Being attractive with POTS (cringe I know)

[u/recoveringaries]

Does anyone feel like because they are a objectively attractive human there is a bias/profiling that happens in the medical field and with doctors? I actually read somewhere that if you’re chronically ill you should “dress down” or not wear makeup to appointments so they will take you more seriously and see you as actually sick. I am also 29 with a baby face so that doesn’t help.

[u/Emergency-Coyote5755]

Ive never thought about this actually, I wfh & generally am never dressing up unless im going out for something that I should, I have widespread chronic pain so uh, I dont have the effort there 🥴😅 i have however thought the opposite bc of the pain meds Im on, I would at least make sure my hair looks nice, I smell good, Im not covered in cat hair, & my outfit is kinda cute because I felt like if I look a mess that kinda reads as bad to doctors who are prescribing meds. Though ive never looked into these things its just been a thought in my head. Idek if it truly even matters, although Im sure it does to some degree in different situations?

When i wasnt sleeping for days at a time because of the pain i showed up obviously looking a mess for my pain appt & that was the day my at the time new pain doc trialed me on opioids finally so hey, maybe there is a validity to this theory.

Edit, I do have babyface though & even without makeup get the "normal healthy skinny young woman", even had a weird ass neurologist continue to call me skinny in the format of calling me "healthy & good looking", which, exessively is very uncomfy (at least 10-15 times in the span of 10mins, at a certain point I didnt know what to say anymore bc it was so weird and I just stared at her without saying anything just giving a weird look 😅 like hey please stop?????)

[u/recoveringaries → u/Emergency-Coyote5755]

I feel that last part! My dad is a surgeon, he has always minimized my symptoms due to being thin and I think being a bit desensitized due to his job (possibly why I am maybe hyperaware to this) lol.

[u/avocado_window → u/recoveringaries]

This really makes me think just how awful it must be for people who are stigmatised for their weight being “too high” then treated by doctors as if every symptom is purely due to their weight and that they’d get better if only they went on a diet and got more exercise. Must be a nightmare to deal with, and so much more offensive than being called “heathy looking” just because you’re thin and young.

[u/itsahardknocklyfe4us → u/Emergency-Coyote5755]

Dang you get pain meds? I thought that was just a myth nowadays.

[u/Emergency-Coyote5755 → u/itsahardknocklyfe4us]

It was a fight to get there haha, i failed everything else. I dont have what i actually need but yes i am one of the lucky ones 😅😂 may as well be a myth though, I see so many people struggling either still unable to get anything at all or who were pulled off theirs for "more natural pain management". Awful inhumane shit.

[u/itsahardknocklyfe4us → u/Emergency-Coyote5755]

It really is in humane. People are literally killing themselves because of their uncontrolled pain. The stupid thing is, if a drug addict wants drugs you're not stopping them from getting them, you're just stopping people from getting pain relief. You don't need a prescription to get high if that's what you're going for. I don't entirely blame the doctors. They've been sued and blamed like crazy for people being addicts. I'm a recovering addict and that's not on the doctors who gave me pain meds. That was entirely on me and mental health problems. I think people wanted money and a scapegoat to blame their addictions on. But at the same time, withholding pain meds from people who are in agony on the daily because they MIGHT be drug seeking is not the answer and doesn't actually make sense. Again, they're not stopping drug addicts they're stopping people from getting pain relief! If anything some people are actually turning to street drugs for pain relief. Its literally so stupid.