I ask a lot of questions. All the time. I'm an overthinker by nature. I was an annoying patient! But I didn’t care. My goal was to look after my sanity. If something doesn’t make sense, or doesn’t feel right, I want to be convinced.
The way I see it, my medical team was there to do what they could to treat me, and that included my mental well-being. For two years, no one listened to me and it almost cost me my life. My misdiagnosis imprinted on my mind and forced me to question things that impacted my health and ability to survive, even if it was an expert.
I needed information so that I was in a position to make educated decisions, communicate effectively with my team, and process what was happening to me. It was my way of controlling what I could in an otherwise uncontrollable situation - bad news for a type A personality.
I love lists. Being organized and detail oriented is who I am, so this came naturally for appointments. I would show up with as many questions as I could think of scribbled in a notepad. I would furiously write down the answers as I quizzed my doctors. That way, when I was at home dealing with the fury of fear, I could refer back to what they had shared with me.
This doesn’t mean just asking questions of your team.
It also means asking questions of yourself. What do you need to feel supported? How can you manage stress? What tools can you implement personally that will positively affect your outcome? What role do you play?
There is no right or wrong.
It’s simply what is right for you.
Follow your intuition and don’t be afraid to seek what you need.