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Arggh!!!!!!!! Vent/rant time!

The last couple doctor's visits I've had have sucked. Basically, they've told me I'll die if I don't lose weight (apparently they dont realize I'll die if I do lose weight). A couple of them have been so harsh, I cried afterwards.

I have a doctor's appointment coming up in the next week or so. It's with a specialist who deals in glandular disorders mostly. I have a disorder/disease (not sure what the official title is) called Poly-cystic Ovarian Syndrome. Basically, it means I have blister-like things on my overies. It doesn't sound bad, until you read all the problems it causes. It screws with your hormones, spiking testosterone and blocking estrogen. It screws with your immune system, so that you never really feel "good". It also messes with your insulin, which can promote weight gain and diabetes.

The last time I went to this doctor to find out what I could do, he basically said I'd have to diet drastically, work out strenuously, take pills rigorously, and then he could help me more.

I said I wasn't ready to take all that on at once, so he basically looked at me like I was an idiot and had me watch a 60 minutes/Dateline/whatever special about all these people who lost a ton of weight.

So, now I gotta go back and se him again, and he'll tell me all the same stuff, and make me feel worse (since I'm pretty sure I've gained weight since then), and generally be a pain in the a**.

Anyways... All these doctor's act as if I don't know I'm fat. I've been fat for years. I live with it everday of my life. I'm coming more to terms with it recently, but having in shoved in my face by "experts" is challenging.

So, who else hates doctors? Or doctor visits? Or the "health" feild in general?

I detest going to the doctor. Last time I had a check-up was freshman year of high school. That was almost 8 years ago. I hated that every time I went, they told me I was fat. No s**t, Sherlock.

That being said, it is their job to let you know that you are unhealthy. Most of them just aren't tactful about it. Also, most of them have never been fat, so they lack empathy in that department.

Regarding the PCOS, it may actually be necessary for you to lose weight before your doctor (an endocrinologist, I hope) can actually help you. At this point, it may be difficult for him to determine which of the symptoms are being caused by the PCOS, and which are related to weight (especially if you are considerably overweight). For example, the diabetes risk could be attributed to either weight or PCOS, and there really isn't a way to tell which unless you eliminate one of the possible causes. And, in this case, weight is the easiest to get rid of. Also, while the weight may not cause the symptoms, in may cases it exacerbates them.

And if you aren't ready to take on dieting and exercise to help yourself feel better, well, that's your decision. Yeah, it's inconvenient, time-consuming, and will probably be made substantially more difficult by the PCOS. But, maybe if you show him you're willing to make an effort, he'll make more of an effort as well.

Man, I haven't been in the guild for weeks, but I peeked in and thought I'd respond.

First off, what do you mean by you'll die if you do lose weight? I assume you mean everyone dies eventually, but I'm sure your doctor is wanting to make sure that eventually comes later than it might if you don't listen to him. So your problem with him is that he wants to help you live a longer, more pleasant life...

I don't get the feeling he's trying to be mean, but do you realize how frustraiting it is to be able to help somebody and for them to not want to take the help? Especially when you're a professional, and it's your JOB to do it. He went to school how many years? If you're giving him the impression you think you know better than him, of course he's going to be frustraited. And to see somebody refusing to help themselves--personally that's a pet peeve of mine, if I was in his place I could see myself giving you looks, too. Not to mention, how frustraiting is it for him to see you wasting both of your time, and it's his job to continue to try to help you, even if you won't help him do his job... I find it's very rare a doctor would flat out tell a patient to stop coming, but if you won't help him do his job... he's really stuck. What's the point in going to him if you aren't going to listen to him?

You say you're willing to make an effort, but you can't pick and choose how much effort you can put in if you want to be well... you have to put in the effort it takes to get you that way. Have you tried telling your doctor how an hour or two a day would be hard for you to manage, and if you couldn't work up to it? Explain to him about college--however, he could likely give you any excuses you needed for class and I know at my school they had programs to assist students with needs, so if you have to miss classes regularly somebody can give you notes... or if you need help studying, look into that at your college... What's the point of going to college if you're going to spend all that money only not to get the most use out of it by living the longest, happiest life possible for you?

I've been fat all my life, but I like to think if a doctor asked me to lose weight and was offering me ways to do it I'd take the chance--especially if it was to guard my health.

Of course, this might come from me never being able to go to the doctor... I envy anybody who can, and I hate to see them waste the opportunities open to them.

ditto... starving student here (okay maybe not literally)... I have no health insurance and I cant afford to live if I get insurance offered through my work.

I only had one instance in which the doctor told me to lose weight and I thought he was completely idiotic, but thats a different can of worms.

My advice to you is ask your doctor if there is a less time consuming way to lose the weight. As a student I can completely understand where you are coming from. (There are hundreds of other thing I would rather be doing.) The fact that it is a specialist telling you that you need to lose the weight is a little more plausible than some hometown doctor saying you're fat lose weight.

Oh and that whole he's an a** thing, that because he is a specialist, it has nothing to do with you

I hate doctor visits too. I had this one fat indian lady once who was telling me the importance of losing weight. Believe it or not, it wasn't exactly effective for some self-righteous, also overweight, b***h to tell me to lose weight. So I got a new doctor. xd

If it's so bad, have a parent speak up for you, rather than just get mad at him for doing his job.

I used to have panic attacks all the time, and I would sit there and do nothing all day because I would want to cry and vomit everytime I thought of going to class or to work... but I worked through it without a therapist or a doctor. It isn't fun, but I wanted to live the best life I could so I sucked it up and did it. I still have them occassionally, but they're smaller and I talk my way through them instead of letting them control me.

That probably doesn't make you feel better, but it is possible to get better and not have panic attacks, and to get what you need to do done.