tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1938228145507926076.post7558877190370316819..comments2024-03-28T14:08:20.499-05:00Comments on The Site That Breathes: Thoughts About HealthJennihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02170673086935323144noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1938228145507926076.post-46338796916873077082012-09-29T03:13:37.789-05:002012-09-29T03:13:37.789-05:00One of the reasons people don't always go to t...One of the reasons people don't always go to the doctor when they have some niggling health problem is that some doctors have a reputation for being dismissive about such problems, particularly to women. They brush them off as psychosomatic, stress-related or something else other than a physical condition. I have also heard of many cases of women being misdiagnosed as having IBS when they actually had ovarian cancer.<br /><br />Also, some doctors prescribe medication unnecessarily. A few years ago (I was about 30, or maybe even less, at the time, I cycled regularly and ate fairly healthily) I went to the doctor for a routine thyroid medication prescription. As usual, he sent me for a blood test (they are done every 6 months or so) and also specified a cholesterol test. When I came back to the surgery, he gave me a prescription for statins. I thought this was odd because nobody had ever mentioned anything might be wrong before, and I am reluctant to take tablets unless I know what they are for. I spoke to my friend who was also a doctor (albeit a junior one) and he basically advised me not to take them. More recently, after I had switched GPs, I told the new doctor the story and he said I had made the right decision.Matthew Smithhttp://www.blogistan.co.uk/blog/noreply@blogger.com