It’s Not Anxiety, It’s Medical Trauma
Written by: DeAnn Winn
August 25, 2023
IT’S NOT ANXIETY, IT’S MEDICAL TRAUMA
Have you ever made an appointment with your doctor because you are in tune with your body
and you knew something was wrong, only to be dismissed during the appointment? Have you
ever heard any of these statements from a doctor?
● “Your labs are normal, there is nothing wrong with you.”
● “It’s just anxiety. Let me prescribe you something for that.”
● “If you lost some weight, you would feel better.”
● “I think you are drug seeking.”
● “I don’t know what is wrong with you. Make an appointment in 6 months if you are still
having symptoms.”
● “I reviewed your chart and I see you have been to five other specialists, and they did not
find anything. I’m not why your primary care doctor sent you to me.”
● “I think your symptoms are psychological. I’m going to refer you to a psychiatrist.”
These are just a few examples of what has come to be known as medical gaslighting. There are
many reasons why you may have these experiences. Many medical facilities have an
expectation that the medical providers see a certain number of patients a day, which limits the
amount of time a provider can spend with each patient, leaving providers rushed. Just as in any
profession, medical providers can experience burnout which may cause them to become cynical
and could affect their ability to be empathetic. Some doctors may have lacked social skills all
their lives and this will impact their relationship with their patients. Whatever the reasons, the
patient is the one unfairly impacted.
In med school, students are often taught the phrase, “When you hear hoof beats, think horses,
not zebras”, which means they should consider the most common possibility first, aka the
horses. Some of us are zebras and this is one of the reasons those with invisible illnesses,
such as fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, long covid, POTS, etc. may not receive the
correct diagnosis for years.
SYMPTOMS OF MEDICAL TRAUMA
No one experiences medical trauma the same, but here are some common symptoms.
● Avoidance – Some patients do not return to the doctor after a traumatic experience.
● Anxiety or panic attacks – This may occur days before the appointment, on the way
there, during the appointment or even after the appointment is over, especially if the
patient’s needs were not met.
● Depression – An illness can cause depression, but being dismissed or disrespected by
medical providers will also cause depression.
● Intrusive thoughts or memories of negative experiences.
● Flashbacks
● Nightmares
● Hypervigilance, including during appointments.
● Sleep issues, either issues falling and/or staying asleep or sleeping too much.
WHAT CAN YOU DO?
Medical trauma can cause a person to feel helpless and often hopeless. These emotions are
certainly understandable. Taking care of your mental health and learning to advocate for
yourself in the medical system can be empowering.
Take care of your mental health.
● Remind yourself that you are the expert on your body. If your body is telling you
something is wrong, believe it!
● Talk about your worries, fears, anger, etc. with trusted friends and family members.
● When feeling anxious engage in deep breathing. Breathe slowly in through your nose for
4 seconds, hold your breath for 4 seconds and slowly breathe out of your mouth for 4
seconds and repeat until your anxiety decreases.
● If you find yourself ruminating on your experiences, do something to distract yourself
from your thoughts.
● Remind yourself if your needs are not being met, it may be time to find another
provider.
● Contact a therapist to help you process and learn strategies to cope with trauma.
Advocacy
● It can be helpful to take someone with you to your appointments. Have them go into
the exam room with you. They can help advocate for you.
● Since you have a limited amount of time with the provider, write down all of your
symptoms and any questions. At the beginning of the appointment read this info to the
provider.
● Ask the doctor what diagnoses they are going to list in the visit note.
o Ask the provider what the differential diagnoses are. These are diagnosis that
have similar symptoms to the diagnosis the provider has given and need to be
ruled out before being given a formal diagnosis.
o Ask them what measures they are going to take to rule out these diagnoses.
(Yes, they may not be happy, but your health is more important than a provider’s
happiness.)
o If they refuse to explain how they ruled out the differential diagnoses or if they
mentioned tests are needed to rule them out, but they will not order them,
request they document this in the visit note.
● During the appointment take notes on everything discussed. You may need to reference
your notes later.
● If the provider is dismissive, disrespectful or seems unmotivated to determine what is
causing your symptoms, you can ask for another provider. If this is an ongoing issue
within an entire medical system, and if your health insurance allows, it may be time to
switch to another medical system.
● Most medical systems have a patient advocate. You can contact them if you are having
challenges with a provider or within the medical system. You can also hire a medical
advocate.
Do all medical providers cause trauma, definitely not. There are many amazing doctors who are
empathetic and are invested in helping each of their patients. I have a list of providers I refer
my clients to, and these providers provide an experience that is very healing for my clients.
If you believe you are experiencing medical trauma, I would like to help you with your healing
journey. I was a zebra. It took almost three years and four medical systems to finally find
providers who helped me start to recover from long covid. I followed all the tips listed and
fortunately avoided medical trauma. Please call Champaign Counseling to get your recovery
journey started at (217) 203-2008 or visit our website www.champaigncounseling.com
https://www.webmd.com/mental-health/news/20230120/medical-gaslighting-what-to-know
https://psychcentral.com/ptsd/medical-trauma#recap
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/speaking-in-tongues/202205/it-s-all-in-your-head-
the-dangers-medical-
gaslighting#:~:text=Key%20points%201%20Medical%20gaslighting%20is%20a%20phrase,patien
ts%20from%20the%20harmful%20effects%20of%20medical%20gaslighting.
https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-medical-trauma-5211358