Recently, I was introduced to an internet forum. I can't log in, but I'm in the queue for review. It will be nice to finally be able to communicate with these individuals. People just like me. The same, but different.
11 years ago I was pregnant with my daughter. I didn't feel right. It was my third pregnancy, so I had a good feel for pregnancy. I was a police dispatcher/911 operator at the time. I loved my job! But I couldn't function. It was difficult to hold my head up and concentrate, even my arms didn't work right.
I called the Dr. to complain about this strange fatigue. His response was that pregnancy is uncomfortable. Tired is a part of the territory. I wasn't dumb. But this was different. So a few weeks later, I complained again. They asked me to come in. He ran my blood work and was shocked to find that I was extremely anemic. He was shocked because I had been prescribed iron and should have been taking them. He was not happy with me. I informed him that I HAD been taking my iron! He looked at me a little sideways and ordered me to take more.
A few weeks later, there was no improvement. They checked my iron levels again. It was WORSE. I was confused, he thought I wasn't being honest, and I shouldn't have been able to stand. The levels were borderline for a transfusion. The office staff continued to repeat how important it was that I take my iron. Well, I WAS taking it. He sent me to an oncologist to try to find out why my body wasn't doing what it needed to with the iron pills. The nice new doctor wanted to try over the cheap counter iron. I did. I immediately got better. I learned there was a difference between the over-the-counter iron and the rx. Some people only absorb the over-the-counter without all the fancy hard-to-digest ingredients.
The OB doc is intelligent, and well respected. He saved my life three years prior. I wasn't ready to ditch him but I was mad at him for handling my situation the way he did. I sat down and wrote him a one page letter telling him exactly what I felt. He was the professional, I was not. I trusted him. I needed him to trust me. He took the letter well. He changed the way he treated me, and I get the feeling he also changed the way he treated other patients. We salvaged the relationship. He has since performed three more surgeries on me. I would recommend him to anyone.
I hope that I can do the same with Dr. Bennet. I'm prepared to find another mouth-piece for the new doctor in Utah if needed. But I think Dr. Bennet is a good candidate. He just needs to learn something new. Sometimes a Dr. in practice for 20 years might feel as if he already knows all there is to know. I hope he isn't one of them.
