Naturopath Pre-Appointment Paperwork
I’m finally sitting down to do the required naturopath pre-appointment paperwork. After filling in my name, age, emergency contact, I sort of lost interest. I wont lie, I’m finding it very hard to take this seriously as they are very personal questions (in some cases beyond what a doctor office would ask) and it feels very impersonal to fill some of these things on a form before ever meeting the naturopath. For example:
- Fertility Questions – I’ll never enjoy having to write down 5 pregnancies, 0 live births – this is normal to all medical forms I fill in, so it’s nothing new. Interestingly there was no space to write down any children, unless you gave birth to them. That irks me, especially in this day where families come together in so many different ways.
- Tell me who you are, write a short description of yourself – personality, strengths, weaknesses, etc. Seriously? Am I applying for a job interview? Should I comment about how unorganized my desk is to a passerby, yet I know where every single thing is.
- What do you love to do? I’m thinking I should mention my son here, since I wasn’t given the space to mention him before.
- What do you dislike the most? I seriously wrote down folding laundry, because I truly think it’s my most hated task in life! But, I really don’t think this is what the question is trying to get at.
- How would you describe your sex life? Now seriously, how do you write that on a form for someone that you’ve never met? I wrote It’s All Good :). Hopefully she at least get’s a good laugh.
- And all the food related questions, just made me hungry! I gave 2 answers – typically (modified paleo-like diet), currently (bread, pasta, baby puffs and cheerios).
Needless to say, I fully acknowledge I’m going into this what some might call a bad attitude. And I plan to tell the naturopath this when I meet her. I figure why not be honest and upfront? First, I’m sure I’m not the first person to be this skeptical. Second, I figure she deserves to know who she’s working with. If I’m going to lay my cards on the table in an incredibly impersonal intake form, I’m not going to hold back my skepticism.
Yet, all of this said, I am determined to give this a real shot. I wont lie about my skepticism and pretend it’s not there. Instead I’m just going into this hoping to be proven wrong and being converted to naturopathy.
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I think going in honest will probably help you get more out of the appt/process. I so hope you are surprised by the meeting and get some much needed relief while waiting for more traditional routes to unfold.
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Thanks my friend! I too hope that I am pleasantly surprised by the outcome! 🙂
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If it helps, naturopathy believes in treating the whole rather than the “issue”. So, yes while these questions sound like fluff, they actually give your dr an insight into you and she can prescribe herbs and /or a line of treatment that suits your system. Western medicine doesn’t do that, its just oh you have an upset stomach, take gravol, doesn’t matter if gravol is good for your system or not!
so, my 2 cents, speak your heart out and let her know at the start that she is your “lets try this as well” resort since you need relief badly. let her know your expectations right at the start..
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You do make a good point about treating the whole rather then the specific. But, I still maintain certain questions would be better asked in person then on an impersonal questionnaire.
And, yes, I agree, I’m going to be very honest about this is my desperate attempt at finding foods that I can manage to eat.
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Yes, Eastern medicine is much different from western and that’s what naturopath’s lean towards. Try to keep an open mind…I have a feeling this could be a game changer for you!
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You remind me of myself when I first went to a naturopath. I was in the throes of infertility and miscarriage chaos and was aware that I was drinking too much wine and not eating a particularly balanced diet but I told her I had no intention to change anytime soon so she should not include dietary changes in her treatment plan. 6 months into it I started seeing such positive change (prove with blood tests) and my attitude started shifting. She was great and patient. You might also need to be patient though… Treatment with a naturopath takes time. Good luck!
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Thanks for reinforcing that I’m not the only one who is skeptical. 🙂 I appreciate that you pointed out that you saw positive change proven with blood tests, I find that fascinating and would be much more likely to shift my attitude if I can see evidence of things changing.
Interestingly even through all our losses this is something I never tried because I just couldn’t bring myself to do it. I guess my starvation diet has brought on a new level of desperation? (Which sounds odd to me now, because I thought I did try everything when we were going through our losses. And yet, I’m so glad we stopped trying and found our way to Little MPB, so it all worked out anyways). Sorry – a bit of a side rant in this comment. 🙂
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I also went to her out of desperation… I had no expectation that she would help me fall pregnant but I wanted to feel ‘normal’ again. I felt like my body was completely out of whack hormonally after all the treatment I had been on and I just wanted to feel healthy again. Through her I then embarked on a journey that would lead to a lot of new insight into how my body works and I do believe it ultimately helped me sustain a donor egg, IVF pregnancy. But I 200% acknowledge the benefit of stopping trying to fall pregnant when you have reached your limit… And your wonderful son is testemony to thatxxx
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I was the same as you when I first visited a naturopath for my migraines. I was a total skeptic and I let her know I thought it wasn’t going to work. We went into some deep, deep details about everything, including talking about my bowel movements and if they were “complete releases” or not. I was a little stunned by the question until she explained why it matters. It’s a really interesting process and you are definitely doing the right thing by being totally open and honest about the way you feel about it. With your long medical history I don’t blame you at all for being skeptical about it. But the important part is that you are also open to trying it.
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I share your skepticism, and I don’t think those questions would have helped me be more on board with it all. I’ll be interested in knowing it how it goes.
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It sounds like you and I are on the same page! I just think a bunch of the non-medical personal questions should be asked in person not in a random form.
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Agreed.
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I’m excited to hear how it goes for you! Being open and honest will get you to good places in this process ☺️
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I will definitely write about how this process goes. And I figure it’s only fair for her to know who she’s working with. But something tells me I wont be the first one to admit to being a skeptic who came out of pure desperation. 🙂
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Those questions would annoy me, too. Nonetheless, I hope that it helps you.
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Those questions are deeply personal – and on a FORM, no less?! Good grief. I’d be sour about those.
The naturopath is the person who changed Evelyn’s (and subsequently my) life by identifying her dairy allergy and the cause of all of her mouth sores, mood swings and shitty sleep. Now I am not suggesting that your issue is even nearly as minor as Evelyn’s or as easy to figure out, but sometimes they really do see something western medicine doesn’t, so I am holding tightly on to hope for you, that you get some answers!
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My friend recently went to a naturopath and she was blown away happy with how it went apparently. That said, she was a bit shocked at the stack of paperwork to fill out! I think it’s important to remember that naturopath Drs try to treat the whole person rather than just a symptom or an area. But i completely agree that going in and being honest that you are skeptical is a great approach! I’m sure the Dr will appreciate knowing where you stand that way they can explain things more fully etc. I hope it goes great!!
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I’m a total skeptic too. Haven’t ever gone but most of it sounds like hogwash to me. Although I have heard for certain things like back issues there is some data to support it (I work as a medical lab tech, so obviously I have more faith in science) I put practically zero faith in anecdotal stories. Good luck! I’d love to be wrong about it.
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