Gastro Doctor problem....

[HorseLover!!]

Okay so I haven't posted for a while as I have been busy with my horse and sorting things out so here goes....

I went to see my gastro doctor today and as usual I came out fuming :mad2: He doesn't listen to a word I'm saying, I go in and tell him that I've been having problems and it just goes in one ear and out the other I've been having joint pain(worse than normal) stomach pain, cramps and spasms(mainly right hand side) dizziness, nausea, blood in stool, poor appetite, weight loss, chest pain, night sweats, fever, extreme fatigue (even if I sleep/ take a nap it won't go away ) etc... you name it and all he can say is "your young so there is no point" no point in what I don't know :/ so now I have to go back to my GP to see what they can do .

The only thing that came out off today is because I keep getting palpitations, pain in my chest (happening more often) and weird heart rate he's going to get my GP back on board to see what they can do about that which will be send me to a cardiologist :shifty-t: :yfrown: Anyone have any advice about this??.

Put it this way Crohn's sucks especially if your own doctor won't listen to you .

Any advice appreciated Thank HorseLover!!

 

[norky90]

Am finding this to be the case everytime I go its as if no matter what I say they dont seem to listen. What makes it worse is I went the other day told them how bad I am [sound a lot like you] I then get a copy of the letter they sent my GP saying I seem to have slight join pain. Slight more like killing me

 

[24601]

If you have a GI who doesn't pay attention to your symptoms then you need a new doctor.

I know it's easier said than done to change doctors but it's so important to have a doctor who listens and who is actively trying to get you into remission and keep you there so it really is worth the effort.

 

[aideen33]

My sympathies. I just changed doctors for much the same reason. She wouldnt listen and kept refusing to see how bad it was getting for me. In with a new doc now thankfully that seems to be more on board listening to me

 

[samman]

Are you taking prednisone? If you are I had almost every Dr. Besides cardiologist tell me prednisone doesn't cause palpitations,arrythmia. I had the benign palpitations. As the tapering of prednisone went on palpitations got better and nowbgone at 5mg. I also had tachycardia or fast heart rate before I was treated for a flare that went away after treatment. I must of been in such bad shape that my heart was like 120 constantly even when asleep and up to 140. My gastro thought it was not related to Crohn's. After treatment of Crohn's with prednisone my palps started tachycardia started fading. When my healing came and prednisone tapered both felt better. You must be in a flare. I have very little gastro issues besides pain when it got real bad. I got heart issues to slowly worsen as flare got worse. gastro thought I was lieing about number of bowel movements because my colonoscopy showed really bad inflammation. So everyone is different. If you insist politely and make a logical statement he should listen. You should write what treatment you are on when posting or whether you are not being treated.

 

[UnXmas]

What have recent test results shown? Often doctors go by test results, not by how we're feeling, but we can feel a lot worse than tests seem to indicate. If that's the reason your doctor doesn't seem concerned, one good thing would be that if something major was going on, tests would probably have shown some indication. But obviously that doesn't help you feel better physically.

Do you have a good GP? A good GP may be able to prescribe you some things to help your symptoms, or write to your gastro on your behalf and explain you need more help with symptom management.

Is it already confirmed that you've been referred to a cardiologist? Don't be too scared by heart palpitations; I know anything wrong with the heart sounds like a worry, but they can be harmless, so don't worry prematurely. Your GP can do a basic EKG/ECG, I've had nurses do them too so you may not need a cardiologist for that. I've also had an echocardiogram, which did require going to hospital for. But my results are always absolutely fine except that I have a fast heartbeat due to a medication I take. I've had palpitations for years but so far they've not proven to be anything dangerous.

Also maybe a new gastro doctor is needed.

 

[HorseLover!!]

Are you taking prednisone? If you are I had almost every Dr. Besides cardiologist tell me prednisone doesn't cause palpitations,arrythmia. I had the benign palpitations. As the tapering of prednisone went on palpitations got better and nowbgone at 5mg. I also had tachycardia or fast heart rate before I was treated for a flare that went away after treatment. I must of been in such bad shape that my heart was like 120 constantly even when asleep and up to 140. My gastro thought it was not related to Crohn's. After treatment of Crohn's with prednisone my palps started tachycardia started fading. When my healing came and prednisone tapered both felt better. You must be in a flare. I have very little gastro issues besides pain when it got real bad. I got heart issues to slowly worsen as flare got worse. gastro thought I was lieing about number of bowel movements because my colonoscopy showed really bad inflammation. So everyone is different. If you insist politely and make a logical statement he should listen. You should write what treatment you are on when posting or whether you are not being treated.

I'm not currently taking Prednisone I did previously but not at the moment.

 

[HorseLover!!]

If you have a GI who doesn't pay attention to your symptoms then you need a new doctor.

