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a day ago
- Health
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24 Times Patients Said "Actually, I Think I Know My Body Better" And Literally Saved Their Own Lives
Healthcare professionals have one of the hardest jobs, and there is a reason they call medicine a "practice," but sometimes, as a patient, you get a diagnosis and something in your gut tells you, "No, something else is wrong." It's important to take medical advice, but it's also important to advocate for yourself, your symptoms, and your treatment plan. These 24 stories from the BuzzFeed Community show just that, where patients got a second opinion, and boy-oh-boy am I glad they did. 1. "My husband was having chest pains and breathing problems. I rushed him to the ER. I was told by the head ER doctor that he was faking it and only wanted pain meds. The resident in training mentioned the gallbladders. The head yelled at us to leave. A couple of days later, we rushed him to the ER. Emergency gallbladder, his was the worst the surgeon had neurotic. If we had waited, just by another couple of days, he would have died." —desert_moonfire 2. "My father is a doctor. His friend is a doctor. They went skiing and took his kids and my older brother and sister (I was too young to go). My sister fell over, screaming in pain. BOTH doctors checked it out and said it was just a sprain and to ski to the bottom of the mountain. My sister refused, and then one of the ski field medics came over. He insisted on taking her on a stretcher. Friends, following an X-ray, it turns out she had broken her FEMUR." —edgycrab59 Related: 3. When I was 11, I had excruciating abdominal pain and fainting. Because these episodes generally happened at school, because I never went anywhere else, every doctor told my parents that I was faking and just didn't want to be at school. I got my period when I was 12, and it was extremely painful, heavy, and irregular. Some months, I would get it three times. After this, every time I went in for fainting and pain, I was told it was just my period, and it was normal. So I stopped going. I learned to deal with it & accepted that my pain was normal. At 14, I was leaving my grandparents' house after 3 days of pain, but didn't say anything because I was used to it. Suddenly, the pain was unbearable & I was screaming, crying, and vomiting. I went to the hospital, and they finally took my pain seriously. Turns out, I had been getting regular cysts on my ovaries and fallopian tubes for years. This particular time, one big one had grown a tail and wrapped around itself, causing this worsened pain. —vibrantbee63 4. "My best friend went to the hospital with extreme stomach pain. They kept telling her it was probably period cramps. She insisted that it was much worse. They then went on to tell her she was probably overreacting. The next day, she went back screaming in pain. Her appendix was about to rupture when they finally took her." —madisonaustin 5. "I spent years with severe cyclical abdominal pain, and was only ever told to take anti-inflammatories for menstrual cramps. Even had two emergency room visits because I thought something was rupturing. I was sent home, and they said it was nothing. Fast forward a few years, and I had stage 4 endometriosis that wrapped around most of my lower quadrant organs. The number of conditions written off as 'just your period' is shocking." —emcatt 6. "As a fat person, and particularly a fat woman, I have so many experiences of being dismissed or misdiagnosed just because of my weight. The worst was a few years back when I was having horrific back and abdominal pain, so bad that I was puking my guts up and crying on the bathroom floor for hours on end on multiple occasions. I went to the ER and was told it was a back spasm caused by excess weight. They gave me a muscle relaxer and sent me on my way. These episodes kept recurring and were getting worse each time. I would have rated each of these experiences at least a 9/10 on the pain scale, but I thought it was just something I was going to have to live with since doctors just kept telling me it was back spasms, telling me to lose weight, and giving me more muscle relaxers… until finally, one of the MANY gallstones that was *actually* causing the issue dislodged and got stuck in the bile duct, giving me pancreatitis that the ER doctor said almost killed me 🙃." —hannah27 7. "My friend was having really bad pain in her upper arm. Went to the doctor, and he gave her pain pills. She still kept having the pain, and nothing helped. Went back to the doctor and happened to see the physician's assistant. She ordered bloodwork, and the doctor got mad about it and yelled at the PA about wasting resources in front of my friend. When the results came back, she had leukemia!" —luckyangel30 8. "Not as serious as some of these, but last year, I started showing signs of thyroid issues. I brought up some of my symptoms to my doctor, but she said I was too young for thyroid problems and didn't need a test. I told her I would still like a test, just in case. Surprise! Thyroid problem! After a couple more tests to rule out Hashimoto's, it turns out it's hypothyroidism, and now I'm on medication and feel mostly better." —lanamarie Related: 9. "My best friend had rods put into her spine (scoliosis) as a kid. At college, she noticed a sore spot on her scar, between her shoulder blades. Then, it popped. She went to the on-campus health center and was told, "You're in college--you were probably drunk and fell over." She went to the local hospital and was quickly diagnosed with a raging spinal infection that necessitated a PICC line for heavy-duty antibiotics and surgery to remove her rods. Fun times." —bookfanatic1979 10. "I was 37 weeks pregnant