Doctor-Honest Opinion

[ViewsAskew]

If I may...

I completely understand what Runkrun and dogeyed are saying. I also sense that Sleuth isn't able to do that...are hasn't been.

It would be great if it was that easy for her to do. But, it's not.

Sleuth, we all want you to get what you need. I think runkrun and dogeyed are saying that sometimes you have to take a risk or sacrifice something very important to you in the hopes of a different outcome.

Is there any way we can help with that? We can't find a doctor for you, we can't help your RLS. We can provide information, help you when your doctor isn't available, hook you up with Dr Buchfuhrer through email...whatever might make that chasm look a bit narrower so you can feel that you can get the help you need.

My guess is that all most of us want is for you to get help...even if it's not exactly right. There are ways to compensate and work the situation so that you DO get what you need.

[Sleuth]

I understand, but I can't just go to see her. I need an appointment. I have to go through her nurse who knows the whole story. She may very well not give me an appointment. After the last go around, I mailed her a letter apologizing up the whazoo. Her office didn't call me for an appointment until a month later. Her nurse said she saw all the correspondence.

I know the doctor was moving the first of the year to a new office. I am sure I could find out the address, but what then?

I am also afraid of addiction. I was told that if a doctor didn't know how to prescribe opiates, you could easily become addicted.

Dale

[Betty/WV]

Hi Sleuth: For what its worth, Dr. B told me that he has had no trouble with patients becoming addicted to opiates. If you take them according to directions and at low doses. People who become addicted start taking more than prescribed. And just for a high, not for relief of pain etc.

I hope you find relief and help soon. We know what you are dealing with. Don't give up.

BETTY/WV

[ViewsAskew]

I once made a nurse very mad. I was terrified that she'd not let me make an appointment. I thought of a thousand ways to get around it. In the end, I had to make it. I did, she took it, and I went in.

She may have seen it and she may have been passive aggressive (or she just may have forgotten). If you take the worse scenario, passive aggressive people rarely do anything directly so if you call, say you want an appointment, ask for the next available, she'll put you in. She's not going to confront you directly. If, when she hears your name, she says something, then you'll deal with it. There are a million possibilities - but you won't know what one actually happens until you do it.

It may be easy....it may be hard. Or something else entirely. But, you are strong enough to handle it. I am often afraid of all the possibilities...but when I look back, what's the worst that has happened?

FYI, for those of us who tend to worry about things, particularly future things that we can't control, my best friend LOVES this book called The Worry Cure Book. After months of hearing how this has helped her in so many ways, I've decided to order it myself.

[Polar Bear]

FYI, for those of us who tend to worry about things, particularly future things that we can't control, my best friend LOVES this book called The Worry Cure Book. After months of hearing how this has helped her in so many ways, I've decided to order it myself.[/quote]

This is sooooo me - worrying about future things out of my control!!. I am going to look on Amazon and order this book.

[Sleuth]

I will have to think of something. My symptoms have become much worse in the past couple of weeks. Does that happen? Rather than a gradual upswing in symptoms, they sort of doubled in a few days.

Now I also have pain in my legs at night. It wakes me up and if I go back to sleep, it wakes me up again. The symptoms now start very early in the day. When I lie down to go to sleep I have a very strong urge to move my legs, which didn't even happen when I did that until a few weeks ago.

I don't know what's going on to cause such a severe upswing in symptoms. I'm not taking any new medications.

Dale

[Polar Bear]

Dale, I feel for you so much and want for you to get some relief from somewhere.

I don't understand how your health system works and how it can be that someone can't get a doc appointment. In my ignorance, and I may be totally off the track here, but can you go to Hospital Emergency for help, saying you don't have a primary care doc and take printed out info with you such as mentioned in my post of 4 January regarding pain relief ??

