One Last College Try

Near the end of the appointment with my neurologist when I found out she was no longer going to accept my insurance, she asked me if I wanted to come in one last time before she dropped my insurance. Knowing where I really wanted to go next and knowing how long wait times have been in the past to get a first appointment there, I took her up on her offer.

I was pleasantly surprised to get an appointment with my new neurologist relatively quickly and kept going back and forth as to whether or not I wanted to keep my last visit with my current doctor. Needing much information and a prescription from her to see my new doctor, I finally decided I would still go.

I had this last appointment with her this week. I'm glad I chose to keep it as we were able to tie up a few things and I was able to talk to her about everything I need for my new neurologist. I will be going to a true Migraine specialist who is a real pioneer in the field.

I added something different to give to her for our last appointment. I gave her a cumulative graph of all of the time we spent together. There were a couple of areas on this chart I thought were very interesting so I circled a peak and a couple of valleys that I wanted to talk to her about. As I handed her the graph, I explained what the graph represented and that I wanted to talk about the areas I circled while offering her to ask me about anything else on the graph. There were areas she liked on the chart and other areas she didn't. Then I questioned her on the circled areas.

The first valley came rather abruptly; that's a good thing since it was a big, extreme dip in my Migraines. I attributed the difference here to a switch from the generic Topiramate to the brand Topamax. There was a clear, unmistakable difference between the generic and brand for me.

The peak came after this Topamax valley. Topamax was breaking my budget as my insurance company expected me to pay over ninety percent of the cost for the prescription so I needed to try something else. Titrating off of Topamax helped my Migraines skyrocket. I commented to my doctor on how I could see how well preventatives really do work for me as they did come back down a little after I started titrating on my new medication.

The last valley I circled was when I started my last elimination diet. I strongly believe in the elimination diet while my doctor believes the best way to find food triggers is to discover them. This valley was significant enough where I really can't ignore the results and she could clearly see the difference too. I told her that I know I am missing something and believe the only way I'm going to find it is to go on the elimination diet again. I let her know that the only reason I stopped the diet at that point was because my thyroid levels came back on the high side which I know was making me feel very off. She nodded her head in agreement to everything I said, but I don't know that it will really change how she feels about the elimination diet even though my chart clearly showed the diet made a difference. It also showed me that I definitely have to go through the diet again.

As we were getting ready to conclude our relationship, I couldn't stop myself from giving her one more college try around one of my pet peeves. I turned to her and said, "before I leave, I have a challenge for you."

As had become the norm, she had no idea what to expect from me next and put on her quizzical face. I continued that she constantly told me that stress was one of her biggest triggers for her Migraines and that I did not believe stress was a trigger. As I was saying I thought it was an exasperating factor, she said it at the same time that I did, using the same terminology and with a little roll of the eyes but also not dismissing what I was saying either.

I challenged her that the next time she is under stress, to look at other possible triggers going on around her. I asked her the following questions in rapid succession: Does she drink enough water? Is she getting enough sleep or an uninterrupted sleep? Is she eating well? Is she clenching her teeth?

Her first response was that she probably does not drink enough water and asked me not to look at the chocolate milk sitting next to her. She agreed that she doesn't always get enough or a good sleep. She admitted that she doesn't always eat breakfast and that many times during rounds, she will grab crackers from the nurses stations instead of eating a real meal. As she was going through her answers, she knew she wasn't taking care of herself the way she should and could probably see the disapproving smirk on my face. She tried to recover by saying "we don't always practice what we preach" while pseudo smiling.

I followed up by saying if we can become aware of some of our avoidable triggers during our stressful times, that maybe we could elude the Migraine altogether or at the least, it wouldn't be as bad. I also admitted that I try to be more diligent during my stressful times and know it's not always easy, but it's usually worth the efforts. She said, "you're right, water and meals are big for me".

I won't know if this talk again will really make a difference, but my goal is that this is something that will help her and is passed on to her patients so they can try to reduce the number of Migraines they get especially during those stressful times when we don't really need another Migraine. I had to give it this one last good college try before leaving her office for the final time. I hope it will help this time.

We talked a little about where I will be going next. She is real happy with the doctor I will be seeing and has even heard him speak. She also could not believe how quickly I got an appointment with him either. She was very helpful in making sure I have everything I need for my first appointment and I even had her sign another iFMLA form so it will cover a full day doctor's visit with my new doctor. I am currently only approved for partial day doctor visits so this should extend my coverage to a full day.

During our different talks throughout the visit, she mentioned a few times how she would like me to follow up with her on a couple of things. At the end, I told her I would be happy to as long as she gave me her email address. She didn't even hesitate to give me her personal email address, but she did give me a trusting look that I know I shouldn't and never would break.

Now I have to get prepared for my next, new doctor's visit which will last all day and not only because it is a much longer drive, but their first appointment is about a five hour very comprehensive visit. This will be a very long day especially for a Tuesday visit which is sandwiched between two workdays and during our busiest time of the year when we're not even supposed to take any days off. My boss didn't have any problem with me taking this day.

I am starting to look forward to my new doctor. I know I won't have the same relationship I had with my now 'old' neurologist, but I'm also looking to start really reducing my Migraines once and for all. And now I will begin a new doctor chapter in my Migraine life...

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