Medical Term Pet Peeve.....

[Goofyernmost]

Having been overweight for all but the first two years of my life, every medical report I have even seen always list me as Morbidly Obese. I don't mind the Obese part because, by definition, I am, but the Morbidly part has got to go. Isn't that a form of body shaming?

Morbidly implies "leading to death" but since we are all going to die at some, as of yet, unknown time would that mean the everyone is either Morbidly Thin as a rail or Morbidly the size of a barge or anything in-between. More likely to put additional strain on the inner workings, yes, but there is no real indication of emanate death because of it. There is no adjective that doesn't come across as an insult. Terminally Obese (same as Morbidly), Quite Obese, Moderately Obese or just Barely Obese do not automatically indicate sudden death, but they are still putting more emphasis on the condition then is necessary. Medical Profession if you must label it the word Obese is more then enough to let people be aware of your concern, but so would overweight or big boned. Stop the drama. I've had three cousins, athletic and slim die, at this point, much younger then I am now. They were Morbidly in great physical shape. Where as my idea of a physical work out is having the batteries go dead on my TV remote.

 

[Queen of the WDW Scene]

I think what really needs to go is the BMI scale altogether.
I've lost 60lbs and made it from morbidly obese to just inside "healthy" but when I go to the doctor and am wearing boots/winter coat and have my purse on because they take it the second you walk in the door they always put "overweight" on the paper.
A couple of pounds to do clothing should not suddenly make me fat. Then when the dcotor comes in he tells me I need to lose a few pounds.

 

[Queen of the WDW Scene]

I don't care for the word weepy.
Although I don't mind when its used in the medical tense like a weepy wound.
But when my mom opens the sour cream and says its looking weepy. THAT is when I want to throw up lol.
Just say watery....

It the medical field specifically though....
I don't like the term "legally blind".
To me as soon as the word blind is involved it seems to automatically imply I cannot see at all and people start talking to me like I'm an a child and touching me for some reason.
When I am the one to tell someone I'm disabled I say I'm "visually impaired" which seems to help express that I CAN see. Just not very well so yeah I may ask for you to direct me to a room like "4th door on your right" instead of telling me "room 4" because that doesn't always mean 4 doors down.
I'm open to explaining what I can and cannot see but I wish people wouldn't assume I cannot see anything.
One time at a new doctor's office they read my chart and didn't ask what I can see and then the doctor saw my Disney Vera Bradley purse and said "I know you can't see it but I really like your purse it has Mickey Mouse on it". As though I didn't know....

 

[jaklgreen]

I think what really needs to go is the BMI scale altogether.
I've lost 60lbs and made it from morbidly obese to just inside "healthy" but when I go to the doctor and am wearing boots/winter coat and have my purse on because they take it the second you walk in the door they always put "overweight" on the paper.
A couple of pounds to do clothing should not suddenly make me fat. Then when the dcotor comes in he tells me I need to lose a few pounds.

A doctor will tell a woman she is overweight if she is not a model. That seems to be their "cure all" for woman. "Reduce your stress and lose weight" is all you hear.

 

[StarWarsGirl]

A doctor will tell a woman she is overweight if she is not a model. That seems to be their "cure all" for woman. "Reduce your stress and lose weight" is all you hear.

It sets a very dangerous precedent as well.

I had a doctor tell me I needed to lose weight back in 2018. I was exhausted. Like, I would come home from work and go to bed. I told her flat out that there was no way I could lose weight when I was too tired to do anything. I was 23.

I went for a second opinion. It turned out I had a very serious health problem requiring surgery.

I actually have it on my charts now that I don't want to discuss my weight because I have an endocrinologist who works with me on that due to special circumstances. It's so nice. They don't say a word now.

There's plenty of research backing up that doctors have a bias towards overweight patients. I actually go to a doctor who is overweight because he tends to be less biased, and should he eventually retire, I already have another doctor picked out who is also overweight, for the same reason.

Opinion | When doctors fat-shame their patients, everybody loses

Doctors fail when they conflate weight and health, believe their patients to be lazy or noncompliant or avoid discussing the topic altogether.

www.google.com

Weight Bias in Healthcare: Can It Be Prevented?

Weight bias in healthcare is very common. Learn what you can do should you experience it and how to avoid letting negative experiences keep you from finding a provider who understands your needs.

www.google.com

 

[jaklgreen]

It sets a very dangerous precedent as well.

I had a doctor tell me I needed to lose weight back in 2018. I was exhausted. Like, I would come home from work and go to bed. I told her flat out that there was no way I could lose weight when I was too tired to do anything. I was 23.

I went for a second opinion. It turned out I had a very serious health problem requiring surgery.

I actually have it on my charts now that I don't want to discuss my weight because I have an endocrinologist who works with me on that due to special circumstances. It's so nice. They don't say a word now.

There's plenty of research backing up that doctors have a bias towards overweight patients. I actually go to a doctor who is overweight because he tends to be less biased, and should he eventually retire, I already have another doctor picked out who is also overweight, for the same reason.

Opinion | When doctors fat-shame their patients, everybody loses

Doctors fail when they conflate weight and health, believe their patients to be lazy or noncompliant or avoid discussing the topic altogether.

www.google.com

Weight Bias in Healthcare: Can It Be Prevented?

Weight bias in healthcare is very common. Learn what you can do should you experience it and how to avoid letting negative experiences keep you from finding a provider who understands your needs.

www.google.com

My sister has had a cyst in the middle of her brain that they think has been there all of her life. She will have issues from it from time to time and needs to see a neurologist. She had gained some weight after her kids(like most of us do) but that has nothing to do with her brain issue. Her last scan showed a change and so she had to go back to the doctor. The last neurologist that she went to was this old fossil of a man that would not say or do anything about her brain issue and just told her to lose weight. That's it. Her husband was with her and he confronted him about it saying what has that have anything to do with the cyst in her brain and what about her brain? And this(name that I can't say here) just said to come back in 6 months after she loses weight. I would have reported that jerk. He should have his medical license taken away. This is how so many woman die of things like heart attacks because we are not taken seriously and ALWAYS just told to lose weight.

 

[StarWarsGirl]

This is how so many woman die of things like heart attacks because we are not taken seriously and ALWAYS just told to lose weight.

This episode of Golden Girls rings so true.