with my second child when I started suffering from excruciating pain that radiated from my lower back all the way around to the front of my abdomen. After about four hours of debilitating pain, I had my husband take me to the ER, where I was then redirected to L&D since I was so close to my due date. When I got there, a nurse hooked me up to a heart monitor, informed me that I wasn't in labor (which I already knew), and told me that it was just normal pregnancy back pain. Well, it most certainly was not 'normal' since two weeks after my DD was born, I was in the ER with gallstones, which resulted in surgery to remove my gallbladder." —stuckinak 11. "A couple of years ago, I got out of bed, heard a very loud pop/snapping noise, and was immediately hit by tremendous pain in my foot. It didn't go away after an hour, and I couldn't stand, so I rang my doctor, and they reluctantly sent an ambulance, and the EMT said it was probably just a trapped nerve. They took me to the hospital 'just to check,' and assured me it was probably nothing, but an X-ray revealed that I had fractured my foot. They gave me a mumbled apology and a foam shoe thing to cushion my foot to heal, no painkillers. Happened again last year, but this time, the EMT believed me because I was screaming and crying in pain." —retrocrebbon 12. "I got out of bed one night, my knee gave out, and I went down. I heard the pop, but I can't remember how I verbally reacted. I got myself back in bed, and my ankle quickly bruised and swelled. I had to drag myself to go to the hospital. They did X-rays and an exam before they determined it was just a sprain. A couple of days later, I was hurting even worse. I shaved my legs and went back to the same hospital. When they got me back, they looked at the first X-ray and said it was broken." —osubuck182002 Related: 13. "I was a teenager, and I had been seeing a gyno for over four years without a single test or exam done. I bled for months on end and was extremely miserable 97% of the time. He had no problem pumping me full of Depo Provera several times a month. It didn't help. I was just a couple of weeks away from going away to college when I got a second opinion. I had accomplished more in one appointment than in four years. I had a D&C a couple of days later. I had more that happened following my arrival to college. It was embarrassing and humiliating. I ended up having another surgery almost two months after the first. It was mostly exploratory, only to determine I had endometriosis throughout my abdomen, and my appendix needed to be removed." —osubuck182002 14. "One morning, I woke up with excruciating pain under my shoulder blade. I saw my primary care and they told me it was muscular and gave me muscle relaxants. When those didn't work and I found myself constantly nauseous from the pain, I went to the ER about 48 hours later. They refused to even X-ray me, but gave me Vicodin and told me to 'do some stretches.' The next day, I begged an ortho office to take me. They knew as soon as they did an X-ray that I had slipped a disc in my neck between C6 and C7, immediately sent me for an MRI, and had me back in their office all in a matter of hours. The disc in my neck was bulging so much that it was pressing on my spinal cord, causing me to not only have the pain in my shoulder blade but also numbness and tingling as well as no reflexes in my right arm when tested. They immediately scheduled me for surgery the next day. I now have two fused vertebrae and titanium plates in my neck. I could have been paralyzed and still have no idea how it happened." —catielanouette 15. "I was in a severe car accident when I was 18. I had a follow-up with orthopedics due to where the car had hit me. I told the doctor that I took all my pain medication, but my foot was still hurting. At this point, I was not allowed to walk more than a mile a day. He took my foot, bent it down, and I was screaming in pain. He literally looked at me, and said nothing was wrong and to come back in six weeks. So I came back in six weeks and saw his physician's assistant. I told her that I was still having foot problems, and I couldn't put any pressure on it without being in pain. She ended up doing an X-ray of it, came back to me, and said, 'Yeah, your foot is broken...' And at that point, it was too late to do anything." —dancingdeadd 16. "A few years ago, I was having really nasty chest pain. It would come and go every couple of weeks, last for days at a time, and always get worse after physical activity. I could also feel a 'bubbling' sensation in my right side every time I bent over. I had made multiple visits to urgent care, where I was always told that everything was normal on tests and images. Fast forward about a month, and I was still having the pain. I went to a different urgent care, saw a different doctor, and had an X-ray run. They called me about half an hour after leaving the office to say that I had a pneumothorax (essentially, a partially collapsed lung). One round of steroids and a lot of rest later, I was back in action. But if I hadn't listened to my gut and gotten it checked again, who knows what would have happened!" —fillionfan4002 17. "I went to the ER with severe abdominal pain, chills, vomiting, etc. I go in thinking it's my appendix. After 8 hours in the ER, I got an MRI, bloodwork, and an ultrasound, only to get sent home with anti-nausea medication and told to follow up with my primary for food poisoning. I read my discharge papers on the way home. I work in the medical field and knew that my bloodwork indicated an infection, and the MRI showed inflammation in the gallbladder and liver. I ended up back in the ER two nights later. I sat in the waiting room for seven hours, barely able to walk, only to get rushed in emergency surgery after