Since before Thanksgiving I’ve been sick. Sinus infections which persist and won’t go away have progressed into what I believe is bronchitis (no diagnosis other than for my husband and we have the same symptoms).
Ironically, my husband and middle daughter both went to urgent care on Sunday, saw different doctors, had the same symptoms. My husband was treated with respect and due diligence, got his diagnosis and prescriptions. My daughter was treated disparagingly, was told she needed to suck it up and just deal with her “cold”, yet her symptoms are more pronounced with breathing being a significant issue. She was given medications but had to fight for them. What is wrong with our medical system?
When I went to ER because my bp was too high and I couldn’t breath, the ER doc was rude, disparaging, condescending, and suggested I take a drug I’ve been allergic to for more than 25 years. He also told me to go off my daily decongestant. I did – it was a total fail. On top of my symptoms I was already struggling with, I then added in more breathing problems – asthma attacks, more congestion, and more struggling with breathing.
One other thing this lovely ER doctor did, he doubled the dose of the antibiotic (one of the few I could take) which then caused me to have issues with it – similar to ones I have with other drugs in this family. Now I’m not sure I’ll be able to take this drug again because every time I’ve taken it since then, I’ve had some pretty severe side effects.
My daughter and I both feel like we have elephants dancing our chests and want this feeling to go away but the medical community don’t seem to know how to take care of us. It shouldn’t be that hard to listen but apparently doctors don’t know how – perhaps in all their fancy classes they should add in one about compassion, concern, and active listening.