The Post the Haters Don’t Want You to Read (“Don’t Judge Me!” Part 5)

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“… for you [God] alone know the hearts of all men.” – I Kings 8:39

Pardon the click-bait title here, but I’m making a point.

Ever since my teenaged years when it seemed I spent half my life either coming down with something, sick with something, or getting over something, I have been somewhat of a “health nut.” I have written posts about how my early illnesses were a blessing in disguise, because they taught me how to take care of myself, strengthen my immunity, and maintain all-around resilience and extremely good health for my age. The fact that the Lord didn’t just zap me one day and make me instantly healthy has also given me the added bonus of a lifestyle of self-discipline.

(Most of the time.)

So, there are certain on-line “articles” (ads for alternative health care products) with titles that grab my attention. I’m sure you’ve seen them: “The Nutritional Supplement Doctors Don’t Want You To Know About,” “The Toothbrush Dentists Don’t Want You To Know About,” etc. What bothers me about these ads is the perceived assumption that doctors are just out to make money, and the sicker you are, the more money they can make keeping you sick and the happier they are. Although there may be doctors (especially lately) who unintentionally do harm to their patients, I venture to say there are very few who would deliberately keep their patients sick, and I for one take issue with the general insinuation that patients are no more than the medical profession’s “cash cows.”

In my lifetime I have had the privilege of being under the care of some amazing doctors, and I hope you have, too. You know the kind – They listen to my concerns, answer my questions, explore options with me, suggest but don’t push, and do all they can to help ensure that I’m making an informed decision. When I ask about something new I’ve heard or read about, they’ll research it further and get back to me. For example, I recently asked my primary care physician about a supplement I saw advertised as a kind of internal sunscreen so I wouldn’t have to slop chemicals on my skin to prevent a sunburn. She got back to me the next day, saying that though the evidence was not overwhelming for the sunburn claim, she was okay with my trying it, saying the antioxidant in it might help relieve inflammation in my joints. That’s my kind of doctor!

So is my former doctor in Michigan. Knowing I preferred prevention over cures and nutrition and exercise over drugs and surgery, she always recommended the natural way first. She once called me on a Saturday because she had read an article about some new research that made her think of me, and it led to my having (rare, for me) surgery that I think helped alleviate multiple problems.

All that to say, my experience with most doctors has been that they had gone into the medical field because they wanted to help people get and stay healthy, not because they wanted to take advantage of sick people to enrich themselves.

I say “most,” because I have had a few who wanted me to keep coming back until I got tired of their ineffective “treatments,” and once I actually walked out of an appointment, having discovered I had been lied to.

But these are a tiny minority. Most of my health care workers – doctors, dentists, specialists, chiropractors, physical therapists, etc. – seem delighted when I have a good report. I’ve been told once or twice that seeing me brightens their day, after they had been dragged down seeing multiple patients not doing well.

“But,” you might say, “if you’re staying healthy, they don’t make as much money from you.”

True. But good doctors are always in demand, and if they’re spending less time dealing with my ailments, they’ll have more time to take on new patients. Better a doctor with many healthy patients than one with just a few sickly “cash cows” (s)he sees weekly.

Besides, patients who are sick (and broke) all the time, don’t make their doctor look very good, do they?

Side note: More than one doctor has marveled at how well I do, health-wise. When I told one doctor I had just been doing what she had told me to (going to the gym for weight resistance training three days a week), she responded, amazed, “You have?” It seems most of her patients did not follow her instructions! (I wonder if they blamed her when they didn’t improve?) If you don’t follow your physician’s instructions, then either your health isn’t that important to you, or you don’t really trust that doctor and need to find another one.

(There’s a clear parallel here to the degree to which our trust in God is in direct proportion to our obedience, but that’s a post for another day.)

Meanwhile, as hard as it is to trust the medical profession after recent events, don’t get down on health care providers in general. Prayerfully choose one you feel is well informed and genuinely rooting for you. And know that there are a lot of them out there. Give them the benefit of the doubt as much as you’d like others to do the same for you. I believe my doctors have been a blessing from God, and I pray He leads you to the right ones, too.

And please, if you’re advertising the latest discovery in health and fitness, don’t assume all doctors are greedy monsters out to rip us off. That’s just not true. Doctors may not be perfect, but neither are you.

Prayer: Lord, thank You for creating us. We know we are “fearfully and wonderfully made,” and our bodies still hold mysteries that haven’t been explained. Help us to be wise in our choices and take care of the bodies You’ve given us, that we might live on this earth for as long as You would have us, serving You faithfully and effectively, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

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Published by seekingdivineperspective

I am a forgiven sinner and adopted child of God, seeking to see life from His perspective - as opposed to the world's flawed perspective - and living my life accordingly.

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19 thoughts on “The Post the Haters Don’t Want You to Read (“Don’t Judge Me!” Part 5)”

  2. Being that my “choice” is the government funded facilities, we would have to agree to disagree with this post. I stay with them(that system), even though I am a cash paying patient and can go where ever I want, because that’s where all the records are. And they are cheaper than private docs. But, you get what you pay for also.

