My Doctor's appointment was a fiasco!
Attitude of Gratitude
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Dayton, Ohio
Posts: 2,305
I can see why you were disappointed by the visit. I know in the past when I would get the courage up to spill it all to a Dr., therapist or whom ever I choose to think could help me and they didn't wave that magic wand, I was pretty ticked too. Your feelings of disappointent are valid, your expectations, as you now know, weren't realistic.
It's very humbling to tell ANYONE that your life is unmanageable and that you know you need help, but most of us look at Dr.'s like some kind of God so when they don't fix us, we feel they let us down. I was raised with the message that there is a pill to fix anything. I'm glad that you realize that the Ativan isn't a very good idea at all, but I can understand why the Dr. prescribed it. Ativan is one of the most common drugs that are given in a detox setting for alcohol withdrawal. How do I know this? Unfortunately, I have been in detox for alcohol more times than I can count. But to give someone who is asking for help to stop drinking an Rx and nothing else is pretty unprofessional in my opinion. The dangers of mixing alcohol and Ativan are serious. You admitted you need help to quit, not just the drug used for detox for goodness sakes!
Do you think you need to get help with detox? I don't know how much you drink and how your body reacts say, 10 - 36 hours without alcohol. If you show signs of withdrawal, extreme anxiety, shakes, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, hallucinations . . . get help right away. Alcohol withdrawals can be very dangerous so don't try to be a hero and stick it out at home. You can always come up with some medical reason to tell your employeer why you were hospitalized for a few days if need be. I did. I had the Dr's who took care of me in detox write a simple return to work slip just stating that I was hospitalized from such and such a date and can return to work. Your employeer doesn't need to know and with the privacy laws now, no one can call the hospital and get ANY info as to why you are hospitalized. Your privacy is protected.
The therapist sounds like a great idea. Have you been to any AA Meetings? I honestly got my best help through AA and NA and it's free, meetings are available through the day and evening and at many locations. The only requirement is a desire to stop drinking. No insurance needed! No referrals!
And Pray. Ask your Higher Power for help.
I know my posts and replies tend to get very lengthy but it's pretty hard to only put into a few sentences how much my life has changed since I have been in Recovery from alcohol and drugs and if there is anything I say that may help that one person, it's worth it. Plus, if someone doesn't want to read my epic novels, that's why the scroll down arrow is on your mouse!!! lol
God Bless,
Judy
It's very humbling to tell ANYONE that your life is unmanageable and that you know you need help, but most of us look at Dr.'s like some kind of God so when they don't fix us, we feel they let us down. I was raised with the message that there is a pill to fix anything. I'm glad that you realize that the Ativan isn't a very good idea at all, but I can understand why the Dr. prescribed it. Ativan is one of the most common drugs that are given in a detox setting for alcohol withdrawal. How do I know this? Unfortunately, I have been in detox for alcohol more times than I can count. But to give someone who is asking for help to stop drinking an Rx and nothing else is pretty unprofessional in my opinion. The dangers of mixing alcohol and Ativan are serious. You admitted you need help to quit, not just the drug used for detox for goodness sakes!
Do you think you need to get help with detox? I don't know how much you drink and how your body reacts say, 10 - 36 hours without alcohol. If you show signs of withdrawal, extreme anxiety, shakes, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, hallucinations . . . get help right away. Alcohol withdrawals can be very dangerous so don't try to be a hero and stick it out at home. You can always come up with some medical reason to tell your employeer why you were hospitalized for a few days if need be. I did. I had the Dr's who took care of me in detox write a simple return to work slip just stating that I was hospitalized from such and such a date and can return to work. Your employeer doesn't need to know and with the privacy laws now, no one can call the hospital and get ANY info as to why you are hospitalized. Your privacy is protected.
The therapist sounds like a great idea. Have you been to any AA Meetings? I honestly got my best help through AA and NA and it's free, meetings are available through the day and evening and at many locations. The only requirement is a desire to stop drinking. No insurance needed! No referrals!
And Pray. Ask your Higher Power for help.
