I found this group by accident today when I was looking for
something else. I've been working in health care for more years
than I care to remember...ummm...around 28 years, total. (I started
working when I was 8 *wink*) so I joined your group in the hope that
I could help answer your questions and maybe calm your fears just a
tad. :) I'm not a doctor or a nurse; I'm a surgical technologist
with around 8 years experience in surgery. I've been working in
endoscopy (you don't want to know LOL) for the past 4 years.
Believe it or not, most doctors, nurses, and assorted other people
you'll run into in a hospital or doctor's office are just like you.
We laugh, we cry, we have our bad habits, and we have our fears (my
personal phobias are clowns and frogs...and you thought fears of
doctors were silly? LOL).

My pet peeve is other medical professionals who are insensitive to
patients' fears. I've been known to yell at doctors for that. Hmm,
come to think of it, I wrote a doctor up and took him to hospital
administration, and yes, he got into major trouble, and he did
change his ways. Most nurses and doctors realize we are patient
advocates, and we work hard to keep the patients' best interests at
heart.

Hopefully, I can help you make sense of the completely non-
understandable language that health care professionals tend to
speak, so if you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask. I won't
try to give you a diagnosis or medical advice, but I will try to put
into plain English what a doctor tells you, or I'll tell you what to
expect from a doctor's visit...and I'll be glad to tell you what you
can tell him to make sure a procedure is as painless as possible.
So if you have any questions or concerns, fire away...I won't laugh
at you (remember the frog phobia). :)