4 ms·

Take it yourself for 30 days. Don't count on that one visit to the doctor's office.

HighlandSpring 5y ago
Just want to expand on how I feel this alone is most of the reason why accessing the right healthcare is such a pain. This quick fix culture of "let's get you assessed and we'll have you on some kind of pills in no time. Oh look, it's time for my lunch break!" Similarly, I've noticed dogma in psychiatry discouraging of "self-diagnosis" and the consequence of that: individuals with stories of spending years experiencing their state of mind, many hours researching it yet still having to go through multiple professionals to arrive at the "right" diagnosis (despite often spoonfeeding the professional the answer on a silver platter yet meeting resistance)
- ekianjo 5y ago
  > This quick fix culture of "let's get you assessed and we'll have you on some kind of pills in no time. Oh look, it's time for my lunch break!" That's what you get when wrong incentives are in place. Additionally, I believe it would be better to have a separate market for diagnosis (as in, technicians selling their services, not attached to any doctor or hospital) so that you can get tested whenever you want (at your expenses, or partially reimbursed by your insurer, whichever system works best) instead of having a gate-keeper for everything.
- ericbarrett 5y ago
  My friend is a practicing doctor and we’ve talked a lot about medicine. The “quick fix” culture is one of his biggest complaints; from his perspective, it mostly comes from profit-seeking hospitals forcing larger and larger case loads. But also, if you’re treating the general public, you’ll encounter a lot of superstition, woo, and “Facebook M.D.s”, so as a patient be prepared to be persistent.
inglor_cz 5y ago
Also, some people have so-called White coat hypertension. Basically, a medical appointment stresses them enough that they present with HBP even though they are, in fact, healthy. To mitigate this, frequent measurements at home or at work should be taken. Those give you much more information about your status.
- giantg2 5y ago
  And many nurses don't know how to take it. Half the time they turn the automated machine up to 200. It takes so long to pump up and then vent down that my arm will get tingley and I can feel my blood pulse get stronger.
- lottin 5y ago
  Yes, I confirm that. I was always found to be hypertensive when I had my blood pressure taken by a nurse, but when I took it myself it was usually only a bit elevated (between 120-135) or normal (between 110-120). As a result I was diagnosed with white coat hypertension.
  - washadjeffmad 5y ago
    Same, then after my systolic climbed to to 180-200 they got around to diagnosing me with kidney disease. I ended up with permanent vision and kidney damage because other than that, I was an apparently healthy young person. Even mild hypertension can be a serious indicator of potentially life threatening, or at least altering, issues. If you measure high at the doctor, measure yourself at home and keep a log.
    - ed25519FUUU 5y ago
      What was the underlying issue?
      - washadjeffmad 5y ago
        A congenital autoimmune disorder that led to renal hypertension in my late teens. This is my first year in remission.
salex89 5y ago
Well, I have an MD in the household. But I get anxious when measuring blood pressure because I'm scared it will be to high. My dad has it, and I'm always afraid I'll get it too. When she ambushes me and measures it when I don't have the time to panic, it is usually fine. On the other hand, I had a regular blood test several weeks ago, and my blood sugar was borderline high for a fasting period. I just went out and bought a glucometer and tracked it for days later, it was much lower. It just happened on that one reading at the lab. The only explanation is that I was fasting for too long (close to 16 hours) and the lab was not the first thing I went in the morning, I had one more place to visit before. So my body was already fully woken up and/or my liver started doing its thing and produced glucose from fat or whatever.

Just want to expand on how I feel this alone is most of the reason why accessing the right healthcare is such a pain. This quick fix culture of "let's get you assessed and we'll have you on some kind of pills in no time. Oh look, it's time for my lunch break!" Similarly, I've noticed dogma in psychiatry discouraging of "self-diagnosis" and the consequence of that: individuals with stories of spending years experiencing their state of mind, many hours researching it yet still having to go through multiple professionals to arrive at the "right" diagnosis (despite often spoonfeeding the professional the answer on a silver platter yet meeting resistance)

ekianjo 5y ago
> This quick fix culture of "let's get you assessed and we'll have you on some kind of pills in no time. Oh look, it's time for my lunch break!" That's what you get when wrong incentives are in place. Additionally, I believe it would be better to have a separate market for diagnosis (as in, technicians selling their services, not attached to any doctor or hospital) so that you can get tested whenever you want (at your expenses, or partially reimbursed by your insurer, whichever system works best) instead of having a gate-keeper for everything.
ericbarrett 5y ago
My friend is a practicing doctor and we’ve talked a lot about medicine. The “quick fix” culture is one of his biggest complaints; from his perspective, it mostly comes from profit-seeking hospitals forcing larger and larger case loads. But also, if you’re treating the general public, you’ll encounter a lot of superstition, woo, and “Facebook M.D.s”, so as a patient be prepared to be persistent.

inglor_cz 5y ago

Also, some people have so-called White coat hypertension. Basically, a medical appointment stresses them enough that they present with HBP even though they are, in fact, healthy. To mitigate this, frequent measurements at home or at work should be taken. Those give you much more information about your status.

giantg2 5y ago
And many nurses don't know how to take it. Half the time they turn the automated machine up to 200. It takes so long to pump up and then vent down that my arm will get tingley and I can feel my blood pulse get stronger.
lottin 5y ago
Yes, I confirm that. I was always found to be hypertensive when I had my blood pressure taken by a nurse, but when I took it myself it was usually only a bit elevated (between 120-135) or normal (between 110-120). As a result I was diagnosed with white coat hypertension.
- washadjeffmad 5y ago
  Same, then after my systolic climbed to to 180-200 they got around to diagnosing me with kidney disease. I ended up with permanent vision and kidney damage because other than that, I was an apparently healthy young person. Even mild hypertension can be a serious indicator of potentially life threatening, or at least altering, issues. If you measure high at the doctor, measure yourself at home and keep a log.
  - ed25519FUUU 5y ago
    What was the underlying issue?
    - washadjeffmad 5y ago
      A congenital autoimmune disorder that led to renal hypertension in my late teens. This is my first year in remission.

salex89 5y ago

Well, I have an MD in the household. But I get anxious when measuring blood pressure because I'm scared it will be to high. My dad has it, and I'm always afraid I'll get it too. When she ambushes me and measures it when I don't have the time to panic, it is usually fine. On the other hand, I had a regular blood test several weeks ago, and my blood sugar was borderline high for a fasting period. I just went out and bought a glucometer and tracked it for days later, it was much lower. It just happened on that one reading at the lab. The only explanation is that I was fasting for too long (close to 16 hours) and the lab was not the first thing I went in the morning, I had one more place to visit before. So my body was already fully woken up and/or my liver started doing its thing and produced glucose from fat or whatever.