Friday, February 27, 2009

Doctors and Moving On

Both my rheumatologist and primary physician have moved on from here within recent months. I just got my notice about my doctor a little over a week ago. I'm feeling quite frustrated and discouraged about this, but trying to look at it positively.

Perhaps my new doctor will be better than the previous one, and while I liked the one before a lot personality-wise, I wasn't always convinced she was the best fit for me. But I wasn't ready to move on either and go through the painful search of trying to find another one. I'm wondering if this is the push I need. The doctor replacing my previous one will be tried, and we'll see how she is before making a decision. Hopefully we're moving on to better things, instead of falling back even further. I have a couple other things to take care of first, but I'm guessing in another month or two I'll be able to tell you the verdict.

My rheumatologist certainly wasn't the right one for me. But they are very hard to find... especially good ones. Any that have been recommended to me so far aren't covered by my insurance. It's frustrating and discouraging, but I won't give up. I just need some time to find my way.

This makes me all the more thankful for Dr. Tim... my wonderful chiropractor that I've been going to since the end of October. You've heard my stories about him... he's wonderful. He's experienced with Fibro and has a wide variety of ways to try to help me. His assistant also has Fibro and I've learned a lot from her. I took a break from seeing him during the winter since it's such a long drive and too exhausting & stressful for me during the shorter, darker days and attempts of fighting off snow & ice. Once I start going back to him in another month or two, I hope to increasingly see growth and change in how I'm feeling. But I also know it's going to be very taxing on my strength, energy, and stress levels because of all the extra driving (as if it wasn't bad enough already--I have about 45 min or so each way on average to/from work, plus the 35-40 or so min to/from chiro... eek!!).

I'm not sure what to do about all of this sometimes... I don't think most "normal" people understand just how exhausting and difficult and overwhelming this entire process can be (no offense, I know they all mean well, I just mean they don't know/understand in the same way because they haven't experienced it). I want to feel better... but the process itself can be very, very taxing. I do the best that I can and pray for strength and grace each and every day.

To my close friends and family, thanks for your understanding and patience as I work toward feeling better, at my own pace and what works best for me under these circumstances.

1 comment:

~~Deby said...

I sure do KNOW how this is...a doctor I had previously, and had gone to for about 3 years...well one day I asked him, "Frankly how do you feel about fibromyalgia, do you feel it is real"?....he said since you asked, "NO"---well....months later his wife was diagnosed with it, his opinion CHANGED.....my frustration is finding a doctor that knows all the nuances we get with this......
it is indeed frustrating and yet I think the day will come where it will have good research and people will know that it is indeed a auto-immune disease etc...
Blessings and God's guidance to you as you find good medical care, Rochelle.
Deby