a second ultrasound to get my gallbladder removed. It was double the normal size. My surgeon told me another day that it would have ruptured." —witchboo78843 18. "I had shoulder surgery a few years back. At the time, I was 35. The surgery went well, and I was released the same day. After a few days, I started noticing weakness and slight pain in my left calf, like a charley horse. After a day of this with no relief, no matter how I stretched it or put heat to it, I called my surgeon, concerned because the area I was feeling pain in was warmer than the rest of my leg. I was concerned I had a clot. He had me come in, examined me, and told me it wasn't, and I was too young to fit the profile. Advised me to see my PCP. That evening, the pain was terrible, and I mentioned it to my nephrologist, whom I had a follow-up with for other health issues. He advised me to go to the ER immediately. They found three clots, one in each leg and one in my arm. I spent 2 days in the hospital and was on blood thinners for 6 months." —Nicb1122 19. "I took a hard hit during a hockey game, and immediately after, I could feel that my hip was weaker. I went to my high school's athletic trainer about a day later because I couldn't even walk without being in pain, and they just kind of brushed it off, saying that hip problems are common in hockey goalies (which they are), and they gave me some stretches and drills to strengthen it. Cut to three years later, I was playing college softball, lifting a lot, and my hip was just getting worse. When I did try to stretch it, I didn't actually have any feeling in it. I went to the athletic trainer at my college, and they immediately had an idea as to what it was. They booked me an appointment with an orthopedic doctor who had me get X-rays and a CT scan. I had torn my labrum and needed surgery to repair it. It was torn for so long that they had to shave down a part of the head of my femur to round it back out." —belileemily Related: 20. "I went to a local urgent care for what I thought was a respiratory infection, and the doctor told me it was allergies. He prescribed me an inhaler and told me to take over-the-counter allergy medicine. I went to my primary doctor a few days later and found out it was walking pneumonia." —ejt263 21. "I had this insane depression for about a year and started to develop some weird personality changes. Quickly, I was diagnosed with anxiety/depression/bipolar disorder. I started to develop an intense sensitivity to light and horrible muscle pain. At the time, I was medically getting out of the army and using the VA. My muscle pain/light sensitivity/mood change, and headaches were so intense that I called my doctor several times. She was so annoyed and said it was an f-ing migraine, and my bipolar disorder was causing me to be overly dramatic. I went to two different hospitals the same week with the same result. One morning, I could barely see and couldn't walk. I lost consciousness and went completely blind because my cranial pressure was at 25 when the average is perhaps 15. I was diagnosed with Intracranial hypertension, which basically means your brain mimics a non-existent tumor. I could have fully lost my vision simply because they thought my mental health was making me seek attention." —michellequeiruga 22. "In my early 20s, my knee started swelling, and there was horrible pain no matter what I was doing. I did PT, which didn't help. The orthopedist I saw ran tests and said there was nothing wrong. Since it was swollen, he drew out fluid and injected steroids in that knee, which felt almost as bad as when I broke my leg. Three years passed, and it just kept getting worse, so he finally agreed to take a look surgically to prove nothing was wrong. As I was starting to come out from the anesthesia, he told me my knee was so packed with broken cartilage that he had no idea how I was able to walk. I refused to see him ever again. —ralyn71774 23. "When I was in my early twenties, I broke my hand at the metacarpal bone. A few years later, I fell and landed on my other hand. During the day, it started swelling, hurting, and I couldn't move my fingers - familiar symptoms, so I went to the ER. They did an X-ray, and when the doctor called me in after four hours(!), she didn't even look at me and said that it was just a contusion and to go home. I asked her to please look again at the X-rays since it felt like the last time when I broke my hand. She refused. I asked again, and again, and didn't leave until she rolled her eyes and looked up the X-ray pics again. And lo and behold, she found the fracture, and I got a cast. I know that doctors have tough jobs, and I understand that they have to deal with a lot of annoying people, but it's really frustrating to read all these stories where doctors just disregard patients. —linkamalinka 24. Finally, "A friend of mine, her mom died of breast cancer when she was 4–5 years old. Cut to adulthood, and my friend was so diligent. She started getting mammograms at 18 years old because of her mom; she became a nurse and cared for kids with cancer. She got married, had a few kids, and noticed a hard lump in her breast. She had orange crap coming out of her nipple, and she said the texture felt like an orange. She went to her local doctor, and he said, 'Don't worry about it.' It's due to She had stage 3 breast cancer." —deadzy I'm glad these people got a second opinion and the treatment they needed! Want to share your story? We'd love to hear it in the comments or anonymously in the form below. Also in BuzzFeed: Also in BuzzFeed: Also in BuzzFeed:
Yahoo
a day ago
- Health
- Yahoo
24 Times Patients Said "Actually, I Think I Know My Body Better" And Literally Saved Their Own Lives