    I did go to a private doc some years ago, it was in the last quarter of the year and I had signed up for health insurance through my work, but it wasn’t going to kick in until January. This doctor was on the in network list, so I thought I would get the going to her office started anyway. Paid cash, she put me on a high blood pressure med(twice a day the prescription said), with a f/u appt. two or three weeks later to see how the med was working. Unfortunately, I got seasonal sinus congestion right after starting the med and proceeded to take a decongestant like I had done for years during this time of year, not thinking it would interact with the blood thinner med and render it less affective. And since I was not feeling well and sleeping whenever I could, I could only remember to take my med once per day. Which I thought was better than not taking it at all.

    When I went for my f/u appt. and my blood pressure was still sky high, I told her that I was remembering to take my med at least once a day, but not the twice a day as prescribed. She then asked me where I got that prescription from, and I said here, from you. And she basically called me a liar and told me she never prescribes medicine more than once per day. It was a small cluster feck as I didn’t think to bring the medicine bottle with me to the appt. and my husband was not answering the phone at home for me to have him read the label. So, in essence the med I was taking for high blood pressure was doing nothing. She put me on another med and I think I just stopped taking it as I was not going to go back to that office. She also was ex-military and I think she just had a, “You haven’t been through enough s**t for me to really care what happens to you.” attitude.

    Anyway, I’m on another blood thinner med through another doc’s office, associated with the University Hospital System in our city. Its not the best medical system in many ways because it is government funded, but its working out ok. Better than nothing for now. I have seen a chiropractor for years and he doesn’t take insurance, so I pay cash. It has been great until covid hit. He now is booked up 4-6 weeks in advance. Before I could call and get in within the week, but not right now. And since I would have to take the bus to and from the appt., I just think that the bus ride back will undo everything he did. Just a waste of money right now in my book. If I could find a good chiropractor that would come to my house….oh we would be in heaven……

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  3. “When I told one doctor I had just been doing what she had told me to (going to the gym for weight resistance training three days a week), she responded, amazed, ‘You have?'” ;>) Health on, Annie!

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  4. I am pleased you have had access to some good doctors, Annie! Some of us have really had a hard time finding them and an even harder time trying to maintain health insurance to pay for them. I am not complaining, that has been a huge blessing! Sometimes when we have no choice, it motivates us to to turn to the Lord, and lo and behold, turning to the Lord actually works!

    I am also chuckling, because I too am a walking miracle of good health myself, something I really didn’t have when I was younger. That is all totally due to the Lord teaching me and lighting the path before me. One year I actually had mono, strep, tonsillitis, pneumonia, and chicken pox! Later my spine was so damaged when my first child was born, I couldn’t walk for months or lift a baby so we just lived on the floor. Today my spine has miraculously healed and I rarely catch anything but a slight cold.

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    1. Amen, IB! The Lord is the true “Good Physician” at the end of the day. He has healed me through good people and by enlightening me (not always through the medical profession) about what to do, but then I had to actually do it. The most important thing to remember, of course, is to trust Him everything. Someday these bodies are going to break down, and those who have been faithful to Him will get new ones! My daily prayers always begin with Romans 12:1. šŸ˜‰

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  5. I’m happy that you’ve had such positive experiences with doctors. I have had one or two good ones amongst the stream I’ve been seeing since I was a baby, but unfortunately, my experience is a lot more negative. Perhaps it has to do with location? Doctors and therapists in the Netherlands are definitely not known for being the best. It has to do with governments and how medical professionals are paid as well, but also, how individual people view their practice. Where I’m from, people don’t pay for health care – it’s all government funded. I don’t know if that has an affect on anything? I wish my doctors had been as positive and nice as yours was. You’re very blessed to have the experiences you’ve had šŸ˜Š

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  6. I’m so sorry you’ve had bad experiences. I wish I could bring you over here and get you connected with one of the good docs I’ve had. I guess the point of my piece was that whatever our experience with some people in a group, we should try not to say they’re ALL bad. God bless the few good doctors you’ve had. I pray you find more of them.

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  8. I like the prayer most of all. I prayed it with you. I have had good and bad doctors. Some don’t like it that I won’t take drugs. By the grace of God I have been pharmaceutical dependent free for nearly 15 years. Don’t even take aspirin or anything like it for pain. I look for natural remedies and pray through it all. Still working to have a much healthier diet.

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  9. That’s awesome that you had a good doctor that actually called you! And good job on your consistent workouts. Although I am pretty negative about the so-called healthcare system, and not a fan of big pharma’s tactics, (insurance companies are another topic), I have had some good experiences with some caring doctors and many hard-working nurses and other medical professionals. I am thankful for modern technology and drugs because without it, my daughter would not be alive today. I have spent a lot of time with her in the intensive care unit. And she has had some doctors with terrible bedside manners, but excellent skills, and some that were nice, but not that good. I’m glad they are available and thankful for their brilliant minds. In general, though, I avoid doctors’ offices as much as possible. Thanks for this reminder.

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