Wow. I was just lambasted by my doctor

They just see us as ATMs, OP.

[quote]Ka-ching!

Maybe OP was seeing a GI, but the doctors who spend the most time telling patients to get colonoscopies are PCPs, who don't perform the procedure and have no financial skin in the game.

Did you not sit well? What was up your ass when you went in to see him?

I dumped a cardiologist simply because of him treating me like his fucking child and lecturing me about my weight, eating habits, yada, yada, yada.

I'm 71, don't smoke or drink, don't use any drugs, walk 4 miles 3x week, still lift 2/3 x/week and this jack ass was treating me like one of those freaks on My 600 Pound Life because I'm overweight. Fuck him.

And, OP, if you have colon cancer or some other ailment that could have been caught by having the procedure, you can always blame the doctor or sue him, because that's the American way. The posters sound like a bunch of straight men who know better than their doctors. If they're are told to do something, they say that it's just a money grab. How heterosexual.

OP Why did you wait? Why are you pissed off at the doctor and not yourself?

Funny that the focus is on what the doctor said, not what you didn't do.

Have you at least been doing yearly mail-in poop screenings, OP? If so, I would be more likely to side with you in this.

Fuck that doctor right up his ass, OP!

I don't believe the hype that this procedure is so miraculously life saving. I know 0 people who have had or died of colon cancer. I am 62 and have no plans of ever getting this procedure done.

On the one hand, if he were trying to emphasize your getting preventative testing more broadly, I can see discussing waiting for so long. On the other hand, you don't own a time machine, so it's futile.

However, one of my closest friends recently died of colon cancer. Had he gotten tested on the suggested schedule, they may have caught it in time. It's relatively treatable when caught early through such things as a colonoscopy.

Your doctor, like most of them, needs to get better people skills. It's one thing to hector someone about taking their blood pressure medication or watching their diet if they're diabetic. It's another to lecture someone about something that can't be changed.

R8

My FIL had colon cancer. He survived but it was found during a colonoscopy. Why are you so against getting one?

Why do doctors always assume that we all want to do absolutely everything to ensure we live the longest life possible? I’m 60 and I’m kinda hoping I’ve shuffled off this mortal coil by 70.

[quote] I know 0 people who have had or died of colon cancer.

Yet it occurs.

Chadwick Boseman, who played King T’Challa in Black Panther and baseball legend Jackie Robinson in 42, died of colon cancer in 2020 at only age 43.

Pelé, the Brazilian soccer legend and three-time World Cup champion, died of colon cancer in December 2022 at age 82.

Comedic actress Kirstie Alley, who won multiple Emmy and Golden Globe awards for her roles on the popular NBC sitcoms Cheers and Veronica’s Closet, died of colon cancer in December 2022 at age 71

Charles Schulz wrote his last “Peanuts” strip in November 1999 following his diagnosis of colon cancer. He passed away shortly after in February 2000.

Audrey died from the disease in 1993.

Elizabeth Montgomery’s cancer was diagnosed in 1995, and surgery revealed that the disease had already spread. She died just 8 weeks later.

Still there is no point in berating anybody for what has not already been done. Just schedule the procedure for the patient and move on.

OP, I had a doctor bitch me out once for getting a random infection of my heart lining, which I could not have had anything possible to do with.

I changed doctors immediately; I suggest you do the same.

Why is this barbaric procedure still being done on people in 2023?

[QUOTE] Audrey died from the disease in 1993.

Is that Audrey Rose you're talking about?

What's barbaric about it?

I think Audrey was some drag performer.

"Why is this barbaric procedure still being done on people in 2023?"

MARY!

Audrey Hepburn

I had it too.

Get another doctor, just move somewhere else. I have had a seriously horrible GP who even made me feel homicidal - there are better ones.

My MAGAt sister, so anti-science, finally got her colonoscopy. She was almost in tears that her delay hadn’t been adversely consequential.

I'm alive and well.

[QUOTE] She was almost in tears that her delay hadn’t been adversely consequential.

Explain.

What’s done is done, no reason to lecture you about what you did or didn’t do in the past.

Entitled middle-aged, white guy thread. Doesn't matter what sex or gender you like to fuck, you're all insufferable in the same way. Want colon cancer? Fine, knock yourselves out. You have all the thanks I have to give.

R26 = TWOC

I guess it depends on how OP's doctor approached the situation. "Lecture" is different from "lambasted." I can see a doctor pointing out that OP should have started earlier with the colonoscopies.

The past really doesn’t exist. It only existed as it was happening. My mom, who I loved, and who was a good mom, but not perfect, started lecturing me about what I didn’t do, did, should have, could have done, when I was still in my teens. Sometimes it was hard to focus on the present or future, around her. It made me feel very bogged down and stuck. Your doctor should be discussing what you need to do from this day on.

Bite back.

Your doctor is right, of course, about what you should have done, but there comes a point where a lecture about things you might have done better in retrospect becomes more about him and less about you.

