Sunday, April 13, 2008
So, now that the shock of being diagnosed with an auto-immune disease has worn off, I am closely looking at my healthcare situation and analysing my options. When I was refered to a Rheumatologist my presenting symptoms were burning joint pain, stiffness, and exhaustion. Lab results were positive for RF, ANA, and another auto-immune antibody.
My Rheumatologist is only interested in my joint movement and inflammation. Not the burning pain I still live with. He is only treating the disease, not helping me manage a better quality of life. I'm confident it's time to go on a waiting list for another Dr, one that will accept responsibility for all the effects this disease has on me - NOT just inflammation.
Does that mean that your inflammation is controlled now? A lot of problems come from that, so that once your inflammation is controlled, the burning pain will also decrease or maybe even go away. That said, I'm a big fan of interviewing a few doctors to see where you have the best "click" - you're going to be with them for a long time and need to be able to have an effective relationship. Have you spoken to your doctor about the aspects you feel are being forgotten in the process? Sometimes discussing the issues can change a bad start to a good relationship.