This post has been shared by the AdvoConnection Blog. It was written with a patient-client audience in mind, but might be useful to you, too.
It is provided so you can find it in a search here at myAPHA.org, but you’ll need to link to the original post to read it in its entirety.
Link to the original full length post.
No Diagnosis? It May Not Matter
Years ago I watched a movie called Serendipity. It starred Kate Beckinsale and John Cusack. It was a “romcom” – and adorable – and it occurs to me that it sets the stage for today’s post. The story was about two young people who met in Bloomingdales while shopping, and through a series of events, they were attracted to each other, but never exchanged names. They then lost track of each other. Over the years they continued to think of each other – and eventually both went in search of each other, even though they didn’t know the other’s name. The unspoken belief was that they thought that by finding each other, the answers to all their questions in life would be solved. Too many of us have a similar belief, even if it has nothing to do with Bloomingdales or Serendipity. We have odd symptoms, the doctor can’t put a name to them, and we get continually more frustrated as our malady goes unnamed. Why do I have pain here? Why does this fever recur? Where does this rash come from? Hey – I get it. I’m IN that lack-of-diagnosis boat! When I was misdiagnosed in 2004 based on a strange lump that had been removed from my torso, the resulting conclusion was that I DIDN’T have something – I didn’t have cancer. Unfortunately, I was never given a viable answer on what I did have. To this day I do not have a diagnosis, despite recurring and similar lumps, which show up sometimes 2-3 times a year. So yes – I do understand that frustration! On the other hand, I may be very different from you because, honestly, I spend almost no time fretting about it. I don’t search for a diagnosis any more. There are a few reasons for that: So many people believe that if they can discover THE name for something, then doctors will know how to treat it, and possibly how to cure it. That’s not necessarily true. There are lots of conditions and diseases that have names for which there is no treatment. There may be treatment to relieve symptoms, but if you already know what the symptoms are, then knowing the name of the diagnosis is no more useful than not knowing it. So many people think the name will provide a cause for their illness or debilitation. That may be true,…