You might have chosen a more intellectually and monetarily rewarding career path. You might have chosen better points in time at which to buy and sell property or make investments. You might have decided against that ski trip that fucked up your knee for years after. But you didn't.

Interrupt him. Tell him that he has your attention now and you will schedule a colonoscopy at the earliest opportunity but that you don't want to be scolded further for what you didn't do. You prefer to focus on what you can do from this point on.

If he reacts poorly to that --and he shouldn't-- schedule your colonoscopy and begin searching for a better physician.

OP, you should have said "Up yours!"

Get anal cancer, and nothing will "sit well with you."

Ok fine, colon cancer, but that didn't work as well.

Of course, since the OP is so averse to doing anything proactive for his health, what might have been, " You know, you should have had a colonoscopy before this," sounded like a lambasting. Or, perhaps, the OP is a real jerk who deserved the "tough" approach.

I'd say you've got a good doctor, OP...one who takes the time to tell you you did something wrong.

I grew up in a family of physicians...each one of them bent over backwards to make sure their patients received the best care.

I had a physician who lectured me about cholesterol levels, blood pressure, alcohol consumption, the extra pound or two I carried...the whole nine yards. She was one of the most caring doctors I've come across. She retired. I cried.

Took my mother to some specialist once for eye care. It was like a factory. The doctor examined her, diagnosed her, and wrote a prescription. No personality and no interaction with her except to give her directions.

Count yourself lucky, OP

Either way, when all is said and done, you're dealing with an asshole.

You should have told him to “blow it out your ditty bag”.

[QUOTE] She retired. I cried.

MARY!!!

Be grateful that you have a Dr. that cares. So many are doing this as a 9 to 5 job anymore and don't really care. I have one Dr. that told me he couldn't help me anymore even though I was in so much pain. He had no desire to try and find a solution and just walked away. I have another one that is so insecure in her profession that she will only recommend a specialist to deal with any problem I have. Even when I showed her a basal cell cancer I had on my nose she wouldn't tell me what she thought it was, just that I needed to see a dermatologist. I told her I had but he said it was a mole and I didn't think it was. I could see that that upset her but she still wouldn't say what she thought it was. I had another Dr. that had me get an x-ray for something, said nothing about it and sent me to a specialist. After seeing the specialist he said something about my emphysema and I said What? I wasn't even there for that and didn't know I had it. I asked my PC why he hadn't told me and he said well, that wasn't what we were examining you for and no one ever stops smoking when I tell them anyway. I told him I DID stop the next week after finding out and then I dumped that Dr.

He only treated you like that because he was frustrated that you weren't doing preventative measures. BE GRATEFUL you have a good Dr.

Fuck that shit, call patient relations and complain. These doctors need to stop power tripping. As long as you're getting your preventive measures taken now, the future is what should matter.

Right on R40.

OP, if that lecture didn't sit well with you just wait until you have the colonoscopy.

Your doctor may be burned out. I once had a pcp tell me off about asking for antibiotics for a viral infection. I hadn’t asked for anything, I was there because a bad chest cough had not improved in several weeks. A few weeks later, I received a letter from his office announcing that he had decided to pursue other career opportunities. Suddenly his odd reaction to my routine office visit for a stubborn cough made more sense.

Yeah, the problem here was the doctor's tone and not a 62 year old (who can read and write) waiting that long for a first colonoscopy. I wonder if OP considers the trauma that doctor has experienced with patients who didn't take his advice, didn't follow through with scheduled procedures, and then were dead well before they hit 62. But hey, you're getting it. Good for you.

Special idiot shoutout to R1.

[quote] I asked my PC why he hadn't told me and he said well, that wasn't what we were examining you for and no one ever stops smoking when I tell them anyway. I told him I DID stop the next week after finding out and then I dumped that Dr

Oooh. I really hate hearing stories like that. This is a bit of a tangent, but advice for anybody dealing with a difficult doctor. If they don’t tell you something that they should’ve, if you request a referral or exam and they tell you that you don’t need it, ask them to document that in your visit notes. Tell them that they need to include that you requested a specific test and they declined to order it or that you were not informed of a diagnosis from a previous visit. They’re supposed to document comments like that. And I promise you, the second you ask, there’s about a very good chance you will get that referral or test ordered. Because once it’s in your medical record, if anything happens, that is evidence of malpractice.

Whenever anybody tells me they had a bad experience like that, that’s what I tell them to do.

R12 . . .

“When she was diagnosed with cancer of the appendix in 1992, Audrey Hepburn showed true grace. In PEOPLE's new cover story about the iconic star's private world, her friends and family reveal that in her final days, Hepburn thought more about her loved ones than she did about herself and her illness.“

I contradicted my thirtysomething cardiologist when he said that very few people die of heart attacks these days, with the widespread use of catheterizations, stents and medications.

Your doctor is an asshole, OP. Why be critical AFTER the deed? He should be praising you for finally seeing the light and getting a colonoscopy.