I know my posts and replies tend to get very lengthy but it's pretty hard to only put into a few sentences how much my life has changed since I have been in Recovery from alcohol and drugs and if there is anything I say that may help that one person, it's worth it. Plus, if someone doesn't want to read my epic novels, that's why the scroll down arrow is on your mouse!!! lol
God Bless,
Judy
Member
Join Date: Aug 2008
Posts: 11
Ativan may or may not be addictive depending on your poison? I only say this out of personal experience. I have a very addictive personality and been prescribed benzo's for years (same dose) and it's already very low (the smallest type and 2/day) and some days I break one in half and others have none (My Doctor knows this) I may be a screw up, but I'm honest with him about everything now, and especially honest with my new specialist which doesn't seem to see the point of taking me off right now (this could also be because of the detox I'm once again going through though? (For non benzo related stuff).
This was a dumb post, sorry to be so unhelpful.
This was a dumb post, sorry to be so unhelpful.
Member
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Sweden
Posts: 1,649
I'll probably echo a lot of comments here in saying that lots of regular MD's just aren't experienced with special issues such as addiction/alcoholism.
The fact that your doc thought liver levels from 1 1/2 years ago would be viable, shows he doesn't have a clue! (I also believe that you have to request liver levels specifically when you request blood work...No??)
My treatment center doc would not accept liver levels I had done in April of this year! I had to have new blood work done in July.
Sounds like you may have to shop around for a doctor that has the skills to help you. Also, try to find a place that specializes in addictions.
I have had bad experiences there, myself. My outpatient addiction center is staffed by only one or two docs and the rest are nurses and even social workers who have no formal education with addiction treatment. Great. Talking to the nurses is like talking to any other unqualified and untrained person: I may as well talk to my next door neighbor or my plumber.
After a couple of meaningless therapy sessions I told my "therapist" last week, (who actually has a degree in social work....sheesh) that I wanted to be put on the list to talk to talk to a trained addiction therapist. I know there is an outpatient program based on the Minnesota model. It will of course be a hurry up and wait process: I have to go on a waiting list for that.
I think it is normally a challenge to find the right health care that suits your individual needs. And it is no different with addiction treatment. Keep trying, again and again, use that phone book, let your fingers do the walking and keep calling....keep looking for the care that is right for you!
I am sure you will find it!
The fact that your doc thought liver levels from 1 1/2 years ago would be viable, shows he doesn't have a clue! (I also believe that you have to request liver levels specifically when you request blood work...No??)
My treatment center doc would not accept liver levels I had done in April of this year! I had to have new blood work done in July.
Sounds like you may have to shop around for a doctor that has the skills to help you. Also, try to find a place that specializes in addictions.
I have had bad experiences there, myself. My outpatient addiction center is staffed by only one or two docs and the rest are nurses and even social workers who have no formal education with addiction treatment. Great. Talking to the nurses is like talking to any other unqualified and untrained person: I may as well talk to my next door neighbor or my plumber.
After a couple of meaningless therapy sessions I told my "therapist" last week, (who actually has a degree in social work....sheesh) that I wanted to be put on the list to talk to talk to a trained addiction therapist. I know there is an outpatient program based on the Minnesota model. It will of course be a hurry up and wait process: I have to go on a waiting list for that.
I think it is normally a challenge to find the right health care that suits your individual needs. And it is no different with addiction treatment. Keep trying, again and again, use that phone book, let your fingers do the walking and keep calling....keep looking for the care that is right for you!
I am sure you will find it!
Member
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: CA
Posts: 357
OK-let's see a show of hands...how many alkies out there actually stop drinking in order to take medications of any sort, even when warned to avoid alcohol?
Eclipse, first and foremost, my heart goes out to you. There is a lot of good advice here, but I honestly don't think your expectations were too high. Unless I missed something in your original post, it didn't sound like you went in search of a magic pill. You voiced concern about physiological issues (liver and gall bladder are physical organs, last time I checked!-lol).
I will get banned for sure if I speak my honest opinion of the medical system in America, but essentially your experience is not so unusual. It is definitely a good idea to get a blood test done, and hopefully find a doc who isn't clueless!. Atavan is commonly prescribed for detox (just went through that myself) but remember that benzos are also addictive (hence the need to detox from them as well at some point). I detoxed from Klonapin, another benzo, several years ago, and I can tell you, it wasn't pleasant.
I was glad to leave my Atavan prescription in the cabinet (still in there actually), but that is because it didn't do much for me once I was beyond physical withdrawal. Now if it were, say, Percocet, for instance, I'd be in deep sh!t. It's a gamble...not one worth taking. At least not until you have better professional guidance.
