XP: Very upset - Advice Needed- Long

doyalnr

I've been feeling very down lately and have realized it's beyond the point of normal up's and down's. I went to my 6 wk pp checkup today and had already decided I was going to talk to my dr about how I was feeling. The nurse that checked my weight and blood pressure had asked if I had felt anxious or depressed and I told her I had felt depressed and she put it in my notes for the dr to read. When the dr finally got to my room, the first thing she does is ask me about what birth control I wanted. By that time the baby was crying so I had to take him out of the car seat and hold him. Then she checked my stitches and realized that they're not completely healed so she gave me a shot to speed up the healing process and then took the baby out of the room so I could get dressed. When I was done, I went out into the hall and asked if we were done and she says yes and that she wants to see me in 1 week to check on the stitches and then goes to see her next patient. Everything went so fast, I didn't even have an opportunity to tell her I wanted to talk to her about something else privately.

I left her office in tears.I feel so ignored. I mean, I was under the impression that screening for PPD was part of the 6 week checkup and especially when the patient even says they've been feeling depressed I would think that the dr would inquire about it a little more about it. To make things a little bit more stressful, the baby was screaming the whole way home (which is about a 30 minute drive). I called my husband and told him about the experience and I think he doesn't understand what I'm going through so he didn't know what to say to help me feel better.

 I just can't stop crying. I've decided I need to find a new dr ASAP. I don't have a PCP so I don't have anyone else that I know that I can talk to about it. Now I feel like I have a whole new set of obstacles to face, finding a new doc, making sure they're covered by insurance, figuring out how to bring this up to a complete stranger, feeling comfortable enough to talk about it. It took a lot to admit that something was wrong and this dr made me feel like it doesn't matter.

 If anyone has any advice on what to say to the new dr, when I find one, I'd realy appreciate it.

katesmom73

That's horrible - I'd be upset too.  I don't think my doctor even asked about PPD in my 6 week checkup either, though at the time I was feeling OK.  I would definitely find a new doctor.  Does your insurance have a website that you can use to search for providers?  That's how I found my general practitioner. 

ked77

I'm so sorry you have to go through this!  I would be extremely upset and would be looking for a new doctor as well.  PPD check was definitely part of my 6 week check and it sounds like it was sorta yours (with the nurse asking) but zero follow up by the doctor!  Is there another doctor in that practice?  I also find doctors via my health insurance website.  But the first thing I would do is call the doctor's office to complain about not being able to talk about this at your appointment even though it was noted that you wanted to.

doyalnr

Thank you for your responses. I'm checking with my ins for new dr's.

 

Ked- who would you suggest I speak to at my current dr's office? a manager, my dr, the nurse? I'm sort of at a loss as to who to ask for

ked77

I think maybe you want to talk to an office manager to make sure your complaint is heard by the right person(I'm not sure of the heirachy of a medical office though), but I think if you call and tell him/her what the issue is they will (or should) have you talk to a nurse also about the depression.

Good luck!