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Top Tips for Dealing with your Doctor
This is one of the things I get asked about the most. These conversations often go wrong. Not (usually!) because people are wrong or stupid or bad — but because there’s time pressure, miscommunication and a mismatch of expectations. Here are some ways to avoid that.
1 Find the right doctor
Make friends with the receptionist. Ask them who the best person to speak to about menopause is. It may well be a practice nurse. If you have a surgery with a group of doctors working together, it’s likely that they will have specialisms and that one person at that surgery will be better trained and informed about menopause. If there’s a choice of doctors locally ask around about the treatment other women have had.
And that might be a man! What we’re looking for here is someone who has key knowledge, will listen and is empathetic, not someone with the same sort of body as yours. After all a woman might have had a completely different experience of menopause. If you refuse to see a male doctor you cut in half the possibility of finding a doctor with whom you can have a good relationship.
2. Go in good time.
It’s difficult to make an appointment these days, but delaying it may only makes things worse. It may take a few appointments to sort things out. Rid yourself of any notion that making a…
