Thursday, September 30, 2010

Liking my new-ish doctor

Today I had my annual physical. This is the second time I've been to this doctor. The first time I went was over a year ago and I was pretty miserable about my weight. True, I had Cameron less than 6 months before but I was still breastfeeding and feeling poorly that the weight wasn't coming off. Unlike all those famous people we read about that have no problem. I'm looking at you, Giselle!

This time I prepared myself for a better experience and got one. Sometimes it is really all in your mind but it helps that I've been proactive, not just with my weight, but also coming prepared with a lot of questions.

The last visit I couldn't wait to get out of there so I didn't really notice the good things about the office and my doctor. This time I did. I was called back to the room a few minutes before my appointment. I met with the nurse first and reviewed my recent history plus gave her the list of questions I had for the doctor. She took my stats and then told me that the doctor would be in soon. And guess what, he was! I'm as shocked as you are.

I figure that the office allows for 30 minute per patient. Because I had bunch of questions, plus my fun yearly girl exam, mine took more like 45 minutes. But my doctor never seemed concerned about the time or rushed me. It's kind of weird that he's my age (I'll probably find it weirder as I get older and the doctors are YOUNGER than me) but he was pleasant and I actually felt like I could talk to him more honestly than I even did with by OB.

I'm sure that it helps he gave me major kudos for my weight loss and gave actionable advice for my questions (nothing serious, don't worry!). It was probably one of my better doctor experiences in the past 10 years. So, what do you like/don't like about your primary care physician? Do you find if you don't like someone you try a new doctor or do you just stick with it for convenience? How do you normally find a new primary care physician? I found my doctor through a recommendation of a woman in my mom's group and I'm so glad she told me about him!

Final PSAs: Make sure you go with a list of questions. I jotted them down over the course of a few weeks which really helped. Also, it's flu shot season so even though DH refuses to get one, please get one for you and your kids!

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Please tell DH to get a shot. . . love to you all. . .Mimi

T. said...

Rob refuses to get the flu shot too!! What's with these boys?? I need to change primary care doctors asap, I can't stand mine (I just don't feel comfortable with her), but have avoided making the switch due to laziness.

Anonymous said...

Glad you found a doc you like. I have a PCP that I like as well, although she does tend to run late for appointments. But then again, she's willing to take the time to answer questions and not rush, so that's the other side of the coin. She has also been great about working with me to prescribe medications that are compatible with breastfeeding.

It's not just the boys! I'll skip the flu shot and stick with vitamin D. Last year's overblown swine-flu hype left me with a bad taste in my mouth. Panic that was all for naught, but the pharma companies sure lined their pockets. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/scotland/article7061778.ece