Anybody else panic at the doctor's?

[JayLeigh3679]

Hi all,

A bit of a rant and I'm looking for advice. I know I am by no means perfect with my control but whenever I go to the doctors I feel like a child being told off. There's a complete lack of reality on their side and the doctors I go to have never offered a practical solution to improve my bg control.

Ultimately this leads to me to complete panic and feeling like a failure (N.B I do also have anxiety around letting people down). I absolutely dread going to the doctors and lose sleep before appointments etc.

I'm just looking for advice on a way to move this forward. How did you start the process of getting better help from your GP?

Sorry for the rant!

J

 

[NewTD2]

My GP told me that my A1c of 46% is “normal”, which clearly isn’t!!!

She hasn’t got a clue about diabetes so I changed GP/surgery straightaway!

 

[JayLeigh3679]

I feel like changing to a GP with more knowledge would be ideal, I'm stuck with where I am for the moment though.

It is worrying when the person who is meant to be helping you has said that I know more about Diabetes than them..

 

[NoCrbs4Me]

You'll be able to get some practical advice on this forum. Just post a question and you'll get plenty of good advice.

 

[YunmaKahn]

Panic ? No. I just don't go to see one anymore. They are not there to cure you, that's for sure, so why really bother ? The only thing they do is **** you off. When i have high hba1c, they tear me apart. When i have normal hba1c, they still tear me apart, then because i'm not working, not socialising, not going out of home.

 

[Juicyj]

Hi @JayLeigh3679 Do you also see a consultant at your hospital for your type 1 ?

 

[Diakat]

I don't think any of us enjoy going. And I do feel judged. All those ling silences as they study my numbers/weight/before they answer a question.
Just remember it is one appointment of very short duration.

 

[JayLeigh3679]

Hi @JayLeigh3679 Do you also see a consultant at your hospital for your type 1 ?

I can see one with a referral from a GP but it tends to be for a specific issue rather than ongoing management. Having said that I might try for a referral again.

 

[Juicyj]

I can see one with a referral from a GP but it tends to be for a specific issue rather than ongoing management. Having said that I might try for a referral again.

You should be able to see one as part of your ongoing care, sadly a GP’s knowledge of type 1 is generally limited so getting access to a consultant is essential and it will help you to build confidence in seeing someone who is better trained to support you.

 

[JayLeigh3679]

You should be able to see one as part of your ongoing care, sadly a GP’s knowledge of type 1 is generally limited so getting access to a consultant is essential and it will help you to build confidence in seeing someone who is better trained to support you.

Back on pediatrics I used to see a consultant. Last time I brought this up to my Nurse she told me it wasn't necessary and everything could be manager through her.

Btw this is the same nurse that told me I knew more than her.

 

[Babyweed]

I won’t see the nurse at my practice after she let me run in my 30s for three months and all she did was give me a couple of prescriptions for testing strips without checking anything herself as a result I ended up in hospital and I am now under the consultant and things are better. I had been wrongly diagnosed a year earlier as type 2.

As for a referral. Good luck

 

[becca59]

Lucky to have fantastic care through our hospital diabetes clinic. See consultant/registrar and have easy access to other professionals there if I need them. GPs and practice nurses are very good for lots of things, but we must remind ourselves they are not specialists. Get referred on.

 

[ickihun]

Hi all,

A bit of a rant and I'm looking for advice. I know I am by no means perfect with my control but whenever I go to the doctors I feel like a child being told off. There's a complete lack of reality on their side and the doctors I go to have never offered a practical solution to improve my bg control.

Ultimately this leads to me to complete panic and feeling like a failure (N.B I do also have anxiety around letting people down). I absolutely dread going to the doctors and lose sleep before appointments etc.

I'm just looking for advice on a way to move this forward. How did you start the process of getting better help from your GP?

Sorry for the rant!

J

Imagine them naked. It definitely makes you realise, we're all the same underneath. Your gp may worry what he/she faces today. Worries in case not given a better examination etc.
We are all human.
Nurses who get uppity because they feel frustrated they carnt fix the problem for you. I bet if asked 99% would like to be our fairy godmother. If only.

 

[JayLeigh3679]

Imagine them naked. It definitely makes you realise, we're all the same underneath. Your gp may worry what he/she faces today. Worries in case not given a better examination etc.
We are all human.
Nurses who get uppity because they feel frustrated they carnt fix the problem for you. I bet if asked 99% would like to be our fairy godmother. If only.

Might not adopt the naked strategy I hadn't thought of it from their perspective. I do understand their frustration of maybe not being able to help as much as they'd like, limited resources, lack of time etc.

