Are You Serious About Your Healthcare?

So you have a medical concern that you want to have checked out. You go to your doctor, you voice your concerns and complaints about how you are feeling, and request "something" be done.

Your doctor takes the time to set up tests and more appointments. You thank him and leave, having every intention to go to your upcoming appointments.  After all, you are anxious to find out what is going on that makes you feel bad.

Your appointment rolls around, but.....something has come up. Maybe it's something to do with work, maybe you didn't find a babysitter for your kids, or possibly, you just decide you don't want to go. Sometimes, you can feel really bad for a while and you are dying to find out why. At the time, you'd go to any test or appointment made. But if things suddenly let up at all and you get to feeling a little better, suddenly you think you "are" better and cancel your appointment with the specialist - your tests, or your follow-ups with your primary physician. Whatever was scheduled for you, you suddenly don't think you need anymore, or you don't "want" anymore, and you cancel.

Bad idea!  Here's why.......

1. Medical issues are funny - Not funny, "ha-ha," but funny, "Strange." They can flare-up for a while, subside, then flare-up again. You can have strange symptoms that are persistent for a while, then as mysteriously as they came-on, they subside. And they can return, and when they do....they may be worse than when they originally started.
2. Wait-time to be seen is prolonged - If you postpone your appointment, you may have to wait longer to be seen or have your test re-scheduled. If you suddenly wanted to re-schedule, you may not be able to get in for a while due to booking issues. This can cause problems with your health, as well as put pressure on your doctor's office to fit you in where there isn't room.
3. Doctor doesn't take you seriously - If you cancel or re-schedule appointments often or even every now and then, your doctor and doctor's office will begin to not take you seriously. They will think that your problem obviously isn't too serious, if you cancel appointments; after all, if it were, you would keep your appointments and be there - with bells on!

When you see your doctor, if you are scheduled for a follow-up or a test, you need to do your absolute best to keep the appointment. If you need to go home and look at your schedule first, before you set up the next appointment, let them know, but be sure to give them a call as soon as possible.

If there is by chance a conflict in scheduling, with your next appointment, whether it be for a test, or to see your doctor again, let them know right away and set up another time that you are sure you can keep.

If you have had an unforeseen issue pop-up that you just cannot avoid - your child gets sick, your car breaks down, something that you really cannot help and need another appointment time, call as soon as you can and re-schedule it for as soon as you can.

The more diligent you are about keeping appointments, it lets your doctor and his staff know that you are serious about your health. You are telling your doctor and staff that you really want to get better and you care - not only about your health, but about his time. You care that he has blocked off a time slot for you and want to make sure you get in, to fill that slot.

Some doctor's offices, today, will give you one freebie to miss an appointment, and then they will charge you about $25.00 (or more) for missing and not cancelling in a specific amount of time.

The more serious you are about your problem and your health, the more apt you are to keep appointments. You want to build a good relationship with your doctor, and by keeping appointments and following his recommendations, you are saying you are serious and you care - about you....and about him!

My Interview - Greensboro Glimpses

Hi all!

I wanted to post a link to an interview I did a while back.  It was for a local TV show called, "Greensboro Glimpses."  It was my first TV interview; ever, and although the interview-itself went pretty well, I can see how I didn't feel well that day.  I'm very critical of myself anymore, and I notice things, like the color being off in my cheeks and skin.  I see how my right eyelid was drooping significantly that day, and was glad that I was sitting so that my right eye was furthest from the camera during the interview. You only saw it every now and then, but to me, it was still very noticeable.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QO0PWFO9ZlU

Well, I just wanted to share. There was a second interview with them that may have been a bit better - I've yet to watch it.  Once I locate it, I will post it, too. 

I hope all of you are doing well; feeling well, and feeling happy.  If ever any of you have any questions or comments for me, please feel free to contact me.

