saw new nurse practitioner because I feel sick a lot…runny nose, puffy eyes, sneezing, etc. bright red fingers. Generally weak and lethargic, can’t walk too well, always feel very allergic to something. Mentioned my muscle wasting. Bp in docs office: 175/50. Here’s her take: she’s heard of pmr, never saw a case. After an hour of back and forths, she decides I’m depressed which causes allergies, she says. And if I truly had muscle wasting, I would be bedridden (she looked this up online while I was sitting there. Told me I need to be on bp medication because I’m at stroke level. I tried to tell her my anxiety was off the charts (after hearing her tell me I need counseling). So here I am: shopping for a blood pressure cuff and worried out of my gourd that I’m gonna stroke out. And depressed about that fact, yes. So I’m to take my bp for a week, and hope for the best.
disastrous appointment with new nurse practitioner - PMRGCAuk
disastrous appointment with new nurse practitioner
Doesn’t it make you want to weep?! (All the gear, no idea). Such people know as much as could be written on the back of a postage stamp. Ignore it all. Take your bp for peace of mind in the peace of your own home without some idiot wittering on. Depression does not cause allergies. What rubbish. It sounds as if you are not at all depressed either. Sometimes barefoot doctors get it very wrong.
Thank you, it helps so much just to hear you say that. I did see some research that says depression can cause allergies and vice versa. And I probably am depressed due to pmr, allergies, muscle loss, soreness, etc etc etc. but! If my allergies or intolerances or whatever I have were better, I’d be less depressed! She said it will be autumn before I can get in to see an allergist. By then I’m thinking it will all have moved on….”this too shall pass.”
I don't understand the blood pressure. Isn't the bottom number really good? Did she think of taking it again after waiting a few minutes and changing the discussion to something a bit more neutral which would distract and relax you?
Are the allergies a new thing or do you always react to something when everything is blooming? The disease which is now never mentioned is the possible cause of new health issues (often very like what you're describing) and can trigger these symptoms after the active phase has long gone and the relationship therefore not made. I only mention this because nearly everyone apparently has now had a brush with it. Otoh if you grapple with things like this every spring and summer or have never had the unmentionable disease then it should have been a piece of cake for the NP to at least attempt some sort of useful treatment.
Interesting that you had an hour of their time! I'd love even 15 minutes with a medical practitioner. Although maybe not if it turned out to be as frustrating an exercise as yours was. I hope you can find a way to relax in the meantime. Time in nature?
I didn’t understand it either, as it’s been that high more than 50% of the time going back 2 years at least. Docs never said a word. Nope, never had the unmentionable; yes, have severe seasonal allergies, plus multiple food and medicine intolerances. Years ago, 2013, I saw an allergist who insisted I did not have any intolerances (she did no testing); ordered me to eat regular foods. Which I did…and whammo! Pmr. I always kind of blame her for not testing or helping with an elimination diet. For now, I shall grapple with things best I can, per your suggestion, and enjoy nature. The latter part is a lie tho because it’s 100 degrees this whole week!
Yeah, I think we're heading into the heatwave on Wednesday. Daughter told us to bring the lightest weight clothes we own!
Did you eventually sort out your food allergies? If not, do you have access to dietitian sevices? Your case sounds like exactly the sort of thing my daughter helps people with. She works for a private group which has a contract to provide service for the local Public Health unit in her part of Ontario.
One week wait for a telephone call with the surgery cleaner here and that’s if you’re lucky
I've been extraordinarily fortunate with my wrist adventure, and I made sure to let ortho know at final appt yesterday how grateful I was. Everyone I encountered from ER through several weeks of outpatient visits was lovely. This is in stark contrast to what I hear from too many others, including a woman in my city who had a heart attack a couple of weeks ago, spent time as a hallway patient (different hospital from where I went) and has received no followup care or even advice.
See GP - had bad experience with nurse practitioner myself
Me too - bypass her.
Think I'd be looking for a new practice!!! I would certainly be experessing my concerns about her abilities and knowledge. If your BP REALLY was 175/50 has she any idea what medication will do to the 50 figure? And you are very unlikely to stroke out due to that BP. Since PMR is the most common rheumatological condition in over 60s and the second most common after RA in the USA she needs to brush up on her experience and get out more.
"PMR is the second-most common rheumatic disease after rheumatoid arthritis (RA). In the United States, disease prevalence is estimated at 50 people per 100,000 per year, and it affects Caucasians more than any other ethnic group."
vasculitisfoundation.org/ed...
Did she really say depression causes allergies? That isn't quite what the literature suggests
ent-docs.com/is-there-a-lin....