Please take good care of yourself and don't let the "dogs" get you down. Yes, it is up to you to stop drinking. No one else can do that part for you. But it is also important to be supported by knowledgeable and compassionate professionals.
Eclipse, first and foremost, my heart goes out to you. There is a lot of good advice here, but I honestly don't think your expectations were too high. Unless I missed something in your original post, it didn't sound like you went in search of a magic pill. You voiced concern about physiological issues (liver and gall bladder are physical organs, last time I checked!-lol).
I will get banned for sure if I speak my honest opinion of the medical system in America, but essentially your experience is not so unusual. It is definitely a good idea to get a blood test done, and hopefully find a doc who isn't clueless!. Atavan is commonly prescribed for detox (just went through that myself) but remember that benzos are also addictive (hence the need to detox from them as well at some point). I detoxed from Klonapin, another benzo, several years ago, and I can tell you, it wasn't pleasant.
I was glad to leave my Atavan prescription in the cabinet (still in there actually), but that is because it didn't do much for me once I was beyond physical withdrawal. Now if it were, say, Percocet, for instance, I'd be in deep sh!t. It's a gamble...not one worth taking. At least not until you have better professional guidance.
Please take good care of yourself and don't let the "dogs" get you down. Yes, it is up to you to stop drinking. No one else can do that part for you. But it is also important to be supported by knowledgeable and compassionate professionals.
I got nothin'
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: My house.
Posts: 4,890
Eclipse, please don't get discouraged. I am so sorry to hear that your appointment went the way that it did. 
Shop around for another doctor. SoosieQ and littlefish are right. It is important to get up-to-date blood results so you know where you stand. PLEASE find a more competent doctor. They are out there. Everyone has your back here. Take it easy.
Shop around for another doctor. SoosieQ and littlefish are right. It is important to get up-to-date blood results so you know where you stand. PLEASE find a more competent doctor. They are out there. Everyone has your back here. Take it easy.
Administrator
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Australia
Posts: 211,432
Yes, it is up to you to stop drinking. No one else can do that part for you. But it is also important to be supported by knowledgeable and compassionate professionals.
'just stop, you can do it!' is something I'd expect to read here on these boards, not hear in the office of a competent compassionate and professional medical person.
D
Turning it all around
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Florida
Posts: 330
Please don't let this one insensitive doctor redirect your efforts. We already feel alone and things like this don't help. You may want to contact your "regular" doctor and just see what he/she has to say. Maybe he/she will give you a freebie visit to make up for it. If he/she does not, then there may be insensitivity there as well. In that case I would search for a doctor that will really "understand". Prayers
:ghug3
:ghug3
Member
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Eh? :)
Posts: 1,410
Aaaaargh...I'm so frustrated for you!!! You were so worried about going and then to have a doctor that was too busy to really understand what a huge thing this was for you...arrrgh! Sadly, it's also typical.
The thing is that you have to be an advocate for your own health! You have to DEMAND what you need out of your doctor. You must DEMAND to get your liver checked. You must DEMAND to be referred to a specialist that is competent in addictions. And you must speak up for yourself every single time you think your doctor isn't listening to the important pieces of information you are giving him/her.
Crap...I was really hoping you would have had a positive experience from the appointment....please don't give up on getting what you need. And you don't need to like your doctor's personality at all, just get out of them what you need.
The thing is that you have to be an advocate for your own health! You have to DEMAND what you need out of your doctor. You must DEMAND to get your liver checked. You must DEMAND to be referred to a specialist that is competent in addictions. And you must speak up for yourself every single time you think your doctor isn't listening to the important pieces of information you are giving him/her.
Crap...I was really hoping you would have had a positive experience from the appointment....please don't give up on getting what you need. And you don't need to like your doctor's personality at all, just get out of them what you need.
Awaiting Email Confirmation
Join Date: Jun 2008
Posts: 2,942
Just out of curiosity, and I am ready to be totally slammed for this post:
(NO OFFENSE INTENDED TO ANYONE.)
What would you say to a sponsee who drinks 'only 3 glasses of wine' a night and desperately wants to quit drinking?
* Would you seriously tell them to keep going to doctors until they hear what they want to hear?
* What exactly does anyone think any doctor can do?
* At what point should the person stop seeing doctors?
