Idk who needs to hear this but
You are literally allowed to walk out of a doctor's office and never come back. You're allowed to self advocate and say "I don't know why you think that's acceptable to say to a patient". You can say "I'm not going to take this"
Which I know is probably obvious and also, extremely difficult to do on the spot. And if you paid a copay, it's even harder because it feels like a waste of money. I think if you're paying to be treated like shit that's not getting your money's worth.
I'm talking about like, genuine disrespect, neglect, malpractice, or true discomfort. Including but not limited to:
Inappropriate comments or demeanor. Ofc there's the obvious crazy "holy shit a doctor just said that?" Comments but I also mean "Well MAYBE if you lost weight you wouldn't have to be on heart medication 😒" "Kinda funny how everyone claims to have POTS lately..."
Poor bedside manner. "I doubt you're in that much pain all the time" "Sometimes in life you need to suck it up. It's not a scary procedure" "It's just a shot, you're not 4 calm down"
Treating you like an addict for needing/requesting a controlled substance. Not like "hey I'm concerned, do you need addiction resources or are you good?" But interrogating you or denying you something that would improve your quality of life on the basis that they are suspicious of your intentions. Some doctors just don't feel comfortable prescribing some things in general and that's one thing, your gp probably won't give you anxiety meds but if they give you an attitude and act like you're trying to fool them, they're an asshole.
Assuming you're lying about your symptoms/conditions. Not as in, you didn't meet the criteria and didn't get diagnosed (you're allowed to get a second opinion) but "Yeah lately everyone seems to think they have chronic fatigue syndrome" "if you truly had (condition) you'd be doubled over in pain right now" "Do you know how rare that actually is? I've met like, 3 patients with it"
Being way out of their lane. Your rheumatologist should not be saying "Is there an actual reason you're depressed? It doesn't look like you've tried every option"
That "I'm the one with the degree so stop talking and listen" attitude. Iykyk.
Not following protocol or respecting your comfort or needs.
Being clearly ignorant when it comes to the issue you're there for. Things like a therapist that tells you dissociative disorders aren't real, that personality disorders are a reflection of your character, or "yeah I can tell by how you're talking to me right now, you're clearly not autistic"
And if it feels wrong, like really wrong, trust yourself. You're allowed to say "nope we're done here".
