While it never hurts to have an open mind, there are certain professionals you really should listen to. These include, but are not limited to lawyers, plumbers, and, of course, doctors. The pages of history and countless interpersonal tales have all been told about the trials and tribulations of people who decided that they knew better than a medical professional.
But one netizen was curious to hear from people who decided to second guess doctors and, contrary to most cases, ended up not regretting it. From comical to tragic, people shared medical mishaps where they decided to trust their intuition and it ended up paying off. We got in touch with Dave deBronkart, activist, cancer patient, and author to learn more.
More info: Quora
#1
I was 22 at the time and a first time mom to a 6 month old baby girl. I was doing my best but things were very tight to put it mildly. My periods had not been at all regular since giving birth so when I found myself very late I went to a walk in clinic to get tested. The Dr walked in with my results and informed me I was pregnant. I was beside myself with anxiety about the very idea of having another child at this point in my life and asked him “what are my options?” aka, please point me in the direction of help. His response was unexpected to say the least. “I have two girls and I love them dearly" and that was it. I stared at him blankly thinking in my panicked 22 year old mommy brained state “but, I'm not married to a doctor"….and then he left. I did manage to find the help I needed, despite my clearly pro-life Dr's very unhelpful advice. To all that would choose to chastise my decision, don't bother. I am staunchly pro-choice, and this experience only solidified it. What would have happened to me and my babies had I been forced to give birth to another baby is no life I would wish on any child or woman, especially if there is another option.
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407points
#2
Way back in the day, around 1995, I was 16 and had *really* low blood pressure. And I mean like 88/40. I was also about 20 pounds overweight. My genius of a doctor told me “You’re fat. No-one’s going to date you while you look like that.” I was beyond shocked. I’d had various doctors with obviously varying bedside manners over the years. This jack*ss took the cake. His brilliant solution to my weight issue and bp issue? Smoking. That’s right. In 1995, a doctor TOLD.ME.TO.SMOKE. So instead of losing 20 pounds and smoking, I got rid of about 180 pounds of idiot doctor.
299points
#3
I had been feeling poorly and had a cough that wouldn’t go away. I visited several specialists trying to get a diagnosis. These included and internal medicine specialist, an oncologist, a hematologist and an ENT. After my exam the ENT explained that a cough irritates the throat and if I would just stop coughing I would stop coughing. And, for that bit of wisdom he needed medical school. Later I found I had non-hodgkins lymphoma, with the tumor located in the middle of my chest. This process took 11 months to get the diagnosis Ultimately chemo cured the cancer and the cough went away.
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262points
Bored Panda got in touch with Dave deBronkart, sometimes known as “e-Patient Dave,” an author, speaker, and participatory medicine and personal health data rights activist and he was kind enough to answer some of our questions. Despite it seemingly being common sense, we were curious to hear why he thought some people feel like they know better than a doctor.
“Because questioning authority is always a good idea. But questioning doesn't make you right - anyone who has an idiot relative knows that. Good questions make you think - but if you disbelieve, you take responsibility. (Remember that you might be wrong, too.) Doctors aren't perfect, and they're overloaded with a million new articles a year and constant time pressure. But they're trained on science, and science is good s**t: it's why you can read this on a phone, fly on planes, and can get medicines that usually work. I think of a doctor's visit as a talk with an expert friend, trying together to solve my problem,” Dave shared with us.
#4
After a motorcycle accident my doctor recommended the amputation of my right foot, claiming that I would never regain feeling in it, and it would be a bother for the rest of my life, I decided not to and see how it went, two years later, severe itching started, one year later, all feeling came back. 40 years later I’m still able to do everything, although it does still hurt a little when it’s starting to rain.
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256points
#5
Dumb and condescending.
I am female, in my 20’s went to a urologist and he wanted a list of the medications I was on.
When I got to Testosterone cream ( I had been tested due to a very low sex drive and my level was found to be low) he insisted that I meant Estrogen cream.
I told him no it’s Testosterone. He told me to go home and get the bottle. Then call him and spell out to him what was written on it.
This medical doctor treated me like a child wanting me to waste both of our time doing this because he did not know that women’s bodies make a small amount of Testosterone and it is needed.
I am female, in my 20’s went to a urologist and he wanted a list of the medications I was on.