(Go to 50 doctors, 75 therapists, 60 addictionologists... take pills, seek any type of remedy endlessly, but at some point the person MUST do what all sober people have done - STOP DRINKING. All of the sympathy and hand-holding is VERY nice, and necessary, but let's not lose focus on what has to happen FIRST at some point - the person has to stop drinking.)
I love you all, hate me now.
(NO OFFENSE INTENDED TO ANYONE.)
What would you say to a sponsee who drinks 'only 3 glasses of wine' a night and desperately wants to quit drinking?
* Would you seriously tell them to keep going to doctors until they hear what they want to hear?
* What exactly does anyone think any doctor can do?
* At what point should the person stop seeing doctors?
(Go to 50 doctors, 75 therapists, 60 addictionologists... take pills, seek any type of remedy endlessly, but at some point the person MUST do what all sober people have done - STOP DRINKING. All of the sympathy and hand-holding is VERY nice, and necessary, but let's not lose focus on what has to happen FIRST at some point - the person has to stop drinking.)
I love you all, hate me now.
Member
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Eh? :)
Posts: 1,410
I still love you! lol! It's not that she shouldn't have been told to stop drinking...that's a given...but she should have had medical tests done to see the damage that might have occurred (liver) and try and help recover from that as well.
Awaiting Email Confirmation
Join Date: Jun 2008
Posts: 2,942
Okay, let's say they do the tests. The results are in. What's next? Now stop drinking?
Regardless of the test results, what's next?
She's got to stop drinking, tests or no tests.
(The best friend Eclipse can have right now is a friend who will tell her the truth. Just my opinion.)
Regardless of the test results, what's next?
She's got to stop drinking, tests or no tests.
(The best friend Eclipse can have right now is a friend who will tell her the truth. Just my opinion.)
Member
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Eh? :)
Posts: 1,410
Absolutely....but knowing what is medically wrong with our bodies is also necessary. She could be put on medications to help her liver (I have ZERO medical knowledge! lol) or at least have the knowledge of what's going on inside.
I'm just a little unwell
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: USA
Posts: 2,219
Tommyk,
You're right and I totally see your point, but I think a large part of the reason why Eclipse feels so frustrated about how the appointment went is that she is worried about her health and doesn't feel that the doctor took an interest in helping her find out if any problems exist.
Can he stop drinking for her? No. Can he give her a magic pill or prescription that will suddenly make her not want to drink? No. And I don't think she expected that.
What she DID expect was professionalism. Diagnostic tests. Medical treatment and advice for any health issues that were uncovered. She got none of that, and now she will have to start from scratch with someone new. It took a lot of courage for her to walk in there and tell a medical professional about her problem and concerns, and he totally blew her off. I'd feel the same way she does.
You're right and I totally see your point, but I think a large part of the reason why Eclipse feels so frustrated about how the appointment went is that she is worried about her health and doesn't feel that the doctor took an interest in helping her find out if any problems exist.
Can he stop drinking for her? No. Can he give her a magic pill or prescription that will suddenly make her not want to drink? No. And I don't think she expected that.
What she DID expect was professionalism. Diagnostic tests. Medical treatment and advice for any health issues that were uncovered. She got none of that, and now she will have to start from scratch with someone new. It took a lot of courage for her to walk in there and tell a medical professional about her problem and concerns, and he totally blew her off. I'd feel the same way she does.
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Aug 2008
Posts: 811
I think I am going to look for another doctor and go in and ask for the tests. I feel like I will feel better just knowing I am okay -- or not...
I have really been weening myself over the last week and have been okay with it. I will continue to work at stopping and go from there.
I feel better today and decided I am not going to sit and dwell on it, because the anxiety is not good for me.
I went for a walk this morning (its cold out!!). And I am going to keep plugging along!!!
Thanks for all the info and encouragement!!!
I can't wait to get on here and talk to everyone--it addicting! Oh crap--something else to get addicted to!!
I have really been weening myself over the last week and have been okay with it. I will continue to work at stopping and go from there.
I feel better today and decided I am not going to sit and dwell on it, because the anxiety is not good for me.
I went for a walk this morning (its cold out!!). And I am going to keep plugging along!!!
Thanks for all the info and encouragement!!!
I can't wait to get on here and talk to everyone--it addicting! Oh crap--something else to get addicted to!!
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