My doctor is an idiot!

anemoneprose

when complaining to her doctor about back pain, my neighbor got told she had a slipped disc. now, several months and a bunch of pain meds later, it turns out she has stage 4 cancer in her GI tract.

i think you should be happy your doctor is being thorough.

God. Awful.

Flab2fitfi

For the record, blood tests are always done while fasting. Having recently eaten can affect results by changing blood chemistry. I always schedule my physicals for first thing in the morning to make it easier for me to not eat before.

Only certain tests are done fasting, cholesterol for example.
B12 is not a fasting blood test.
I would probably ask to see the lab order and find out exactly what he's testing.

Ditto I have to have a yearly blood test done that checks all B vitamins among other things and dont have to fast.

hookilau

when complaining to her doctor about back pain, my neighbor got told she had a slipped disc. now, several months and a bunch of pain meds later, it turns out she has stage 4 cancer in her GI tract.

i think you should be happy your doctor is being thorough.

God. Awful.

:frown: That's terrrible!

strick1982

What is the point of posting this? You have obviously already diagnosed yourself. As a nurse I can tell you that getting those tests done are far more important than heading straight to physio, which could be detrimental if they don't know what is wrong with you. And to the people telling you that you may need an adjustment or that is may be a pinched nerve that isn't helpful. Nobody on here has assessed this person. What did you expect ? People to come in here and agree with you that your Dr is an idiot and that you are brilliant for diagnosing yourself ?

Thanks for saving me from all the typing I was going to do. You said what I was thinking.

JustJennie1

I can't stand doctors and their procedures. I get so pissed off at the whole process. I'll spare stories, but 99% of the time, I agree that they are idiots. However, 1% of the time they are not.

What I don't like about the process is the elimination process. $1,000 dollars later, they refer you out to a specialist which is what you said in the first place while the dr rakes in the cash from unneeded testing. A-holes. I think the system is jacked up and 1 person has too much control. People should be able to go to a specialist if they want.

In short, I don't trust doctors. I think they often have different motives than the oath they take.

I completely agree with you.

My sister was having serious issues and went to the doctor for it. They ran all sorts of tests and concluded it was her gall bladder and she needed to get it removed ASAP! She didn't believe them (and because the surgery is major) went and got a second opinion. Turns out she has celiacs. She went back and told the original doctor who said "Whatever. I still think you should get your gall bladder removed any way."

Um, ok.

I am currently looking for a holistic doctor who will actually listen to me and not tell me that vitamins are for the birds and that I need an anti depressant because I get insomnia a few times a year.

rml_16

I wouldn't consider gallbladder surgery "major." And I've had it.

JustJennie1

when complaining to her doctor about back pain, my neighbor got told she had a slipped disc. now, several months and a bunch of pain meds later, it turns out she has stage 4 cancer in her GI tract.

i think you should be happy your doctor is being thorough.

God. Awful.

:frown: That's terrrible!

I worked with a woman who's sister had a persistent and nagging cough. The doctor said it was nothing. Turned out she had lung cancer.

annakow

You doctor is good, pins and needles can be result of muscle demage, and million other things.....

StarChanger

I am refreshed to see how many people are siding with the DOCTOR on this.

Medicine has been, possibly irreversibly, changed by Big Insurance, Big Pharma, and lawyers. Your doctors are doing the best they can to take care of more patients than any of them ever imagined, under constant scrutiny from the government, state, and local (ridiculous) regulations. They are paying more (much MUCH more) for their education, overhead, and having to hire extra staff JUST to deal with your insurance companies. Their reimbursement has been getting lower and lower for more than a decade...but their jobs have been getting harder and harder. Full time doctors work the equivalent of 2+ full-time jobs for their entire career. They miss most holidays, birthdays, births, weddings, etc...due to call requirements to take care of you. They stay up for 24, 48, 72 hours at a time, routinely. They have the stress of holding your life, your child / wife / parents life, in their hands...and then, if something goes wrong - even through NO fault of their own (because people DO die and have bad things happen to them) - they fear that their own professional / personal lives will be over due to the ensuing, ubiquitous lawsuits.

All this in the face of a general population who thinks they are "idiots" because they can look something up on WebMD.

Your doctor "doesn't like patients"? I wonder why? (That's tongue in cheek...but physician burnout is very, very real. Unfortunately, the debt, and moral obligation to take care of patients often keeps them there.)

And no, you should NOT go to a chiropractor until the rest of your testing is done...

pkbryant28

Hey,

Your doctor has done the right thing.
You may actually be defficient in B12 (or smthing other issue). If this is the case he will need to correct this before being able to refer you to physio.

I went to my doctor because of a tingling sensation in my fingers and hands, I was sure it was carpel tunnel, but he said he wanted blood work before he tested for carpal tunnel. Blood work came back and it showed I was B-12 deficient, had absolutely nothing to do with carpel tunnel. Sometimes our doctors are actually a lot smarter than we think.

cressievargo

I wouldn't consider gallbladder surgery "major." And I've had it.

^^ This. I've also had it. 20 minutes, laproscopic. The worst part of the whole thing was the stupid nurse that gave me dry crackers to eat after surgery...when they give you meds PRIOR to surgery to make your mouth nice and DRY. Oh and peanut butter...she gave me peanut butter...which was on the "DO NOT EAT list" she also gave me.

SHE was an idiot.

rml_16

I wouldn't consider gallbladder surgery "major." And I've had it.

^^ This. I've also had it. 20 minutes, laproscopic. The worst part of the whole thing was the stupid nurse that gave me dry crackers to eat after surgery...when they give you meds PRIOR to surgery to make your mouth nice and DRY. Oh and peanut butter...she gave me peanut butter...which was on the "DO NOT EAT list" she also gave me.

SHE was an idiot.

I think they gave me water or ice chips or something. I don't really remember.

I had my gallbladder out, tubes tied and endometrial ablation all at once and was back to running in a week. I didn't even need the Percocet they prescribed.

I was a bit sore and drained for a while, but that was the worst of it. You can't even see the scars anymore and it hasn't been a year.

DiamondRubyMom

To everyone suggesting a chiropractor for a pinched nerve, stop. If it is a pinched nerve, manipulation is not the answer, in fact it could make things worse. A physical therapist can provide a thorough examination to determine the source of the pins and needles and provide a treatment plan to address the issue instead of just doing manipulation.

I commend you for seeking out physical therapy, though I agree that the doctor is likely just trying to rule out other causes. I would continue to request a referral to physical therapy following the blood test.

This. A physical Therapist is a great idea for a pins and needles. I would keep pushing it with you MD and do the test he asks for.

xstarxdustx

Regardless of some symptoms, there's a protocol they follow in western medicine. More conservative measures taken first and the blood test seems to be part of that. Whatever in the end will cost less, etc. Sad.

lemonmon1

My husband had tingling sore legs for a while and got a whole bunch of bloodwork done. He has to go gluten free! You could have a pinched nerve though.

rml_16

Regardless of some symptoms, there's a protocol they follow in western medicine. More conservative measures taken first and the blood test seems to be part of that. Whatever in the end will cost less, etc. Sad.

They start with the conservative approach because they don't want to do heart surgery on someone who needs an antacid.

What is with demonizing doctors? Geez! Of course there are bad doctors, but there are also good ones.

kimosabe1

see if it gets worse before paying 3-500 for an appointment....

babydiego87

Oh god, OP is the type of patient I hate at work. Thinks they know it all because they know how to use google. Please go ahead and tell the person who went to school for medicine that they are wrong. I'm sure you're 100% right.