Is lambasted a new euphemism for cornholed?

I always liked Jane. Never shy about her teeny titties.

OP You deserve it. You sound silly and shallow and easily offended. This is not your sales clerk at Bloomingdales. Doctors are supposed to talk to us about risky behavior, diet, lack of exercise, smoking, and generally scare the daylights out of us. Who else is going to tell the truth?

I agree with R51. Do you really want to have a physician who doesn't have your best interests at heart? The fact that at 62 you take to DL to complain about it (not to mention the fact you've avoided a colonoscopy until now) indicates you really need to grow up OP.

R11 "Why do doctors always assume that we all want to do absolutely everything to ensure we live the longest life possible?"

That's how they're trained. And if you don't want to ensure you live the longest life possible, don't go to see them. Let them treat the people who want to live.

R53 I would also add that r11 seems to think perhaps you eat poorly and smoke and abstain from lab tests and abracadabra: a few years are subtracted from your lifespan. No, you develop COPD and heart disease and your quality of life declines/plummets.

Google where he lives and set fire to his house.

OP, you didn’t ask for the anal probe.

[quote] That's how they're trained

I agree with you completely, but not trained to shame or humiliate people into taking care of themselves, like OP’s doc.

The medical profession is updating its colonscopy guidance. They want people to start the cologuard screening test much earlier because advanced colon cancer is being found in younger and younger patients. The new recommendation is first colonoscopy at 45 for average risk patient, but if nothing is found, spread them out to 10 years apart, with the final one perhaps at 75. However, if you have a family member with colon cancer (and now I've had two, my mom and my sister), they recommend starting earlier and possibly scheduling them every 3 years depending on what they find. I had my first at age 40, and this thread is very topical, as I'm having my 7th colonoscopy tomorrow. (Just about to start my prep, oh yippee). I've had to have them every 3 years, because they have found small polyps each time I've had them. Rather that than waiting (as my mom did) until a large tumor was almost obstructing the colon. Luckily, she lived through the operation and subsequent treatments.

Kwicher bitchin' and have the damn colonoscopy, OP

[QUOTE] They want people to start the cologuard screening test much earlier because advanced colon cancer is being found in younger and younger patients.

This is happening because more people are barebacking without condoms, due to being on PREP.

OMG , r59. Robert F Kennedy, JR is in the house, folks.

Got any other conspiracy theories you want to share with us, now that you're here?

[quote] I agree with you completely, but not trained to shame or humiliate people into taking care of themselves, like OP’s doc.

OP didn't really say what happened between him and his doctor, only that the doctor "lambasted" OP. I'd need more details.

Re: doctors assuming people want to live as long as possible. The majority of people would like the option for treatment in that vein. They'd like to be informed, at least.

[QUOTE] OP didn't really say what happened between him and his doctor

Yeah it's called doctor patient privilege, Rose. Confidential.

Sometimes patients, especially men have to be challenged to take care of their health. If your dr knows you, he probably knows you're obstinate and must be shamed into doing what is right.

OP, your doctor is not tasked with being your friend. They're your healthcare provider. Candor is necessary.

Gee, how did humans survive 100,000 years without a yearly colonoscopy?

My doctor is very caring and thorough but she relies on studies too much, IMO. My healthcare company provided free at-home stool testing (not Cologuard by name) but she said that those tests won't detect polyps. A colonoscopy is the best way to do that. She also wants me to get a Shingles vaccine (I'm 62 so my childhood vaccinations are probably no longer useful) but I don't feel I need it. I am overweight and know what I need to do. She doesn't 'lambaste' me about it but she knows it would probably help get me off my BP and cholesterol meds. This is something I really want to do as, once I retire, I don't want to spend over $125 per quarter on them. For the most part, my health, or lack thereof, may be up to me.

Be sure you say that on your premature death bed, R66.

R65 However, they died at 30-ish.

[quote] I don't believe the hype that this procedure is so miraculously life saving. I know 0 people who have had or died of colon cancer. I am 62 and have no plans of ever getting this procedure done.

R8, can I have your stuff?

Except for the Vikki Carr albums...I already have those.

[quote] Is that Audrey Rose you're talking about?

W&W, r15.

Yes, 1993 would have been her third death.

[quote]OP didn't really say what happened between him and his doctor, only that the doctor "lambasted" OP. I'd need more details.

Yeah, but I know what lambasted means, and I assume OP does too. And if they were indeed lambasted, that means that they were berated, shamed, humiliated, criticized, or any number of things that their doc shouldn’t have done.

Oh yeah? Well my doctor DISMISSED me!

You go Cosmo R66. Do not listen to bitter pill R67. Just live your life.

R66, dude, get the shingles shots at least. You’re going to regret getting shingles a lot more. You can die a slow, painful death of cardiovascular disease if you want, but shingles is gonna fucking make you wish the cardiovascular disease death happened sooner.

