GP appt - only partial success!

[Pigletts]

Hi,

I posted a few weeks ago asking if others thought ok to be told to take levothyroxine by GP secretary, no GP appt at all since blood tests showing autoimmune hypothyroidism. I got some blood test results from GPs - thanks for advice all you guys! Then I went to see GP yesterday as I wanted to discuss the whole 'thyroid thing'. I had been told I could only have 10 mins, not 20 mins appt!!!!

Partial success is that GP agreed to re-do blood test for thyroid function in 6 months (had been told to have done in 12 months, I thought this was a long time away). he said I didn't need to fast and not take levothyroxine on the day of the blood test - may try that for my next test - just to keep them guessing.

However, he said T3 not needed, neither were antibodies - he said we know I have them, so what!!!!! Forgot to ask for other things to be tested, but as the GP stood up and went to the door and said "I think we have talked about this long enough" - I kid you not - I thought I had better cut my losses and go! That's never happened to me before - how rude. I wouldn't have minded if he had said "we need to talk about this another time", either face to face or on the phone, I would have been ok with that.

He was positive about me having gone gluten free, but he said only from a health aspect, nothing to do with thyroid. At least he didn't get funny about that(ish).

So, thanks for your help with this, I think I may look at private tests or just leave things as they are, hope for the best and do the best I can!

I was left a bit puzzled about the GP appt, but what can you do in 10 minutes to help someone - not a lot. I am hoping the GP was as puzzled as I was - it was the first time I have questioned a GP to such a degree - maybe that made the difference.

Thanks a lot everyone who helped me on my last posts, I will keep reading about other people's trials and tribulations , and may be in touch again.....

[trelemorele]

He wasn't puzzled at all, he shut the door and moved on.

He doesn't care.

He knows nothing about your condition and he won't educate.

You'll see in time, the more you'll be visiting them, this is standard behaviour - dismissing, rude, abrupt, and mostly indolent....

[Pigletts in reply to trelemorele]

Oh dear, I am at early stages of the whole thyroid thing. Not sure how we can get ourselves heard even more with the medical professions - I wonder if it is possible to find out how much teaching GPs have about the thyroid, maybe this is the way to go, get more / better teaching across to GPs, unless Thyroid UK already does work with trainee GPs?.... interesting......

[trelemorele in reply to Pigletts]

Your priority needs to be educating yourself now, not how much GPs are taught at school, as this condition is with you for life and GPs won't change for a very long time in present reward system.

Unfortunately GPs now work as businessmen not doctors.

They take money based on the amount of "clients" they have, not treatment success rate or lives saved. And they're even get rewarded financially if they don't refer for further investigation in hospital or stick you on antidepressants or shove mirena coil up your hoo-ha and refuse to give you an option. Been there, got the t-shirt.

They are not responsible financially nor accountable for failures: misdiagnosis, even death.

If they screw up, NHS picks up the bill from the lawsuits.

Cushy life, writing scripts and death certificates all day long on 100k PA with zero responsibility.

[abby1007]

I'm currently not on any medication but have found my GP to be equally as dismissive. They don't seem to like people who have educated themselves on the problem. I have a lot of symptoms of celiac disease, I've been tested once before and it was negative. But I know that a gluten free diet can be especially beneficial for those with hashimotos. My GP wanted none of it. She also said if I was started on medication I wouldn't have another blood test for 4 months! I'm sure most people seem to have them after about 6 weeks. It's quite worrying how dismissive GPs are. Maybe ask at your surgery if any doctors have a particular interest in thyroid disorders? That's my next plan of action.

[Pigletts in reply to abby1007]

Thanks, good idea about asking GPs, but not sure if they would tell me if any had special interest, as maybe all thyroid affected people would gravitate there!!

[cwill in reply to Pigletts]

Many GPs have special interests. It should be on the website and in no way hidden. I am always grateful that I got the GP with a special interest in eye issues when I had a particularly difficult issue.

[Pigletts in reply to cwill]

Aha, hadn't thought of looking on the surgery website, or do you mean a more general website about GPs across the country?

Thanks for that.

[cwill in reply to Pigletts]

Sometimes practices have info on GPs specialist training and interests. Just a thought.

[SeasideSusie Remembering]

My first thought was the same as trelemorele

"I think we have talked about this long enough" - he shut you down with this sentence, he doesn't know enough about it to discuss it with you.

We don't discuss fasting, early morning blood tests and leaving off Levo with doctors and phlebotomists, it is a patient to patient tip.

He is correct about the antibodies, it's been confirmed, no need to do them again (so he gets one point!)

Yep, he's just like the majority of them, welcome to the world of cr@p thyroid care!

[Pigletts in reply to SeasideSusie]

Thanks for heads up with not discussing fasting or leaving levo for the morning!

Also about antibodies, maybe I had got a bit concerned about reducing them as they seem to be a 'bad thing', slowly killing my poor thyroid! But I will stop worrying about the little critters now. I had thought that if they were a lot less in 6 months, after gluten free for a while, and that was the only change, I may have found a way to improve things and lessen future damage to my thyroid - holding off the inevitable I suppose. The GP did say I may need more levothyroxine over time, I'm only on 50mcg and I have to say I am not as poorly as many of you are, and I had thought symptoms I did have were because of my age!! Of course I suppose the menopause, when it comes, may introduce a whole other ball game - hormones, who'd have 'em?! Aaaaaghhhhh.....

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to Pigletts]

Ooooh, menopause! Now if you have a male GP then that's it's quite likely the next thing is everything will be blamed on menopause . There there, pat on the head, have some of these nice antidepressant sweeties and everything will be fine! We women can't win, can we!!!

[Hidden]

I would just like to share this with you. Here in France it's quick and easy to get a GP's appointment they usually last around 30 to 40 minutes. There is only one problem they no nothing about the thyroid so after having ears, eyes, looked into, knee hit with a hammer it''s just a waste of time and over here, money as well.

[Pigletts in reply to Hidden]

Wow, that is weird, how much training do French GPs do in the thyroid etc? And you pay each visit?

[Pigletts]

Doh! Think I will have blood tests in Summer, with GPs, but may look at other testing, just out of interest, and in case. On the plus side, the GP did say, if symptoms become worse, come back, things do depend on how I feel as well as test results, so not all bad. However, he did say he would have waited 3 months and retested, after a TSH level of 10.04 I think it was, as it was only just over 10, and that's the level he would start prescribing - he meant he would have needed two tests above 10 (3 months apart) to prescribe, suggesting the other GP was wrong. Another GP had looked at my results and put me on the prescription.

Life's complicated!

[Hidden]

We pay 23 euros for each visit 60% is reimbursed into our bank accounts.

I know that they are well trained to be a GP but that is as is says on the box

only general practice. The health care systems is good especially for short or no

waiting lists at the hospitals and these are immaculate. Dentists are useless and it

takes approx 4/6 months for an eye test.