When I got to Testosterone cream ( I had been tested due to a very low sex drive and my level was found to be low) he insisted that I meant Estrogen cream.
I told him no it’s Testosterone. He told me to go home and get the bottle. Then call him and spell out to him what was written on it.
This medical doctor treated me like a child wanting me to waste both of our time doing this because he did not know that women’s bodies make a small amount of Testosterone and it is needed.
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240points
#6
Not me, but my husband. He was suffering from a bad earache, so he went to a local doctor. The doctor’s wife was his nurse. She in all seriousness told him the ear pain was being caused by evil spirits. It didn’t take him long to get out of there and find a different doctor. People are nuts.
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223points
Setting aside that the average person often can’t tell the difference between the sternum and the sebaceous glands, we were curious about thinking for one’s self, so we asked Dave if there were cases a person should perhaps disregard a doctor's advice. “Certainly: when you've decided it's not what you want. It's always good to ask: Are there any other options? What are the risks? What if I do nothing?”
#7
I had a knife stab in one side of my index finger and the tip was protruding through the other side. It was pulled out immediately and I knew it didn't feel right so went to see a doctor.
I told him it was hurting and I was having trouble bending it. He said it looks fine and to keep it clean. I reminded him that it does not feel right and it was stabbed through. He asked me very condescendingly if I wanted a bandaid with a smirk on his face. He applied one and said there ya go then he walked out.
About an hour later I felt something sharp. The tendon had been sliced by the knife and snapped going down my finger and into my palm. It required an initial surgery to open my finger and hand to find, feed up to the other end and reattach it, then plenty of stitches. I then needed physio to make sure I kept fluid motion in my finger.
A few months later I needed a follow up surgery to remove scarring from where it was reattached so I could get better motion bending it. Then more stitches and more physio.
Thank you for the fu#%ing bandaid and the condescending smile.
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208points
#8
My wife was in a very bad car accident about 16 years ago. She was kept sedated in the ICU for 6 weeks, leg amputated, pins in her hip and pelvis, nerve damage in the other leg, infected de-gloving wound on her hip, etc. After stabilizing, she was transferred to the care of a hospital more to the liking of the insurance company. We met with the head of ortho there to find out the plan. We expected that he would talk about when to remove the pins since the well-respected doctor who put them in said they would come out when the new bone is strong enough due to the risk of infection.
Instead, this doctor said there was no reason to remove the metal. We should just relax, plan a trip to Tahiti and lie on the beach drinking Mai Tais. We left the office stunned and concluded that he didn’t expect her to live much longer no matter what they did.
Of course, the wound got infected, canceling a planned skin graft (that would likely have failed). We checked into the ER at the other hospital. They removed the metal and after many more surgeries, she’s alive and doing better than anyone expected.
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203points
#9
I wasn’t the patient, my Mom was. It was last year. My Mom was 88 years old, with dementia. She had a massive stroke. She was in and out of responsiveness, the brain scan showed she would never “recover”. One doctor came in and told my sister and me that we needed to start talking about putting in a feeding tube. We looked at her and said “That’s not going to happen. Mom has always been pretty clear that if she was ever in this situation she didn’t want to be kept alive by artificial means, and in fact she has a living will stating all this”. The doctor said “Well, just so you know. If she doesn’t eat, she will basically starve to death, and that is a horrible, painful way to die”. My sister and I (and our other 3 sisters and my Dad) stuck to our guns and said we would go by Mom’s wishes. The next day the hospice team came in and talked to us. The doctor said she would not recommend a feeding tube, it would only cause Mom more discomfort and with her dementia she would basically fight it. The feeding tube would not give her a better quality of life. We went with Mom’s wishes. We had another week with her. The hospice team made sure she was given pain killers when we thought she needed them, and another drug to help with her agitation. She went peacefully after we had all had time to say good bye and she was given last rites by a priest. She went just the way she wanted.
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200points
As tempting as it can feel to just be a maverick and believe that your intuition knows better the years of medical training, Dave has better advice. “Be an e-patient: empowered, engaged, equipped, enabled! The best way to get started is to know what they wrote on the computer about you after every doctor visit. In the US, it's now Federal policy that they have to let you do that. And we're not just talking about lab tests - today you can ask to see the "visit notes" or "progress notes." It can remind you of who's doing what next, and sometimes you might even find a mistake! If you do, report it in writing - they have to fix it,” he shared. Constructive, not combative.