I've changed doctors because of shit like that. Like I ditched the aggressively vegan doctor because I didn't want to deal with that shut, it was actually a "barrier to care". I like my new doctor much better.

[quote] Like I ditched the aggressively vegan doctor because I didn't want to deal with that shut

Was your doc pushing you to become a vegan? That’s not appropriate either. If she works in a clinic or hospital, I would contact the patient relations board and complain. You can also file a complaint with your state medical board, but then it just goes into the bureaucracy and I don’t think anything ever happens with those complaints unless somebody dies.

You're a fucking fool for not getting the shingles vaccine. I avoided it by just dragging my feet until...I got shingles six months after having the scrip for the vaccine! I had it on my face and almost went blind in one eye. Good times!

Boy, I sure told them, huh?

^r66. That’s what I’m talking about.

R74, that sucks but, could you tell Cosmo about the pain?

Fuck, I meant r77. Could you elaborate on the pain for our friend who is choosing not to get the shingles vaccines?

[quote] Yeah it's called doctor patient privilege, Rose. Confidential.

That’s a one-way street. His doctor can’t talk about his patients but a patient can talk about what his doctor told him. He doesn’t mean he has to, but he’s not prohibited by law like the doctor is.

And honestly, I don’t know the full difference between privilege and confidentiality, but I know privilege is legally binding and applied to psychiatrists before HIPAA made confidentiality, which is really just an ethical agreement, a legal requirement. So we just say HIPAA and leave it at that. Informally, we tell people that their information is confidential, and can only be shared with places like the Health department and their insurance company, but I guess technically it’s privileged.

I don’t know. I’m not a psychiatrist. All those guys are crazy anyway. That’s why they went into psychiatry.

What are the risks of that vaccine though?

My doctor didn’t baste my lamb this time. My A1C was 5.9 and my BP was normal. Cholesterol could improve.

OP: Your doctor is right. You were wrong for waiting so long. Perhaps he could improve his bedside manner, but you need to participate in your health care as well.

The key to avoiding diseases and catching illnesses in time is EARLY DETECTION. No one should wait until 62 to get their first colonoscopy...or skin cancer check, diabetes check, high blood pressure, dental work, etc., etc. Maybe all those things don't apply to you, but you get my point. Colonoscopies are essential. So take your doctor's advice. And if you don't like him, then switch doctors. You can also tell him that you don't want to be "lambasted," but that still doesn't mean that you can ignore your health care no matter who your doctor is.

Well, many doctors are assholes. My dad was a surgeon and one of the worst people I have ever known.

And many of the support staff are useless twats as well R84. Why are they always making medical billing mistakes. Too much time on the phone scheduling little Jaiden or Diego's soccer practice, not enough time focusing on the jobs they are PAID to do.

Why are medicals glorified as saints in this society? Need to quit putting them on a pedestal.

[quote]What are the risks of that vaccine though?

Not getting shingles. That the only one you should worry about. Don’t read about vaccine side effects. They report anything that came up as an adverse event or a serious adverse event in a clinical trial as a side effect but they don’t tell you that only 3% of people got it.

Once I turned 65 and had Medicare, which pays for labs while most of ObamaCare doesn't, I decided that my health was my HOBBY. After the Pandemic lockdown, I concluded I am one of those old, single gay curmudgeon who only wants strangers to stay off my gravel.

Since I turned 65, I have had two Abdominal/pelvic CT scans, a year apart. Got my second Cologuard, was positive, and had two subsequent duo-oscopies with a cancerous polyp removal. The first endoscopy showed seven small esophageal ulcers, none cancerous as the biopsies taken. Got a new cardiologist, and I am going in for my third TTE, first with him, and a Carotid echo this month after he put me on a heart monitor for 10 days and then a CT heart angiogram with contrast, copay $80. I see my PCP for my annual physical and blood work. I see his LPRN every six months after for a follow-up of all the blood work. So every six months I get a full followup. I love my LPRN, as we had a discussion about blood pressure and a thickening of my LV Wall on my first TTE. I am now on a baby dose of an angiotensin receptor blocking (ARB) Rx, and my blood pressure is now in the NEW healthy AHA range. (There is NO such thing as Benign Hypertension.) The thickening in my heart has disappeared. The first Abdominal Pelvic CT scan showed inflamed lymph nodes near the neck of my pancreas. After the treatment for the ulcers, they disappeared on the FU scan. I have minor fatty liver. My eGFR has RISEN thirteen points since I lost 110# on Keto/autophagy, so my kidneys are great. And I got a referral to a dermatologist to be screened for skin cancer after I got the PCP to prescribe .1 Retin-A. It is the only med I have to pay for, but Walgreens wheedled it down to $20 a 20gr tube. I can handle that. I used it before, but was wondering how the folks on DL use it?

[quote]My doctor didn’t baste my lamb this time. My A1C was 5.9 and my BP was normal. Cholesterol could improve

Did they tell you you were prediabetic or did you already know that?