If you spend weeks/months with allergy symptoms - just like spending much of your time in pain due to PMR or other chronic illness - then you are likely to be depressed. The allergies lead to the depression although PMR is associated with depressive mood - that is probably linked to the inflammation. She should remember, correlation is NOT causation.
There is a very real condition called "white coat syndrome" - raised BP due to being at the doc. Prof Sarah Mackie was worried about her PMR patients presenting with raised BP in clinic, was clinic SO stressful, what could be done. And discovered that SHE had raised BP during clinic too!!!!!
I had muscle wasting - I certainly wasn't bed-ridden. It was the methyl pred and the muscles returned when I was switched to prednisone and walked.
The purpose of an NP is to be encouraging and supportive - that was REALLY encouraging and supportive, NOT!!!
I have a pet hypothesis that my BP is raised in my GP waiting room because they play loud music and local radio over a dreadful sound system. It sets my teeth on edge.
They say they have to have loud music to stop you from hearing the consultations in the doctor’s rooms. That shows the building is not fit for purpose in my estimation!
They do that in ours too. And they choose a radio station that plays modern rap and hip hop. Not exactly relaxing and not enjoyed by the over 60s, which is most people in our village!
That is worthy of a complaint!!! That is ridiculous - and grossly unfair to older patients with hearing problems. If it is to stop you hearing the consultations, that means it can penetrate to the doctor's room!
I have the opposite problem to most people my age - I hear EVERYTHING - the lift in our building at the other end of the hallway, so when it is loud music it actually hurts me!
Silent in our waiting room as there are no doctors and therefore no consultations going on. The only sound is the unanswered phone endlessly ringing while the receptionist reads hello magazines. When I say reads I mean looks at the pictures as obviously she can not read GRrrrrrrrr
🤣
I changed practice and found a wonderful surgery and GPs - do it if you can
I'm happy with MY practice - who did you mean this for?
Sorry for the poor person with the nurse practionener experience
That's OK then - she should see it too.
I think a very strong letter to the practice and copy in some of the data on this thread. I would have been furious.
I have white coat syndrome. Testing at home is good to show this.
My nurse at my annual,review always asks me to do readings for 5 days 3 times a day before my appointments
I think many have -in fact even a rekniwned rheumy often mentioned on here who didn’t believe her patients found she was exactly the same when another colleague took hers!
I only have mine done in surgery once a year at annual check up - so every 3 months I do a week’s readings -at different times during day and send them in for GP to review.
My view is a nurse practitioner is not qualified for complicated cases like yours. So should not be seeing you it should be a doctor .Book to see one urgently is my suggestion.
Your blood pressure is very concerning but like me you may suffer with white coat syndrome.
Get it taken in a pharmacy but before there are rules. No coffee that day or sugary drinks.
Make sure it's taken on your left arm and not over clothing as o bare skin. Don't rush around before having it taken try and chill for 5 minutes
Good luck and don't be fobbed off
And don't sit with your legs crossed! That raises your BP!
*face palm* you need a second opinion. Some ANPs are good but they don't have the wide knowledge a docotr has and are often out of their depth. And on top of that if anything goes wrong with us women we are just told we are stressed and need to do more exercise. Make detailed notes of your symptoms to support you and a list of questions and take that bit of paper in with you and idealy take someone with you - as my rheumatolgisit said, ideally a man aged about 40 as they're the only people doctors take seriously. Never give up x
Gosh what a horrible experience Twopies. I had a similar appointment recently. A young girl who looked like a Disney princess, a healthcare assistant. She told me that I had type 2 diabetes and spent ages going through my notes pointing out that this had been discussed with me frequently. I have only been told that I was borderline diabetic and then I was subsequently congratulated on improving the numbers with diet alone. I have had blood tests but assumed they were ok because nobody got in touch. I felt told off and doubted by her. I assertively said that I was going to go now because she wasn’t helping anything. She went pink in the face and I suddenly saw how young she was and how hard she was trying to be professional. So I rescued her and the general health check continued. I have ended up with a very rare GP appointment and a much more useful appointment with her. I can only assume that sometimes the notes don’t match the GP’s appointment. Everyone has to learn and I think she will be an excellent nurse one day.
There is an association between depression and allergies. All this means is that people who have one condition are more likely to also have the other. It certainly does not mean depression causes the allergies. It is most likely evidence that those struggling to continue a busy life while burdened with allergic symptoms sometimes get ground down and depressed. The same goes for most debilitating diseases. PMR is associated with depression, too.
That is not only incompetent but downright dangerous.
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