Yesterday I touched base with a dear friend who the day prior went through a trying time with the medical establishment:

“I thought of you and your daughter all day. I hope things went well! Is it not amazing what you have to go through? You absolutely have to be your own advocate or an advocate for those dear to you.”

She responded:

“Thank you for your thoughts, Rosie.  Yes, I’m quite well known for speaking up when it comes to the medical system – ‘don’t tell me what to do and how to do it unless I ask!’  When my children were toddlers, the pediatrician I used (who was a real sweetheart of a man) would just cringe every visit when he tried to tell me of the horrors of drinking raw cow’s milk, and I would remind him of the benefits.”

Her daughter finally did get the requested order for the needed test – only after “jimmying with the office nurse for over an hour. “ Because the order she needed did not arrive in time for the fasting blood draw, her daughter she will now need to return one day this week to have yet another blood sample drawn. Nevermind the inconvenience, the additional time away from work, and the additional discomfort of another needle stick.

My friend went on to say, “The lady in the lab looked at me in shock when I asked her the best way for us to receive the results of the blood draws of the day.  That look…like ‘why in the world would you want that!’  Oh the drama.”

Whew! This scenario, one oh so familiar to me, a staunch patient empowerment advocate, set my hair on fire, and I replied:

“OH MY GOSH is all I can say. People act like you are criminals for wanting your OWN lab values. I go through that every step of the way right now with monitoring my thyroid and cholesterol progress and lab values. Most times I win, but sometimes I have to resort to jockeying with the office staff. I ask my ordering practitioners to write my fax # on the order, and STILL I have to argue for it because I am ‘just the patient.’ Ohhhh, this puts a major bee in my bonnet!

Think of where health care would be if we could educate the public on what to look for, teach them what to do to improve their health, then teach them to monitor their progress – empowering them to take care of themselves. The health of the nation would blossom. It is all about empowering the one person who cares the most about you, who has the greatest vested interest in you – YOU yourself! The medical establishment with the limited time they can spend with you is not only limiting, it is dangerous.”

The fact that you are reading this scenario tells me you, too, are a person who is empowering yourself to contribute to your personal health care tool kit. Here’s what we can do – you and I – that will turn this ship around on the ocean…how about my LOVE Method?

L = Learn all you can

O = Obtain help

V = Validate with data

E = Engage in a plan that is right for you

Learn all you can about your given health care situation. Become as educated as you can possibly be. Become your OWN health care advocate – no one can do it quite like YOU!

Obtain help. Seek out those practitioners who are expert in the field in which you need help. Don’t worship at any one particular practitioner’s alter.  Just because someone has “MD” or “RN” behind their name does not mean a thing. Interview practitioners the same way you would interview someone to babysit your children. If their energy, personality, and information do not feel quite right to you, move on to the next one. Don’t forget to seek out reputable alternative health care practitioners.

(PS, how in the world did the real health care practitioners ever get to become the “alternative?”  – another topic for another day!)

Validate with data, if it is appropriate to your situation. See what the objective lab values say, and YES, always obtain a copy of your lab results. They are YOUR results. You have every right to your own results.

Engage in a plan that is right for you.  Once you are satisfied that you have studied all about your situation, you have obtained the appropriate advice, and you have objective data, now you are ready to empower yourself to launch into a plan of action that feels right for you.

Empower yourself. Go for it. You can and will make a huge difference in your life. Put the power where it belongs – in your own hands.