The whole doctor's office experience will improve once AI finally eliminates a lot of the support staff jobs at these places. How many useless layers of support staff do these places have to deal with insurnance? AI can do that more efficiently and not make the mistakes these people make. And these staff only stay at the job until they pop out the next baby. Then they quit the job to become a SAHM.

[quote]then a CT heart angiogram with contrast

Those are fun. Have you had one before? It feels like someone lit your head on fire and then your whole body feels like it’s going up in flames but it only lasts a few seconds and then it’s over. I knew it happens and forgot and nobody warned me so I still thought I was about to self combust.

And my A1c continues to drop even lower in the healthy zone. Never was prediabetic, but my grandmother died from a diabetic amputation of a leg with gangrene. Would never happen today. This is what led me to the topic, with my LPRN, about FAMILY HISTORY. Before your next regular visit, DL, take the time to list all the things your family came down with and/or died from and GET THEE TO THY SPECIALISTS.

Final bit of wisdom: All the medical providers are there to PROVIDE service. Make friends with them. My LPRN took a LOT of time with me, asking question after question until the ALGORITHM gave her permission to refer me to a cardiologist. PLUS, she made sure that I did not get a lousy in house cardiologist, but gave me to a NAVIGATOR to get to a great OUT of network cardiologist. They never have enough in-house specialists and will usually refer out of network, covered, with a Navigator. I got my GI the same way. SO talk to your providers, give them as much information as you can and listen to their FUs. Do not die because the Algo won't help you.

[My GI LPRN took an inordinate time with me doing my intake for my Duo-oscopy. She is the reason that they included the endoscopy, as I told he of a history of GRD. They found the 7 ulcers. Plus, I have long forgotten that I had HepB in the early 80s, and she referred me for the HepA/B vaccines, this long after.]

.

R87

R90, it was weird, this time as I got the heat in my groin, I thought I was going to shit rocket fuel. But it lasted only a few seconds and I took control. My previous two had a mild tingling and warmth for a few moments. I'm glad I was prepared.

But it is STARTLING when it comes and goes so fast...AND BREATHE.

.

r87

r89, AI is going to ensure that people die more efficiently.

r87

[quote]Did they tell you you were prediabetic or did you already know that?

I'm diabetic, r88. I've known for years.

- r82

[quote]Never was prediabetic, but my grandmother died from a diabetic amputation of a leg with gangrene. Would never happen today.

Do you mean would never happen to you today? Because it definitely still happens. My diabetic mother with end-stage renal disease died following a fracture and got a serious infection, and her leg became necrotic, and had to be amputated before she died. In 2022.

I am really glad to hear you’re taking such good care of your health, and seeing positive results. I am pretty sure that you’re in the US because you mentioned patient navigators and the American heart association (at least I’m assuming you’re in the US and that’s what you meant by AHA), but you keep mentioning LPRN. We have LPNs and RNs, but I have never heard of an LPRN. I’ve known LPNs who’ve gone back to school to become RNs, but then their degree is RN and they drop the LPN.

But it sounds like you spend a lot of time with them too. Is it possible that you’re talking about a nurse practitioner, an NP? I’m just a little confused.

R94, thanks, I should’ve asked if you were diabetic. You’re doing great if you’re at 5.9. Good luck with your cholesterol and good to hear your blood pressure and HbA1c are doing good.

Thanks, r96. I avoid most sugar and carbs (very little bread, cake, or pizza, among my favorite foods), but I still like to eat regular pasta from time to time. And every now and then, I'll have ice cream. Reading about food in the Fat Whore threads substitutes for eating like a Fat Whore.

[quote]Reading about food in the Fat Whore threads substitutes for eating like a Fat Whore.

Yep, eating healthy is important, but our genetics and office jobs that keep us sedentary 40 hours a week are just as bad for us.

But I am proud of you! Now you’re just a regular old healthy whore! And that’s worth celebrating!

R95. I thought that this barbaric treatment was so last century. I firmly believe that my grandmother would have lived longer than 1952 if she had modern medicine.

r87

R95, just rechecked and she is an ARPN! Advanced Practice Registered Nurses. So many letters, which is why I call those who are not MDs/DOs Medical Providers.

As long as you can prescribe, order tests and refer to specialists, I really do not care what the specific letters of a qualification are. Add PAs to the list. This shows how screwed up medical licensing is. They have promoted Doctors to management supervisors who supervise all the others.

Funny, but when I had my first visit to my Cardiologist, and he asked me many of the same questions that my APRN did. I asked him if he was trying to beat the algorithm, and he said that he was a doctor and as a specialist he had no algos. Something to remember.

r87

My Dad had Shingles so I have an idea how bad it can be. He, too, had it on his face and near his eye. I know I should get the Shingles vax but, right now, I'm choosing not to. I know what the disease is capable of doing to me but I'm going to hold a little a while. Yes, I realize while waiting I could contract the disease.

R62

A patient can share his/her own information but a physician cannot share a patient’s info without written permission from the patient.

