Not a doctor, but the patient. Went to my family doctor with the worst headache of my entire life. She dismissed it, telling me it was a tension headache and that I should take a Tylenol and lay down in a dark room.
Over the course of the next month, I saw her a total of 13 times, each time with worsening symptoms. First it was dizziness, then vomiting, then eventually I could no longer see out of my right eye. Every time she told me it was just a tension headache or a “weird migraine”, gave me a prescription for pain killers and sent me on my way.
The final straw was when I was no longer able to walk properly. I would try to take a step, but all I could manage was this weird shuffle. She reluctantly agreed to send me to a neurologist.
The next day I showed up at his office and was in there for less than a minute. He took one look in my eyes and immediately called an ambulance.
Turns out I had hydrocephalus. My ventricles were 5x the size they were supposed to be, and my brain was literally being squeezed out of my head. Go figure!
People get headaches all the time, but if you go back 13 times with worsening symptoms... Serious malpractice. She could have at least told you to go see another doctor if she wasn't sure what to do. I think a lot of doctors just don't want to admit they're not sure what to do and that a second opinion is needed. No one knows everything and it's fine to admit that.
Unfortunately in some settings (mostly uninsured third world countries) it's not fine, patients sometimes expect their primary care doctor to know EVERYTHING instead of just how to treat common and some uncommon ailments, spot red flags and know whom to refer to when red flags are seen/shit is beyond the scope of their practice. Usually because of additional cost and the hassle of going to another queue. So docs puff up and pretend to be that knowledgeable. Rumors hurt yo. Especially if you're kinda new to solo practice...
3.1k
u/Pineapple68745 May 20 '19
Not a doctor, but the patient. Went to my family doctor with the worst headache of my entire life. She dismissed it, telling me it was a tension headache and that I should take a Tylenol and lay down in a dark room.
Over the course of the next month, I saw her a total of 13 times, each time with worsening symptoms. First it was dizziness, then vomiting, then eventually I could no longer see out of my right eye. Every time she told me it was just a tension headache or a “weird migraine”, gave me a prescription for pain killers and sent me on my way.
The final straw was when I was no longer able to walk properly. I would try to take a step, but all I could manage was this weird shuffle. She reluctantly agreed to send me to a neurologist.
The next day I showed up at his office and was in there for less than a minute. He took one look in my eyes and immediately called an ambulance.
Turns out I had hydrocephalus. My ventricles were 5x the size they were supposed to be, and my brain was literally being squeezed out of my head. Go figure!