Talking to GPs

I am very lucky that my GP (who is ex-professional partner of my OH) is wonderful - understanding, sympathetic, concerned and happy to talk things through. I was only saying yesterday that I do not know how I would have coped with all my recent problems without his patience.

I feel for you annie if you feel your concerns are not being heard. But I should also say that getting older does definitely bring a whole heap of stuff that is hard to treat, and we do finish up having to bite the bullet on some stuff. It is just about makng sure that you get as much better as is possible.

Thought of changing your GP? You could ask around for a word-of-mouth recommendation of someone who might suit you better.

Thanks mishap, actually having written the post I was thinking about it, as you do (!), and an instance of what I mean came to mind - that when I went to get the results of the tests that had been done, I asked about having my cholesterol levels checked and the response was 'oh, we checked them 2 years ago, I'm sure they're fine'.

Can that really be the right response, I thought cholesterol levels changed all the time?

Like Mishap I have a kind, caring, thoughtful and very professional GP who takes an interest in me as a person and not just a patient.

My gp and I have an arrangement!
He doesn't bother me and I don't bother him.
If however I do bother him its serious so he will respond.

I think we have too much information available to us now and a GP must have a very hard time competing with us self diagnosing using the internet. Not to mention the cost of sending us for tests etc.

I get a lot of routine checks like blood sugar, cholesterol, blood pressure etc done at my local pharmacy.

My GP talks sense.

So do mine, bags. I have two whom I see interchangeably. On the whole, the practice is user-friendly, but these two GPs are very popular and sometimes I have to book my appointments well ahead.

When my children were little, they had medical stuff between them which meant I had to take them to the GPs quite often.
I learnt that 1 GP will do tests more than the others. I was good for lungs. 1 was very empathetic. 1 was good at women's stuff etc.

I myself dont go the the GPs very often , but when I do, I choose the GP for my consultation accordingly.

btw, my broken fingernails are much better if I eat an extra egg or two a week. Someone else I know says jelly works for her.

Article by Jeanette Winterson in which she describes her despair at the failure of her GP to treat her problems, and how she had help from a nutritionist.
I think the NHS is still in the mindset of treating simply the big killers like cancer and heart disease, and sometimes is a little dismissive of chronic conditions that aren't life-threatening in the short term, but impact on the quality of life significantly.

annie your knee problems maybe just general wear and tear with age. I do not advocate a knee replacement unless your symptoms are so severe that you can hardly cope. My knee was giving way, it was painful when I walked and the pain was waking me at night, to give you an idea of how I felt.

I have an excellent GP but she knows that I will not visit unless I am desperate because mainly of the knowledge that I have.

I have a 6 monthly review because some of the drugs need monitoring re blood tests. I think that you may need a change of GP. I can understand the reluctance to do tests if they are not warranted because each costs money and the budget is finite. They will pull out all of the stops when they deem it to be necessary.

Thanks charleygirl, it is useful to hear someone describe what led them to serious input from their GP.
You hear so many stories, not long ago, I bumped into someone I hadn't seen for a year or so and heard a terrible, terrible story of her husband who had been seeing the GP for 18 months or so getting fobbed off and ending up being given anti-depressants and advocated shock therapy and it turned out he had undiagnosed gall bladder cancer of which he died in the end.
It probably doesn't help that I appear fit and well but I do suffer a lot of pain from my leg and I take Ibuprofen quite a lot and I know that that has a downside too (kidney damage in the end).

janeainsworth thanks for that link. I have tried a few things, acupuncture, other alternative therapies but there is so much out there, most of it costs an absolute fortune and there is no way of knowing what works and what doesn't.

'talking to GPs'. Chance would be a fine thing. I have been unable to get an appointment. We have to start phoning at 8.00 a.m. You have to be fit enough to persevere to get an appointment.

annie I'm not advocating alternative medicine.
A qualified nutritionist would prescribe on the basis of the results of tests, as Jeanette Winterson describes.

I think your doctor may have suggested the antidepressant more for anxiety than for depression. You do sound quite anxious about your health. It does sound as though your doctor has been very attentive - giving you all the tests necssary, and you already have an inhaler for your chest. What more do you want him to do?

You can get drops from the chemist for dry eyes. Do you wear rubber gloves for washing up to protect your fingernails? You run an exercise class which probably means you take exercise yourself. That means you will be tired. You are not getting any younger. Sorry, but I don't think there is a cure for ageing. You just have to work your life round it.

