Advocating for myself at the GP

Glizbeth said:

It's kind of an ongoing issue since I've always felt like I wasn't listened to and just fobbed off

You are on the right track with writing stuff down, and this can work well if you can keep the notes concise and directly to the point as the doctor has only a few minutes to meet with you in the session and if you have a 10 page essay then they won't have time to read it, consider it and offer a response.

Glizbeth said:

I've tried writing stuff down for my GP and it ended in getting me referred to my local mental health services.

If you don't mind me asking, what were you asking about? If it was a sore knee then this is a strange response but if it is a mental health question/issue then we may be able to advise how to word it more effectively.

Don't answer if you don't feel comfortable sharing the general details.

I find that writing out the essentials of what I need to talk about with a one sentence intro, bullet points to explain it and a suggestion to what I think the solution should be then asking their opinion gets the results I wanted. You can use it as a prompt of pass it to them (probably add a line saying "I have trouble talking face to face so have written out my info, thank you for your understanding".

It may be best to print this if you have a computer / printer at home, otherwise use your best handwriting,

It's basically a hormone issue (PCOS) I've been dealing with for all my life that can mimic mental health issues. (I know yikes.)

And I only just found out that it can't just be that without thorough testing to rule out other hormone issues. So, like thyroid disorders as an example. (Surprise, surprise. None of the specialists between Spain and Scotland checked if my thyroid was working optimally. Which can also look like anxiety, depression and other mental issues.)

All this has practically become a hyperfixation for me because my last attempts to address my issues ended up in vain. And something about it didn't sit right with me. 

I didn't add those details earlier because I don't know how much I can say before the mods deem it too much personal info. 

Do you have an autism diagnosis? You do talk about quite a few autustic traits and if you are diagnosed then it does sound like your GP is unable to see past issues of the mind as being most likely.

Since you have it as a special interest I would gather what info you can on the diagnosis you think is correct and start gathering evidence that backs this up rather than it being a mental health one.

Once you have gathered this, present it to your GP and ask him to reconsider. Perhaps point out that you appreciate he has little time so you gathered the information for him - sometimes a bit of empathy can get results.

If you can create a one page analysis showing the symptoms of the mental health situation and the hormone situation - have them side by side and show where there is a gap in the mental health criteria but complete coverage in the hormone criteria.

I hope that makes sense - all it should need is a thyroid test I suspect from what you describe.

One thing to be prepared for is that you could be wrong. It can be hard to avoid confirmational bias in such a quest but try to stick to the facts rigidly to come to your conclusion.

Good luck

Do you have an autism diagnosis? You do talk about quite a few autustic traits and if you are diagnosed then it does sound like your GP is unable to see past issues of the mind as being most likely.

Since you have it as a special interest I would gather what info you can on the diagnosis you think is correct and start gathering evidence that backs this up rather than it being a mental health one.

Once you have gathered this, present it to your GP and ask him to reconsider. Perhaps point out that you appreciate he has little time so you gathered the information for him - sometimes a bit of empathy can get results.

If you can create a one page analysis showing the symptoms of the mental health situation and the hormone situation - have them side by side and show where there is a gap in the mental health criteria but complete coverage in the hormone criteria.

I hope that makes sense - all it should need is a thyroid test I suspect from what you describe.

One thing to be prepared for is that you could be wrong. It can be hard to avoid confirmational bias in such a quest but try to stick to the facts rigidly to come to your conclusion.

Good luck

Yep, I do have an autism diagnosis. Another thing I had to advocate to get to set my mind at ease. (TDLR: The canon even of "why and how I'm a different to others".)

I've actually been getting some blood tests and stuff to build my case. Though the down side to my situation is that the conditions tend share a few symptoms so, it can either be both or one of them.

I'm ok with being wrong it's a part of life and I can learn from it.

Thanks the feedback and lending me an ear