Last month Kenmore asked for my biggest health challenge. This month, I'm sharing my Genius Tip on how I overcame that challenge! Kenmore is on the search for everyday genius & each month they are giving away $3,000 in Kenmore gift certificates and a chance to have the best Genius Tip turned into an Ad! Enter your Genius Tip Today!
As I told you all last month, knowing when to question (and when to trust) those in the medical community is a constant struggle for me. After a few bad experiences, I was left with a sour taste in my mouth. Feeling like no one really had my best interest at heart.
Which is when I started fighting for myself.
There I was, with a doctor putting a consent form for a hysterectomy in front of my face. Even though he had yet to give me any official diagnosis. He was ready to just go in and cut out whatever the offending problem may be. And it was at that point that I was finally able to stand up and say “Something here isn’t right!” That point when I finally realized that no one knew my body better than I did.
So I moved on. I found a doctor I trusted. One who understood that my desire to be a mother truly reigned above all else. A doctor who got that I wasn’t yet ready or willing to let go of that dream. I basically put her through a rigorous interview before I allowed her to cut. Before I trusted her enough to succumb to anesthesia so that she could get in there and figure out what the real problem was.
That relationship has continued for the last 2 years. She and I discuss the options. We go over the information she does and does not know. There is never pressure for me to make decisions or do things I’m not comfortable doing. Only ever information.
And when she hit the point where she didn’t know if she could help me any further, she told me so. And gave me her blessing to seek out the help of a specialist for my next surgery. Someone who might be more equipped to handle the extensive spreading of disease I had been experiencing. She is still the person I go to for female needs outside the realm of endometriosis. But she was able and willing to tell me when she no longer felt that she was the best person to be treating this disease for me.
And for that, I will forever be grateful.
I found a doctor who I trusted, and in turn – she gave me the power and knowledge to make my own decisions.
And at the end of the day, I think that’s what it comes down to. Surrounding yourself with people in the medical community who you trust, and then voicing your desire to make these decisions for yourself. To be informed and educated, and to then be given the power to choose what you can and can’t live with in terms of treatment.
I also stepped outside of the Western medicine bubble. I pursued other options. Alternative options. I added to my circle of practitioners an acupuncturist and a naturopath. I tried things I never before would have thought I would try. I gave credence to options that before would have seemed crazy to me.
I gave it all a chance.
And today, my western medicine practitioners and my alternative practitioners work with each other to provide me the best integrated treatments possible. Because I fought for that. Because I demanded it.
Because I was my own advocate.
My doctors now know that I would prefer not to resort to certain medications. That when at all possible, I want to treat my body in a different way. They know I rely on them for the surgical end of things, and that I will not hesitate to make a call to them if something seems wrong, but they respect my decisions to pursue the alternatives as far as actual treatment is concerned. I rely on them to diagnose and when necessary – cut – and I rely on my alternative practitioners to provide treatment options that I can live with. Ones that don’t leave me tired, and sick, and feeling worse than I did to begin with.
It hasn’t been easy. It has required communication and an ability to stand up for myself. It has required I become educated and voice concerns whenever possible. It has required me to be strong enough to know when to trust, and when to question.
So that would be my genius health tip. Be your own advocate. Research. Learn. Speak up. Ask questions. Take your health (and the health of your family) into your own hands and don’t be afraid to say so if something just seems off to you.
Most of the time, those in the medical community really do have your best interest at heart. But at the end of the day, no one knows your body and what you need as well as you do. Remember that.
And don’t be afraid to be your own advocate.
As I told you all last month, knowing when to question (and when to trust) those in the medical community is a constant struggle for me. After a few bad experiences, I was left with a sour taste in my mouth. Feeling like no one really had my best interest at heart.
Which is when I started fighting for myself.
There I was, with a doctor putting a consent form for a hysterectomy in front of my face. Even though he had yet to give me any official diagnosis. He was ready to just go in and cut out whatever the offending problem may be. And it was at that point that I was finally able to stand up and say “Something here isn’t right!” That point when I finally realized that no one knew my body better than I did.
So I moved on. I found a doctor I trusted. One who understood that my desire to be a mother truly reigned above all else. A doctor who got that I wasn’t yet ready or willing to let go of that dream. I basically put her through a rigorous interview before I allowed her to cut. Before I trusted her enough to succumb to anesthesia so that she could get in there and figure out what the real problem was.
That relationship has continued for the last 2 years. She and I discuss the options. We go over the information she does and does not know. There is never pressure for me to make decisions or do things I’m not comfortable doing. Only ever information.
And when she hit the point where she didn’t know if she could help me any further, she told me so. And gave me her blessing to seek out the help of a specialist for my next surgery. Someone who might be more equipped to handle the extensive spreading of disease I had been experiencing. She is still the person I go to for female needs outside the realm of endometriosis. But she was able and willing to tell me when she no longer felt that she was the best person to be treating this disease for me.
And for that, I will forever be grateful.
I found a doctor who I trusted, and in turn – she gave me the power and knowledge to make my own decisions.
And at the end of the day, I think that’s what it comes down to. Surrounding yourself with people in the medical community who you trust, and then voicing your desire to make these decisions for yourself. To be informed and educated, and to then be given the power to choose what you can and can’t live with in terms of treatment.
I also stepped outside of the Western medicine bubble. I pursued other options. Alternative options. I added to my circle of practitioners an acupuncturist and a naturopath. I tried things I never before would have thought I would try. I gave credence to options that before would have seemed crazy to me.
I gave it all a chance.
And today, my western medicine practitioners and my alternative practitioners work with each other to provide me the best integrated treatments possible. Because I fought for that. Because I demanded it.
Because I was my own advocate.
My doctors now know that I would prefer not to resort to certain medications. That when at all possible, I want to treat my body in a different way. They know I rely on them for the surgical end of things, and that I will not hesitate to make a call to them if something seems wrong, but they respect my decisions to pursue the alternatives as far as actual treatment is concerned. I rely on them to diagnose and when necessary – cut – and I rely on my alternative practitioners to provide treatment options that I can live with. Ones that don’t leave me tired, and sick, and feeling worse than I did to begin with.
It hasn’t been easy. It has required communication and an ability to stand up for myself. It has required I become educated and voice concerns whenever possible. It has required me to be strong enough to know when to trust, and when to question.
So that would be my genius health tip. Be your own advocate. Research. Learn. Speak up. Ask questions. Take your health (and the health of your family) into your own hands and don’t be afraid to say so if something just seems off to you.
Most of the time, those in the medical community really do have your best interest at heart. But at the end of the day, no one knows your body and what you need as well as you do. Remember that.
And don’t be afraid to be your own advocate.
Last month Kenmore asked for my biggest health challenge. This month, I'm sharing my Genius Tip on how I overcame that challenge! Kenmore is on the search for everyday genius & each month they are giving away $3,000 in Kenmore gift certificates and a chance to have the best Genius Tip turned into an Ad! Enter your Genius Tip Today!
For me, my genius health tip is that you have to be your own advocate.
But I want to know what your genius health tip is - and I want you to share it here.
What is your Genius Tip? Kenmore wants to know, and is giving away up to $3,000 in Gift Certificates and a chance to have the best Genius Tip turned into a TV Ad! Visit their Facebook page and enter today!
Share your quick genius tip with us:
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Kenmore. The opinions and text are all mine.