Sorry if that sounded harsh.

I doubt very much that there is anything lacking in your diet.

annie if you are really unhappy with the service that your GP provides then maybe you should change to a different GP/practice.

You sound almost envious of those unfortunate members who've had to have knee replacements. You run exercise classes so I assume that you participate in the same ..... you hardly need a knee replacement!

Be thankful that, like me, you are in reasonable nick!

My GP practice is pretty good and I don't have to see them too often. It did take a while to see a specialist for my knees after trying several different painkillers and the GP a number of times, I insisted politely that I needed to see a knee specialist. I have now had both knees done ( the latest, last Tuesday.) Obviously needed the ops' but not something to take lightly as the recovery period is fairly long and painful. If I was running and taking part in an exercise class rather than only able to walk for less than 5 minutes without severe pain I wouldn't have considered myself eligable for the ops.

I had an x ray on my knee that came back saying 'mild arthritic changes' For 9 months I struggled to walk [and had very little sympathy from my employers ,who happened to be the NHS] even though I didn't miss any work because of it. When I eventually had a scan done the reaction from the Dr who saw the result was 'crikey; whose knee is that'....x rays don't show up mch unless there's an actial break.My knee problem started with a wrong step one day; I could hardly put weight on it for months. Strangely enough I also suffer from broken nails [my nails used to be very strong] and dry eyes, but, as has been said it is probably part of the ageing process . I haven't really enjoyed walking since that accident, although I do go to a gym and do exercises at home to strengthen my knees. I always have it in the back of my mind that I may have another problem when I've walked so far and then can't get home. Do you use walking poles? They really take the strain off your joints.

I agree about the x-rays - consultant says he never looks at them very much but goes on his own examination and the way that the problem impinges on the individual patient's life.

I am very happy with our GP. To see one of the senior partners on a routine matter can take 2 weeks as they are in demand, but you can always see a doctor quite quickly. They deal with a lot of minor surgery at the clinic, which is a great time saver.

janeainsworth I don't know what you mean by qualified nutritionist but I guess I can Google it unless you can say more.

jinglbellsfrocks I think I have been healthy most of my life but I don't feel healthy now. You sound like my GP!!! I've always done lots of exercise but now I am in pain most of the time from my knee. I take pain killers daily and I can't kneel or crouch, going up the stairs is sometimes quite difficult. I manage the exercise classes partly with the help of Ibuprofen and partly because, having learnt how to move, I can move such that I minimise the strain on my knee. I usually wear a knee support. It may sound odd that I can run the classes at all, but the day after the classes my knee is always much more painful and I fear my days of doing this are numbered.

I haven't used walking poles Tegan but thanks for that and in fact, I just signed up for a Nordic Walking course. I'm a bit worried if I can manage actually, because of my knee, but I'll try it and see.

The other things, it's hard to know. Is it right to need 10 hours sleep a night which is what I now need just to feel ok? To feel utterly exhausted the day after I've run a couple of classes or done a bit more than usual in my daily life? I do put drops in my eyes but it's getting worse rather than better. I look out of my window and I see many older than me running, cycling, walking and all manner of things. It's hard to know what is normal. I've always had lots of energy, but no more.

Oh and I'm not at all envious of those who have had knee replacements (god forbid!!) but I'm trying to find out what the likely situation before you do is. It would be nice to think that you might get some help before you get to the point of only being able to walk for 5 minutes. I'll go on taking the pain killers, sorry to have asked at all.

Having so much pain daily is draining.
This is what I would do.
1. See a different doctor in your practice for a second opinion. If you dont get any joy from that, and you are not happy about your practice in generel, I would
2.consider using a different practice. or
3. Go private about your knee.

anniezzz09 has your GP not suggested anti-inflammatories? to help with the pain and inflammation.
For me the pain of my hip was very bad before my replacement , it affected my whole life I couldn't walk at all without pain, sitting still for more than a few minutes was painful and I would be woken by the pain in the night. No over the counter meds would even touch the pain and I certainly couldn't of managed any kind of exercise apart from a very slow limp around the garden to try and keep my muscles working, my x-rays showed a bone on bone joint with multiple cysts within what was left of the bone . I don't mean to minimize your pain but I think you may have a way to go yet till you are at the stage of needing a replacement.

Do go and discuss anti-imflammatories with your GP they really can help you to manage your difficulties.