From the time we are young, we are raised to always trust the doctor, as he/she is the “expert.”
But the truth is, it’s called “practicing” medicine for a reason – as often times many doctors don’t know the root of the problem, and simply guess what it could be to the best of their ability.
And for one woman, she learned the hard way how important it is to trust her own instinct despite of the what the doctor may say.
A scary new trend is taking place in doctors’ offices all around the country.
With a health-obsessed culture, often when a woman goes in concerned about certain symptoms, if she is overweight many doctors almost dismiss her concern and insist the problem has to do with her weight.
It seems that every problem gets the same answers such as “lose some weight” or “exercise more.”
Not that it’s wrong to be healthy and strive to maintain a healthy weight – but some health problems are not caused by being overweight.
One woman found out the hard way when she went to her doctor and it was discovered she had protein in her urine, both during and after pregnancy.
The doctor dismissed it, and told her simply just to “lose weight.”
Discussing her situation on Twitter, Jen told her story as a warning to other women that the doctor isn’t always right.
She tweeted:
“Wanna hear a crazy story? I’m a new mom & I had protein in my urine during and after pregnancy, which is bad. A doctor told me to “lose weight” & it would go away. Didn’t want me to see me back for months. So I got a second opinion. Turns out I have bone marrow cancer.”
Through a series of tweets, Jen admitted that she tried to follow the doctor’s advice and “lose weight” even though she felt dismissed.
Thankfully she followed her instincts and decided to get a second opinion.
And when this kidney doctor looked at her lab results, she said the situation was “not good” – and with further tests it turned out she had bone marrow cancer.
Had Jen just taken the first doctor’s advice and focused on “losing weight” – who knows how bad things would have gotten before she started treatment.
Jen concluded her tweet series with the following advice for women:
“Here’s the moral of this particular story. Lose weight if you want to. But if you think something is seriously wrong with your body, and a doctor tells you weight loss is the key to fixing it, get a *** second opinion.
Also, advocate for yourself. Get to know your body, trust your body, and listen to your instincts. And don’t be intimidated to question your doctor! This last one has been really hard for me but I’m getting better at it all the time.”
And she is absolutely correct!
This is not saying all doctors are bad and ill-willed.
But the truth is, every doctor “practices” medicine differently.
Some doctors are quick to always prescribe pain medication and are focused solely on treating symptoms vs discovering the root cause.
Others are so overworked they only spend 15 minutes with their patients – and how much can you really know about someone in 15 minutes.
And of course, many doctors simply assume that every problem has to do with excess weight.
Because of this reality, many patients make the decision to do their own research and take a more active role in their health.
And let’s face it — we know our bodies better than any doctor ever could.
So ladies if you are feeling dismissed by doctors and being told “everything is fine” – don’t give up if you feel something is not right.
Get a second opinion. Or even a third if you have to.
It just might save your life.
Have you ever felt dismissed by a doctor?
Do you agree a woman should trust her instincts if she feels something is not right with her body?
Tell us your thoughts in the comments below.
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