# This is why I hate going to the doctor **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 22, 2014, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-why-i-hate-going-to-the-doctor/696253 "2014-08-22T23:46:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 14
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-why-i-hate-going-to-the-doctor/696253/261 "2014-09-01T00:05:24Z")
> [@AnaMen](#): > > Hindsight is something medical professionals could make good use of, but when you look back with the mindset that by definition the doctor did everything right, most of the use is lost. Somebody said that? ---
**Author:** ![7e42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/7/51bf81/32.png) [@7e42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/7e42)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-why-i-hate-going-to-the-doctor/696253/262 "2014-09-01T00:48:30Z")
> [@AnaMen](#): > > **7e42** , did you tell your doctor about the fish oil working? No because I haven’t seen her since then ---
**Author:** ![AnaMen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dfb087/32.png) [@AnaMen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AnaMen)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-why-i-hate-going-to-the-doctor/696253/263 "2014-09-01T01:00:27Z")
> [@outlierrn](#): > > Somebody said that? A mindset isn’t something you say – it is a frame of mind or an attitude. So no, no one said that, nor did I claim they did. ---
**Author:** ![AnaMen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dfb087/32.png) [@AnaMen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AnaMen)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-why-i-hate-going-to-the-doctor/696253/264 "2014-09-01T01:01:37Z")
> [@7e42](#): > > No because I haven’t seen her since then You should tell her. Maybe she will want to recommend that other patients try this. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-why-i-hate-going-to-the-doctor/696253/265 "2014-09-01T01:10:23Z")
I by no means possess the mindset that by definition, the doctor did everything right all of the time. I am of the somewhat informed opinion that, based on what the OP wrote in Post One and subsequent posts, his doctor did everything right according to the best standards of her industry at this particular visit. Maybe otherwise she’s a crap doctor, I don’t know. Goodness knows there are plenty of them. I have a list of doctors who are not allowed to touch me unless we are literally the last people on earth and I’m actively bleeding from my eyeballs, and that list grows weekly. Pretty soon half the doctors in Chicago will be on it, I’m sure. I’m actually laughing out loud here, because I’m pretty anti-doctor, in general, which is why I’m in a field of nursing that limits my contact with them. It’s kind of surreal to be defending one, even in the abstract on a message board. But to suggest that \*this \*doctor, _this time_, didn’t do “everything right”, is an extraordinary claim that requires extraordinary evidence. ---
**Author:** ![7e42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/7/51bf81/32.png) [@7e42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/7e42)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-why-i-hate-going-to-the-doctor/696253/266 "2014-09-01T01:12:58Z")
> [@AnaMen](#): > > You should tell her. Maybe she will want to recommend that other patients try this. someone told me doctors don’t recommend things like Fish Oil ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-why-i-hate-going-to-the-doctor/696253/267 "2014-09-01T01:21:46Z")
They don’t tend to recommend things that have not been tested in double-blind studies, and cannot be prescribed or even suggested for particular conditions, and they won’t tell you to buy something if they can’t recommend a manufacturer that has standards of purity at least as good as an OTC med (like Tylenol Flu, for example). It’s totally understandable. You are free to buy a hot dog from the questionable vendor with the expired license, and the umbrella full of holes, but it would be highly irresponsible for a food stamps or WIC program to allow you to use vouchers there. You are free to take medical advice from a co-worker with no medical background, but if your doctor had _told_ you “I got nothing. Why don’t you ask a co-worker?” That would be malpractice. ---
**Author:** ![AnaMen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dfb087/32.png) [@AnaMen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AnaMen)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-why-i-hate-going-to-the-doctor/696253/268 "2014-09-01T02:13:15Z")
> [@7e42](#): > > someone told me doctors don’t recommend things like Fish Oil For something like arthritis, which has no real treatment or cure, yes, they often do. Tylenol is not a treatment. They don’t think your arthritis will improve if you take it. There is even prescription fish oil, so doctors do prescribe it for some things. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-why-i-hate-going-to-the-doctor/696253/269 "2014-09-01T02:18:35Z")
> [@7e42](#): > > everyone I recommended it to says it has worked well so far I was diagnosed with arthritis by a doctor and I was already taking fish oil. Waste of money. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-why-i-hate-going-to-the-doctor/696253/270 "2014-09-01T02:24:22Z")
I was diagnosed as a doctor by a fish. Coinicidence? I think not. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-why-i-hate-going-to-the-doctor/696253/271 "2014-09-01T02:27:36Z")
> [@7e42](#): > > someone told me doctors don’t recommend things like Fish Oil possibly because it’s linked to a [44% increase in prostate cancer](http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/podcast/transcript090313.html). So, as it stands, you’re listening to “someone” who advised you on what doctors do and do not do and you’re advertising a specific brand of fish by-products as a cure for a disease that has no known cure. Do you see where we’re going with this? ---
**Author:** ![DingoelGringo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@DingoelGringo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DingoelGringo)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-why-i-hate-going-to-the-doctor/696253/272 "2014-09-01T02:27:43Z")
> [@7e42](#): > > They get paid nice money to > > 1. Tell you what you don’t want to hear > > 2. Tell you they don’t know what your medical issue is or what caused it > > I had joint pain in the knees and hip and could not walk at all and was very concerned. Do you know this dumb doctor suggested I get some Tylenol??? Is that her idea of resolving a issue a patient has? I had to find my own solution to the knee and hip pain which turned out to be FISH OIL. So again what the hell is the purpose of a doctor? To take money out of your account and tell you they don’t know what’s wrong with you? You do realize they are just “PRACTICING” medicine. They don’t have it down like a plumber or electrician or mechanic. ---
