressure is always higher than at the GP. My nerves stem from being badly treated by junior doctors decades ago. There seemed to be an assumption, in those days, that the diabetic was a liar and a cheat. Mostly it was inferred, but 5 weeks after diagnosis, when I was doing everything by the book, a doctor told me I was cheating in my diet. That's when I knew I was on my own (we didn't have DSNs in those days).
Since being referred and accepted for the insulin pump, things have been much better. I feel as if I am believed, but perhaps that's because I ask to see my consultant so that I don't have to risk seeing a junior doctor!
Click to expand...

Interesting.. In the mid 1970s as a kid I felt like I was at some sort of "drug rehab"?? Even my mum felt "slighted". Which I picked up on.... As a teen? Going on my own. I rebelled.. Not just for me but my mum also..
In an adult now & have to act accordingly, but....?
 
I think that the biggest reason for appointments being like this is really the 65%-70% who aren't really engaged and turn up for an Hba1c and then to be told what to do. If your team knows from your notes that you are engaged and that you go in with the mindset that you know your own condition, and have a set of questions you want feedback on, then it changes from a test to a conversation. But both parties need to try and make it that.

Most younger registrars will do this, if given an opportunity, but sometimes you do have to push them.
 
Hey guys.
Thank you for your responses. Had to cancel the appt as I caught the dreaded stomach bug very unwell!
 
At a social event a few months ago, I had a conversation with a consultant opthalmologist, specialising in diabetic eye disease. I was venting frustration about how medics seem to assume we're not bothered about our health and disengaged, etc., etc.

His retort was that it was so very unusual to encounter fully engaged patients who are actively engaged in their healthcare and bold enough to challenge thinking in order to improve their healthy. He then shared that so infrequent were the interactions with such people that they could be taken aback and off guard in terms of how they handled it, making them appear dismissive and abrupt.

He shared that it had taken his several years post-qualification to become confident in dealing with such patients, never mind enjoy dealing with us. he felt provided there was a consistency of appointments (meaning same consultant/doctor each time), the Doc would likely begin to enjoy things a bit more.

Interesting insight? In other words, they're just as, if not more nervous of us bold patients. That'll do for me. ;)

I certainly try to replay that in my mind before I encounter anyone new, in terms of laying down the foundations for a professionally productive relationship.
 
DCUKmod said:
At a social event a few months ago, I had a conversation with a consultant opthalmologist, specialising in diabetic eye disease. I was venting frustration about how medics seem to assume we're not bothered about our health and disengaged, etc., etc.

His retort was that it was so very unusual to encounter fully engaged patients who are actively engaged in their healthcare and bold enough to challenge thinking in order to improve their healthy. He then shared that so infrequent were the interactions with such people that they could be taken aback and off guard in terms of how they handled it, making them appear dismissive and abrupt.

He shared that it had taken his several years post-qualification to become confident in dealing with such patients, never mind enjoy dealing with us. he felt provided there was a consistency of appointments (meaning same consultant/doctor each time), the Doc would likely begin to enjoy things a bit more.

Interesting insight? In other words, they're just as, if not more nervous of us bold patients. That'll do for me. ;)

I certainly try to replay that in my mind before I encounter anyone new, in terms of laying down the foundations for a professionally productive relationship.
Click to expand...
Oh thats very interesting!!! I suppose it could be intimidating dealing with people who live with it and will potentially disagree with you!
 
Lynz84 said:
Oh thats very interesting!!! I suppose it could be intimidating dealing with people who live with it and will potentially disagree with you!
Click to expand...

And an important point,........... we have done our homework and research. Let's face it, sometimes we may be wanting to discuss strategies or medications they have no experience of.

As a T2, of course I have never seen an Endo relating to my diabetes, so my dealings for diabetes are with my GP. These days, she will usually ask me what I want to do, or how I want to deal with my predicament, and where I need a referral she asks whom I'd like to see. Where I'm going off (NHS) usual script, I'll usually take my reading, or links or whatever research with me, and leave them with her. What she does then with that is up to her.

I am sure there are downsides to this way of working, but for now, I'll take it. It did take a few "lively" discussions (mainly on the dreaded lipids) to reach this point.

However good our control, or whatever reason we consult the medics, for me, there's always a little bit of a frisson of nerves around the place, just in case life throws in one of those curved balls, so don't beat yourself up over it, after all he/she may just be thinking, "I wonder what she wants to discuss this time that I'm not prepared for".

Keep them on their toes, I say. :)
 
I refer back to an appointment I had about 18 months ago, that at the time, annoyed me enough to write a blog post about it. The registrar I spoke to eventually admitted (without admitting it) that he'd never met someone who turned up with the data set that was available. I wrote about it here. The key point was that he wasn't used to dealing with someone who could provide as much insight into themself as me and that was a bit of a shock to him.
 
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