To tell my Gp and physio they are wrong?

If you know better than your GP and Physio leave them to work it out. You’re clearly way superior to folk who spent years at university training specifically.

Two months ago I’d have said the doctors know what they are doing and have better medical training than you BUT after multiple trips to the doctor about a problem I had they couldn’t agree what was wrong and it was very stressful. I went private and the doctor diagnosed me what what I thought almost straight away. I’d say if you can afford to have a private consultation where you will be listened too because your paying them too!

although we do occasionally come across GPs who seem very offended by their patients doing this

I had a GP like this! She seemed really upset when I mentioned a private referral for something. She was generally lovely though, I think she just believed strongly in the principle of free universal healthcare.
This was years ago when the waiting times to be seen were a fraction of what they are now, mind you.

Just a note about the walking stick suggestion. I had a really badly sprained ankle about 15 years ago. I didn't rest it enough and it got very inflamed. A locum orthopaedic chap, very elderly, in the clinic suggested a walking stick and showed me how to use it properly. It took the pressure of the bad ankle and I cannot put into words how helpful it was. Not a permanent solution but it may be worth a try op.

I had one of these. It was very painful but worked very quickly. Sadly the pf returned after 6 months.

I would normally give a patient a steroid injection if it's gone on this long. Have you had one?

I haf terrible pf for years. It disappeared 2 weeks after starting hrt.

@JackTorrance
Yes, I agree about GPs being delighted their patients are going to be sorted out elsewhere, although we do occasionally come across GPs who seem very offended by their patients doing this. I've never been able to understand why, because it certainly saves the NHS money if the patients receive any sort of private medical care even if it is just a specialist consultation.

You could try “I’ve come across this condition that sounds exactly like what I have, if you don’t think it is that please can you explain to me why?” Polite, respectful of their knowledge and experience, assertive and fair

@mrsjoyfulprizeforraffiawork yes absolutely, that was just how it worked for me but I'm sure it differs from area to area.
I have personally found gps a lot keener to refer for private, if for no other reason than to get a patient out of their hair.

Even with my dog, I’d ask for a referral to a specialist, there’s no way I’d let my usual vet carry out a major orthopaedic operation such as a TPLO. He just couldn’t do it, because it’s a very specialist procedure.

Much as I appreciate the NHS, sometimes I have found doctors to be arrogant and determined to be right. I was in A& E some years ago because all the skin on my foot suddenly loosened and came off after a minor bit of what looked like athletes foot. The doctor spotted the old injury to my leg-horse stood on it and ripped off part of my calf. I mentioned that I didn’t think the 2 were related and he very pompously told me he’d be the judge of that. Several doctors couldn’t say what was wrong. Dr Google said pompholyx, confirmed by my gp who had to follow up and came to watch the nurse dressing my feet.

Maybe doctors just get fed up of people telling them what Dr Google says! I hope you get it resolved, OP, it sounds horrific.

Most GPs don't, which is why it's no harm in doing some further investigation.

Or would you just get a walking stick, as was suggested to OP?

I love it when my GP googles. It means he's listening to me and open to collaboration. Just like when I ask for a referral and he says ' no problem, but can you email in a history as you know them better.'

@Claireintheclouds yes I do see the difference. However, my dd had not at that point been diagnosed by an appropriately qualified physician because GP said CAMHS were useless and in any event CAMHS refused their services to a person who was harming by overdoses and cutting.

An appropriately qualified psychiatrist diagnosed the underlying cause which was a neuro-developmental disability, well masked.

A therapist wad not what dd needed when there was no diagnosis and if it was, I needed some guidance as a lay person. There was none. In any event not many therapists will take on an under 18 who is actively harming because they need more specialist support.

I hope that helps you understand the point.

Have you considered whether it could be Morton’s Neuroma or do the symptoms not fit that?

Me too. Dr said it wouldn’t possibly be what I thought it was……guess what, it was 🙄

Hi, im a physio. In my view its good to see patients who are proactive and want to learn as much as possible about their condition, particularly when its not responding to treatment. What you describe sounds more like nerve pain and not typical of plantarfasciitis. Also consider a condition called tarsal tunnel syndrome. Im not in the uk but where i live it would be a good physio (shocked that didn't ask you remove shoes and just phone consultations) first and if that hasnt worked for you a foot and ankle orthopaedic consultant.
Best of luck

This only works if the specialist you are seeing also works in the nhs (many are wholly private). Also, you would still have to get your GP to then make a formal referral to that specialist at his nhs hospital address or the hospital would not accept it. (I am a private medical secretary).

Agree and same with our family.

I was also put through a medically unnecessary procedure only to find out the reason why that was was because the doctors was going off of outdated information that had been proven not only wrong but dangerous adding more risk for problems and interventions. The information was updated at the time only a few years before my procedure. If they had been up to date with their own chosen specialty, I would not have gone through the trauma nor pain I still live with over seven years later.

I don’t trust doctors who cannot even be bothered to listen to me or get annoyed that I dare politely ask questions so I can better understand instead of simply taking their word as gospel. They’re not the ones who have to physically live with their mistakes

Do you really not see the difference between self diagnosing from google and googling a therapist?

ffs

Some of the GP's at my practice are dismissive of Google. I always remind them that when dd was suffering from anxiety at 16 one of their partners told me CAMHS were useless and she couldn't help with a private referral but advised me to find a therapist/counsellor for dd off the Internet. And ask if that was potentially more dangerous than googling joint pain/weak bladder etc. They usually sigh and move the conversation on. Never an acknowledgement of contradiction not withstanding significant contradiction.

I disagee. Almost everyone in my family has had a serious misdiagnosis from the NHS, including being told that cancer couldn’t be cancer, food allergy wasn’t food allergy and a serious infection wasn’t infection. In most cases we eventually self diagnosed on the internet then hired a private doctor to investigate properly intil he could confirm the diagnosis and only then with the private referrals could we get the correct treatment paid for by NHS.

I loathe it when people say ‘don’t google l, trust your doctor.’ This advice is out of date. Today, the vague memories from medical school decades earlier of an overworked exhausted GP who only has 5-10 minutes to reach an opinion cannot compete with hours of detailed internet research, if you know anything at all about research ie use reliable medical journal type sources.