Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Good doctors DO exist.

Yesterday I went to the endocrinologist for the first of what will likely be many visits to start dealing with my hypothyroidism. I had originally made an appointment for March, because that was the first one available, but they had a last-minute cancellation and I had put myself on the waiting list for those, because I wasn't excited about waiting two months for my appointment. And that trick paid off, because I wound up waiting only one month.

Anyway, the endocrinologist was great. Seriously, he was fantastic. I did a lot of research before I picked him, and I'm glad of it. First of all, he spent over an hour in the office with me. Second of all, he was incredibly thorough, made sure to explain all of my options to me, and answered all of my questions. He also kept asking me if I had more questions in a way that implied that he really meant it, as opposed to most doctors who seem to be saying, "Anymorequestions?" in a rushed whisper as they are halfway out the door.

He explained to me that I have a mild case, which I had guessed based on the fact that I had hardly any of the symptoms, and told me that while he would recommend treating it now, since it was a mild case I had the option of just monitoring for the moment and not taking synthetic thyroid hormone. I told him that I wanted to treat and he still went ahead and elaborated on the options, just to make sure I was making an informed decision.

He did an ultrasound of my thyroid, said it's a bit enlarged, and said as well that my current dose of Synthroid is very low and that he'll probably need to raise it. But he wanted to do bloodwork first, so that he could give an informed prescription. The nurse took three whole vials of blood, which absolutely sucked. I have never had that much blood drawn at once for a test. I have given blood before, which took longer, but I don't know what was different--maybe I was expecting it then? Maybe they used a better vein that time? But this time, it was slow, and it hurt.

The doctor also said that the Synthroid takes six weeks to start working, which made me feel better because I haven't seen any effects yet. Speaking of which, we sucked it up and got a new scale, and now I am grumpy because it is five pounds higher than our old scale (using Torsten as my control group since his weight is pretty stable). I had suspected that our old scale was a little low, and now it's been confirmed. But I LIKED it that way.

Anyway, I think I can honestly say that despite the crappy blood drawing process, this was the best experience I have ever had with a doctor. And I am happy about that, because I'll be seeing him regularly. This condition requires treatment for life. With my last doctor, that sounded like a threat. With this one, not so much.

48 comments:

  1. Isn't it an amazing feeling to know you are in good hands? To know the doctor cares about your health and not just your money? To know you are about to get an even better grasp on your own situation? In some ways, it's very liberating - not to be attached to and controlled by mediocre doctors. I am very very happy for you!

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  2. What CAUSES thyroid issues, do they know? Is it just heredity/you have it or you don't kind of thing?

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  3. Tessie--I asked the doctor that and we talked about it for awhile. Basically, nobody really knows, but their best guess is that at some point you develop a virus or something that makes your thyroid more vulnerable to attack by your own immune system. Also, apparently it is much more common in countries with a high amount of iodine in their diets. There was a study in China comparing incidences of hypothyroidism between provinces that ate a lot of seafood (high in iodine) and those that didn't, and there was a drastic difference in the hypothyroidism rate. But they don't know why.

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  4. Yay for good doctors! It can make all the difference.

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  5. Yay for good doctors! It makes all the difference in how you feel about yourself and your condition. Good work on finding him and I really hope that you and this doc make a good team in terms of managing this condition.

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  6. how did you research the docs? like, what did you look at to decide this was the doc you wanted to go to? whenever i try researching various docs, all i get are folks offering doctors' med histories... for a fee.

    i'm glad he's a good one!!

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  7. Alice--I had that problem too. There's one site that has reviews for free, but not that many of them. It happened to have this guy, though, and he had a lot of reviews. And then I asked my cardiologist if she had heard of him, and she had and said that he is supposed to be one of the best. Checking with your current doctor that you like is a good way to learn things about specialists.

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  8. im so happy you found a good doctor! they are so hard to come by :)

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  9. Glad you found a good Dr! Sorry about the heavier scale. That sucks.
    I had to laugh about the 3 vials of blood. When you get pg someday you will be amazed at how much blood they take. It's like 9 vials or something...

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  10. He sounds GREAT. I love finding out that there's a REASON for a long wait to see someone, and that the reason is that they are AWESOME.

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  11. Wonderful! No, I'm not a doctor (yet :o) but I am always so happy when I hear someone representing my field appropriately. I have been doing what I do long enough to see the bad ones... but also the really great ones. Again, glad you found someone you like. And good for you for doing your research and making an informed decision.

    P.S. I used to take a med back in high school that required your blood levels to be checked monthly. I had to have FOUR vials drawn--a month! Yeah, it sucked.

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  12. Having a nice and smart doctor is so important! I am glad you found one!

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  13. I don't know what is is with endos - but they all seem to be AWESOME. I adore my current endo and the endo I had in a grad school I still wish was my grandfather!

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  14. I love finding a good doctor.

    And I bet the blood taking hurt b/c they have to constantly start and stop the flow by pressing those tubes onto the needle. I hate having blood taken but I love to give blood. That is so weird.

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  15. It makes going to the doctor so much easier when you are comfortable with them and like them. I'm glad you found a good one!

