Most of you know these things, as do I. Yet I blew it last week, & so often hear of misdiagnoses, so I think it's worth saying if it helps even one reader. When you go to the doctor or vet, be prepared to calmly state why you're there, what symptoms you're seeing. You need as much detail as possible. It's really good to take notes ahead of time, take them in with you. You may also need to take notes of what the doctor says. All of this is especially true when it comes to a new doctor, or taking a cat to the vet for anything that's not routine.
I'll cover cats first & quickly. Cats mask their symptoms until it's often too late or critical. This is in their genes because any weakness shown in the wild makes them attractive prey. In all the years I got "Cat Fancy" magazine, there were frequent articles about knowing your cat & noting changes in behavior. Often that's the only way to know when something went wrong, changed. It can be so subtle & you don't know it's a sign that anything is wrong. But if you truly pay attention to your cat you'll be able to recount progression.
Progression or a time line of symptoms or changes is important in humans & animals. A medical professional always wants to know when & how long. This is where taking notes ahead really comes in handy. Time of day can matter too. Anything & everything you notice may be pertinent.
And please don't wait until there are several problems or things appear to be severe. By then, they usually are. Going as soon as you're sure there's a problem is the thing to do. I know it can be expensive but not taking care of things in time can lead to much worse.
With pets you also need to be prepared to make decisions & set limits. Whenever I chose a new vet, if I got one who was less into true care of the animals, it was a one-time visit. I've always chosen those whom I can talk with & then stuck with them until I moved or they moved on. When it's come down to critical care I've been able to ask what he would do if this was his pet. Vets usually lay out 3 options - no treatment, invasive treatment & middle of the road. When asked, they've always told me they'd go for the middle of the road & that was what my gut was telling me. Only once was it the wrong decision, a cat with cancer that was so far gone that I'm really sorry I put him through exploratory surgery first. We couldn't have known because he had been sickly for years, but it still broke my heart. We had to put him to sleep the day the stitches would have come out. I could have opted to have those stitches out & worked to keep him alive for another few weeks but that would have been needlessly cruel. As their guardians it's up to us to make the tough decisions.
Last week I went to a new doctor & was entirely misdiagnosed because I was in a dither. One problem was poison ivy or some other allergic reaction & because I was babbling & nervous, I was misdiagnosed! This was a clinic on a bus line & I guess they see a lot there. Instead of listening to me, they drew incorrect conclusions about that & my other complaint. The doctor prescribed some very expensive medicine that wouldn't have done the job so I would have been doubly messed up because of this.
I went home & researched what she said was wrong with me on the computer. I asked a nurse friend of mine calmly. Then I got a second opinion. The second time I was calm & informed. The doctor listened entirely, & said yes, I'm presenting an allergic reaction to something. It may not actually be poison ivy although I'm pretty sure that's what the little vine with red hairy feet was. But it's a reaction to an allergen so the treatment is the same, & it's actually beginning to clear up. We're working on a diagnosis for my other physical problem as well, & I'm now in good hands.
Women seem to encounter being misdiagnosed more often than men. "Female complaints" can be hard to diagnose at times. I've heard over & over that women make better gynecologists than men because they listen better. However, in Maryland I had a male gynecologist who was tops. When he didn't know something he went home & studied, then talked with me afterwards. He always truly listened, too. That's why I stuck with him. Then there are the things like fibromyalgia that were misdiagnosed for years. Women have to sometimes be extremely assertive with doctors, & go in armed with facts & research. Know your bodies. When you know there's really something wrong rather than "just stress," make sure he or she is listening & takes you seriously. Pursue it until you get an answer that makes sense to you. Then, if the cure isn't doing the job or is causing further complications, go back & do it again. Start over with another doctor if you need to. Sometimes there are alternative medicines to try & the diagnosis wasn't wrong. But if in your heart you know something's wrong that isn't really being addressed, you've got to be insistent. So many take doctors as the authorities & swallow all they say, consider them experts. Be the expert yourself when it comes to your own body & make sure you convey that.
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