Healthcare professionals have one of the hardest jobs, and there is a reason they call medicine a "practice," but sometimes, as a patient, you get a diagnosis and something in your gut tells you, "No, something else is wrong." It's important to take medical advice, but it's also important to advocate for yourself, your symptoms, and your treatment plan. These 24 stories from the BuzzFeed Community show just that, where patients got a second opinion, and boy-oh-boy am I glad they did. 1. "My husband was having chest pains and breathing problems. I rushed him to the ER. I was told by the head ER doctor that he was faking it and only wanted pain meds. The resident in training mentioned the gallbladders. The head yelled at us to leave. A couple of days later, we rushed him to the ER. Emergency gallbladder, his was the worst the surgeon had neurotic. If we had waited, just by another couple of days, he would have died." —desert_moonfire 2. "My father is a doctor. His friend is a doctor. They went skiing and took his kids and my older brother and sister (I was too young to go). My sister fell over, screaming in pain. BOTH doctors checked it out and said it was just a sprain and to ski to the bottom of the mountain. My sister refused, and then one of the ski field medics came over. He insisted on taking her on a stretcher. Friends, following an X-ray, it turns out she had broken her FEMUR." —edgycrab59 Related: 3. When I was 11, I had excruciating abdominal pain and fainting. Because these episodes generally happened at school, because I never went anywhere else, every doctor told my parents that I was faking and just didn't want to be at school. I got my period when I was 12, and it was extremely painful, heavy, and irregular. Some months, I would get it three times. After this, every time I went in for fainting and pain, I was told it was just my period, and it was normal. So I stopped going. I learned to deal with it & accepted that my pain was normal. At 14, I was leaving my grandparents' house after 3 days of pain, but didn't say anything because I was used to it. Suddenly, the pain was unbearable & I was screaming, crying, and vomiting. I went to the hospital, and they finally took my pain seriously. Turns out, I had been getting regular cysts on my ovaries and fallopian tubes for years. This particular time, one big one had grown a tail and wrapped around itself, causing this worsened pain. —vibrantbee63 4. "My best friend went to the hospital with extreme stomach pain. They kept telling her it was probably period cramps. She insisted that it was much worse. They then went on to tell her she was probably overreacting. The next day, she went back screaming in pain. Her appendix was about to rupture when they finally took her." —madisonaustin 5. "I spent years with severe cyclical abdominal pain, and was only ever told to take anti-inflammatories for menstrual cramps. Even had two emergency room visits because I thought something was rupturing. I was sent home, and they said it was nothing. Fast forward a few years, and I had stage 4 endometriosis that wrapped around most of my lower quadrant organs. The number of conditions written off as 'just your period' is shocking." —emcatt 6. "As a fat person, and particularly a fat woman, I have so many experiences of being dismissed or misdiagnosed just because of my weight. The worst was a few years back when I was having horrific back and abdominal pain, so bad that I was puking my guts up and crying on the bathroom floor for hours on end on multiple occasions. I went to the ER and was told it was a back spasm caused by excess weight. They gave me a muscle relaxer and sent me on my way. These episodes kept recurring and were getting worse each time. I would have rated each of these experiences at least a 9/10 on the pain scale, but I thought it was just something I was going to have to live with since doctors just kept telling me it was back spasms, telling me to lose weight, and giving me more muscle relaxers… until finally, one of the MANY gallstones that was *actually* causing the issue dislodged and got stuck in the bile duct, giving me pancreatitis that the ER doctor said almost killed me 🙃." —hannah27 7. "My friend was having really bad pain in her upper arm. Went to the doctor, and he gave her pain pills. She still kept having the pain, and nothing helped. Went back to the doctor and happened to see the physician's assistant. She ordered bloodwork, and the doctor got mad about it and yelled at the PA about wasting resources in front of my friend. When the results came back, she had leukemia!" —luckyangel30 8. "Not as serious as some of these, but last year, I started showing signs of thyroid issues. I brought up some of my symptoms to my doctor, but she said I was too young for thyroid problems and didn't need a test. I told her I would still like a test, just in case. Surprise! Thyroid problem! After a couple more tests to rule out Hashimoto's, it turns out it's hypothyroidism, and now I'm on medication and feel mostly better." —lanamarie Related: 9. "My best friend had rods put into her spine (scoliosis) as a kid. At college, she noticed a sore spot on her scar, between her shoulder blades. Then, it popped. She went to the on-campus health center and was told, "You're in college--you were probably drunk and fell over." She went to the local hospital and was quickly diagnosed with a raging spinal infection that necessitated a PICC line for heavy-duty antibiotics and surgery to remove her rods. Fun times." —bookfanatic1979 10. "I was 37 weeks pregnant with my second child when I started suffering from excruciating pain that radiated from my lower back all the way around to the front of my abdomen. After about four hours of debilitating pain, I had my husband take me to the ER, where I was then redirected to L&D since I was so close to my due