#10
Not me, but my husband. He was prepping for quadruple bypass surgery and the doctor's notes included administering a pregnancy test. We had a good laugh about it and when the nurse came in, we pointed it out, laughing. She didnt find it humorous and said that if the doctor ordered it, she had to administer it. She was dead serious. I demanded she get the charge nurse and finally the test was removed from his file.
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173points
#11
I had 3 docs tell me that my deep red urine was just a bladder infection and it would go away. And we're talking there was pee in my blood, not a little blood in my pee. Went to the third complaining I was tired, didnt want to eat and for some reason had a desire to eat dryer sheets and ice. Was sent home with another round of antibiotics. The FOURTH doctor had the right mind to look into it. By the time I hit him, I was 4 months into pissing blood and I needed a blood transfusion. WE also discovered a smaller deformed kidney with a cyst that burst in it. Almost bled to death, and let the preceding 3 docs know what sort of shit I thought they were. My advice to all, KEEP going and get a second, third, even fith opinions if need be to get yourself straight.
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163points
#12
At nine months pregnant, my water broke at home. I called my OB and was told to come in and see her. She examined me. She said I'm 4–5 cm dilated and to go home and have lunch, take a nap, and enjoy the afternoon. This was 4:30 p.m. 'Are you sure? Shouldn't I head to the hospital now? I feel I should go straight there,' I asked. This being my second child, I felt uneasy with the advice. But, she's the expert. She got defensive and said, 'How dare you second guess me? I've delivered hundreds of babies!'" "I had no car. I took the bus home. By the time I got home an hour later, I was in active labor. Contractions were two minutes apart. Blinding pain. Panicked. Incredibly stressed and overwhelmed by the urgency for help. I got a ride to the hospital and almost delivered in the car. I had the baby within minutes of arriving shortly after 6 p.m. A huge and healthy 11-pound boy. I didn't even have time to take my jacket or shoes off. My pants had to be cut open by a nurse.
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158points
Lastly, we wanted to know what is a common health-related misconception he has encountered. “These days the #1 mistake is to think that COVID is over. Be smart about this! I don't mask up anymore unless I'm going to be in tight quarters breathing unknown air, like an airplane or bus. Airlines are no longer circulating fresh air the way they used to, so if someone on the plane is infected, their "exhaust" can be sent right back to your face.”
#13
I was once handed a bunch of samples of an allergy medication by a doctor, “To hold me over until the prescription be filled”.
I read the ingredients.
The filler ingredient in the medication was the same thing that had triggered the allergic reaction in the first place.
I asked him if I could maybe see another doctor, and when he became pissed and asked why, I told him.
He left the room for a bit; came back, apologized, promised to read ingredients for any future patients, and gave me a prescription for something else. Additionally, the new prescription stated that there could not be any generic substitutions by the insurance carrier.
I’m pretty sure he spent the time away calming down from being pissed, kicking himself, and looking up all the ingredients in the alternative medications and their generics.
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155points
#14
Me to Military Doctor: “Sir, I've been having really bad headaches and a stiff neck after my parachute malfunctioned and I hit my head pretty hard and lost consciousness.”
Military Doc: “Maybe get your boyfriend to give you a shoulder massage. Next!”
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135points
#15
A young doctor actually told me that vaccines are just marketing.
I was flabbergasted.
I took my 4 year old to get checked because she apparently had a very mild case of the chickenpox. I needed to confirm so she had her school sick leave.
Both my daughter and son were vaccinated with the chickenpox vaccine, and although they still had the chickenpox, it was very very mild. Meaning that she had maybe maximum 10 spots on her, she didn’t itch and never felt sick at all. It only lasted a couple of days.
So I told the doctor that she is vaccinated so I just wanted to make sure it was the chickenpox. He looked at me shaking his head, and I have this confused face. That’s when he said it. “You know, I would just save my money and not spend on vaccines. They don’t need them. Just let them get sick so they can get antibodies”.
WTF?? I never visited that doctor ever again.
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115points
“That's what hit me last winter: I got my second COVID case, and it left me with lasting damage. The pandemic is over, but COVID is NOT. Protect yourself.” Dave also suggests looking into having a good CO2 meter to determine air quality. You can find some of his writing about it here. And if you are interested to hear more about participatory medicine and personal health data rights, you can find his website here.
