Pants Not On Fire

Ah-ha! I bet I got you with that headline! Go on, admit it, you came here to find out about the fire in me pants. (or indeed, the lack thereof).

But what I mean is I'm not a liar (so me pants are not on fire).

You know, I get very tired of That Look.  You know the one I mean: The raised eyebrow, slightly incredulous "Oh come ON!" look you get from doctors or indeed veterinarians when you relate some entirely true and unexaggerated medical history to them (the vet gave me That Look today when I told him I have Syringomyelia.  Probably because I am definitely NOT a King Charles Cavalier Spaniel).

My PCP does not believe that I have NOT been eating during the day because I have not lost any weight. I have not lost any weight (and I told him this) because I have been eating carbohydrates in the evening.  If I chose to stick to my low-carb diet, the weight would fall of me, but I chose not to do this for a few reasons.

1. I don't want to lose weight rapidly.  I don't want to develop any saggy bits, thank you.
2. It is hard enough to get through each day fasting in the daylight hours (it's like I have a permanent Ramadan going on here). If I throw low-carb into the mix; well, I feel I have very little to live for. I mean, really: What's the point in having a stomach and digestive organs if you are going to fast during the day and then at night just eat meat and green vegetables? For the level of enjoyment that would bring, I could just get a feeding tube and do the white sludge diet.

3. see #2. (it is worth counting twice)

Reactive Hypoglycemia is one of those conditions that cause a "Can not compute" error in the brains of most doctors. They cannot get that a person like me can eat very few calories, but if those few calories are in the form of carbohydrates, they are applied directly to my ass and I gain weight. However if I eat TONS of calories in the form of protein and fat, I lose. It all has to do with Insulin, a hormone I produce in spades due to a rather overeager pancreas. 

The process is simple and has been understood for years  A person eats carbs, such as sugar or starch, the blood sugar rises. Now we all know that high blood sugar is BAD, so the body produces Insulin to take out the excess sugar. The insulin very efficiently converts sugar to fat, which it then kindly puts into storage (on my ass). 

Excpt I produce a little too MUCH insulin, it removes too much sugar from my system. That makes my blood sugar plummet, making me hungry for ... carbs.

And we start all over.

It is not hard to understand. Especially if one is Board Certified in Internal Medicine (or anything). Come ON!

Unfortunately, doctors have had it hammered into their skulls that low-fat, high fiber (and often high sugar/carb) is the way to go with diet these days. And that might be true for 90% of the folk out there. But it is NOT true for me.

But how come I am the one being treated like my pants should be on fire?  I'll tell you why:

1. Because I am not in the 90%. Doctors are trained to deal with statistics and the laws of averages, not with symptoms and real logic.
2. Because doctors are taught to assume first that a patient is LYING if they do not fit into these neat buckets of statistics and averages, not that they may have something slightly unusual going on.

And even my own doctor, who has known me for 12 years and has never once had any reason to doubt me, will choose to believe I am lying, rather than look at the function and logic of my own proven and documented medical history: i.e. reactive hypoglycemia.

That hurts my feelings.  It really does.  I can handle some young arrogant ER doc making that assumption because he doesn't know me from a hole in the wall. But my relationship with my PCP is the single longest uninterrupted relationship I have had with a man other than my father or husband.  I do expect a level of trust and respect at this point. I don't think it is wrong of me to expect that.

My pants are quite cool, thank you very much.  Deal with it and let's move on.

Comments

[yanub]

Who could possibly lose weight eating carbs? For 30 years or so, medical science has been telling us to eat carbs in order to lose weight, and for 30 years or so, people have been getting fatter instead. Methinks medical science might try doing some actual science instead of pushing the propaganda coming out of the Center for (ahem) Science in the Public Interest.

Back when I was growing up, and people were on the whole thinner, the diet plate at any diner was a hamburger patty, scoop of full-fat cottage cheese, one leaf of lettuce and a tiny piece of fruit.

[Virginia]

Good point, Vanub, about the diet plate. So true!

OSM, thanks for the updates...I think most folks cant believe we even live with what we say we live with...dont you?

We are THAT special!!

love you!

[Drake]

Heh... OSM, I get you sooo much... No wonder I feel like a hypochondriac every time I go visit my GP.

It is always a case of, I walk in, GP thinks * What is he complaining about now... Might as well start a script for anti-inflamatories *. Then, when I explain the problem to him, it is like - Blank Stare -.

Doctors are trained to help people with a specific set of problems... and you are so right. As soon as the problem falls outside that scope, they are thinking ... * Hmmm someone is either looking for attention or they are hooked on pain-killers *

On the eating front... People just cant understand how I eat so little, yet stay at a constant 69-70 kgs and that it is just not possible for me to eat more. My body just refuse to accept more food. It used to be a huge point of contention with my family blaming my Bad Eating Habits for my physical problems ... heh ... after the DX, most of them has kinda let go of that idea ... but old habits die hard.

Keep well and stay away from doctors when you have any sharp objects in your hands

[Queen Slug]

The more I read a few blogs the more I think it is us that have let the world down. Its obvious we are not like normal people, so far from normal perhaps I know where we ought to be, in cages at the circus, cause for all intents purposes, medically speaking, we are freaks. It seems as plan as the nose on our faces we shouldnt be taken seriously, we should be laughed at or ignored.

Ok, Ill stop now, but really I dont know what it is we are to be gaining by telling our docs about whats wrong. What is it we are supposed to get from these lies? I have dealt with this time time again from docs who I thought were great when I walked in the door met them. Docs who told me theyd figure it out help me. Docs I trusted who I thought trusted me. I know your pants arent on fire. 3