if you can't find any other reason.................

I don't often post opinion blogs, because frankly, I have VERY strong opinions and I don't really want to put anybody off. I usually try to post cute pictures of my boys for the grandmas and leave the opinion blogs to others.

But something happened to me today that I can't pass up!! Seriously - what has happened to the medical profession. Now, don't write me off just yet. I know there are great surgeons and Dr's out there. My father-in-law is a surgeon, we have trusted every specialist we've seen, I LOVE my OB and we LOVE our pediatrician. But we don't have a family Dr that we love.

So last week when I was dealing with a wierd taste/dryness in my mouth, I went to a Dr at a local clinic that people have referred us to (the clinic, not this particular Dr - but he had a last minute opening). This was a BIG mistake.

The Dr walks in, asks me what's going on. I tell him I have a metal taste in my mouth and dryness and he looks at me and asks, in all seriousness (I thought he must be joking, but he wasn't) "Do you know of anybody who might be trying to slowly poison you with lead?" I laughed, but he didn't even crack a smile. So I quickly wiped the smile off my face and said, "um, no."

As if I wasn't already to just run out the door, then he pulls out his handy little palm pilot thing (I know they have a new name, but I'm still caught in the early 2000's technology-wise) and types in dry mouth and metal taste to some symptom checker, turns around so I can see the results (as if I should be impressed that he is SO technologically savvy) and says - do any of these other symptoms fit?

NO, I told you that these were my ONLY symptoms!! Then, after a short, LAME physical that would produce NOTHING, he says, "Well, we can do some blood work labs and see what we find and then I'll see you back here in 2 weeks." I say "Ok" partly because I'm completely dumbfounded that he thinks what he has just doe is OK and partly because I just want to get out of there.

SERIOUSLY!! Is this what the profession has come to? Have they not heard of the internet? Do they not know that before I walked into their office, I had already visited the Symptom Checker on WebMd as well as every holistic medicine site out there? I was going to him for his "medical expertise", to find out something I couldn't find online and he pulls out his handy, dandy palm pilot!!

Jump to 1 week later, I'm feeling a lot better. After a rough last week, symptoms are almost gone and I think they'll go away on their own completely.

So I call to cancel all appointments, and they won't let me without talking to a nurse and the Dr. Whatever - that's not going to change my decision. The nurse called me back this morning because of course the Dr isn't in on Mondays, and here's the kicker..............................

"We'd like you to come back in for some depression and anxiety tests."

Oh No You Didn't!! Since I'm a WOMAN and you can't figure out what's wrong with me - it must be depression or anxiety, right?!

Needless to say, I told them very nicely where to put their tests and hung up the phone!! End of story. Thoughts?!

Disclaimer: I have many friends and family who deal with depression/anxiety/etc and I believe it can be a very real thing and is a big trial in their lives. I have my own issues (can anybody say OCD), just not depression. And when a Dr uses depression as a general diagnoses, it's not fair to those with the disease and those without it!!