Update on my stepdad again

[sparks19]

Well after both of his surgeries my step dad is still run down and feeling crappy. he's been insisting for a while that he wanted to be tested for Lupus but his Doctor kept insisting that wasn't it and wouldn't do the tests. So finally he called the surgeon he went to for his first surgery and made an appt with her.

He brought in this little form with him that they found online that basically has a check list for lupus symptoms and he has all but maybe ONE that was on the list but said that his doctor kept telling him it couldn't be lupus.

So after she looked at the list and talked to him for a bit she agreed that it REALLY sounded like it could be lupus and she called his doctor and told him that he absolutely needed to be tested.

Well the tests came back today... he has Lupus. Now he has to get into a specialist in London (an hour away) so they can try to figure out what kind of lupus it is and how they are going to treat it.

It's so nice to FINALLY know and now hopefully he can get on the right medication and get to feeling half normal again after all this time.

[pomtzu]

Well hopefully he's now on the right track to feeling better.

It's a pretty sad state of affairs when the patient has to tell the doctor what the ailment is. Is this typical in the Canadian healthcare system?

[sparks19]

I don't know if it's a canadian healthcare thing or just a doctors don't like to be told anything thing. I know when I was younger my mom took me to the docs and wanted to have me tested for mono. He didn't even lay a finger on me or anything and insisted it wasn't that and that I was depressed and could turn suicidal :O my mom got a second opinion... MONO.

[Catty1]

There are boneheaded idiots in every profession, in every country. A friend of mine has a doc that just WON'T listen. She's off to find another one (I wish her luck!)

[Grace]

There are boneheaded idiots in every profession, in every country. A friend of mine has a doc that just WON'T listen. She's off to find another one (I wish her luck!)

I totally agree. There are people in all professions, in many countries, who cannot grasp that other options, treatments, whatever are possible.

They can't see beyond the end of their nose - an old, but true expression.

[Laura's Babies]

It's a pretty sad state of affairs when the patient has to tell the doctor what the ailment is. Is this typical in the Canadian healthcare system?

This happens everywhere! I know a lady that died from breast cancer because even with the history of every female in her family dying from cancer and she had it several times in her life herself, he neglected to schedule her for a mammogram for THREE years! By the time a nurse found it, it was to late..

In another state, a guy I work with, his Mom died because of a toxic mix of drugs that were treating 2 diseases she DID NOT HAVE! This man, her son, had went to the Mayo clinic's web sight and researched what they were treating her for and asked the doctor if they had ran test "X" & test "Y" to confirm those diseases... They had not but did before that day ended, she did not have those diseases. The next day he met the doctor at the door with the print outs on those two drug that said they were toxic together and he stopped those drugs but it was to late... She died a few days later..

YET, you tell a doctor you looked something up on the internet and they tell you you can't believe what you read on the web.. My response to those doctors is THEY force us to go look it up because they fail to treat us and make us well so we either look for the information ourselves or just quietly die!

Thank God your step Dad had the good sense to go look it up for himself!

[Catherinedana]

I don't know if it's a canadian healthcare thing or just a doctors don't like to be told anything thing. I know when I was younger my mom took me to the docs and wanted to have me tested for mono. He didn't even lay a finger on me or anything and insisted it wasn't that and that I was depressed and could turn suicidal :O my mom got a second opinion... MONO.

Something very similar happened to me when I was in Junior High (more years ago than I'd like to admit) and when they finally discovered that it actually was mono, I had to stay home from school for about 3 weeks because my spleen was inflammed and they didn't want it to rupture. So it's not just Canadian healthcare, it's doctors all over. I have no faith in them. Now I have a lot of fatigue and general achiness and it was found by one doctor that was open to the idea that I have the active Epstein-Barr virus in my system. This is the possible culprit of fibrymalgia and chronic fatigue. I don't see that dr. anymore for various reasons and have not had another dr. that will take this condition seriously. It can sometimes be very disruptive to my life but I find that if I keep myself from extremely stressful situations (and that is actually easier than I thought! I had to learn not to create drama where the was none!) I usually feel pretty good although I'm almost always tired. I hate to say this, but male doctors will not listen at all to any fatigue or general "unwellness" complaints. I was checked for Lupus by a male dr. and since I didn't have it, he wrote the whole thing off. Nevermind that I have joint aches or have to sleep up to 12 hours in a day to recoup about once or twice a month.

We all have to take charge of ourselves and if you have a suspicion about an ailment you are facing, have them do the tests. Insist! You have nothing to lose. Then find ways to treat yourself like diet and homeopathy. Making music a big part of my life again actually helps a lot. I'm NEVER tired or achy when I'm singing!

Hope your stepdad gets the help he needs to feel as well as he can. I also suggest that you find out as much about the disease as you can so that you can assist in his treatment and make suggestions both to the doctor and to your dad about things that might work for him.

Sending love,
Cathy

[pomtzu]

Let me clarify - I didn't mean all of Canadian healthcare. It just seems I've read and heard so much about about that one in particular, that it's what came to mind, especially reading in different threads, about what Tanya's step dad has gone thru, and Tanya herself too.

I'm sure there's many, many doctors like that everywhere. I've been fortunate enough to never have encountered one. My primary care doc is quite the opposite. It seems he tests for absolutely anything that might be even remotely possible. I always thought he was a little test happy, and I have even not undergone some he has ordered. But then I'm rather glad that he is that way. Better safe than sorry.

[Medusa]

Well, at least now he knows what he's dealing with and things can progress from there. I do hope that all moves along quickly now.