What age does the average person get shingles? Over 60 y.o.?

[quote]Did they tell you you were prediabetic or did you already know that?

I told a nurse that I was prediabetic and she responded," Honey, everybody who's not diabetic is pre-diabetic."

Your body your choice R101.

R103, I'm not sure but most people in their 60s probably received the chicken pox vaccine before entering school. It is recommended for those 50 and older. My Dad was in his 80s when he contracted it. He lives in a senior apartment complex (independent living) so it's possible he contracted it from somewhere who lives in the building. He was lucky he didn't contract COVID.

Thank u Cosmo. You're one of the good ones mate.

r106, there WAS NO Chicken Pox vaccine when 60 year-olds were in school!

You make no sense whatsoever in being selectively anti-vaxx and avoiding the shingles vaccine. I'm not trying to convince you of anything because I don't care. I'm just highlighting how people seem to enjoy not using their brain whenever it can actually help them for some reason.

R108, do you enjoy using your brain because it doesn't appear that way. My post specifically says, "I'M NOT SURE . . ." I'm 61 now but remember my siblings getting chicken pox. I don't remember if I ever contracted chicken pox. or if there was a vaccination so sue me. I don't claim to be a medical expert and didn't sign my post "MD."

Do you get vaccinated right away for everything your doctor recommends? If so, that's great and I'm happy for you. Some people take a little more time to do things. And before you ask, yes, I am double-vaxxed against COVID and I received a booster.

If you had a problem with something I posted, fine. Don't be an asshole about it. You could have simply said, "there was no vaccine for chicken pox in the 60s" and I would have thanked you for sharing that information.

Good day, sir.

Yes, the doctor-patient privilege is for the benefit of the patient, not the doctor. The patient is free to share his or her own information. (The doctor's rights are not violated if the patient decides to tell a friend what the patient discussed with the doctor.)

Same with the attorney-client privilege.

One needs time to research the potential risks of any vaccine before taking it.

50s (age) is when people start getting shingles. I've been vaccinated (2 shots, IIRC) and it gave me some peace of mind.

Does insurance pay for the vaccine? I've read that it can top $300.

My insurance did pay for my shingles vaccine.

Not taking advantage of lifesaving colonoscopies - removing the seemingly inevitable polyps that form for many people - is foolish.

No doctor should berate a patient, ever. Even foolish ones.

But it does raise two questions. Why didn't this irresponsible OP have colonoscopies? And why didn't a physician address this over of the prior 12 years?

Don't feel so bad. I also didn't get my first colonoscopy until age 62. I never thought about it and my GP never brought it up. At the strong suggestion of my cousin who is a surgeon I finally got my colonoscopy. As luck would have it I was clean as a whistle. It's not unusual for someone above age 60 to have some abnormality such as a polyp or two or some inflammation, but was fine..

[quote][R103], I'm not sure but most people in their 60s probably received the chicken pox vaccine before entering school.

I was going to let you know in a slightly friendlier way that the chicken pox vaccine wasn’t available until the mid 90s and even though it’s supposed to be highly effective, all three of my sister’s kids were vaccinated and all three still got chicken pox and my sister was contacted by CDC and asked if she would let the kids participate in a study. I was kinda shocked she was contacted.

But now I’m worried because you said you don’t think you had chicken pox and are a bit older. Chicken pox in adults, especially older adults is WAY more serious than in kids and can cause viral pneumonia, blindness, stroke, and death. The good news is since so many kids were vaccinated, the rate in adults has dropped, but it’s not zero and you can still get infected by an adult with shingles. Tell your doc if they don’t already know. They probably assume everyone had chicken pox because almost all of us did as a kid They can check easily with a test and may recommend getting the chicken pox vaccine. It’s recommended for adults who never had chicken pox (but if your brothers had it, you could have had a mild or silent case and the test will tell).

Dude! You’re making me more worried!😆. Please at least tell your doc you don’t recall having chicken pox. Not having had chicken pox and not getting the shingles vaccine is a bad combo!! You can’t get shingles if you don’t have the chicken pox virus, but you can still get chicken pox and you can still get infected by somebody with shingles, so not having had it isn’t really considered a good thing or protective.

If you're 70 and have never had one, then it's time to worry.

[QUOTE] No doctor should berate a patient, ever.

Actually she was lambasted, not berated.

Of course, we have only heard from the obstinate patient; the dr might have a totally different story.

I love vaccinations and they are a benefit of living in a first world nation. I had vaccinations for Shingles, pneumonia, etc. plus of course annual flu and I will take the soon-to-be-introduced annual Covid. I am going to ask my doctor if I need the Hep B vaccine. The new RSV vaccine is for those over 60 and I’m not there yet. Anyone who scoffs at vaccinations is a nitwit.

R121 never met a vaccine she didn't love.

