Curse #35 - Doctor Jerkface MD

A few months ago, I mentioned the problems I had been having with my health.  I believe I ended the post with the phrase, "Please pray that I find a good rheumatologist."

Did you pray?

Did you?

Because the rheumatologist I found was a jerk!

Now, I hate to talk bad about people...(Shad always makes fun of me because any time I say something bad about someone I have to preface it with that statement, but I guess that's the southern in me. )

Back to the point. Now, I hate to talk bad  about people, but this doctor was not a very nice man. I believe I've used the word jerkface to describe him on more than one occasion.

I could go into details about things he said and his general rudeness, but my main problem with him is that he didn't answer questions!  At my last visit with him, I asked him three direct questions.  Somehow, he managed to brush off every question without ever answering them. 

He spent a grand total of five minutes with me on the second visit, but if I didn't ask questions it would have only been two minutes.   I drove 50 minutes for him to tell me something he could have told me over the phone.

Last week, I talked to my general doctor (who is awesome) about the situation.  She said that she has had several complaints about the same doctor recently. She has had so many complaints that she has stopped referring patients to him. 

Strangely, this made me feel a little better that I wasn't crazy or overly sensitive.  He was rude to everyone, and not just me.

Once she heard my situation, she decided to do exactly what the rheumatologists was going to do and order more bloodwork in six months.  If my antibody numbers go down even more, I'll be good, and if they go up again, she will refer me to another rheumatologists.

My antibody numbers are looking better.  They are still high, but they are better than they were.  This is a good sign that it's not lupus.  I've also had a good month of health. Of course I got a stomach virus, but everyone got that plague. 

Anyway, I feel better about the whole situation knowing I don't have to go back to that doctor.  Maybe he's going through a rough time, but I'm just glad I don't have to go back to him. The whole experience has made me even more thankful that I have such a great general doctor.