you know what i find infuriating? when you see a healthcare professional, you have to walk a very thin line as you talk about your symptoms and conditions
if i don't baby myself down and use smaller words or talk as if im unaware of parts of my condition (which i am very knowledgeable about) they will dismiss my concerns, assuming im a "google doctor" hypochondriac rather than an intelligent disabled person
i asked my intake nurse at an urgent care today (waited 3 and a half hours for a uti diagnosis btw) what specialist she would recommend for my joint dislocations because they were staying out longer and it hurts
she looked at me and said "Oh I don't know sweetie. I thought you were going to say arthritis, but there's a very long word for what your joints are doing."
ma'am....i know what a subluxation is i just wanted a provider recommendation
honestly as soon as you let them know you're disabled they assume you are just a dumb sweet little baby and the moment you demonstrate any medical understanding of a condition YOU HAVE they get combative and will actively work against your attempts to receive adequate care
and in this case, i apparently did not act "stupid" enough, because they failed to tell me a word i already knew, or that my lab results even confirmed my uti, much less that it was severe enough to be with hematuria- i had to ask for confirmation after she rattled off the prescriptions she was sending and read my discharge papers for my full diagnosis
tl;dr Healthcare providers: stop treating chronically ill and disabled patients like they are not smart enough to be engaged with like the adults that they are
(this includes people with mental and learning disabilities too)