date. When I got there, a nurse hooked me up to a heart monitor, informed me that I wasn't in labor (which I already knew), and told me that it was just normal pregnancy back pain. Well, it most certainly was not 'normal' since two weeks after my DD was born, I was in the ER with gallstones, which resulted in surgery to remove my gallbladder." —stuckinak 11. "A couple of years ago, I got out of bed, heard a very loud pop/snapping noise, and was immediately hit by tremendous pain in my foot. It didn't go away after an hour, and I couldn't stand, so I rang my doctor, and they reluctantly sent an ambulance, and the EMT said it was probably just a trapped nerve. They took me to the hospital 'just to check,' and assured me it was probably nothing, but an X-ray revealed that I had fractured my foot. They gave me a mumbled apology and a foam shoe thing to cushion my foot to heal, no painkillers. Happened again last year, but this time, the EMT believed me because I was screaming and crying in pain." —retrocrebbon 12. "I got out of bed one night, my knee gave out, and I went down. I heard the pop, but I can't remember how I verbally reacted. I got myself back in bed, and my ankle quickly bruised and swelled. I had to drag myself to go to the hospital. They did X-rays and an exam before they determined it was just a sprain. A couple of days later, I was hurting even worse. I shaved my legs and went back to the same hospital. When they got me back, they looked at the first X-ray and said it was broken." —osubuck182002 Related: 13. "I was a teenager, and I had been seeing a gyno for over four years without a single test or exam done. I bled for months on end and was extremely miserable 97% of the time. He had no problem pumping me full of Depo Provera several times a month. It didn't help. I was just a couple of weeks away from going away to college when I got a second opinion. I had accomplished more in one appointment than in four years. I had a D&C a couple of days later. I had more that happened following my arrival to college. It was embarrassing and humiliating. I ended up having another surgery almost two months after the first. It was mostly exploratory, only to determine I had endometriosis throughout my abdomen, and my appendix needed to be removed." —osubuck182002 14. "One morning, I woke up with excruciating pain under my shoulder blade. I saw my primary care and they told me it was muscular and gave me muscle relaxants. When those didn't work and I found myself constantly nauseous from the pain, I went to the ER about 48 hours later. They refused to even X-ray me, but gave me Vicodin and told me to 'do some stretches.' The next day, I begged an ortho office to take me. They knew as soon as they did an X-ray that I had slipped a disc in my neck between C6 and C7, immediately sent me for an MRI, and had me back in their office all in a matter of hours. The disc in my neck was bulging so much that it was pressing on my spinal cord, causing me to not only have the pain in my shoulder blade but also numbness and tingling as well as no reflexes in my right arm when tested. They immediately scheduled me for surgery the next day. I now have two fused vertebrae and titanium plates in my neck. I could have been paralyzed and still have no idea how it happened." —catielanouette 15. "I was in a severe car accident when I was 18. I had a follow-up with orthopedics due to where the car had hit me. I told the doctor that I took all my pain medication, but my foot was still hurting. At this point, I was not allowed to walk more than a mile a day. He took my foot, bent it down, and I was screaming in pain. He literally looked at me, and said nothing was wrong and to come back in six weeks. So I came back in six weeks and saw his physician's assistant. I told her that I was still having foot problems, and I couldn't put any pressure on it without being in pain. She ended up doing an X-ray of it, came back to me, and said, 'Yeah, your foot is broken...' And at that point, it was too late to do anything." —dancingdeadd 16. "A few years ago, I was having really nasty chest pain. It would come and go every couple of weeks, last for days at a time, and always get worse after physical activity. I could also feel a 'bubbling' sensation in my right side every time I bent over. I had made multiple visits to urgent care, where I was always told that everything was normal on tests and images. Fast forward about a month, and I was still having the pain. I went to a different urgent care, saw a different doctor, and had an X-ray run. They called me about half an hour after leaving the office to say that I had a pneumothorax (essentially, a partially collapsed lung). One round of steroids and a lot of rest later, I was back in action. But if I hadn't listened to my gut and gotten it checked again, who knows what would have happened!" —fillionfan4002 17. "I went to the ER with severe abdominal pain, chills, vomiting, etc. I go in thinking it's my appendix. After 8 hours in the ER, I got an MRI, bloodwork, and an ultrasound, only to get sent home with anti-nausea medication and told to follow up with my primary for food poisoning. I read my discharge papers on the way home. I work in the medical field and knew that my bloodwork indicated an infection, and the MRI showed inflammation in the gallbladder and liver. I ended up back in the ER two nights later. I sat in the waiting room for seven hours, barely able to walk, only to get rushed in emergency surgery after a second ultrasound to get my gallbladder removed. It was double the normal size. My surgeon told me another day that it would have ruptured." —witchboo78843 18. "I had shoulder surgery a few years back. At the time, I was 35. The surgery went well, and I was released the same day. After a few