The Glade 4.0

Dunno if anyone else knows people like this, but a friend of mine's wife has a habit of diagnosing everyone with borderline . . . something. Her favorite tends to be Autism.

She suspects her oldest son and husband are borderline autistic (which I think is bull) based on research she has done, and now, anyone she knows that exhibits any kind of "unusual behavior" prompts her to say, "He/she might be borderline Autistic -- you should have them get tested."

Seriously, if you pick apart everyone's idiosyncrasies, no matter how big or small, then EVERYONE is going to be borderline Autistic, and the term itself loses its meaning.

Is her name Jenny McCarthy?

Your friend's wife is an idiot.

Heh, no. Would be easier on the eyes at least (I know, that was cruel).

have you tried referring her to leave professional diagnosis to a professional and to STFU?

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Darksiege
Traveller, Calé, Whisperer
Lead me not into temptation; for I know a shortcut

She may be talking about this - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borderline ... y_disorder

Still, DS grows in wisdom, if not courtesy.

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The U. S. Constitution doesn't guarantee happiness, only the pursuit of it. You have to catch up with it yourself. B. Franklin

"A mind needs books like a sword needs a whetstone." -- Tyrion Lannister, A Game of Thrones

I swear a lot... you can nicely ask the question as well. /shrug I usually assume people subtract the cursing from many things I would say.

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Darksiege
Traveller, Calé, Whisperer
Lead me not into temptation; for I know a shortcut

Rodahn, it sounds like you have some kind of personality disorder there. You should get on some meds.

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Trying to make some joke about licking the hypnotoad's belly, but it just isn't happening.

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The U. S. Constitution doesn't guarantee happiness, only the pursuit of it. You have to catch up with it yourself. B. Franklin

"A mind needs books like a sword needs a whetstone." -- Tyrion Lannister, A Game of Thrones

That's because only glory goes to the hypnotoad.

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Don't you start, too ;P

Along similar lines, I despise pharmaceutical companies advertising to the public. "Ask your doctor if XXXX is right for you." Um, he's my doctor, dumbasses. If it's right for me, it's his job to tell me I should consider taking it, not the other way around.

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"Aaaah! Emotions are weird!" - Amdee
"... Mirrorshades prevent the forces of normalcy from realizing that one is crazed and possibly dangerous. They are the symbol of the sun-staring visionary, the biker, the rocker, the policeman, and similar outlaws." - Bruce Sterling, preface to Mirrorshades

Not true!

It is my firm belief that more smart people should become "jail house lawyers" to their own bodies. The more expertise you gain, the better job you'll help your doctor do in diagnosing you.

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Ezekiel 23:19-20 

For some reason my brain keeps seeing this as "glory holes for the hypnotoad" no matter how many times I see this.

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Darksiege
Traveller, Calé, Whisperer
Lead me not into temptation; for I know a shortcut

The hypnotoad does not frequent such locales.

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I dunno, Rynar, I kinda think this is the definition of an armchair doctor. Someone that goes to the Internet and comes up with their own diagnosis based on whatever article they read and now wants the doctor to treat them based on what "they" know.

it's good to be informed, but also to have an open mind.

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Dream as if you'll live forever...
...Live as if you'll die tomorrow

Vivere Senza Rimpianti

Yeah. I'm not against some internet perusal to help you better understand and express your symptoms. Pick up some terminology that might help you be more specific to your doctor, etc. But there's an increasing trend of people thinking that the internet is a valid way to *diagnose*, and who go into a doctor's office to demand treatment for the diagnosis they're sure is right. It's like hypochondria for the new millennium, or something.

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"Aaaah! Emotions are weird!" - Amdee
"... Mirrorshades prevent the forces of normalcy from realizing that one is crazed and possibly dangerous. They are the symbol of the sun-staring visionary, the biker, the rocker, the policeman, and similar outlaws." - Bruce Sterling, preface to Mirrorshades

This. There's a reason doctors go to medical school for a minimum of 4 years. It's a hard field to not only master, but to even understand, due to the breadth and depth of information. I highly recommend sites like Medline Plus over things like WebMD, though. And I do think it's smart to get more information if a doctor diagnoses you with something by researching it in books or on the internet. I think it's not even a bad idea to look up things before or asking a doctor about certain medications. A good doctor will have no problem explaining why they agree or don't agree with it. Of course if it's serious, I would also go to multiple doctors in addition.

Just because I'm a microbiologist doesn't mean I should be diagnosing myself with certain microbial diseases. I lean on the expertise of a trained physician for that. People would be better off if they understood their limitations.

Ding ding ding

Kaffis Wins!

But Ienan comes in a close second.

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Memento Vivere

I have local knowledge.
That sandbar was not there yesterday!

If you want good basic information on a disease, Mayo Clinic's website is one of the best around.

Getting a good feel for basic terminology and normal physiology is a great start- it can help you notice when something seems off, what exactly it is, and that can help your doctor track down what the problem is.

But yes, trying to push a diagnosis onto your doctor is foolish, but not nearly so much as trying to push a particular treatment on them....

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Darksiege: You are not a god damned vulcan homie.

I don't disagree with this at all, all I'm saying is that while self-diagnosis is not a good solution, it certainly has an important place in the solution. Far to often we hear of surgery mishaps, and God-complexed doctors who misdiagnose simply because they feel everything is routine to them, and they are nearly infallible. A well informed patient can save themselves from these sorts of things.

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Ezekiel 23:19-20 

I dunno. I'm 3-0 with doctors so far.

My spinal injury was "sore muscles from pulling weeds"

My loss of vision was "spine related" and not Lymes disease.

Hell I even had to point out that my symptoms were not just hives but the early stages of the really bad skin sloughing off reaction possible with my antibiotic.

Its not my fault I'm in the ER, its a Saturday, then Sunday and Monday is a holiday and the rash from the skin infection is almost completely around my knee. I know ER docs get slammed but listen to the words coming out of of my mouth - don't latch on to the first and simplest explanation you want it to be. Field - lots of field mice - pulling brush...neurological symptoms after about six weeks...high risk Lymes area... But hey I didn't have a bullseye rash so it couldn't possible be it right? ARGHH.

Sorry I'm ok now.

The did correctly get the skin infection from the wolf spider bite though - kudos on that one but I kind of knew it to.

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"...but there exists also in the human heart a depraved taste for equality, which impels the weak to attempt to lower the powerful to their own level and reduces men to prefer equality in slavery to inequality with freedom." - De Tocqueville

My cousin (who grew up in the same area we did, Elmo) caught Lyme disease the same way and it went undiagnosed for years. That really sucks. Hope it's going better for you.

/nitpick on

that's 0-3, not 3-0

/nitpick off

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"Hysterical children shrieking about right-wing anything need to go sit in the corner and be quiet while the adults are talking."

Armchair doctors often fail, and we've been poisoned by these fairy tales.

I meant I am 3 wins and 0 losses not the doctors have 3 wins.

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"...but there exists also in the human heart a depraved taste for equality, which impels the weak to attempt to lower the powerful to their own level and reduces men to prefer equality in slavery to inequality with freedom." - De Tocqueville

Oh and I'm much better. Unless the tingling in my feet is a return but I think its because my sneakers are a half a size too small.

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"...but there exists also in the human heart a depraved taste for equality, which impels the weak to attempt to lower the powerful to their own level and reduces men to prefer equality in slavery to inequality with freedom." - De Tocqueville