<p>I must admit I don’t understand people who choose to grin and bear it, when they could be helped by medical treatment. But to each his own. </p>
<p>Most of my doctors are male - even my gyno - and I haven’t had any who have talked down to me. I was, however, disappointed with the first Uro I saw when trying to get a diagnosis for what turned out to be chronic condition. I think it was because of being male and old as most urologists who recognize my condition and are experts in diagnosing and treating are young and female. My uro now is in that category. She is, however, quite blunt and not touchy freely at all. And I’ve been told her demeanor is nicer than the other female Urogyno in the practice! Both great doctors though. </p>
<p>I am extremely pleased with my doctor as her treatment plan for me has been 100% spot on. </p>
<p>After being told (IRL - anonymous boards aren’t always) that I really ought to update rather than leaving this as I did letting it naturally scroll down…</p>
<p>Yes, I did make a neurologist appt for later this month. It even happened that it’s with a female neurologist who works in the same office as one of the recommended neurologists (but admittedly, that was chance).</p>
<p>Technically, it’s still part of the “Quit b____g and deal with it,” it’s just the part that happens after one quits throwing a tantrum because life isn’t working out the way one would like. (Perhaps I’m the only one who still gets frustrated at times?)</p>
<p>And the newest youngster on our farm is still doing well. It’ll be another week or two before we know for sure that nature handled everything just fine though.</p>
<p>"If it’s any of these more serious things, why the variability? Why bad enough to get me reconsidering my life thought/values/way of living (or whatever) on one day "</p>
<p>Why not variability? Why would you think that a health condition must always be at level 8 on a scale of 1 to 10? Anyway, that’s rationalization on your part. </p>
<p>And not seeing a doctor when warranted isn’t a “value.” You’ve ascribed a moral stance into an idiosyncratic, unwise habit. You can change that. You don’t have to be stuck in this “well, I’ve only seen a doctor x times in my life.” So what? Most of us don’t go routinely seeing specialists either – unless or until they are needed. </p>
<p>Good luck to you, and perhaps you can reflect on how your stubbornness serves you no good. </p>
<p>Even the doctors among us can’t diagnose you on an Internet forum. They can take some educated guesses but they are also emphatically telling you to get to a real-life doctor. </p>
<p>You should be prepared for the possibility that this won’t be a one-and-done. Seeing the neuro is the first step, but diagnosing and treating this may be a process, involving several doctors.</p>
<p>OP, as I understand it, Health Shares doesn’t pay for preventive care or routine care or screenings like mammogram. But it would pay for, say, surgery if it were needed for this current problem. Would it pay for office visits to specialists? What about MRIs or other tests to diagnose the problem? </p>
<p>Creekland, I’m glad that you have an appointment with a neurologist. This is definitely the place to start, to find out whether there is something going on that can be diagnosed and treated. I also think that a hand specialist would be a good idea. You may find that there is no diagnosis, though. </p>
<p>I have a few things to suggest that I’ve found helpful with various issues. The first one is fish oil. It is supposed to reduce inflammation, and I find that it completely gets rid of my osteoarthritis. This was diagnosed before I was pregnant with my now-15-yo. I used to wake up every morning with pain and stiffness in my lower back and hips. Now I don’t have these symptoms and I have excellent range of motion in my hips. I used to do ballet in my younger days and I can still get my leg up very high. I take this brand:</p>
<p>I had a frozen shoulder for 10 months before I went to a doctor (a hand surgeon/specialist). I was afraid that surgery would be recommended so I delayed, hoping it would go away on its own. I couldn’t raise my arm any higher than my shoulder. The doctor recommended PT, and he recommended a particular person. I went to this person and the frozen shoulder resolved quickly. I was sorry I’d waited. The PT clearly knew exactly what he was doing.</p>
<p>I echo ek’s suggestion about massage. I once went to a massage therapist and, when she asked me what issues I had, mentioned a problem in my hip. I told her that I was sure the problem was in my joint and she would not be able to address it. She said that she would see. The problem was a severe motion restriction. When I sat cross-legged, one knee would be really high. The MT pushed on a few places in my hip and my groin and, when the massage was over, told me to try sitting cross-legged. My knee went down to its normal position. She said that I’d had trigger points that she released. It was like magic.</p>
<p>I have also found two kinds of bodywork very helpful. One is body rolling:</p>
<p>The question was never about seeing one when it is warranted. It was always “is this warranted?” I know many in my IRL circles who have variable issues that truly aren’t solved with doctor visits, but are helped with other types of interaction. It appears to be almost a staple of getting older.</p>
<p>If one is in an accident and breaks a bone, there’s an obvious conclusion.</p>
<p>With this - even on this board - and definitely more IRL - the conclusion isn’t so obvious. And then, if the conclusion did come to “see a doctor,” I truly didn’t know “who” (as in which type). That might be obvious to many, but again, it wasn’t overall - and isn’t totally on here either.</p>
<p>One could say I should have just gone to the one referred to me by my radiation doc (who told me it was out of his field). The person he referred me to works with ALS and MD. I looked at those and it doesn’t really match what I’m feeling (thankfully), so the suggestion didn’t seem “right.”</p>
<p>The one I ended up choosing was with the other suggestion - from an IRL friend who has a relative working in a major hospital in a city nearby (more or less nearby). Her person came with the “he’s good at figuring all sorts of things out accurately.” It sounded like a better match, but remember, at the same time (or before) hearing this, I was getting as much conflicting info from many different (knowledgeable - sort of) people and THEN add in that it’s variable (or parts are) - making me wonder if there even IS an issue or if it’s all in my mind or stress or somehow connected to the known brain tumor - ESP after the recent brain MRI came back with nothing. Without back pain, it did not occur to me the issue could be there.</p>
<p>I can’t speak for all of them as I only know the current situation of the one we belong to. Ours does pay for diagnosis stuff. It paid for diagnosing my son’s epilepsy including the ambulance ride to the ER, my brain tumor, and a time when my H woke up in our horse pasture having no idea why he was there. That last one showed nothing wrong, but they didn’t quibble about the bills for it. They even paid for my initial eye exam - something I fully expected to pay for ourselves since vision isn’t covered - but they said since the visit was used to diagnose a medical problem (not vision problem) it was covered.</p>
<p>I have no issues or regrets at all about choosing healthshare over insurance. It’s saved us a ton of money (over 25K with just the brain tumor) and been nice to deal with, plus it’s a superb perk that I can choose any doctor or hospital I choose. </p>
<p>BUT, these programs aren’t for everyone - esp if there are pre-existing conditions or for those who aren’t active church going Christians. They also don’t likely work out as good financially if one needs expensive prescription drugs. Beyond that, if anyone reading were interested they can do some research or send a pm.</p>
<p>@NYMomof2 (and a couple who have pm’d) - many thanks for the suggestions. Should the neurologist (or whoever) end up coming up with nothing “fixable,” I’m definitely heading the anti-inflammatory route. Ibuprofen works really well at pulling a 10 down to a 2 (just rating this stuff - though does nothing about the numbness), but since it’s kind of severe when taken regularly, I would plan on trying other things to see if there’s something “better” out there.</p>
<p>Check out anti inflam diets and low histamine diets. With me my head numbness can many times be traced back to neck position while sleeping or sitting in certain chairs. </p>
<p>Omega # fish oil is anti-inflammatory. There is an herbal concoction that has actually had some scientific testing that the complementary medicine doc recommended to me when I was having the nerve problem. I can’t recall the name, but I believe it contained turmeric and other anti-inflammatory herbs and spices, and was endorsed by a major NY hospital.</p>