“I have seen Dr. Kamal several ti...”
I have seen Dr. Kamal several times and always have appreciated her intellect. I felt safe with her. This time, she seemed rushed. She asked if I had a list and said "we will see how many we can fit in", which didn't help me feel open to talk. I told her how some wellness counseling was going and that I was so proud of my progress. I had intended on telling her that I felt like I was healing and had been learning a lot about myself, but she interrupted and told me I had gained 20 pounds since my last visit so obviously I need to be eating less. I won't go into more details, but after some back and forth I shut down. I answered her questions and she rushed through the rest of the exam. Twice she apologized if she upset me, but followed it by telling me she is just blunt and she is just letting me know her medical perspective. I have had such a lifelong trauma with food, starting from a young age. Her comments were crushing to me. Obviously I know weight needs to be lost, but there is more to health than numbers on a scale. For the first time in my life I am eating breakfast everyday. My anxiety is better than it ever has been as a result. I'm learning how to nourish my body instead of starving it and then binging. I have been making cycle breaking changes, but It was completely overlooked. You never know what baggage people bring or what life events they have gone through while gaining the pounds. Listening and creating a body positive space would go a long way. Blunt or not, you can think of better ways to address this with patients. I will be transferring to a different provider.
Comment - “ Dr. Kamal is very good at explai... ”
Dr. Kamal is very good at explaining things and always shows care and compassion.