**Author:** ![DingoelGringo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@DingoelGringo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DingoelGringo)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-why-i-hate-going-to-the-doctor/696253/273 "2014-09-01T02:30:23Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > They don’t tend to recommend things that have not been tested in double-blind studies, and cannot be prescribed or even suggested for particular conditions, and they won’t tell you to buy something if they can’t recommend a manufacturer that has standards of purity at least as good as an OTC med (like Tylenol Flu, for example) ANd they don’t tend to prescribe something they cannot make another buck off of. ---
**Author:** ![7e42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/7/51bf81/32.png) [@7e42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/7e42)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-why-i-hate-going-to-the-doctor/696253/274 "2014-09-01T02:36:22Z")
> [@Magiver](#): > > I was diagnosed with arthritis by a doctor and I was already taking fish oil. Waste of money. was it GNC brand? ---
**Author:** ![7e42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/7/51bf81/32.png) [@7e42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/7e42)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-why-i-hate-going-to-the-doctor/696253/275 "2014-09-01T02:37:44Z")
> [@Magiver](#): > > possibly because it’s linked to a [44% increase in prostate cancer](http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/podcast/transcript090313.html). > > So, as it stands, you’re listening to “someone” who advised you on what doctors do and do not do and you’re advertising a specific brand of fish by-products as a cure for a disease that has no known cure. > > Do you see where we’re going with this? Is it GNC brand that may increase it? ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-why-i-hate-going-to-the-doctor/696253/276 "2014-09-01T02:49:28Z")
> [@7e42](#): > > Is it GNC brand that may increase it? sigh… ---
**Author:** ![AnaMen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dfb087/32.png) [@AnaMen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AnaMen)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-why-i-hate-going-to-the-doctor/696253/277 "2014-09-01T03:20:38Z")
> [@7e42](#): > > Is it GNC brand that may increase it? It’s not necessarily any supplement. From the above link: “The study’s 12 authors explain they could not discern if the risk of prostate cancer was derived from eating fish rich in omega-3 fatty acids (such as salmon or herring), or from fish oil supplements.” Here is a brief summary of some of the benefits of fish oil: [http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/natural/993.html](http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/natural/993.html) It is considered “possibly effective for” rheumatoid arthritis. I have a friend who takes it as per doctor’s orders for this purpose. So, a real MD is indeed instructing people to try it. RA and OA are not the same thing, of course, but success is the only statistic that matters here. If it works for you, that’s not absurdly implausible as some would have you believe. An increased risk of prostate cancer is not great, but most medication also has nontrivial risks. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-why-i-hate-going-to-the-doctor/696253/278 "2014-09-01T04:28:46Z")
I’m surprised at the suggestion that doctors don’t advise on options. When I go to the doctor I’ve already researched my ailment and have an interactive conversation regarding treatment. I learned long ago that medications are a crap-shoot of adverse or paradoxical reactions. My doctor has always relayed information given to him by other patients so if any given supplement gets enough of a positive response he’ll pass it on in the form of “this has worked for other people so you might give it a try”. ---
**Author:** ![usedtobe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ec9cab/32.png) [@usedtobe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/usedtobe)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 6:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-why-i-hate-going-to-the-doctor/696253/279 "2014-09-01T06:26:04Z")
> [@psychobunny](#): > > \ The evidence shows that Tylenol is just as effective for joint pain caused by degenerative joint disease as an other medication… Are you diagnosed as psycho? Tylenol is Acetaminophen - which causes liver disease, is NOT as effective as Morphine, which is what I require for any degree of relief (Osteoarthritis). I do hope you are not involved in the practice of medicine anywhere this page can be read. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 7:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-why-i-hate-going-to-the-doctor/696253/280 "2014-09-01T07:03:30Z")
> [@DingoelGringo](#): > > ANd they don’t tend to prescribe something they cannot make another buck off of. Doctors do not make money from prescriptions, unless a particular doctor happens to hold a patent as the inventor or developer of a medicine (in which case the doctor is probably not in private practice). There is no tit-for-tat in writing prescriptions. In fact, according to my cousins who are doctors, now that drug companies advertise on TV, people come in asking for things they saw advertised, and doctors spend several minutes of many appointments explaining why they _can’t_ (or at any rate, shouldn’t) prescribe a certain medication for someone. In fact, a few years ago, it became illegal for drug companies to give little premiums to doctors, or to take them to lunch. They used to give out trinkets, Post-its with the company logo, pens with the company logo, and cater brunches for entire departments in hospitals. All gone now. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-why-i-hate-going-to-the-doctor/696253.md?page=13) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-why-i-hate-going-to-the-doctor/696253.md?page=15)