[dogeyed]

Sleuth,
Get in touch with that doc FORTHWITH, get your meds, and come home, and THEN post back how glad you are you listened to us. We've all helped as much as we can, you've tried a few things, but now you've got your chance for the best legal drugs known to man, and you're worried about a phone call to go see the doc. Gee whiz. You've been in frustration mode waaaay too long, it's ruining your common sense. Don't you WANT to feel better? As for addiction, I addressed that for you in my last post, you are not going to have any major boo-boo associated with all that jazz, most of the people on this board take it and we're not complaining. Just take the stuff, everybody has to take a pill or two, for crying out loud. And as far as her not staying in good contact with you and what will you do if you have a problem, etc., etc., etc., that's what ERs are for. Now, call them NOW, do not stop at go, do not collect $200, just call, call, call, MAKE THE APPOINTMENT FOR ASAP, you've already apologized, don't let this endless worrying stop you when you're at the finish line. And if you post again and have not made this appointment, I will not read your posts anymore. This is actually affecting me personally at this point.
GG

[Neco]

Dale, I feel for you so much and want for you to get some relief from somewhere.

I don't understand how your health system works and how it can be that someone can't get a doc appointment. In my ignorance, and I may be totally off the track here, but can you go to Hospital Emergency for help, saying you don't have a primary care doc and take printed out info with you such as mentioned in my post of 4 January regarding pain relief ??

Stress. Like what you're going through right now.

[Polar Bear]

Hey Dale, what's happening.
Have you done anything about getting meds. ?

[dogeyed]

Dale,
Did you make an appointment to see the doc who will give you the good meds yet? I hope my directness didn't push you in a corner. Even if you didn't make the appointment, it's okay, there are others here in this forum who are desperate to find out how you are doing. I just didn't want to tangle with it no more unless you helped yourself. So, if you haven't returned here on account of me, just forget about my rant, and talk to the others.
GG

[Sleuth]

I didn't call her because I have an appointment with a very-well recommended psychiatrist on Monday. I was hoping he would have some recommendations and I was pretty positive she wouldn't see me.

Dr. B told me in an email that I should take care of my depression first and then work on the RLS.

This evening I received a FedEx letter from the RLS doctor listing the names of RLS specialists in the area who "should be able to assist you with your needs." She ended by saying that if she can be of further assistance, I should get in touch with her office. (That sentence is the same boilerplate sentence I add at the end of my business correspondence when I can't help someone but don't want them to know that. )

I would like to know where she got the names of these doctors and something about them. There's a big difference between having her secretary look them up in some Google search and her actually knowing something about these doctors.

I will call her office, but don't believe I'll get a reply any time soon because that is the way she works. In the meantime, I'll look up the doctors to see what I can find. None were on any Google searches I did before.

Dale

[Sleuth]

I just looked up the five names submitted. I found what I was looking for so will not have to call the other RLS doctor.

The first two I checked are not appropriate at all. One is a sleep center, but they don't list RLS as a field they treat. The doctor she recommended specializes in epilepsy and its effect on sleep.

The other one is an organization that runs drug tests for pharmaceutical companies. After checking those two, it appeared that she just grabbed some names off the Internet.

Then, I checked the other three. Each one is affiliated with a major hospital in a sleep disorder clinic that treat RLS patients. I will have to see what they have to offer. The doctors I've visited in these sleep centers at major hospitals have been all the same; offering the usual PDR drugs and nothing else. I guess I'll start the whole routine all over again. Waiting months for an appointment and filling out inch thick questionnaires. The worst part of all this is going and finding out that the place doesn't know much about RLS, are only willing to give you Mirapex-type drugs and not knowing how their name became associated with RLS in the first place. This time I will walk in not expecting much, so I will not feel so disappointed when it does not work out. That is the worse feeling.

Such is life.

Dale

[ViewsAskew]

I have learned to take the same attitude with me, Dale. Expect little; hope I'm wrong. At worse, it's what I expected. At best, I'm delightfully surprised.

[Sleuth]

Does anyone have any advice on what I should ask when I call these new doctors.

I would hate to wait 4-6 weeks for an appointment only to find out that I wasted that time. The last time I did that, the doctor told me she wasn't an RLS doctor at all and didn't know how her name got on a referal list. I wanted to scream.

Maybe a few "right" questions on the phone might help.

Thanks,

Dale