days, I started noticing weakness and slight pain in my left calf, like a charley horse. After a day of this with no relief, no matter how I stretched it or put heat to it, I called my surgeon, concerned because the area I was feeling pain in was warmer than the rest of my leg. I was concerned I had a clot. He had me come in, examined me, and told me it wasn't, and I was too young to fit the profile. Advised me to see my PCP. That evening, the pain was terrible, and I mentioned it to my nephrologist, whom I had a follow-up with for other health issues. He advised me to go to the ER immediately. They found three clots, one in each leg and one in my arm. I spent 2 days in the hospital and was on blood thinners for 6 months." —Nicb1122 19. "I took a hard hit during a hockey game, and immediately after, I could feel that my hip was weaker. I went to my high school's athletic trainer about a day later because I couldn't even walk without being in pain, and they just kind of brushed it off, saying that hip problems are common in hockey goalies (which they are), and they gave me some stretches and drills to strengthen it. Cut to three years later, I was playing college softball, lifting a lot, and my hip was just getting worse. When I did try to stretch it, I didn't actually have any feeling in it. I went to the athletic trainer at my college, and they immediately had an idea as to what it was. They booked me an appointment with an orthopedic doctor who had me get X-rays and a CT scan. I had torn my labrum and needed surgery to repair it. It was torn for so long that they had to shave down a part of the head of my femur to round it back out." —belileemily Related: 20. "I went to a local urgent care for what I thought was a respiratory infection, and the doctor told me it was allergies. He prescribed me an inhaler and told me to take over-the-counter allergy medicine. I went to my primary doctor a few days later and found out it was walking pneumonia." —ejt263 21. "I had this insane depression for about a year and started to develop some weird personality changes. Quickly, I was diagnosed with anxiety/depression/bipolar disorder. I started to develop an intense sensitivity to light and horrible muscle pain. At the time, I was medically getting out of the army and using the VA. My muscle pain/light sensitivity/mood change, and headaches were so intense that I called my doctor several times. She was so annoyed and said it was an f-ing migraine, and my bipolar disorder was causing me to be overly dramatic. I went to two different hospitals the same week with the same result. One morning, I could barely see and couldn't walk. I lost consciousness and went completely blind because my cranial pressure was at 25 when the average is perhaps 15. I was diagnosed with Intracranial hypertension, which basically means your brain mimics a non-existent tumor. I could have fully lost my vision simply because they thought my mental health was making me seek attention." —michellequeiruga 22. "In my early 20s, my knee started swelling, and there was horrible pain no matter what I was doing. I did PT, which didn't help. The orthopedist I saw ran tests and said there was nothing wrong. Since it was swollen, he drew out fluid and injected steroids in that knee, which felt almost as bad as when I broke my leg. Three years passed, and it just kept getting worse, so he finally agreed to take a look surgically to prove nothing was wrong. As I was starting to come out from the anesthesia, he told me my knee was so packed with broken cartilage that he had no idea how I was able to walk. I refused to see him ever again. —ralyn71774 23. "When I was in my early twenties, I broke my hand at the metacarpal bone. A few years later, I fell and landed on my other hand. During the day, it started swelling, hurting, and I couldn't move my fingers - familiar symptoms, so I went to the ER. They did an X-ray, and when the doctor called me in after four hours(!), she didn't even look at me and said that it was just a contusion and to go home. I asked her to please look again at the X-rays since it felt like the last time when I broke my hand. She refused. I asked again, and again, and didn't leave until she rolled her eyes and looked up the X-ray pics again. And lo and behold, she found the fracture, and I got a cast. I know that doctors have tough jobs, and I understand that they have to deal with a lot of annoying people, but it's really frustrating to read all these stories where doctors just disregard patients. —linkamalinka 24. Finally, "A friend of mine, her mom died of breast cancer when she was 4–5 years old. Cut to adulthood, and my friend was so diligent. She started getting mammograms at 18 years old because of her mom; she became a nurse and cared for kids with cancer. She got married, had a few kids, and noticed a hard lump in her breast. She had orange crap coming out of her nipple, and she said the texture felt like an orange. She went to her local doctor, and he said, 'Don't worry about it.' It's due to She had stage 3 breast cancer." —deadzy I'm glad these people got a second opinion and the treatment they needed! Want to share your story? We'd love to hear it in the comments or anonymously in the form below. 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WebMD
18-07-2025
- Health
- WebMD
10 Things I Wish People Knew About Life With Psoriatic Arthritis
