Frustrated with Doctor Refusing to Give Referral

Hi, I'm new to all of this, but I'm looking forward to getting some help. To make a very long story short, I recently went to my doctor to try and get diagnosed with autism, EDS, and POTS. I had articles on all of them and highlighted my symptoms and other relevant information. This is important because my doctor has brushed off any concerns before. She did the same thing this time, and then lied about sending me a referral to a rheumatologist and a psychologist. I called her a week ago to ask her about the referrals, and she called me back today to tell me that I should essentially go and find my own doctor. The problem is, she refuses to give me a referral to any other doctor and every doctor I've called will not see me without one. I know what the diagnostic criteria are for all of those conditions, and I know that I meet that criteria 10 times over. I'm honestly wondering if it's worth trying to go to a doctor about them anymore.

Your answer

Alux

1y ago

i’ve been in the same struggle/journey for almost two years at this point ngl… it sucks but we will get thru it 💪

Quari

1y ago

So I have autism and POTS, and I suspect EDS. Something I would recommend looking into is why you want to get diagnosed. With POTS and EDS it makes sense because it requires specific therapy and medications. With autism the treatment is already easily accessible. If it's for going on disability or having other access needs met golden, but if you already know you have it, the struggle to get diagnosed may not be worth it right now. Just my two cents. With POTS a cardiologist diagnosed mine. Doctors are always suspicious of their patients, and it sucks because we already often know what we have. Coming at them with all the facts and articles makes a lot of them freak out. Telling them that you're having heart issues and pain will lead you down the right path. Just try to guide them where you want to go with your care without giving too much info. The medical industry is messed up in this country. For EDS I'm going to a pain clinic.

CGC

1y ago

I agree with this completely. It’s a game with doctors in America. It took me years of being pushed around by doctors assuming I’m just an anxious hypochondriac until one doctor was willing to do the testing which started the ball rolling for everything. If you give too much you scare them and they don’t believe you. Just give enough to make them curious themselves to order more testing or a referral. Doctors will never act on your own self diagnoses (no matter how accurate they are). It’s like an ego thing, they want to find it themselves. Sadly, I think even mentioning the autism thing sometimes throws doctors off (my dad and brother have autism and I’ve noticed the doctors I’ve mentioned it to don’t take my medical issues as seriously …as messed up as that sounds). I even had a doctor tell me one time “remember we have to stick to only one issue during each appt”. That was my GP… how sad is health care in America. The only reason I got my EDS, POTS, MALS, and endometriosis diagnoses is because I saw one doctor who was willing to listen to multiple symptoms and realize that you can be both sick AND anxious at the same time. As for the autism thing goes, I agree that if there’s no treatment try not to stress too much on finding someone to diagnose you. But at the same time, knowing is stress relieving so I suggest seeing a psychiatrist. Call your insurance and ask for one that is covered and they should be able to help. Health care in America is a joke!! Best of luck 💕

megsh

1y ago

if you call the insurance you can specify what specialties you want to go to. And if there are none in your state then they can look out of state. For autism diagnosis a you just need a psychiatrist who does testing. POTS would be harder but if you find a new primary then they can help.

megsh

1y ago

I would call your insurance if you have it. They can give you a list of in network doctors in your area and those typically do not require referrals. You might have to find another primary care doctors and go from there, insurance can give you this list as well.

Entropyluna

1y ago

I tried finding a doctor on my own, but I never thought to go through insurance. Part of the problem is that it doesn't seem like there are any specialists in my state that will deal with these issues or do consultations for them

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