Health Activist Writers Month Challenge: Why Do You Write

WEGO Health is sponsoring a blog challenge for health activist writers, and while I'm entering about two weeks late, I plan to complete the full 30 posts, so I'll start with day 1.

Day 1: Why do you write?  Tell us a little bit about why you write about your health online and what got you started. How did you become involved in Health Activist Writers Month Challege (HAWMC)? 

I decided to start this blog because I'm fed up with our current status quo in healthcare. The paternalistic model of healthcare which was so prevalent in the 20th Century should have remained there as a relic, instead of continuing to increase our healthcare costs while decreasing the quality of life in the patient. There are many other health relics from the same time period which we've done away with, like the widespread use of tourniquets, iodine, and Freudian psychotherapy. These things were abandoned when it was recognized that they made patient outcomes worse. Yet we continue to operate in a system which emphasizes a divide between doctors and patients, with doctors spouting jargon and refusing to believe a patient's report, and patients often too scared to ask questions and participate in their medical care. The truth is that nobody knows their body better than the patient, and the patient needs to be in control of their treatment if we want healthcare outcomes to improve. I blog because I wish to advocate for patients, and to help patients advocate for themselves. I've had many doctors who resent me because of this. Resent me because of the fact that I refuse to silently submit to which ever treatment they suggest, no questions asked.  I've been dropped by 2 rheumatologists for this reason, and one primary care doctor for this very reason. Doctors have very fragile ego's. Yet I refuse to let someone tell me that one of my joints isn't painful, and I refuse to let them tell me a drug isn't helping when it's making me feel better. It's only through advocacy and raising our voices that we can convince the medical profession that it's time for open dialogue. And so we must write. I'm participating in HAWMC because I hope it will be an opportunity to share my experiences with a wider audience. The voice of the patients must be heard.