Just been to GP - saw "hypochondriasis" on notes...

[TolpuddleFarter]

Been to see GP about some side effects I have had from a medication I was on.

Looked at the computer to see "hypochondriasis (3)" on my notes, which obviously is three times where it has been flagged that I am a hypochondriac.

Does this mean from now on I will struggle to get taken seriously?

Unfortunately this is the whole attitude of the nhs - to “roll their eyes” people suffering mental health problems. I have collapsed twice at doctors because of the appalling way doctors/admin staff have treated me - even though it states the issues I have with ptsd as a marker on my notes, both times I’ve hurt myself and been given oxygen, I’ve run out of A&E and spent 2 weeks in debilitating pain because of the contemptuous way doctors treat patients.

Doctors don’t take mental health seriously, all they do is see it as an inconvenience try and sedate people. They’re not interested in offering help. They have zero knowledge of how to manage mental health conditions. I’ve had to pay for years of therapy (luckily now it’s only doctors in specific circumstances that cause an issue).

Mental health is the biggest crisis in health facing this country, doctors need to pull their socks up over this.

I once asked a doctor after my panic attack in the surgery which had seen me collapse, scream and kick a wall why a doctor hadn’t come immediately, would they have dropped everything if someone was having a heart attack? I was told obviously yes because that’s life threatening! Not one member of staff came after me when I ran out, potentially to jump in front of a car.

I have a card to explain to doctors all of this, it’s extremely rare that it’s not met with an obvious air of impatience (and no doubt the metaphorical eye roll).

See I'm a firm believer that exercise, relaxation, purposeful activity and CBT work far better than a shed load of outdated meds. It's not fobbing you off, its proper evidenced based stuff.
Have you tried exercising?

HI OP, I am sorry that you read this and it is distressing for you.
it is an old fashioned word for Health Anxiety but it may have been on your notes for some time
I am a GP and it’s an awful thing to have. It’s also very very hard to get treatment via the public system… our local Anxiety Service won’t accept people with Health Anxiety which is awful
Health Anxiety is common in doctors… when they are learning and still learning to put patterns of debase together.. there’s a name for it . It’s called “ Medical Students Disease”
Can you make an appointment with your GP to specifically mention health anxiety, ask for the team to be changed in your notes,
if it’s any consolation GP’s are trained to manage Health Anxiety.. we are ultra conscious of not missing serious disease so investigate appropriately. Sometimes patients but pressure to do investigations that are not likely to be helpful or contraindicated so your GP will set some boundaries… a lot harm can come from over investigation and tends to make anxiety worse.
There is an Australian Centre called “ Thr Centre Clinical Interventions” . They have online CBT. I usually direct people to the worry and rumination section but there are also other sections with other treatments lots stuff.. I found the procrastination stuff helpful myself!
your brain is wired for this anxiety.. I have seen people get better!
Best wishes

You know it's very easy to say this but sometimes people in distress literally cannot leave the house or settle to any task! I did a private mindfulness course which helped but not everyone can pay 400 Pounds.

Are you taking the propranolol regularly yet? You don’t have to wait until you have a full on panic attack to use it and it can be really helpful.

There can be many reasons why a person suffering mental ill heath might find it very difficult to exercise eg feeling of breathlessness fast heart rate might induce feelings of panic, dissociation might mean it’s difficult to connect to your body etc. there might need to be months of preliminary work eg getting people connected to their breath and bodies in a way they find safe. Everyone is going to be different- healthcare professionals need to spend time working with the patient to understand what’s right for them.

True "hypochondria" is a form of OCD and instead of just writing it on your notes as a way of dismissing you, they should be discussing treatment options with you. GP's are sh*t (excuse my french), the same thing happened to me years ago and it lead to me being ignored when I had recurrent UTI's and now I have an embedded infection that I can't get rid of and have to spend thousands seeing a private urologist for. Thanks NHS 👏👏👏

Sorry that you have health anxiety (you definitely need that CBT asap). But your op seems to suggest that you and your gp recognise that you have HA, they have used the word hypochondriasis but essentially they are correct.

Did you have pain in your ribs OP? If so the dr may have been referring to inflammation in this area and not hypochondria (I’ve made this mistake myself in work). https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=hypochondria+anatomy&client=safari&hl=en-gb&sxsrf=APwXEdeEPPLvknm1-RyTCUnzeOukdnC4IQ%3A1684877394964&ei=UjBtZJCsOqmN9u8PofWH-AI&oq=hypochondria+ana&gs_lcp=ChNtb2JpbGUtZ3dzLXdpei1zZXJwEAEYADIFCAAQgAQyBggAEBYQHjIGCAAQFhAeMgYIABAWEB4yBggAEBYQHjIICAAQFhAeEA8yCAgAEBYQHhAPMgYIABAWEB46BwgjELADECc6CggAEEcQ1gQQsAM6CAgAEIoFEJECSgQIQRgAUKwQWO8gYJEtaAFwAXgAgAFziAGlA5IBAzEuM5gBAKABAcgBCcABAQ&sclient=mobile-gws-wiz-serp

My daughter has health anxiety and she finds it a kind way to explain exactly that. To put hypochondria on your notes shows a very outdated approach by the G Ps.

im not sure tbh but it might be relevant in all sorts of places - but it’s important medical notes are accurate for many reasons eg insurance. If they misrecord this they will possibly misrecord other things.. doctors need to be held to account about medical notes. Many people have incorrect notes - often around births.

