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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 4 of 4. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Squiggles on November 8, 2004, at 9:24:34
Hi,
I'm going to see my dr. soon.
I am going to try to be as objective
and truthful in my report, so as
to help him collaborate on my
health care. I would like to
start with the good things about
my treatment first, and the couple
of things that bother me.I know I can trust him to do the
right thing.On the internet, it's great to
exchange ideas, and swap symptoms
but you can't really know for sure.One thing that disturbs me is that
it is difficult to discern the
legitimate posts from the "prank"
ones. And a naive person, say
a teen or a person going through a very
rough time emotionally, may actually
be drawn into bad advice.I worry about that sometimes, because
I think that I myself, have fallen
for such misinformation - not here
though.Any ideas on how to avoid this non-quality
information? Have you had some bad
experiences and learned from them?
What do doctors think?Tx
Squiggles
Posted by partlycloudy on November 9, 2004, at 5:18:26
In reply to reliability, posted by Squiggles on November 8, 2004, at 9:24:34
I share what I learn on the internet very cautiously with my doctor. I'm more likely to ask, "what do you thinkof XX?" rather than saying that I read something in particular on the internet. As for our doctors having our best interests at heart? I'm afraid I go on something as unscientific as my intuition. Every time I have gone against it, it has not turned out well.
pc
Posted by JenStar on November 9, 2004, at 10:08:26
In reply to reliability, posted by Squiggles on November 8, 2004, at 9:24:34
hi Squiggles,
I think that going in prepared is a great idea. Sometimes I get flustered at the doctor, esp. b/c they have so little time. Making up a list of questions or comments to ask (even if it's only in my head) allows for better time management and better answers.The internet is a huge blessing b/c we can share and learn so much, but I agree with you on the negative side -- there is also bad information lurking out there too, sometimes honest mistakes and sometimes deliberate.
For me, I usually reference and cross-reference several times when I'm looking up a new topic. I do this as if I were preparing to write a research paper for school, and need valid resources & footnotes.
For example, if I want to learn about Lexapro and the side effects and the success rate (which I was on) -- I check at least 10-15 sites, both personal & medical boards, and read what everyone says. I look for common threads and over time develop an understanding of what the majority opinion seems to be. There are always outliers in the positive & negative direction, but by amassing lots of information I feel comfortable that I'm understanding the norm.
It takes time, but once I've read up like that I feel very confident that I'm adequately informed, at least as far as a lay-person can be.
Then, when I talk to my doctor, I can ask the right questions. Another example: When I went on Lexapro, I didn't ask "Are there sexual side effects?" Instead, I said: "From my reading on the Lexapro web site, I read that the company only reports 5% or less of sexual side effects. But from personal experiences, it seems to be a lot higher. Can you tell me an approximate percentage of people you treat who experience sexual side effects with Lexapro?" And that sparked a better and more honest conversation with my doctor, I believe. She saw that I was informed and interested in learning, and I got a lot of good information from her.
That's just an example, and it does require a lot of reading. But if it's my health, I don't mind investing time once in a while to read up and learn.
Anyway, I wish you the best of luck too. You said that you trust your doctor, and that's awesome. I think when you have that trust, you can feel a lot more relaxed both during the visits & between them.
take care!
JenStar
Posted by Susan47 on November 9, 2004, at 16:15:03
In reply to reliability, posted by Squiggles on November 8, 2004, at 9:24:34
I don't know the difference between a post that's sincere and one that isn't but I treat any of the threads I'm on as though everyone is being sincere. No matter what, in life, we'll make mistakes but I try to be true to myself; if someone's jerked me around, I try and learn to look for that again so I can recognize it before I'm hurt, but as I've said somewhere else on here, without my friends I don't know what I'd do. I do know this today, though; that one of the best things about our lives is that we can always make more friends no matter what we've gone through in our life. There's lots of good people out there who will love us and whom we can love as well. :)
This is the end of the thread.
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