This “F-U” goes out to my (now former) cardiologist, who I will refer to as Dr. AM. For the record, I was referred to him due to occasional shortness of breath which also happens to be a side effect of medication I was taking.
I should mention that he has a very pleasant Spanish accent. Some women would refer to it as downright sexy and I wouldn’t disagree. It reminded me of Antonio Banderas of Desperado and Puss in Boots fame. Sadly, the accent was the only pleasant thing about him.
He began our consultation with the assumption that I was getting gastric bypass surgery. When I informed him it will never be an option, he tried to convince me otherwise. THEN he refused to believe the results of 2 EKG’s… 1 done at my primary care doctor’s office the previous week and 1 done just a few minutes earlier… which indicated no issues with my heart.
Dr AM – “I want you to do a nuclear stress test and echocardiogram. I’m also prescribing nitroglycerin for the chest pain.”
Me – “Um, Doctor, I never said anything about chest pain. I have no chest pain.”
Dr AM – “But you have risk factors”
Me – “You mean I’m fat.”
Dr AM – “Yes and diabetic. You should lose weight. You’ll feel better.”
Me – “I am taking steps to improve my health and acknowledge that I may lose weight. But it’s not my goal because weight loss doesn’t guarantee better health.”
Dr AM – (with a puzzled expression) “Yes, well check with my staff to schedule the tests.”
2 weeks ago, I underwent the tests and this morning met with one of the nurse practitioners at Dr AM’s office to discuss the results… they were normal. This seemed to confuse her since she flipped through the pages several times as if the information would magically change and prove that this fatty was mere moments away from a massive heart attack.
So here’s a flip for her and Dr AM. Hopefully they’ll think twice about making assumptions about a fat person’s health based on their size/weight. Maybe they’ll finally understand that people’s hearts can be strong and healthy at any size. Then again, there’s a better chance that Dr AM will grow whiskers and actually become Puss in Boots. One thing is certain…they’ve seen the last of me.
Amply Emmy 