If we recharged ourselves as often as we do our phones, our self care becomes firsthand nature. Give your body a little love, it deserves it.
Lately, we hear too often of patients getitng medical gaslighting and my story is no different. Women are often underdiagnosed and often dismissed in health care settings. We put our trust in medical professionals because they are well learned in their profession, knowledgeable, and generally compassionate people. But experts are humans and humans make mistakes. My life changing news resulted from a visit to my OB-GYN because I had been feeling run down and so tired. I know my body well enough to always get checked when something feels off or not right. At that time, I felt something was wrong, like really wrong.
“Do you have a primary care? We found your thyroid looks abnormal. You may want to go get it checked out.”
This result did not make me feel better. So I follow up with a primary care who spoke to me like a robot but with concern to figure out what was going on. I went for lab work and turns out, I had adult onset #Type1Diabetes and #GravesDisease.
Glucose Level 770
The abnormal thyroid was an indicator of #hyperthyroidism and turns out I had a yeast infection as a by product of diabetes . Everyone kept saying "you're lucky you came in when you did." I won myself a week long stay at the hospital. Apparently having a glucose level that high, I should have been in a coma, experiencing organ failure and pretty much not driving myself to the emergency room. After my diagnosis, it was a berage of appointments, blood draws, and catatonic motions of going from endocronologists to cardiologists to nutrition specialists.
Self care is health care. You not only have to take reins of your care, you have to manage your own health. I am not discounting the hard working and committed medicial professionals out there. In the current health care system we have, you do have to advocate for yourself. The moment I walk into a doctor's office, I feel like I am going to battle. I cannot imagine the flipside for those who do not have access to insurance or affordable health care. Because i am not the poster child for Type 1 Diabetes, the available information is so antiquated. Mind you, I was just diagnosed in early July 2021. Sadly, the information pamphlet I got covering Type 1 was less than a page. When i was getting released from the hospital, the diabetic nutritionist kept going over the routine for someone with #Type2Diabetes. How does that even apply to me? I checked off the list for do's and don'ts - cut out sweets, eat less carbs, workout, be active, blah blah blah. Our conversation ended in less than 10 minutes.
Health is a business. So much that I decided to invest in two pharmaceutical companies. If your medicial professional won't give you more than 10 minutes, make them slow down and give it to you. You deserve more time, more explanation, more knowledge. It takes both sides to build a bridge and your copay owes you that much. Dont' be so hard on yourself for needing more time to process things because it is information overload. Make them go slower so you understand. Make them move faster on getting your lab work or claims processed. Its for you and no one else.
You owe yourself the love that you so freely give to others. You matter in this world. Heal for you. Grow for you. Show up for you. Get better for you. Make it personal. I try to remember to celebrate every win, no matter how small. It's our choices that matter in the end. Not wishes. Not words. Not promises. Not doctors ♥
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