The one time I did call an ambulance because of very severe 9.5/10 heart problems which had lasted a solid week the doctor laughed in my face when I asked for help and for appropriate tests. It was partly my fault though as I was stupid enough to say I had 'CFS' after he said he didn't know what M.E. was. (I would never be so stupid now!) It turned out that I did have a serious problem that was making my heart problems worse than usual and that actually had shown up on the (inadequate and inappropriate) tests he'd done. He ignored it though despite my pointing out to him the significance of the finding and why this might well be the cause of my problem.
The (insert all the swear words you know here) idiot told me 'don't you think you've spent long enough dealing with this medically? It hasn't helped has it, you're still so sick - don't you want to go out and do things? You must do, surely. Dealing with it physically hasn't helped has it? Come on, you know there is absolutely nothing wrong with you physically and that no tests are ever going to show anything wrong. You wont get better until you get psychiatric care and you know it.' ...
Well actually the reason I am so severely ill in the first place is BECAUSE I was mistreated as a psychiatric patient for 7 years and encouraged to exercise and denied appropriate care and advice to rest, and I already have a whole bunch of abnormal tests results which tally perfectly with what is known about M.E. (some of which you have RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU), but hey, no need to let facts get in the way of a good condescending ignorant lecture! He laughed and smirked all the way through it as well. I can't even describe what it is like to be having serious heart problems and to have a doctor laugh in your face and make fun of you.
(How is this appropriate treatment even for someone who actually was mentally ill? I'm lucky I'm pretty strong and healthy mentally but this could have really negatively affected someone who was genuinely mentally ill or unstable. People with mental illness do not deserve this sort of abuse any more than I did.)
He did a neurological exam on me after that. I failed a lot of the tests, it was just really obvious. I fell over as soon as I closed my eyes, my muscles gave out after just a second or two of pressure, and that sort of thing. I looked in his face and I could see he was really surprised that actually I did have significant neurological abnormalities. I kept looking at him though and it was the weirdest thing, I could actually SEE him decide to ignore what he'd seen because it didn't fit with his previous conclusions based on what he knew of 'CFS.' I actually saw his eyes glaze over as he decided to pretend not to see what he was seeing. He looked confused for a while then kept talking as if my falling over etc. hadn't happened. I suspect he told himself I must have been faking it, because he couldn't possibly be wrong (and if he was there was no way he was going to tell me, or anyone else).
So despite the results of this neurological test, (and the very abnormal immune system markers and hormonal blood tests I had done), despite clear evidence that there was no possible way that I could be making all this up, he treated me as if that were the case anyway. He gave all the flimsy and unscientific nonsense he had read about CFS by vested interest psychologists (none of which involves people with M.E.) ahead of the very clear evidence right in front of him.
The nurses there were almost as bad. One openly sneered at me, and after acting like she was helping me walk to the bathroom (I was very weak and disorientated) left me halfway there saying she would prefer to see if I could do it myself. (Actually I could do it myself, but it was really, really difficult and I was really unwell and really could have done with the help and with not having the trip take so much out of me when I was already so ill.) She gave me a knowing 'I'm onto your game you pathetic faker scum' look when I got back into bed.
The second nurse was even worse and when I asked for some food after about 6 hours (I get terrible hypoglycemia if I don't eat every 3 hours) she acted like I was just looking for attention. She tested my blood sugar and when it was in the normal range gave me a look of immense triumph as if that proved that I wasn't hypoglycemic or ill in any way. (Gee, I didn't know a simple blood glucose test could do that? Hmmm is that because it CAN'T!). She told me I 'didn't have hypoglycemia and that I shouldn't make things up' very loudly, making sure all the other patients in the ward could hear. (I've actually been diagnosed with hyperinsulinism/polycystic ovarian syndrome, a pre-diabetic condition, by blood test but again, why let the facts get in the way of an enjoyable condescending lecture!) After the doctor had given me his abusive rant and I'd decided I had no choice but to go home, this same nurse refused to get me a wheelchair to use to get me to the car. She said that she had seen me walk to the bathroom several times and that I could walk perfectly fine. (She really enjoyed saying that, it was obvious, and again she made sure that all the other patients within earshot knew what a pathetic faker I was and how smart she was to 'catch me out.' She just couldn't stop grinning at me as she spoke, she was so pleased with herself.) Of course I can walk perfectly fine, that is perfectly true, but only for very SHORT distances and only if I have had at least an hour or more rest in-between walks (to let my heart recover). The walk to the car was about 20 times longer than the walk to the bathroom and so was just impossible for me. Eventually the family member that had come to pick me up got me a wheelchair herself and so I left. But even that made me so ill, sitting up for that long, my heart went really crazy from it. (What I really needed was to be transferred by bed, but there was no chance at all of that!)
The deficiency I had at the time would actually have been fatal if it had remained untreated and been allowed to worsen. Thank goodness my own doctor easily picked it up not long afterward and soon treated me for it properly. It was a really simple problem to treat too - if only you weren't a completely misinformed arrogant idiot! Sadly there is a whole lot of that going around lately in the medical profession, with some notable exceptions of course.
(One of those was the two ambulance drivers/workers that drove me to the emergency room that night. I was a bit scared as to how they'd treat me but they were so respectful and considerate it almost made me cry, it was just so unexpected.)
One of the worst parts of all this is that now when I have serious cardiac episodes I don't have the peace of mind of knowing that if it gets really bad I can go to the emergency room. In years of having scary heart problems just knowing that option was there really helped me cope and get through what was happening, even if I never actually called for 10 years. I wish I'd never gone to the emergency room so I could have that illusion of a safety net back, even if it was just an illusion.
I went to the emergency room because of severe cardiac problems. I left hours later having been abused, treated like dirt, accused of faking my illness for attention, and having had no medical help at all. As if that weren't enough I also left far more physically ill then when I'd come. As bad as I was when I went there it took me MONTHS to get back to that low level of health afterward.
