All Comments on 'Speak Up!'

... not always feasible. Sometimes when you are sick enough or in enough pain you just can't *be* a credible advocate for yourself. There are too many details to keep track of, and your body is insisting that you pay attention to *it*, not to whatever stupidities are going on around you.

<p>That's when it pays to have a trusted friend or loved one who can advocate for you. My wife and I both have chronic ailments, and we play this role for each other as often as necessary.

<p>In particular, the sexism of the medical establishment can be used against it. When either of us can do the job, we debate on whether a male or a female voice will be more effective in the current situation. If it's a matter of laying out what the facts are, I tell the story, sounding totally technical and fitting right in with the preconceptions of the listener. If it's a matter of getting a favor from someone who is free to grant it or reject it, my wife more often manages matters, either by being ingratiating, or by implicitly threatening to cause a scene.

<p>In one of the latter situations, my wife was (quite legitimately, not as a deception) crying loudly with frustration at the blocking behavior of a particular gatekeeper. The gatekeeper, who was obviously terrified of "scenes", appealed to me: "Can't you get her to stop?" I replied very calmly, "No, but you can." We got what we were after.

Check on the Internet for official complaints about your Doctor and if you are not happy move on and find a cure then send a complaint in about your doctor.

I have two similar stories and I can't thank you enough for writing about this subject matter.

First:

I've had frequent UTIs for years. Over the years I've heard it all, the most frequent comment being that I somehow don't know how to wipe myself after using the toilet. A female OB-GYN once told me that I had to stop drinking coffee. That sounded extreme to me so she said "Well, I guess you'll keep getting UTIs"

In my 30's I finally found an OB-GYN who said that things didn't sound normal. I was sent to a urologist and everything finally made sense. I had a bad fall when I was 4 years old. That created a lot of scar tissue which means that I will always be susceptible to UTIs.

Second:

I was released from the hospital last month for Sepsis. It was severe with a 40% mortality rate. Sepsis is so deadly because it has a wide variety of symptoms so it's easily misdiagnosed but it also progresses extremely rapidly.

My story is long and includes two ER visits before ending up in the cardiac surveillance ward. I will be forever grateful to the first ER nurse who listened and documented how I felt and added his own questions about Sepsis.

The ER doc ignored my complaints of seizure-like shivering and extreme headache/fevers because my fever was low at the ER. I was released with a kidney infection and UTI.

There are many lawsuits for deaths resulting from misdiagnosed Sepsis so I'm sure that the nurse's comments triggered a more thorough review. The next day I was phoned and told to return immediately to the ER. By then I was in serious bad shape with a 103 temp. I was given oxygen, morphine, antibiotics and an IV drip and my blood pressure dropped to 75/40.

I'm lucky to be alive because someone listened. He was the only one who didn't rely solely on test results, he looked and listened to how I felt.

As a veteran of bad diagnosis I know exactly what you mean. A must read for anyone having a medical problem not treated properly.

You may have saved lives with this. How many writers have that? Kudos.