Dear Jewish Fairy Godmother:

I like my doctor but she&'s hard to get into. For the last month or so I
have been having what my aunt Sophie used to call “spells” –
lightheadedness to the point of trembling just comes over me. It
responds quickly when I eat. Yes I have been dieting though not to
starvation or silliness. When I called for an appointment I was told she
was full up for three weeks and then taking a month off. I don&'t want
to wait almost two months, especially since my Google research
suggests I may have diabetes. I have thought about going to the health
food store and doing some self-care, but I am concerned I might screw
up the blood test I am sure she will order when I do get in to see her.
Any ideas about getting to the front of the line?

Scared

 
Dear Scared:

The internet is a great place to acquire a lot of facts (accurate or not)
very quickly. Also a wonderful place to get enough information to be
terrifying and possibly dangerous. Which is not to say you might not
have diabetes. Or that you might not choose to include some herbal
supplements in an eventual treatment protocol. But it’s an insufficient
basis of information for now. And yes, taking some things could help
you but could skew test results.

 
Call and leave a message like the below and follow it with an email.
Explain what you told me and then ask that she order the appropriate
blood tests to determine whether you do or do not have incipient
diabetes. And ask that she find the time before she leaves for vacation
to scan the results to determine if it is medically safe for you to wait
for her return or if it makes sense for you to see a different doctor
sooner. This plan should get her attention (read fear of complaint) and
should get you both the necessay information in the most efficient
way. One thing to know if you do get a diagnosis of a serious disease
like diabetes is that you will need to make some lifestyle changes to
change the direction and momentum of threes changes to your health.