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Getting my throat cut


Deb

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Oh, this is terrible but don't give up! I would insist that the dr explain to you in person the reason for his change of mind. But what I didn't understand is why he wouldn't do the surgery to help your breathing. If the thyroid is obstructing your airway it should be removed. After all breathing is essential to life! Can you find another sugeon? Demand a second opinion. it's too bad that people have to fight so hard for health care in this country. Rita

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I'm flabbergasted, Deb. :) What in the world are they doing??? That surgeon needs to be straightened out - big time. Ooooh, what I'd like to do to him (if I was a violent person).

Don't lose hope, Deb. Have a restorative nap, brush yourself off, and scrape up your fighting spirit! You know what needs to be done .... you just have to find the right doctor who will see the truth!

Hopefully, the endocrinologist will keep an open mind, and won't agree with the surgeon.

I'm sending you all the positive, healing, loving thoughts and energies that I possibly can.

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Thanks guys. I really needed a group hug. I thought about it last night, especially after I noticed that the jerk cc'd *all* my doctors on his letter and I've decided to fire the whole lot of them except for my rheumatologist. I'm going to call around this afternoon and cancel all the appointments including the surgery. I'm debating about replying to the jerk to tell him why and exactly how he offended me in his letter.......and sending a copy to everyone he sent one to, requesting that they attach it to his letter. At least my side of it will be on file.

Bruce had a good point last night when he said that the oncologist may have changed his mind if he called the internist who hates me because I won't take his anti-depressants. For one thing I'm intolerant of tricylics and SNRIs but he wouldn't listen to me when I told him that and he got reeeeeeeeeally mad when I told him that if they would fix what's wrong with me so I feel better, I wouldn't need any anti-depressants. I understand the difference between situational and clinical depression and the minor depression that I have is definitely situational. But that really made him mad at me and if he got the chance to talk to the surgeon, he probably wouldn't have had anything good to say about me. <sigh> I'm not seeing him anymore but he was the one who referred me to the oncologist a couple of months ago so he would have been on the file.

I'll find new doctors and start all over again which is a lot harder to do than it sounds. The emotional roller coaster is exhausting to say the least and just the thought of beginning yet one more time is almost overwhelming. I've seen 10 doctors in two years and the only thing that's consistent is hearing "I don't know". I'll start over at the University hospital here with the hopes that their endo department will take an interest in an unusual case. I don't mind being a learning experience if they can find an answer.

Now I'm off to wait for the oxygen supply place to show up again since they gave me the wrong equipment last time. Thank you all again for being so supportive. Without this support I'd probably have had a nervous breakdown already.

Deb

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Sweetie, I am just about getting on top of things around here (sheesh are we a chatty bunch or what????) and at first I went whohooo, with tears of joy (hubby came and asked and was elated along with me) then right now there are tears of anger and disbelief!!!

I really don't know what else to say apart from you go girl and fire those non-helping "docs" and trust me that I am most definitley going for those needles and lilä dolls just tucked away for such a moment!

HUGS along with some words that just aren't proper to write!

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...I've seen 10 doctors in two years and the only thing that's consistent is hearing "I don't know". I'll start over at the University hospital here with the hopes that their endo department will take an interest in an unusual case. I don't mind being a learning experience if they can find an answer.

Now I'm off to wait for the oxygen supply place to show up again since they gave me the wrong equipment last time. Thank you all again for being so supportive. Without this support I'd probably have had a nervous breakdown already.

Deb

Well at least it's familial... DS#3's case history is in several pediatric psych texts (manifested bipolar disorder with psychotic features from an extremely early age-IMO since birth, but I was just the mom, what did I know) and we spent mini, mini years playing roulette with the mental health system. You can come cry on my shoulder or punch in our front door any time you want, honey!
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You stay strong Deb - your made of tougher stuff than they are! It really is criminal that it takes this back-and-forth, up-and-down, rollercoaster ride for one decent human being to get viable and thorough healthcare! And for heaven's sake, you are going and asking the questions, not just showing up in some E/R...(and I won't go further - it is such a sore-spot topic these days) - but I am holding firm to the hope that you WILL find someone who can, and WILL help, not just push you off.

Again, sending you gentle hugs :)

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The University hospital called me back today to start the screening process. They need me to get all my records faxed over to them so the doctor can evaluate if I'm someone he might find of interest. If so, then they'll get me scheduled to see someone in his department.

That sounds kinda snobbish, but it's a good thing! This doctor is head of the endocrinology department at the University and he specializes in thyroid nodules........most particularly in thyroid nodules that might be unusual. He focuses on the molecular structure that might cause neoplasms and since I have plenty of those, hopefully he'll find me someone of interest. I have all kinds of nodules for him to look at all in one gland! I have big ones, little ones, solid ones, fibrous ones, fluid ones, nodules with microcalcifications and nodules without them and some that are just developing them.........I have nodules on the left and nodules on the right and nodules in the middle. I have old ones and new ones! (This is starting to sound like a Dr Suess book)

I think that he's kind of like the Dr House of endocrinology and that's exactly what I need. I don't care if I see him or one of his fellows or even a grad student doing his internship under him! As long as he's in control, I don't care who I have face time with. His bio says that he was in a fellowship at the Mayo Clinic before coming here so that's a good thing too. At this point, I don't even care if they want to use me for a guinea pig and try new meds or procedures. Anything is better than nothing at all.

