Re: Advice please! How to be assertive with doctor? (Long, sorry!)
From: Beth (anonymous@obgyn.net)
Wed, 28 Nov 2001 16:40:26 -0600 (CST)
Educate yourself on the pros and cons of each med you would like and the
meds you don't. Knowledge is empowering. Knowing that you can walk in
there and intelligently discuss the possibilities is a BIG deal.
Be firm. You don't have to be pushy. Simply tell the doctor that 'no,
I'm not interested in taking that because...'. Let them know exactly
what you want and why you think it will work better for you.
I've made it a 'rule' to never agree to a med until I've researched it.
I listen to why they want me to try it and then let them know I'd like
to research it before agreeing to it. My Endo just hands me a slip of
paper now and says that he knows I'll want to go home and look it up on
the internet LOL.
Unless you're asking for something off the wall I doubt the doctor will
have a problem with this.
Good luck!
At Wed, 28 Nov 2001, Chris wrote:
>
>Hi-
>
>I finally have a follow up appointment with my new endocrinologist. She
>drew blood the last time, and my results were normal except for high
>DHEAS (400), low estradiol (30), and a funky LH:FSH ratio (2:1). So
>anyway, here's my question...when you know what drugs may help you,
>*how* do you ask the doctor for them without seeming pushy? I have
>really made great strides in the last few months with getting more
>assertive, but I still have a problem with requesting drugs. For
>example, when I left the lst appointment, she gave me a sample of
>Estrostep bcp. I asked, "Wouldn't a monophasic pill be better?" And she
>said no, she's had good luck with this pill. So what could I say? Well,
>I got home and went into one of my research frenzies (!) and found that
>Estrostep has one of the highest androgen contents of all the bcps.
>(Acne is my main complaint of PCOS.) So I didn't take it. What I think
>I need is a higher estrogen, lower progestin and androgen monophasic
>pill for birth control (like Ovcon or Orthocyclen) and possibly a little
>extra estrogen, (like Alora or Vivelle but NOT Premarin) to help my
>fatigue and memory loss. I have read several articles that indicate
>that Premarin is the most widely prescribed estrogen, but contains no
>17-beta estradiol, which is our natural estrogen, and therefore many
>women do better with actual 17-beta estradiol given transdermally. But
>I can just see it now, she'll say, "Let's get you on a low dose of
>Premarin and keep taking the Estrostep." So, do I lie and say I spotted
>on the Estrostep (which I never took) and I'd like to try Ovcon? Do I
>say my mom had bad results with Premarin (another lie, my mom never took
>it) and I'd like to try a 17-beta estradiol? I hate to lie, but I also
>hate to be pushy and act like I know more than she does. How do I
>assert myself without sounding like a know-it-all? Help!!!!
>
>Thanks so much for your time-
>Chris
--
Stay safe and feel free to email me anytime,
Beth
Rockport, MA
![[ PCOS Discussion Forums ]](../../images/pcos_at_obgyn.gif)