I know it's easier said than done to change doctors but it's so important to have a doctor who listens and who is actively trying to get you into remission and keep you there so it really is worth the effort.

Definitely easier said than done, I've tried before to change doctors but it seem nothing was done about it so now I have to try again.

 

[HorseLover!!]

What have recent test results shown? Often doctors go by test results, not by how we're feeling, but we can feel a lot worse than tests seem to indicate. If that's the reason your doctor doesn't seem concerned, one good thing would be that if something major was going on, tests would probably have shown some indication. But obviously that doesn't help you feel better physically.

Do you have a good GP? A good GP may be able to prescribe you some things to help your symptoms, or write to your gastro on your behalf and explain you need more help with symptom management.

Is it already confirmed that you've been referred to a cardiologist? Don't be too scared by heart palpitations; I know anything wrong with the heart sounds like a worry, but they can be harmless, so don't worry prematurely. Your GP can do a basic EKG/ECG, I've had nurses do them too so you may not need a cardiologist for that. I've also had an echocardiogram, which did require going to hospital for. But my results are always absolutely fine except that I have a fast heartbeat due to a medication I take. I've had palpitations for years but so far they've not proven to be anything dangerous.

Also maybe a new gastro doctor is needed.

I awaiting blood test results so not sure what they will show but at the moment I'm past caring

My GP isn't very good but I'm in the process of changing that so hopefully it won't be a problem unlike before when my other GP was just useless . it's pretty much everyday when I have chest pain and funny heart palpitations which I told him that's the only thing he's actually sorting out the rest of it is just like he doesn't care, so I now have that attitude where I'm past caring until I can find a better gastro doctor :yfrown:

 

[samman]

Cardiologist told me palpitations never killed anyone. There are some palpitations however that result from other problems. What I mean is there are benign palpitations that a lot of people have from medicine, anxiety, etc. Mine was a premature beat when on prednisone. It could of been a coincidence but after I stopped the palpitations went away. A large number of people get it for life and its something you get used to. I would go to a cardiologist and let them check its not from anything else.

You should care about your health and I understand that Doctors can be annoying because they think everything is psychological nowadays. Just repeat things and tell them its not in your head if you feel that is what they think. I think Drs. should not be taught psychology in med school or they should be trained better. I was misdiagnosed twice because my GP thought I was a whiner. I kept complaining though and in the end we found two different probems a disc in my back and my crohns disease. I told her at one point have not gone to the Dr for 35 years why would I be complaining now. Although some issues and behaviors are psychological Drs hurt more people than not with "hypochondriac" analysis. I was diagnosed with crohns two months later than I should of with a very bad flare because my GP thought she would bring out her psycho textbook instead of her GI textbook. After she realized I had IBD she was like ohhh, ooops. Doctors are gassed up because if they weren't they would not do their job. Its very painstaking to study and practice and frankly for today they don't get paid enough after their student debts. They just want people out of the office because it is more of a business (at least in the US). Repeated complaints with logical statements and proof vs emotional talk works. Saying things like "my heart feels like I'm skipping beats" doesn't work as well as "my heartbeat is skipping every 5 beats or every minute. Is this from the prednisone or from my stress/anxiety about you not listening to me lol".

 

[HorseLover!!]

Thanks samman that has pretty much summed it all up for me, I do keep telling my doctor over and over again that it's not in my head but as usual he's not listening, so I think it's time for a different doctor that's if I can change to a different one and I agree that they shouldn't be taught psychology in medical school.

 

[Robrich]

You have Crohns with classic symptoms. You are already on aza. Your best options at this point seem to be prednisone- cheap -and should be easy to get.
But really you should be on a biologic either Remicade or Humira along with aza.
There aren't many other choices unless you go LDN or some other natural treatment.
Ask them to do the fecal cal protectin test. If it shows active IBD how can they refuse you?

There must be some kind of higher authority you can appeal to. Sorry not familiar with UK health system.
Go ahead and do the cardio check up. Doesn't hurt and shows you are trying to be compliant.

 

[24601]

Robrich, I think the problem here is with this particular doctor and not the healthcare system.

As you say these symptoms do sound like a Crohn's flare. But prednisone is not your only choice of fast-acting treatment to reduce inflammation. Exclusive enteral nutrition is another choice that is readily available. There should also be no problem adding infliximab or adalimumab within NHS treatment guidelines if treatment with azathioprine and/or 6mp has failed.

But I do think the biggest obstacle here is the attitude of this particular doctor. Within the NHS you can request a second opinion from another doctor of your choice and at a hospital of your choice or transfer your care to another doctor or hospital of your choice.

As in every healthcare system sometimes things can get held up or some aspect of the bureaucracy fails but changing doctors is not in any way precluded and usually is fairly straightforward for most people. Good luck with that HorseLover!! Let us know how you go!