My DS us 11 and we’ve recently had to have investigations done re respiratory and muscular skeletal issues where they were very interested in his birth and any issues there.

why do drs think they can write whatever they want and the person about whom they are writing has no say? It makes me angry. Cab you imagine this in any other profession- what if the police started doing this?

Why are you worry about the twitching if you know it is a side effect from medication and you have now stopped the medication? Are you worried its something else? 8 think it's a good idea to stop the meds and not replace them. All meds have side effects and given you have health anxiety it makes little sense to treat symptoms of a disorder with a medication that will cause symptoms that will increase the disorder.
I think exercise could be the answer . Unfortunately doctors have a way of saying things flippantly as if they are casual suggestions but consider it a prescribed activity with a robust evidence base.

Have you read the OPs comments re exercise. Mental health really isn’t that easy.

Because it could affect the way the OP is treated. If the OP goes to the GP with a genuine health issue, and the GP looks up their records and sees that, do you really think they're going to take it seriously, or will they just say "oh she's just a hypochondriac, it's probably nothing"?
People die because of things like this.

This is exactly the kind of thing I am talking about, it can cost lives.

But the OP is an admitted hypochondriac and there's no evidence to date that she has been treated unfairly by any medical professional due to this. Unclear to me why this thread has prattled on for 11 pages.

Also in the other hand. Imagine If a hypochondriac wasn't flagged as such and was constantly being referred for unnecessary scans/ investigations whatever in an already crumbling NHS with ridiculous waiting times. Of course op's concerns should be taken seriously but there needs to be a balance.
I imagine gps know that folk with health anxiety do get genuinely Ill sometimes and will act accordingly.

Slim chance of being referred to here our health board scandal hit the daily mail this week. £122 mil missing 😱

Because actually there doesn’t appear to be any evidence that there has been a formal diagnosis of a mental health condition. Imagine if a doctor just wrote cancer on your notes. I’ve never met a GP yet who would be sufficiently knowledgeable to properly diagnose a mental health condition. This could have serious implications v

Exactly - this happens so often with women’s health, notes are altered blame put on the woman to cover medical negligence. Happened to me, happens to loads of women who have complications at birth. Anyone doubting it should look at all the investigations into maternity services to see this is common. Too many doctors think they’re God. Anyone who doesn’t worship
at the feet of the NHS is treated like a heretic (look at all the naming and shaming if you didn’t clap for them every Thursday night)

@saffy2 I don't know if this helps (and bear in mind I only know what DH has told me as I wasn't at his appointment), but he says he mentioned an incorrect diagnosis to his consultant. Consultant was a little bit defensive of his junior initially, and there was a bit of to and fro so then DH asked the consultant if he could show DH any evidence that the registrar's diagnosis was correct (of course he couldn't, as it wasn't). DH then said in the absence of evidence could the reference please be removed. Consultant typed onto his screen then turned it round to show DH the incorrect diagnosis had been deleted.

Might a similar approach work for you? If shoulder dystopia had been present at your first DC's birth, there must be some sort of contemporaneous record of that beyond it simply being stated in your notes. Doctors tend to be very evidence-based so in the absence of a formal diagnosis, you should be able to persuade them to remove the reference.

Yep happened to me at birth with DS1 as well. I had requested (and had turned down) a c-section due to a pelvis injury. had a 26 hour labour. DS got stuck and had to be rescuscitated and has cognitive issues due to the lack of oxygen at birth.

My notes claimed that I was in labour for 10 hours. It also claimed I exclusively breastfed- a fiction that continued throughout all the HV checks. I would categorically say that I was FF and they would dutifully write down; Exclusively breastfed'. It got to the point that it was a joke between DH and I. He wondered if the HV were given some sort of bonus for BF mums on their lists.

I am still angry. Not least because now DS1 has a large and extensive range of issues and SEN. I was told by his allergist that I am 'clearly very over protective about his healht' when he was busily telling me that it was completely impossible DS had a rare allergy that as it happens he finally had to admit 2 years later DS did indeed have. (Because you know, surely the hive responses I was seeing were just my overactive imagination despite the fact he ended up in A&E twice).

God I am ANGRY at how shittily some HCPs treat their patients.

That should read I had requested a c-section but had been turned down. I was just told I could not have one. Of course NOW I know that it not meant to happen. But never mind.... thanks for that.

I’m so sorry you went through this. It would be great if Healthcare “professionals “ actually listened to parents rather than behaving like the doctors etc views are the only ones which matter.

its horrific with them blaming new mums for everything from non progressed vaginal births to deaths of babies.

Maybe it will take a few more days before the jerking stops if it was caused by the medication
I have found acupuncture incredibly beneficial and effective for my physical - and therefore mental health - at times. It is good for stress and anxiety too.
Supplements, as people have suggested, make a big difference too so really worth looking into. Low levels of some vitamins and minerals will increase anxiety and low mood.
CBT is great for improving day-to-day coping strategies but it will not treat underlying trauma. And CBT practitioners, unless they are also trained psychotherapists and/or trauma therapists, will not be able to address deep-seated underlying issues or treat them
I'm sorry you don't feel you are getting enough support from your GP. Any chance of swopping to a new surgery or even getting a private consultation?