Is it unreasonable for me to be completely freaked out about the fact that our little baby girl is going to have her tear duct probed? Let me clarify. She is going to be put under general anesthesia, and a metal thread is going to be forced down through the tear duct in her eye, down into her nose. Side affects include: bleeding from the eyes, scar tissue, continued blockage, etc.
Recently the ear doctor said the Bronwen needed “tubes” in her ears. She has a significant amount of fluid trapped behind the ear drum and all they want to do is poke a little hole in the drum and allow the fluid to drain out. It is all very routine and normal. In fact, getting “tubes” put in is the number one most frequent operation in the US. Does this not make anyone else nervous? Why are we poking so many holes in so many little ear drums? I had tubes twice when I was a kid and now I have hearing loss due to scar tissue buildup.
I am unhappy with the state of medicine in the US. I had an okay birthing experience, but it could have been better. My general practitioner is nice, but is always in a hurry to get me out of the door. And my daughter’s pediatrician is smart, and full of facts, but once again, fails to give us the time to discuss other options, or even to ask questions. It is frustrating the way he “pops in” and out of the examination room, with little closure.
Decisions that need time and deliberation, as well as research and planning are forced in a short period of time. When the ear doctor suggested tubes for Bronwen, he stared at us as we tried to discuss what to do. Bronwen was crying and squirming, the doctor was staring, and Dan and I were exhausted and stressed. What are you going to do? Go with it. Have the surgery; it seems like a good idea at the time. Besides, I would have agreed to anything to get out of that tiny room.
I want a different experience. I want a doctor who is willing to stop moving, sit down and chat with me. I want to know all of the options; non-surgical, not involving antibiotics, holistic. There has got to be a better way than this.
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3 comments:
http://www.photius.com/rankings/healthranks.html
What can I say; we suck.
:(
Prayer actually works wonders. As David Hume noted, "Miracles are a violation of the laws of nature" and they happen every day!
I had tubes when I was very young. They came out when I was in kindergarten. My hearing now is better than most people. I can hear pitches and beats that are off by fractions of seconds. I can put a voice with a face much better than most - I'm talking to you Harrison Ford doing car commercials. I was also in chorus in jr. High and High school.
I turned out ok so don't worry so much about the little one.
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