I am still suffering from traumatic anxiety following last year’s annual doctor’s visit. Now, my next visit is due on October 3, 2022 and I am extremely stressed and depressed with dread.
I would simply not go. I don’t think I really need annual exams, however, I am a type 1 diabetic and require insulin. I can’t get insulin without a prescription and I can’t get a prescription without the annual exam.
I have developed my own diabetic control method that I call the SPP method (Synchronous Push-Pull method) that keeps my blood sugar and all my bio markers in the non-diabetic normal range. My A1C is always 4.5 to 4.7 over the past several years and I never rely on any doctor for my control.
She is a good, kind doctor, but I am extremely sensitive to touch and the social aspect of such an intimate examination. I am also sensitive to being stereotyped. Many of the tests are based on stereotypes, which induces traumatic anxieties that never goes away.
Therefore, I have composed a letter to send to the doctor before my appointment. I have attached a PDF of the letter. What do you think? I have replaced any names, etc. with X’s for privacy concerns.
Ken, I read the letter, and although I feel it was nicely worded, with lots of great details, I would have only resorted to that lengthy of an explanation about how Autism greatly impacts you if a much shorter version was not taken seriously by them. For instance, if it were me, and if I had the exact same situation, I would have said something like this:
"Dear Dr. ____
You seem like a very kind and considerate doctor. As you know I have Autism, but I failed to tell you that a small part of my condition is I am so extremely touch sensitive that having any touch on any part of my body much less pressure can cause extreme ___________ and _____________. I would go into more detail, but I want you to trust me there about that severe sensory issue. Therefore, I am politely requesting no unnecessary touch or testing as I know from all my life experiences that could severely trigger and harm me, and not just for short time periods.
"Also, as I currently have no pain, limitation or mobility issues that would require touch, I feel those testing and procedures would be up to the discretion of the doctor. I'd be glad to answer all your questions that you have, and with regards to the diabetes testing I did and prescription refill, and I realize you have typical protocols to follow, but I think you would agree that having severe longer term ___________ and _____________because of those touch and testing procedures is not the answer either. I just cannot risk severely worsening my health again, knowing last year's exam was so traumatizing to me, which I should have told you about but did not want to upset you.
"So, Dr. ______________I kindly ask you to refrain having any such contact and testing this visit which I feel would be very agonizing for me and _______________. Please let me know prior to the visit by portal, phone or letter if we can keep the visit to a non-contact only or extremely limited contact exam, with you specifying in advance what, if any physical contacts with me you'd need to refill my prescription. Otherwise, I will assume the same procedures will happen as before, and I would have to make other arrangements. Thank You. .....Sincerely, _____________."
If they did not reply back to me then and accept those terms or elaborate more to give me enough comfort level to show up to their office, only then would I have considered elaborating at lengths like you did and sending that much more personal information to them about the Autism hoping to sway them more, hoping for more understanding from them by seeing my many more details of what I and other Autistics can go through which the medical community and NT's do not understand, thinking touch and other sensory issues are minor and not triggered much by the basic things they do or by the basic things included in their environments.
Or instead, perhaps it could be better to find an online doctor who'd prescribe the insulin, as from what I just researched such can occur, and they have places that do such, if you have either an online doctor or one you saw in person diagnosed you as having diabetes. Whatever you choose Ken, your original longer letter way, or some other approach I am wishing you the best there. We certainly understand, as the last two annual exams for our thirteen-year-old son, we refused, for instance, the pediatrician to do the private part test on him, after our son said he no longer wanted that because of the puberty and extreme anxiety and touch sensitivities..
The doc wasn't happy about it, and he tried to convince our son the need for it, but that was BS, as the research I did prior said doctors do not have to do such unless some concerning signs and symptoms or per urgent need, and as the doctor should not say there was a need there otherwise, but just say they would like to perform that test. Well, regardless, we are proud of our son for standing firm, and saying no there, as he had no pain there, told the doctor also things were developing there fine according to his puberty research, and saying we would let the doctor know if he ever had issues there.
The more that doctor pushes him, the more we think he has some agenda, or is so rigid thinking there and unconcerned with our child's anxieties there, and the more we will find another doctor instead.