Remember, what you are feeling isn't "All in Your Head." And you are not alone!

http://www.amazon.com/Its-Your-Head-Maria-McCutchen/dp/1613460716/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1364215875&sr=1-1&keywords=it%27s+all+in+your+head+maria+mccutchen

It's All in Your Head, by Maria McCutchen

"It's all in Your Head."  Has a doctor ever told you or made you feel your problems were "all in your head," when you knew it was much more than just a mental problem.....it was a real physical, medical problem?

Read my story, "It's all in Your Head," and see just how serious my problems were, that doctors tried to blow off!

One of Those Weeks!

It was going to be one of those weeks.  I knew it from the moment my computer got a bad virus and I couldn't find my computer people to help me. They were out of town. I had to take it to Staples which charges a lot more to remove a virus, but with little choice, there went a lot of money I didn't really have.

The next morning I had to drive across town to have State Farm look at some damage on my vehicle, from being in a fender bender the month before. After leaving State Farm, I was headed down the freeway - home, when I noticed my car was no longer running. It had just shut off and I had no power. I could hardly move the steering wheel, and my brakes were hard to push. But I made it over to the side of the highway. It was then, as I started digging around my purse, that I realized my cell phone was at home, on the counter, charging.

I had my standard poodle, Murphy with me, so there was no walking to the exit, which was really too far for me to walk to anyways. So I got out and put my hood up to signify that I was having trouble, but still; car after car, truck after truck, whizzed by me without stopping. That was hard enough to watch, but when a police car went by and didn't stop, that really hurt!  I was shocked! Disappointed and shocked.

Over an hour I sat there before finally, a pick-up truck pulled over.  I was nervous, but knew I needed help and an older, scruffy looking man got out and came to my window to check on me. I cracked my window to talk to him. He sensed my nervousness and explained that that was his job, to drive up and down the highway looking for motorists he could help, that were in trouble.  I felt better and rolled my window the rest of the way down. 

He tooled around under my hood, added some gas to my tank (just in case), but it wouldn't crank. I used his phone to call AAA, and was told it would be about 45 min. So there Murphy and I sat, for not just 45 more minutes, but over an hour. AAA finally came and hoisted my van up on their truck bed, and off to the garage we went. My fuel pump had gone, I was told. It would be $900.00 to fix it, plus the cost of a rental. Feeling defeated, and with no other option, I told them to go ahead and fix it.

It was a long day that day and I couldn't help but wonder what was in store next. I had always heard these types of things come in three's, and so, I was going to keep my eyes peeled for number 3 of my bad luck streak! And then, there it was - the day after I got my car back, that very next morning, my "number three" came.

It was dark outside. I had woken up early and decided to get a little writing done, but needed to let Murphy out and put the garbage out on the back deck. Everything looked normal, and without thinking about it, I stepped out onto the deck to set the bag there. Without warning, my right foot started sliding out in front of me and suddenly I was down. I was on the ground with the appearance that I was trying to do the splits. My knee hurt, my toe was killing me, and I could hardly get up.

I knew within minutes of getting inside that I'd broken my big toe on my right foot. I've broken enough toes over the years, that it's an all-too-familiar pain, and if that wasn't enough to tell me, then the foot and toe bruising-up, and swelling to the point where I couldn't put on a shoe, was.

I have been in pain for a couple weeks now, though it's lessening, but it still hurts. Especially if I try to wear certain shoes. But most of all, my faith took a bruising. I kept finding myself asking, "Why?" "Why me?" And when I'd think about it long enough, I would find the answer - "Why not me?" Just because I've been through all I've been through in my lifetime, doesn't mean I'm exempt from having "life" happen to, and around me. I am just as susceptible to having bad things happen to me as anyone. And they sure did that week.

It took many days to get past that week and actually, I'm still trying to get past that week. I still don't feel up to par after the exhausting week I had. That's how it is, too, when stressful things happen to me, it can take a very long time to recoup from them. I don't bounce back as quickly as I used to.

Well, I did survive my week of horror, and I can't help but think that I am glad the saying goes, that things like that tend to come in 3's, and not 4's, because I'm not so sure I could have handled another crisis! I was barely able to handle the 3 things that did happen that week- as it is!