Went to an ER that night, they treated me the same…until I told them I was “extremely uncomfortable” going home without a CT scan to be sure. They actually gave in. Boy, they sure changed their tune when they found exactly what I said they’d find, in the exact SAME spot. “You need to be seen by a specialist ASAP.” I was a ticking timebomb. It all turned out alright, but I could have died at any moment.

By the way, I found out via my medical records that this condition was detected at multiple tests I’d had over the years, and was NOTED on the test results, but I was never given those results. That part was “overlooked” somehow, every time. GET A COPY of any test results, EVERY time you have one, and read them. Had I done that, I would have seen the anomaly on the test results, and said “hey, what’s this here…?”

No matter how nice your doctor may be, no one is looking out for you as much as YOU (except God of course…who saved my butt on this one).

I could give other, less severe examples, especially with my children, where I or they were prescribed medication that was either unnecessary, or even dangerous, and I only found out when I went home and studied the risks of the medication BEFORE filling the prescription. I would check out natural cures first, in non-emergent situations, and listen to ktradionetwork.com’s radio show. Quite an eye opener.

Instead of trusting a doctor, trust your God-given intuition (guardian angel) instead, do your own research, and don’t let ANYONE treat you like you are stupid…that is the first thing a bad or apathetic doctor will do, so run like the wind if that happens. A doctor should respect you first and foremost before they get to treat you.

Sorry this got so long. It’s a soapbox issue for me. But if it saves one person’s life, it’s worth boring the rest of you, lol.

I think we have a tendency to believe that doctors are unquestionable authorities on many matters, including the health/development of our children.

I happen to be a mom who is a proponent of extended breastfeeding, and have nursed all my children into their toddler years. When I had an pediatrician who continually questioned this practice (more as a matter of his amazement that anyone would continue to do something like breastfeeding long-term!) I finally decided that I needed to seek medical care for my kids elsewhere. I happened upon a female pediatrician who not only supported my choices, but actually nursed her own daughter for 18 months as a result of “seeing how well it was turning out for you” (me!). Imagine the thrill of moving from a practitioner who scoffed at the idea that my children were easier to discipline and more obedient due to the breastfeeding, to someone who was teachable enough to actually learn something from her patients! I’m now, obviously, her lifetime devotee…and really value her opinion and the choices she makes for her own child.

Good for you…second-opinion seeking is a good thing! So is a healthy sense of skepticism about medical “experts.”

I wore brace for 4 yrs. Not Fun, but now I do have a nice smile:)

(I will skip telling you about our $$$ at the dentist and orthodontist for my sweet small-jawed babies and their relatively sized horse-teeth…)

*I AM thankful* that we haven’t spent that much money at the medical doctors!

=)

btw: made your yummy homemade pancakes last night. so good