#16
I complained to my family doctor of fatigue. He said I was a working mother and needed a vacation.
I complained of fatigue to another doctor. He said that my husband needed to take me to dinner.
I complained of irregular heartbeat, a heart rate of 40, fatigue, dreams of dying, shortness of breath, to another doctor. He ordered a Holter monitor. The holter monitor showed a heart rate of 36 and several different type of aberrant beats. Told me athletes have a low heart rates.
By now, my heart rate was too slow and irregular, my blood pressure was to low at 80/50, and my body temperature was below normal at 97.6 F. I was short of breath just walking to the bathroom.
I was only 30.
Had to see another doctor. He did a blood test which 3 other doctors and one Physician assistant couldn’t think to do. Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis. Started on an extremely low dose of thyroid medication because my heart couldn’t take it (heart failure?) I lost 20 lbs in one month, not dieting and no exercise.
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114points
#17
I am a chronic pain patient, stemming from a series of accidents. I've had more surgeries and procedures on my mid and lower back than I care to recount. I see a pain specialist, and due to how quickly I build a tolerance (to everything, not only pain meds) combined with shifting insurance formularies, I have to bounce between different meds. Occasionally I try a new one; sometimes they work, sometimes they don't. After insurance changes forced a 4th change in 6 mo, I ended up in the ER with blinding headaches, vomiting blood. The ER doc told me just to stop taking the pain med, saying that if I have that much pain regularly, physical and mental detox should be easy. I just gaped at her, and asked if they could try to get someone from my pain clinic to second the recommendation, as I trust them implicitly. The heifer looked at me and said, “sooner or later you're going to have to come to Jesus!” I opened the collar of my shirt, brought out my star of David and told her that if she could show me what office to go to have a consult with Jesus, I'd be more than happy to, but I thought I was in a hospital not a church, and that maybe she would have better luck as a televangelist than as a doctor. The assigned nurse was right outside the door, along with a few other random people, and they about exploded trying not to laugh. The nurse got the on-call at my pain doc on the phone and the head doc came to the ER at 4am on a weekend to oversee my care, he had me admitted for 3days to do a rapid detox and be monitored on a new med to ensure there were no repeat issues. But yeah, treating people wasn't her job, because “Jesus Saves!”
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109points
#18
I was vomiting blood and had severe abdominal pain. I went to the ER at one of the NYU hospitals here in NYC. The young doctor (not sure if he’s a resident or real doctor) gave me an ultrasound when he said he would give me a CT scan. I was not given a blood test or any pain medication. I was there for more than five hours. I got sent home with some medication that he said would keep my food down. Of course, it did not, and I kept on vomiting. Two days later, I was in so much pain that I could not even sit straight. I got picked up by an ambulance, and the EMS told me to make sure I get a blood test and CAT scan. My appendix ruptured, and it was almost too late for me as the juices were all over my other organs.
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109points
#19
For years, I had such head-splitting headaches that they limited me more and more in my activities. I gradually stopped going to noisy, bustling places, I avoided the outdoors when the sun was too harsh, or even worse when the sky was a bright milky white. That felt like stabbing my eyes with daggers. And then the smallest effort that would increase my heart beat started triggering migraines, too. I used to live in a pretty large house and had twins, so I was constantly going up and down the stairs, but it came to a point when I had to sit down after climbing a single flight of stairs. My husband was a neurologist, but he was at a loss what treatment to give me given the severity of my symptoms, so he got me an appointment with a neurologist at a university hospital. I told that doctor about my suffering and he said : suffering as much as you describe it doesn’t exist and you should take up sport. You’re stressed, you need to relax. And that was that. Thank you, doctor. Did you hear a word of what I said?
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102points
#20
In the early 2000s I got an ingrown toenail. It bled every day and wasn’t healing on its own.
I went to the doctor and he told me “Do the Ooh-Ahh Method. The ‘Ooh’ is when you lift the nail, the ‘Aah’ is when the pain goes away. It’ll heal.”
I did that. It didn’t heal. Doctor kept telling me to do that. I almost lost my toe, but 3.5 years later it finally stopped bleeding and healed.
For the record I didn’t have health insurance, so seeking more medical treatment wasn’t an option.
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101points