This post is going to be a general going back to the basics post. It’s about getting a second and third opinion. These are so important at least in my opinion. Even though all 3 of my doctors diagnosed me with the same exact thing and prescribed the same medication (well the one doctor wanted to switch it) I’m glad I went for more than one opinion.
As I’ve mentioned before about my horror story with Dr No. 1 I’m glad I went to two others. The reason being is not only did I get another opinion just to make sure I found a doctor that I was comfortable with and one that gave me hope. The first doctor had me take EEG’s then had be take the 48 hour EEG in the hospital and that was ok, didn’t have a problem with it up until he gave me my diagnosis and the way he acted. He scared my parents half to death and scared me as well. The worst doctor I’ve ever met. The second doctor I went to was the doctor in Columbia Presbyterian in NYC. He was so understanding and even though he gave me the same diagnosis his approach was so much better. He became my favorite neurologist. He sat my parents down with me and went over everything and convinced us that I can still live a normal life I just have to take precautions.
The third doctor I only went to because going into NYC and having to take a full day off from work was becoming too much. He was a local neurologist at the local hospital and he was ok but I didn’t like that he wanted to completely switch my medication after I’ve been doing so well for so long. I told him I didn’t want to and that I would not switch because it was stronger and more side effects. If I can take a medication with less side effects and a smaller dosage and be fine then I don’t see why I have to switch. My theory is he just wanted more money for the fact that he prescribed a more expensive drug.
I eventually went back to Doctor #2 because the third one’s office staff was horrendous. I don’t understand why people are so terrible. You work for a neurologist, you have people coming in who are absolutely terrified and you’re going to act like a high school employee working at the local super market who doesn’t care about customer service? The behavior there was unacceptable. Even though the doctor in NYC is so far and I have to take a day off plus the scheduling and getting a hold of the office/doctor is a chore I still prefer to go to him. Everything is all in one spot so if he needs blood work I walk down the hall or if he needs an EEG I go to a different floor. I like his approach with how he treats his patients. I only have to do this once or twice a year so I figure it’s worth it.
In my opinion find the perfect doctor because when you have a condition like epilepsy or any other condition in general you need to feel comfortable with the person who is treating you. You have to feel as though you are being treated well because if you have a positive doctor who can even make the worst diagnosis not so bad keep that doctor around. You don’t want a doctor who is going to scare you and stress you out even more because there are ways to go about giving someone bad news. Of course no one wants a lie because when it’s something serious they want the truth but a few positive words can change everything.
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