Let's Play "Are You Smarter Than a Doctor?"

Let me be clear. I am not saying that I am smarter than doctors. I did not attend 4 years of medical school plus residency and internship and all of that, but I will admit that there are times that I know as much as a doctor, specifically about Crohn’s.

Sometimes I am impressed, yet other times I am a bit sad knowing this much about a disease since that means I have lived with it for so long, and have experienced almost everything that goes along with it.

Realizing my knowledge of Crohn's

I remember the first time I was impressed with my medical knowledge. I was hospitalized for yet another Crohn’s flare and the doctor on call made his rounds with his team of interns. As the five of them peered over me, the attending physician began asking me questions about my health history.

I was diagnosed with Crohn’s in early 2009, but I had suffered from kidney stones since 2004. The attending physician asked his team of interns, “Is there a correlation between Crohn’s and kidney stones?” After a brief pause, the one intern spoke up and said, “No”.

I wanted so terribly to say “wrong!” but the GI said that there was indeed a correlation between kidney stones and Crohn’s and I silently sat, thinking about how I knew more than this intern.

Feeling like I know more than my medical team

This wasn’t the only time I felt like I had known more about Crohn’s disease than the medical team. Seeing other physicians is also challenging as they don’t always know how certain medications can affect a Crohn’s patient.

A few years ago, I had injured my knee and saw an orthopedic doctor. He prescribed me Voltaren to reduce pain and inflammation, not knowing how dangerous that was to my GI tract. I questioned his decision to prescribe me this medication, and we opted for a topical version instead.

And, on several occasions, I was prescribed unnecessary antibiotics, which are also dangerous when living with Crohn’s as they can really mess with your gut flora and cause diarrhea. I have protested and asked if the antibiotic is necessary (sometimes the benefits outweigh the possible setbacks) before making a decision.

I know my body better than any doctor can

Aside from feeling like I know more than a doctor about the disease, which may or may not be true, one thing is for certain--I know my body better than any doctor. I know when things feel off, when something isn’t “normal”, and when I need further examination.

I also know when things feel really good and how I can handle the symptoms without a major intervention. There are certain things you cannot learn in a textbook, such as how one’s specific body responds to treatments, or if it feels “off” despite the lab results looking ok. In this case, we DO know more than a doctor.

We must learn about IBD and be our own advocate

As Crohn’s patients, we have to be our own advocates. We have to speak up when something doesn’t seem right or if we want more answers.

We also have to be aware of our disease, medications, possible side effects, and more so that we can be on top of every treatment recommendation our doctors make. We cannot expect our dermatologist to be on top of our Crohn’s the same way our GI is, or expect an ER doctor to know our full history and how symptoms may be related.

We must be students of our disease, know our history and the drugs we are currently taking, as well as any negative side effects that can come from it. Being our own advocate is a large part of getting through this journey alive, so don’t ever feel guilty that you may, in fact, know more than a doctor.