Out of curiosity, how many of us "Fat Chicks" are overweight but in good health? And, how often do our health care providers make assumptions based on the weight?
My OB knows that, despite the extra pounds, I'm in excellent health. BP is low, blood sugar is perfect, cholesterol is perfect, etc. However, new nurses, or other docs when I was in the hospital giving birth, didn't just suggest screenings due to the weight. They refused to believe the results.
For example, one nurse took my blood pressure four times citing it wasn't possible for someone with "extra weight" to have such low blood pressure. At the time, I believe it was somewhere around my norm of 70-80/60, maybe even lower.
Another suggested we redo the blood work, because my blood sugar was "so low" considering "other factors."
Then, there are just the little comments. The new nurse at my OB's practice made a comment about my pulse being "surprisingly slow" when she was prepping my chart. "I expected it to be a lot higher!" Now, this may have been meant as a compliment, but..
Now, not only is this rude, it's highly unprofessional. Suggesting tests be redone, simply because the results don't stack up with your version of reality, should be a huge no-no in the medical field.
Just curious if anyone else have ever experienced this in one form or another. How do you handle it? I'm not sure there is a "good" way to handle it!