    P.S. My birthday is March 27th. What about you? :)

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  16. A good doctor makes all the difference, especially when it's a specialist who you will be dealing with for more serious problems on a regular basis. I'm so glad you found a keeper!

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  17. It's such a relief to know that someone has your best interest at heart and is an awesome physician to boot. Here's to getting everything under control!

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  18. I'm so happy for you! It is so hard to find a good doctor, one that listens and takes more than 5 minutes with you. I went to the doctor the other day and had 7 viles drawn and was like, yes!, less than last time. Giving blood is so much easy than having blood taken.

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  19. Jess, I'm really glad that you found an endo who took the time to talk to you and answer any questions you had. My mom and sister go to the same endo, and have been going for years to treat their thyroids. From my own experiences, finding a doctor who is compassionate and able to talk to you like a person, and not a hundred dollar bill is incredibly wonderful.

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  20. I'm always glad to hear of good doctor experiences because I have had SO many bad ones lately dealing with my GI issues.

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  21. Yay for the awesome doctor! An hour with him? WHOA. I wish all doctors could be like that. The last doctor I saw should've been named Dr. Bitch because she was horrible. I had a bunch of stuff done, so I think I was with her maybe 45mins- but I think that was due to the fact no one was at the clinic that day for appts.

    anyhoo- yay for good doctors!

    but that really sucks about the scale. keep up the good work on WW!!! annnnd I think you should post a weekly fav recipe ;) to keep us all even more inspired!

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  22. There is NOTHING better than good doctors - nothing!

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  23. Jess - I am so relieved to hear that this appointment went well! It is almost exhilarating to have a good medical encounter, isn't it? Is it just because most other encounters are CRAPPY?

    Also - what kind of scale did you buy? My $8 scale isn't quite cutting it. I love that you used Torsten as a "control." You are nothing if not thorough, Jess!

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  24. Oh - and very interesting about the potential link between dietary iodine and hyperthyroidism. Hmmm..

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  25. Finding a doctor that you're SO happy with is like finding The One. Seriously. I'm happy for you. He really does sound great!

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  26. Yay for an awesome doctor and a new scale! Ewwwww ew ew ew ew about the blood. Gah I am freaking out.

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  27. I really thought they were a myth! I'm glad you found a decent one!

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  28. I'm so glad that your dr is good- i hate crappy doctors. In fact, that's a big part of why I never go. I don't know if i've ever had a good doctor.

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  29. I'm glad you found a great doctor - it does make all the difference.

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  30. Glad you found a good doctor. And that you're getting treatment. It's such an easy thing to treat, but if left untreated can cause all kinds of problems. My father almost died from effects of hyperthyroidism.

    Tessie - It DOES run in families. My grandmother, aunt and father all had (have) thyroid problems. I get tested occasionally when I get any weird symptoms that could be due to that.

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  31. Glad for the positive news :) I love it when I find a doctor that really seems like he cares.

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  32. Glad you were able to find a good one - Doctors generally scare the bejesus out of me, so I avoid them. Good plan, right?

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  33. That really is a tremendous relief.
    I don't even know how to research a good doctor!!

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  34. Congratulations on finding a great doctor. Its encouraging to know there are a few left out there. Good luck with the treatment as well. Comfort level with the doc helps immensely!

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  35. THe blood drawing is the WORST. I hate it with a vengenge - there's nothing worse than seeing something that should be inside your body on the outside.

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  36. one of the things i'm not looking forward to if i ever move (that should be *when* i move - someday) is finding another doctor. i absolutely love mine and seriously consider coming home for my annual and finding a good emergency med type place for those times that i get truly sick.

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  37. It feels so good when you find a good doctor. I have a doctor I've been going to for like 12 years, he is the greatest! No matter what health insurance I have and whether he takes it or not, I will never leave him. Good Doctors are hard to find, so I'm glad you got a good one!

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  38. Yay; so glad that went well for you.

    They drew three vials of blood at my last doctor's appointment, too. I just looked away the whole time, but still--not fun. :-(

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  39. It's a treat to find a doctor you really like so congrats on that....not so much on your new scale.

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  40. so glad you were able to find a good doctor. i hate the rushed feeling i get when i got to my gynocologist. i have a feeling she just passes out birth control like candy.

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  41. I'm glad that your trip to the doctor wasn't a totally awful experience.

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  42. i'm glad you found a good doctor. i have a condition that requires me to regularly see a doctor for the rest of my life, so i know how important it is. you don't want someone taking care of you who rushes through your appointment.

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  43. Thank goodness for good doctor visits. It's reassuring to know that some doctors actually CARE about their patients.

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  44. My old scales were almost 7 pounds out. Can you spell disappointed!

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  45. If my scale ever broke I'd probably find that it's 10 lbs off. Ha!

    I'm so glad you had a good appointment.

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  46. I'm so glad you had a good experience... a great doctor makes all the difference. Oddly enough, I have had pretty good experiences in NYC, even though the doctors are pretty busy. I love it when your doc will sit and chat with you for as long as you need.

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