Also good news is that the authorizations that I've signed today are for test results only. The quack internist will not be able to send any of his notes about how he thinks that I'm just depressed and no one will be able to send a copy of the letter from that jerk oncologist. All the University doctor wants is just the test results and nothing else. Yay!! That takes a HUGE load of worry off my shoulders because I was afraid he'd never agree to see me based on that stupid oncologist.

I'm babbling now, but this is the first day that I've felt even semi optimistic after the <bleep> oncologist incident. It'll be a week or so before I hear anything more and I want to ask you guys for prayers, candles, positive energy, happy thoughts............I need them all. Keep me in your thoughts and keep hoping that I'll be accepted.

Deb

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Candles, energies and thoughts are all either lit, focused, or flying around here!! I'd do a dance, too, if I could. I will keep everything crossed (most of the time) until we hear something good! :lol:

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Good news Deb, you seem to have made the breakthrough you needed.

Many in the medical profession can sometimes have too much faith in their own abilities and opinions, disregarding the patient's view, experience and knowledge. I have my own experience of being disregarded time after time by a GP, with tragic consequences. Its the same in this country, some doctors have an unshakeable belief in their absolute infallibility.

Good luck with the surgery, I'll be thinking of you.

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Hi Deb,

I am praying for you, and I want you to be assured that it's not you - it's the stupid doctors. I've heard many women friends who have been left feeling like their crazy because of their experiences with doctors.

Just keep going forward and forget those stupid fools!

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The latest update is that I called the University today and finally got a live person.........who said that she'd been meaning to call me. <sigh> I wonder when that would have been? Oh well, at least we made contact and I found out that they got the records from one of my doctors but not from Dr Quack.

So I called Dr Quack's office and the office person told me that they had mailed them on the 5th. Really? Well now, ain't that just one of the wonders of the universe coz I didn't request them until the *21st*!!! <banging head on desk> So she came up with a story of how they hadn't received my authorization. Hmm. Why do I get the feeling that she was using that as a cover story for why they hadn't sent my records to the new doctor. I told her that I needed them ASAP and her only resolution was that they could mail me another authorization form and I could mail it back and then they'd mail the records to the new doctor. That's a lot of time and sounds like another run-around to me. I told her that I might as well just see if they'd accept the records from my copies and she hung up on me! I guess she thought that was an acceptable solution and was probably relieved that she wouldn't have to admit to screwing up. <snarling> Obviously the office staff isn't any more compassionate or competent than the doctor.

Anyway, I called back my contact at the University and she said that they have enough from the first doctor to see that I qualify and it will be okay for me to bring the test results with me when I come. <huge sigh of relief> I won't be seeing the big doctor, but at least it will be one of the Fellows in the endocrinology department. She asked if that was okay and I told her that I'd be willing to see the janitor if I thought it would do me any good. I'll take whatever they can give me. So I have an appointment on the 4th and hopefully this one will be a caring and competent doctor who can help me. Keep your fingers crossed that this will be the last time I have to start all over.

Deb

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Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooh! So glad you'll be seen at the Uni!

Unless Dr Quack is miles and miles away, I'd call his office and tell them I'll be in to pick up my records at such and such a time and then just wait if they're not ready. They're YOUR records. It's unconscionable that they didn't send them when requested.

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Unless Dr Quack is miles and miles away, I'd call his office and tell them I'll be in to pick up my records at such and such a time and then just wait if they're not ready. They're YOUR records. It's unconscionable that they didn't send them when requested.

Oh, I've already gone thru that. After Dr Quack messed up my meds, I called and asked for a copy of my records to be sent to me. They hemmed and hawed and it seemed like the person in charge of records was always out of the office but I stayed persistent and finally got thru to her. It cost me $20 to get them but I did. They said they don't charge to fax them to another doctor, but I had to pay for copies. There's definitely something fishy going on there because when I talked to them last week about sending the authorization form, they told me that they only faxed, not mailed, the records to other doctors. Today she told me they would only mail them, not fax them.

This whole thing seems rather pointless since I already have copies but the University said they needed them sent directly from the doctor, not from me. I think they have that policy because they don't want anything altered or incomplete. Fortunately the girl I talked to understood when I explained it to her and they'll accept my copies from Dr Quack since they already had my records from another doctor sent the right way. I'm glad she made an exception to that.

I'm very happy that you will be seen by someone with an open (hopefully compassionate and intelligent) mind - finally! The 4th can't come soon enough.

The compassionate part is what I'm really hoping for. This is going to sound sexist, but maybe seeing a woman doctor will make a difference. Women are more inclined to understand about hormonal deviations from the norm even if it's thyroid and not ovarian shifts. It's all still endocrine related.

Deb

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