Doctors and Vitamins

I went to the Doctor for the first time in Red Lodge a few weeks ago. It was an interesting and surprisingly pleasant experience. Here's a brief rundown....see if you notice any differences from your typical dr.appt.

1) Walked in to see a sign in the reception area "For the benefit of our patients privacy and to promote a healthy environment, please wait here until the receptionist is available." the sign was probably 10 feet from the receptionist's counter - giving you plenty of privacy and no need to worry about Joe Blow hacking up his contagious lung on you (since the last thing we want to do is go to the doctor to get sick.)

2) Was greeted by a very friendly, warm receptionist who gave me one simple form to complete. The clinic had called the week before to 'pre-register' me since this was my first visit, which means less time and less paperwork at the doctor office.

3) Was called back to the doctor probably no more than 10 minutes from arriving.... (lady taking me back was the only 'somewhat unfriendly' of the morning)

4) Doctor arrived, surprisingly young (my age), and very friendly. I explained to her some of my history, reason for the visit, etc. Her immediate recommendation regarding my cholesterol (for which I take medicine due to my fabulous family history) was to take Fish Oil. She also gave me a list of recommendations for women's health, which included taking Vitamin D, Calcium, and a Multi-Vitamin. I think I can count on one finger the number of a times a doctor has recommended taking vitamins, especially for a specific cause. She also proceeded to explain the reasoning for each vitamin.

5) Completed blood work (lab guy needs some more practice - ouch!)

6) Paid co-pay and checked out but not before working with another nice receptionist to have all my records transferred from Valdosta. She was super helpful and friendly.

7) One hour later - received a call from nurse at doctor office "You forget to get your vaccine, it's free, come in some time next week at your convenience and get it."

8) Four hours later - received a call from THE DOCTOR herself! "Hi, just wanted to let you know your results are in".....proceeded to explain results as well as a reminder to take the vitamins. Now keep in mind, my results were 100% normal so it wasn't like she was calling with bad or important or urgent news. She was just calling.

9) Two days later - received a physical copy of my blood results in the mail with handwritten notes by the doctor commenting on each of the results and a written reminder about the vitamins.

So, needless to say - my first experience with the Dr. in Red Lodge really couldn't have been better. Now I'm not naive, I know it won't always go this way and I know the doctor here is able to provide this type of one-on-one attention due in part to the small population of the town...a great benefit for me!

Okay so a quick thought on vitamins. My ultra-wise mother has always tried to get me to take one multi-day vitamin a day....and I would for a while but it never lasted. Now, I'm taking four vitamins in the morning and three in the evening. And these are BIG. (Think Horse Pill) I'm realizing that I receive two major benefits from regularly taking my vitamins. One is obviously the nutritional value of the vitamin itself. Two (and almost more helpful for someone like me) is the discipline and structure required to take vitamins. As our regular vitamin takers know, you can't just pop these things on an empty stomach....you have to eat first. So, in order to fulfill my goal of eating healthier and overall just living healthier I should eat a good breakfast and a good dinner. Knowing I have to pop a handful of large vitamin-rich pills helps achieve this goal. And (although this could all be in my head) I'm feeling better already! I encourage you to do something good for your body today - whether that's adding to your diet or taking away.....we only have one body and we should take care if it, if we don't, who will?!?