When I first heard the words 'psoriatic arthritis,' I didn't fully understand how much it would change my life. Like most people, I thought arthritis was something that happened when you were older. I assumed it was mostly about hand pain, maybe stiff knees, a little trouble getting up in the morning, nothing too life-changing. But what I've come to learn is that psoriatic arthritis is a full-body, life-altering, invisible illness that reshapes how you move through the world. And honestly? Most people don't really understand it. I don't say that with bitterness. I say it because I used to be one of those people. And now, after years of living with PsA, I find myself wishing there was a little more awareness, a little more patience, and a little less guessing. Here are 10 things I wish people knew about life with psoriatic arthritis. 1. It's More Than Just Joint Pain When people hear 'arthritis,' they tend to picture sore knees or aging hips. They don't picture someone in their 20s struggling to open a water bottle or hold up a gallon of milk. Psoriatic arthritis affects my whole body. The joint pain is real and it shows up in my hands, my knees, my spine, but it's only one part of the story. PsA also comes with skin flares, tendon pain, eye inflammation, brain fog, and fatigue so heavy it feels like gravity tripled overnight. I remember one morning when I couldn't button my jeans because my hands just wouldn't work. I sat on the floor and cried, not because of the pain, but because I couldn't even get dressed by myself. No one prepared me for the everyday ways my body would start working against me and how much more help I would need. 2. It Can Happen at Any Age When I tell people I have arthritis, I often get the same surprised reaction: 'But you're too young to have that!' Psoriatic arthritis doesn't check your birthdate before it shows up. I was diagnosed in my 20s, at a time when I was supposed to be building momentum, chasing opportunities, and saying yes to life. Instead, I was learning how to pace myself and how to sit with loss. I get why people are surprised because our culture tends to associate arthritis with the elderly. But chronic illness doesn't have an age limit. Sometimes, it walks into your life just as you're getting started. 3. It's an Invisible Illness Some days, I can look completely fine while my body is quietly unraveling underneath. One time I pushed through a brunch with friends while my hips and lower back were screaming. I smiled through the meal, made small talk, but spent the entire time wondering if I'd be able to walk back to my car without limping. PsA is invisible. You can't see my pain, you can't see my fatigue, and that can make it harder for people to understand. There's no visual marker that says, 'This is hard for me today.' Sometimes, the hardest part isn't the pain, it's accepting my limitations. 4. Fatigue Is Not Just Being Tired There's tired, and then there's psoriatic arthritis fatigue. This isn't the kind of tiredness that a nap can fix. It's a deep, body-wide exhaustion that can sneak up without warning and without a reason. I've had days where brushing my hair felt like a full workout. I've had days where I couldn't keep my eyes open after a simple grocery run. Often, I sit in my car gathering the energy just to go from the car to the front door. The worst part? Sometimes I'll wake up even more tired than when I went to bed. There's no guaranteed reset from even the best sleep. 5. Flare Days Are Real I wish people understood how wildly unpredictable psoriatic arthritis can be. One day, I can feel almost normal. The next, I might not be able to get out of bed. The swings are fast, and they don't always give warning. I've had to cancel plans at the last minute, leave grocery carts half-full, and cut workdays short because a flare came out of nowhere. It's not about flakiness, it's about a body that makes the rules without telling me. I have to adapt accordingly and fast. Sometimes I feel guilty or angry, but mostly I just wish my body would keep me in the loop. 6. The Mental Toll Is Heavy Living with PsA is more than a physical challenge. It's also an emotional one. There's grief over the things I've had to let go: hobbies I can't do anymore, spontaneous trips I no longer plan, long walks I have to think twice about. There's anxiety about when the next flare will hit. Wondering if my medication will stop working or worrying if I will be OK the day of my wedding. Will I be able to dance that day? Or will I be sitting that one out? I've sat with this grief quietly. I've cried in parking lots. I've worked hard to find joy where I can. Therapy, community, and honest conversations have helped, but this is a mental load I carry every day. 7. Medications Help, but They're Not Magic When people hear I'm on medication, they sometimes assume I'm 'better.' I understand why — it's comforting to believe that medicine fixes things. But the truth is medications can help manage symptoms, but they don't cure psoriatic arthritis. Even on the best days, I'm still working around pain, stiffness, and fatigue. Finding the right medication is often a long, exhausting process. I've switched treatments, dealt with side effects, waited months for something to finally (maybe) work. There's progress, but I'll never be back to 'normal.' 8. It Can Impact Work and Relationships PsA doesn't clock out at 5 p.m. It touches every part of life. I've worried about being seen as unreliable when I needed to take time off or calling out sick too much. I've fought with companies to get accommodations that allow me to do my work. I've watched friendships slowly fade because I had to say 'no' too many times in a row. But I've also been lucky to have people who stayed. Friends who texted 'no pressure, but I'd love to see you.' Co-workers and managers who believed me. Those people have made all the difference. 9. Self-Advocacy Is Constant Living with psoriatic arthritis means I have to speak up for myself — a lot. Whether it's asking for accommodations, pushing for treatment approvals, or simply explaining what I need to my partner, self-advocacy has become part of daily life. Sometimes it's empowering. Other times, it's exhausting. I've had to fight insurance companies, challenge assumptions, and remind myself that I'm worthy of care. There's a weight to always having to explain yourself, but the more we talk about it, the easier it becomes for the next person. 