OP also made this EST, along with the Outpatient Surgery nonsense thread:

[quote]I was a victim of human trafficking - Met some young trade at the bar. Took him to the local hourly motel. Went to wash up after the act. When I tried to come back into the hotel room then bathroom door wouldn't budge. I had to smash the door open to get out. It turns out out he took my wallet and disappeared after detaining me against my will.

R121, if you’re a gay man who is sexually active, Heo A and B vaccines are recommended.

you deserved it, you FAT WHORE!

I've never had a colonoscopy and I'm over 70. I have taken the home test every two years however and my doctor says that given that I don't smoke, drink, or eat meat or dairy, and have no history of cancer in my family, that the home test will suffice. And next year I'll be over the age limit.

This from Harvard Health:

Q. I just turned 76 and I'm due for a colonoscopy. Am I old enough to skip this screening test?

A. The answer is likely yes, unless your doctor thinks you should continue for some reason.

^i was gonna tell you to skip what any one hospital or university says and look at the USPSTF recommendations instead, but I had the forethought to click on the link and that’s exactly what Harvard said! So carry on.

That's true -- you don't smoke, drink, and generally live a morally upright life, you don't need to get them.

R126 All four of my grandparents were born between 1888 and 1900 and three of them died by the mid-1960s. My fourth grandparent died in the early 1990s in her early 90s. The only one with a clear cause of death was my grandmother who died in the 1990s. They were all middle to upper middle class and had decent healthcare.

My point is that a lot of family health histories are murky. If someone died by accident, suicide, or murder, that was fairly clear. But an entire range of ailments tended to be massed under cardiac arrest or other general terms. Due to some symptoms and eventual diagnosis, I have been having regular colonoscopies since my mid-40s. During the initial intake (and in regard to family history) I asked my then living parents (they were 80ish) how their parents died and they really did not know. My mother recalled that her own grandmother (who also died in the 1960s) had been felled by something gastrointestinal, but did not know. Was it colon cancer? Perhaps.

You’re fortunate you are in a good margin for skipping colonoscopies. I am not. But to be perfectly honest I have had so many that I do not hate them. The worst part for me is waking up at 5AM to make it to my 7AM appointment.

[quote]you don't smoke, drink, and generally live a morally upright life

What the fuck are you doing on DataLounge?

I would shit all over him.

R128 "That's true -- you don't smoke, drink, and generally live a morally upright life, you don't need to get them. '

Tell that to my great aunt who never smoke or drank but died of colon cancer at age 67.

R132, Bet she ate red meat.

R128, I’m pretty lucky to know not only my grandparents history, but also most (well half. My mom’s side) of my extended family’s history. And this isn’t colonoscopy related. It’s about a really shitty thing an insurance company did to my cousin more than 15 years ago. She is very fair (we all are) and she’s had something crazy like 6 different small skin cell cancers removed over multiple years, so when her doctor found out that our aunt (her and my mom’s sister) died of breast cancer before 30 and our grandmother developed breast cancer very late in life, they recommended genetic testing. Her insurance absolutely refused to pay for it unless her mom got tested first, because it was her sister and mother who were one degree separated. And she wouldn’t even though her insurance would cover it. My cousin, my mom and another aunt were pleading with her to just get the test and she was so terrified of finding out the results that she wouldn’t do it. They made ME call her and talk to her which I didn’t want to do and was an awful, awkward conversation and she broke down in tears and I had to tell my mom she’s just too scared to find out she has the gene and I couldn’t even get her to say she would consider it. So my cousin never got tested.

You all know how this story ends. A couple years later my cousin was diagnosed with breast cancer and opted to have a double mastectomy. But if she’d been able to have that test, she would’ve opted for prophylactic mastectomy rather than waiting to actually get it and risk it spreading. She’s definitely 5 years past treatment and it has not spread as far as I know (but she probably has had another basal cell carcinoma removed since then) and her mother was devastated but nobody blamed her. She was traumatized losing a sister and terrified. They blame the insurance company. So my aunt almost certainly has the mutation, but she’s much older and probably not interested in or recommended for preventative mastectomy And my cousin has two young daughters and one has been tested and the other is too young still. My cousin and I grew up like siblings more than cousins, so I call her daughters my nieces unless I have to explain they’re actually first cousins first removed or however all that works. I’ve never figured that all out and kinda don’t care about the nomenclature as long as I can understand the relationship.

It was such a preventable situation and insurance companies still suck, but at least they’ve gotten better in terms of coverage (if not cost) since the ACA. My sister was able to get tested and was in the same position my cousin was in, but she doesn’t have a mutation.

That was a way too long way of saying, if somebody suggests you get a preventative test, get that preventative test. It’s not worth dying over something that could be prevented. Unless that’s something you’re interested in already.

Is lambasted the new bukkake?

[quote]Is lambasted the new bukkake?

Ewwww. You just conjured up this mental image of Kimberly Guilfoyle, getting lambasted by all of the Trumps. So thanks for that. I’m gonna go watch kitten videos and try to get that out of my head.

