Migraine Awareness Month #20: Run, Forest, Run!

Here at Migraine.com we’re participating in the National Migraine Awareness Month Blogging Challenge during the month of June. All of the patient advocates are taking turns to cover the prompts, and today is my first turn.

The theme for the 20th day is: "Run, Forest, Run! Describe the approach you think is best when it's time to more on to a new doctor."

In my mind making the decision to move on to a new doctor in and of itself is a key point in a migraineur's journey with this disease. It can be hard to know whether you should stick with a less than perfect doctor or take your chances with an unknown doctor. Sometimes sticking with what you know, even if it's not great, is less scary than trying something new.

I encourage you to listen to your instincts about whether there might be a doctor out there who is a better fit for you. If your gut is telling you to give someone else a try, there's probably a reason for that. If a doctor ever tells you there is nothing more he/she can do, move on. If a doctor doesn't listen to you or answer your questions, consider moving on.

Once you've made the decision, here are a few things to do to move forward.

(1) Give the doctor some constructive feedback. Share your reasons for moving on to a new doctor in a respectful way. This gives the doctor the courtesy of knowing you're not coming back and the chance to learn from your feedback.

(2) Get your records. You may need your records from that doctor for any number of reasons down the road, so I recommend getting a copy for yourself at the time you end the relationship just to be safe.

(3) Ask other patients for recommendations of good headache specialists in your area or within a geographical range you can travel to. This could be both people you know in real life, as well as people you know through online relationships, such as message boards, Facebook or Twitter.

(4) Go to initial appointments with more than one doctor to see who seems like the best fit for you. It's hard to know anything about how a doctor handles patients without going in and meeting with him/her and seeing for yourself.

How do you approach moving on to a new doctor? What advice can you share with other migraine patients from your personal experiences? Please share in the comments!

National Migraine Awareness Month is initiated by the National Headache Foundation. The Blogger’s Challenge is initiated by www.FightingHeadacheDisorders.com.

To help raise awareness about Migraine, please Tweet this post with the hash tags #NMAM and #NMAMBC and share it on your Facebook page. Thank you!