Desperately Seeking Health Answers

I thought for sure I would die; I was told there was no hope. How many of you have gone to your doctors, knowing in your gut that something was seriously wrong, only to leave with no answers? Then when you finally find the solutions it, seems too late to turn it around. If you haven’t already, you need to stand up and start taking accountability for your health!

Don’t accept answers that don’t make sense with what your body is telling you. A doctor once refused to see my five-year-old daughter in the ER. She was on the ground screaming and holding her stomach, but they refused to see her stating they had seen her earlier in the evening and she just had gas. In my gut, I knew this was more than gas. As parents, we know our children, and when something is wrong, every part of our Mom Super Senses kicks into action.

I caused such a scene that they called security to escort us off the property. The point is I knew something was wrong and I fought for my child. I immediately drove her in the middle of the night to another ER over 40 miles away. She was admitted immediately with a ruptured appendix. What if I would have just trusted them? Ignored all the screaming signals in my body and just went home? No one knows your body like you do.

You see every change, what is normal and what isn’t. You need to fight for yourself and to be heard as you would fight for your child. Make some noise if you have to, but be heard. My mom was in the health business for years, and the one thing she taught that I have always remembered is ‘the squeaky wheel gets oiled first in the health field.’

Eight years ago when I was sick, I was beyond the point of making noise with my doctors. The damage had been done. I needed different options and I had to think outside of the box. For me, out of the box was holistic medicine. Modern medicine had failed me, and my only option was to find something different.

I made noise, but this time I made it on the internet searching for alternatives. I made sure my voice was heard, and I am doing that very thing today. I am out there making the change I want to see for my grandchildren. I am educating people on the importance of researching experts. Yes, there are fake experts, product pushers and those who would take advantage of your vulnerable state. But there are also some incredibly talented experts out there who can make changes in your life that will give you the quality of life you imagine.

I have a lot of genetic disorders and drug allergies, which makes it hard for me to find a doctor that can help me. I was once told, by my internist when I showed up with MRSA, to find another doctor. He had no idea how to help me because of my drug allergies to antibiotics and sulfur drugs. I’ve since taken back control of my health journey. I interview my doctors, and I tell them what my plan is for myself. I let them know the holistic choices I’ve made and ask if they can work with me. Yes, sometimes the doctor I’m talking with isn’t able to get on board with my health choices. But, when I do find that doctor that has heard me, and we’re a fit, the magic happens.

Let us recap a little:

1. Ask Questions! Interview your doctor and don’t be discouraged if you have to do this a couple of times. It will be well worth finding a doctor that will work with you and meet your needs.
2. Be HEARD! Stand up for yourself and make sure you are being heard. It could save your life. This doesn’t mean get louder, but if you are speaking to a doctor or health care provider and they are dismissing your concerns and not answering your questions, politely let them know you won’t be leaving until all your questions have been answered to your satisfaction.
3. Listen to Your Body. If you feel like something isn’t right… it probably isn’t. This doesn’t mean it is going to be severe or life-changing, it says your body is sending you a signal and wants you to pay attention.

I am going to be posting a blog in the next few weeks on the importance of self-care that I hope all of you get a chance to read. I can tell you from experience that being sick and having to depend on others daily was not fun. I hear people saying to me all the time, “I don’t have time.” Well, get sick and then see how much time you have. If you want to show up in your life, and be the best wife, mother, friend, employee you can be, put yourself first.