10. What Actually Helps People often ask how they can support someone with a chronic illness. The answer is simple: Believe us. Believe us when we say we're tired, even if we look fine. Believe us when we cancel plans, even if we were OK yesterday. Believe us the first time we say we're struggling. What helps the most isn't grand gestures – it's flexibility, patience, and the quiet message that we're not a burden. A 'thinking of you' text. An invitation with no pressure. A friend who sticks around. Those small things are what carry me on the hardest days. Final Thoughts Living with psoriatic arthritis has changed me. It's slowed me down in ways I didn't expect. It's taught me to listen to my body, to be patient with myself, and to ask for help even when it's uncomfortable. There's grief in this life, but there's also gratitude – for the people who understand, for the days when my body feels manageable, for the moments I still get to enjoy. If you've made it this far, thank you for taking the time to understand a little more about what life with PsA looks like. And if you're living this life too – I see you, I get it, and you're not alone.
Yahoo
29-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Cancer is a 'family affair,' says researcher calling for more support
A cancer researcher and advocate wants the Newfoundland and Labrador government to offer more support for cancer patients and their families. Sevtap Savas, a professor at Memorial University, recently co-authored an article on ways Atlantic Canada's governments can improve cancer care, through her work with Atlantic Cancer Consortium Patient Advisory Committee. From that study, she said health-care systems can do more to treat cancer patients as individuals by looking at their unique circumstances, which is called precision medicine. "It's the approach in medicine where we want to prevent diseases, conditions or treat them more precisely so that, you know, the outcomes will be better, treatment success will be better," she told CBC News. Out of their research, Savas said they heard from family members of cancer patients about the associated costs of a cancer diagnosis. "Treatment is just one part of [the] cancer journey, and it's just focusing on one person who is patient. But there are people around patients, right," she said. "Cancer is actually a family affair." She wants people to be able to tap into more resources that can help with financial, emotional, social and other supports. While there are supports available, like peer support services, Savas said many people don't know about them, which is why she wants the provincial government to promote the services. In December, the Canadian Cancer Society released a report estimating cancer costs an average patient approximately $33,000 across their lifetime — including out-of-pocket expenses and lost income during treatment and recovery. Savas says that cost is another burden on an already struggling family, "because our health-care system does not cover everything." She pointed to the cost of hospital parking or child care. People interviewed as part of their research highlighted the costs not covered by the public health-care system, she added, like how drug coverage can vary by province. "What we need — to get affordable cancer care drugs," Savas said, adding she thinks it should be an initiative taken on by both the provincial and the federal governments. Savas said participants in the research want to see affordability measures brought in by government. "They want everyone to access this, regardless of their geographic location, whether these people are living in urban areas or rural areas or Newfoundland and Labrador or in other provinces," she said. Download our free CBC News app to sign up for push alerts for CBC Newfoundland and Labrador. Sign up for our daily headlines newsletter here. Click here to visit our landing page.
South China Morning Post
28-06-2025
- Health
- South China Morning Post
Appendicitis surgery blunder puts spotlight on Hong Kong public hospital safety
A recent surgical blunder involving a doctor mistakenly removing a patient's fallopian tube instead of her appendix has cast doubt on Hong Kong public hospitals' ability to effectively implement safety protocols and allocate manpower, advocates have said. Caritas Medical Centre revealed the blunder on Friday, which began with a 48-year-old woman being admitted for appendicitis last Tuesday. A higher surgical trainee performed a laparoscopic appendectomy on the patient the next day but wrongly removed her fallopian tube after misidentifying the organ, an error attributed to 'tissue adhesion near the surgical site', according to the public hospital. The mistake was only discovered five days later, on Monday, after the patient's condition failed to improve and a pathology report on Wednesday confirmed the wrong organ had been excised, forcing her to undergo a second operation. The hospital apologised for the incident and requested its department of surgery to undergo a review of its staffing deployment, supervision and coaching, among other aspects. Alex Lam Chi-yau, chairman of patient advocacy group Hong Kong Patients' Voices, described the incident as 'extremely serious' and a throwback to another case in March last year in which a woman's uterus had been wrongly removed due to mishandled lab samples. The Hospital Authority said in March that it would adopt six measures after a series of medical blunders last year. They included building a database to log patients' post-operation wounds.