Anyone who's had chickenpox can get shingles at any age. Most health insurance plans have decided they will pay for the vaccine if you're fifty or older, but anecdotally that's an arbitrary age.

Only screwy anti-vaxxers need to "do their own research" about vaccine "dangers" and not one of them is qualified to do such research anyway. Vaccines save lives, period. There exists some bizarre strain of human who feels that their vaccine hesitancy is a marker of wisdom and discernment. It is not.

R137 is absolutely correct. And I know two women who got singles in their 20s. There was a study a few years ago looking at cases among people before the chicken pox vaccine was widely available, and 10% of cases were in kids under 15(!). It’s almost impossible to find data on people under 30 anymore because so many were vaccinated, but still, 50% of cases are in people under 60 and 1 in 3 people will get shingles in their life (though that should start going down because of childhood vaccinations and encouraging folks to get the shingles vaccine). I’ve never had them and I’m over 50 and vaccinated now and hope to never get them, but all I ever hear is how incredibly painful they are.

And there is, in the US, the Vaccine Adverse Event Registry System (VAERS), so if something happens, those cases get reported and are monitored constantly and if anything shows up, we’ll know.

And I can tell you lots of stories about vaccines that NEVER made it to approval because we realized they were bad news BEFORE they were approved.

Vaccines get studied for safety in clinical trials, the they get followed up by the pharmaceutical company in a Phase IV or post-marketing surveillance after they’re released for a few years to continue to be sure they are safe and effective, and then we have VAERS to monitor them for life. We literally have 3 sequential safety systems in place specifically for vaccines.

We had those before we even had a unified drug adverse event reporting system (FAERS) and the mishmash of systems like Medwatch and AERS.

But we’re seeing things like measles outbreaks and whooping cough because one dude made up data and convinced the entire world that vaccines cause autism, which was later retracted by the journal that published it, and yet people still think that that’s true and won’t vaccinate their kids.

Things can happen. They’ll tell you that when you get a vaccine. And most of us they got the first rounds of the Covid vaccine. Probably remember having to sit in a room for 15 minutes to make sure we didn’t go into anaphylactic shock. But things like that are still rare. They happen, they are rare, and the benefit of getting vaccinated far outweighs the risk of the vaccine itself.

I’m a smartass. I’ve been told that my entire life. It neither comes as a surprise nor upsets me when someone tells me I am. But when people tell me, they've their own research, I’ll usually say, oh, cool! Where’s your lab?

R106/Cosmo, did you post here or in another thread that you’re a woman? If you did, first my apologies for calling you dude (unless you’re cool with that) but I just want to follow up and tell you, women are actually at greater risk of getting shingles than men. About 60% of cases are in women. ☹️

So, besides all the other stuff, I said, I hope you’ll consider that and reconsider getting vaccinated, because it sounds like you are at a greater risk, and I really wouldn’t like to wake up one day and see a post from you saying that you got shingles. I’d rather you be healthy and happy.

And fuck, you’re making me break all the rules that I’ve chided other people hear about! I don’t like people getting medical advice from a gay gossip website, and I also don’t like docs who make recommendations to people that they can’t see or examine online. So, uh, don’t consider this medical advice. Just consider it medical information sharing, and maybe advice to listen to your doctor’s recommendations. That’s who you should get advice from.

Trust me. I’m a certified airline mechanic with an interest in Reiki, tarot cards, and herbal healing. 😜

Good morning, R117. Thank you for the kind post above. Cosmo is the name of my cat and that's then name I use here. Others have referred to me as 'he' but my pronouns are 'she' and 'her.' :-)

I am not averse to vaccines but I am a procrastinator. I was told for years to have my wisdom teeth removed but it took about 5 years for me to have it done. I do things; just not at the pace of others. As I posted upthread, I know how much pain my Dad was in when he got Shingles so I know how bad it can be. In the 80s, I worked with a woman whose husband had gotten Shingles and it was all over his tors. He could barely sleep or breath and it took weeks before he felt better.

I will get the Shingles vaccine . . . soon.

R140 "I will get the Shingles vaccine . . . soon. "

Famous last words...?

Do yourself a big favor, schedule a shingles vaccine appointment with your pharmacy this week.

R140, I’m relieved to hear that and wasn’t trying to be pushy (but I was being pushy). I tried to avoid being judgmental and just wanted you to be safe. That’s all. Trust me. You’ve undoubtedly seen me be really mean to other posters here. I kinda have a reputation for it (even though I post anonymously. I’m sure someone will trolldar me and let everyone know my not at all secret identity. Kinda shocked they haven’t already).

Say hi to Cosmo from my cats.

Thank you Cosmo for declaring you're pronouns here.

R143, I hope you know I was being funny. I am a bio female. My cat Cosmo is male so I get the 'he/him' usage.

[quote]I was just lambasted by my doctor

Pics please.

"Thank you Cosmo for declaring you're pronouns here."

It has become quite clear that 35% of all Dataloungers have no concept of English grammar.