Cautionary tale of using ChatGPT instead of a clinician

[Chronicworrier123]

I'm posting this because I've seen plenty of posters using ChatGPT as a replacement if many things, including medical professionals.

As a bit of context, I suffer from chronic constipation. I actually posted about this in February, and ended up in AE and was prescribed Resolor in case it ever happened again.

Fast forward and now I'm on HRT, the progesterone has made super uncomfortable and bloated and extremely constipated.

So I ask ChatGPT if taking Resolor is a good idea. Or said yes it was.

Well now I'm in bed with horrendous pain, and have lost at least a litre of fluid (if not more) via liquid stool.

I'm nauseous and feeling like fainting.

It would have been best to just suck it up (@!_ tell my GP about the progesterone intolerance).

Don't try to get in the way of Darwinism.

My son has been on laxatives for 23 years but I haven’t heard of Rosolor. A quick google says it’s prescribed when laxatives don’t work.

I’m surprised your doctor suggested this as a first line response.

If you’re constipated, I would have thought something like movicol or senna would have been preferable if lactulose isn’t strong enough.

Too late now though.

Even though you’re passing liquid poo, make sure you are drinking adequately, otherwise you risk dehydration.

I hope you get well soon.

I don’t really understand what you mean to be honest.

If you’re constipated it’s because there is a large amount of hard poo inside you. In order to pass that, it generally needs to be softened up. Usually, a patient would be prescribed something like lactulose. If that doesn’t work then movicol is prescribed. Senna is prescribed as it squeezes the colon, helping the poo move.

Rosolor is generally only prescribed if you’ve tried two types of laxatives but they have failed to get things moving.

You are feeling cramping because that’s what your medicine is meant to do.

If it’s any consolation, you should only feel sick and dizzy for 24 hours.

I don't understand or know anyone who would use chatGPT instead of going to a doctor when they have serious health issues.

Well you aren't constipated anymore so I'd say it worked.

But A&E said to take it if you were constipated, which you were? So don't see how you can blame AI 🙈

Awful to feel so horrible though. Lucozade and a banana if you're able to? Maybe now the Resolor has worked you can step down to lactulose or senna going forward? X

It's a prescription only medication, so how did you obtain it?

It baffles me that anyone would use chatGPT at all, let alone for medical advice.

I was prescribed Resolor because it keeps happening, do they told me I should take it regularly (prescrit was to take one daily) and the reason for my constipation has never really investigated.

Hematologist blames it on iron build up, but who knows.

I go to the toilet regularly but it's never a "normal consistency" (it tends to be soft) but I always end up with build regardless of diet.

Every now and then I get a hard poop, but it's normally like watery mushy peas (like it was this morning before Resolor)

Actually no. AE told me to.take.movicol pharmacist said to take Resolor. GP prescribed both

Ah I see. Have you ever tried psyllium husks?

I've tried everything under the sun and nothing gives me regular and decent bowel movements.

GPs have.never been remotely worried, hematologist had a reasonable explanation.

Pharmacist sided with the hematologist.

No matter my diet rnwhat I take I always end up with build-up. Which normally reaches breaking point every 6 months or so. The progesterone justvmZr everything 1000x worse

I’m still not sure how ChatGPT comes into this. You’ve already been prescribed the medication by a medical professional, so essentially you’re just asking AI if you should take medicine that your GP has already said to take.

Out of interest I asked ChatGPT and it was very clear that you need to talk to your GP and then just explained what the medication does and who it is for. It’s exactly the same info you get from just googling the medication. And I expect any time you ask medical advice it will say to contact your GP.

Just for anyone curious, this is an excerpt:

‘❓So, should you take it?

You might consider taking Resolor if:

• Other treatments like Movicol, lactulose, or Senna haven’t worked
• You’re experiencing significant disruption to daily life
• Your doctor has ruled out underlying conditions

’But only a healthcare professional can decide if it’s the right next step for your situation. They may want to:

• Check your full history
• Review any other medications
• Possibly do tests to rule out other causes

Would you like a checklist to take to your GP to discuss whether Resolor is appropriate for you?’

My prompt was ‘Should I take Resolor for constipation?’

Even if I feel slightly sick ChatGPT suggests seeing a gp.

What’s your diet like?

I went through a whole lot of troubleshooting since yesterday. Told me to take electrolytes (which I did), did the suggested movement, and then took the hot coffee as suggested by ChatGPT. I've also just noticed (since I've started tracking my macros) that I simply don't poop enough.

I then had a massive poo (like mush) and still felt like crap. So I then said "hey I've got Resolor, should I take it?" And said yeah, sounds like a great idea.

45 mins later, my insides were gushing out tons of fluid, and now I feel much worse (but without bloat) .

Basically it gave me a worse effect of 8 sachets of movicol (that would take like 6-8 hours) within minutes.

I think potentially a GP would have said that that I was on the last few days of progesterone and just let it be.

Trusting a LLM (over or instead of seeking) the advice of an actual medical professional is utter madness. A LLM is just an algorithm trained on data; it has no concept of context or actual understanding of anything.

Very short excerpt of the convo

On the flip side of this…

DM is end stage, terminally ill with something that could have been prevented. She went to the gp with symptoms 11 times in the space of 6 years, and it was always palmed off as ‘anxiety’, to the point where she felt like an idiot going to see a doctor until the point where she needed an ambulance, 2 months in hospital and a terminal diagnosis. Recently I ran her original symptoms through chat GPT and it recommended she see a GP and ask for a specific scan because the symptoms could match the illness she has.

I don’t think people should use chat gpt as a doctor, but in a time where the NHS are struggling and the majority of people I know are getting their issues minimised and mis-diagnosed, if they can even get an appointment, I don’t think it’s a bad idea to use it as a sounding board or for information. It normally gives you links to the sources too, so you can opt to then go read the article from whatever reputable site it suggests.

Exactly and it really worries me that people are leaning into ChatGPT so heavily. Remember the old adage 'garbage in, garbage out'? Well ChatGPT has an awful lot of 'garbage in'.

Quite, people seem to think that it is the all knowing oracle but in reality all it does is aggregate information. It doesn’t know anything.

I would never ask it anything medical online but since you asked….
😁

If this is ongoing, it’s going to be a full time job. You can’t let it get out of control.

Gold kiwis every day. Pears. PRUNES are the best because there is sorbitol in them.

No bread at all. Cut right down on dairy.

Drink loads of water and take fybogel every day.

walk every day no matter what, aim for one hour walking.