 

[johnpol]

I don't/wont see my GP for diabetes as they (by their own admission) don't know a lot, (had one doctor tell me I should try herbal remedies as an alternative to my insulin!!!! never laughed so much in my life) ask for a referral as you are a Type 1 and as such are entitled to a consultant looking after your care instead of a GP's , just my two penneth worth. Good luck

 

[Bic]

Hi jayLeigh, I used to loathe going to appointments, bu then I got fed up with this and decided to complain to the head of the relevant hospital department, and it worked! It is definitely worth trying. You could write an email to the person in charge of the clinic (or whoever is your doctor's boss; even a private practice is answerable to some higher authority) the reasons for your dissatisfaction, trying to be very matter-of-fact. They won't listen you much if you tell: 'I am an anxious kind of person and I resent being scolded' or 'I dislike doctor's XY manners'… but they probably will if you explain that such and such attitude is definitely not helping you achieve a better management, and add your numbers as a piece of evidence. So your not-perfect numbers can be your allies, in this particular setting. Try to make a not overlong, clear and detailed list of what you expect from your doctors and what kind of help you need most just now. Like, a scientific, matter-of-fact attitude that really help you figure out attainable goals and reach them through a definite set of actions that are doable (insist on this) and consistent with your habits, work, age, level of diabetes-expertise (how long have you been T1? it matters), tastes and personality. Remind him/her that life-long care needs to be tailored to the individual and his/her actual life, or it simply won't work. It's no use, it's a waste of time just frowning on people or scolding them or telling them off. Anxiety, judgement and blame have nothing to do with a health-caring situation: appointments should be a time when you point out the problems you are meeting, explain the solutions you have envisaged, and when your doctors help you identify critical areas and actually SUGGEST not only what to do (all too simple!) but most importantly HOW to do it, ie how to make your management more compatible with your actual life.
To answer your question, after I complained to the person in charge of the department I was changed to a different consultant: no more fruitless anxiety and better help. So perhaps you could try this. One doesn't even need above-average writing skills: ask a friend to help if you don't feel confident enough. But really, appointments shouldn't be the kind of things you lose your sleep about…
Best wishes!

 

[JoeT1]

Panic ? No. I just don't go to see one anymore. They are not there to cure you, that's for sure, so why really bother ? The only thing they do is **** you off. When i have high hba1c, they tear me apart. When i have normal hba1c, they still tear me apart, then because i'm not working, not socialising, not going out of home.

Can you change doctors or DSN then? Really, don't stop going just because you don't like the way they talk to you. It's important to continue going and receiving advice. They may not be a Type 1, but they have studied the illness and do know what they are talking about with regards to the correct insulin and so on.

 

[JayLeigh3679]

Hi jayLeigh, I used to loathe going to appointments, bu then I got fed up with this and decided to complain to the head of the relevant hospital department, and it worked! It is definitely worth trying. You could write an email to the person in charge of the clinic (or whoever is your doctor's boss; even a private practice is answerable to some higher authority) the reasons for your dissatisfaction, trying to be very matter-of-fact. They won't listen you much if you tell: 'I am an anxious kind of person and I resent being scolded' or 'I dislike doctor's XY manners'… but they probably will if you explain that such and such attitude is definitely not helping you achieve a better management, and add your numbers as a piece of evidence. So your not-perfect numbers can be your allies, in this particular setting. Try to make a not overlong, clear and detailed list of what you expect from your doctors and what kind of help you need most just now. Like, a scientific, matter-of-fact attitude that really help you figure out attainable goals and reach them through a definite set of actions that are doable (insist on this) and consistent with your habits, work, age, level of diabetes-expertise (how long have you been T1? it matters), tastes and personality. Remind him/her that life-long care needs to be tailored to the individual and his/her actual life, or it simply won't work. It's no use, it's a waste of time just frowning on people or scolding them or telling them off. Anxiety, judgement and blame have nothing to do with a health-caring situation: appointments should be a time when you point out the problems you are meeting, explain the solutions you have envisaged, and when your doctors help you identify critical areas and actually SUGGEST not only what to do (all too simple!) but most importantly HOW to do it, ie how to make your management more compatible with your actual life.
To answer your question, after I complained to the person in charge of the department I was changed to a different consultant: no more fruitless anxiety and better help. So perhaps you could try this. One doesn't even need above-average writing skills: ask a friend to help if you don't feel confident enough. But really, appointments shouldn't be the kind of things you lose your sleep about…
Best wishes!

Thanks for the advice! It's a route I might look further into if I can't get the help I need/referral

 

[Levy]

Definitely push to be referred to a hospital. I have an annual appointment at my GP, but all they do is check my feet and update my prescriptions, they have never given me any useful advice on diabetes management.

At the hospital, my consultant is extremely supportive and will go through all my testing results with me to spot areas for improvement and will suggest where I need to change my carb:insulin ratio or whether I should increase my basal etc. He would never tell me off and completely understands how difficult it can be to manage. They make me feel like they're genuinely trying to help me, and I never ever feel judged! I could never manage without them.

 

[JMK1954]

I have recently written to request that I not have to see one particular registrar again. I do not find this person helpful and never have, but since the individual never wore a name badge and never introduced themselves after the first occasion, I was unable to ask for a different doctor.
If whoever you see is no help, you need to switch the person you see. It's that simple. Your control and your health wil suffer further if you don't.
If you are getting no help, you need a referral to somewhere you CAN get the help you need. Like Levy, I have never had a GP who gave me any useful advice on type 1 management.