Dr. won't prescribe antibiotics

[cowboyup]

Today, I am frustrated and now my anxiety-ridden-self-doubt-overthinking brain is hard at work.

I am sick. I caught a cold about 10 days ago and it's progressed into a sinus infection. You know how icky that feels if you've had one...so, I am tired of my head aching, my nose being both runny and stuffy, and my ear aches. I've had a sinus infection before so I know what they tend to feel like with me. I go to a quick care center and wait for almost 2 hours to see the doctor. He examines my ears, nose and throat and proceeds to tell me what I already know. However, he tells me that at this stage, he really doesn't want to prescribe antibiotics - he doesn't like to unless absolutely necessary. And tells me that he won't charge me for the visit and just to buy some claritin, mucinex and ibuprofen and if I don't feel better in 3 days to come back.

I respect the doctor not prescribing unnecessary antibiotics but this is the 2nd time (at same clinic) that a doctor has poo-pooed me saying whatever I have is not too bad and suggested OTC med. It's not like I am asking for heavy duty pain meds.

I honestly feel crummy and I really do have an ear ache and days old headache that won't go away. It's not made up ....

on my way home I started to get angry thinking to myself, "do I look like scum" or "do I look like a drug addict" "what's wrong with me" "did I say something wrong"

While I was waiting for the doc to come into the exam room, I over heard him in next room writing RX for other people...so why couldn't I get any darn antibiotics!

He gave me a freakin complex...lol

Fine, if I can't get *human* meds then I guess I'll order some fish antibiotics from kvvet.com !!

sorry...I just had to vent (again) *sorry I sound like I am whining*

 

[O'Killian]

I doubt you look like scum or a drug addict. The worst he probably thinks about you is that you're ignorant.

I'm no doctor (in fact, I mostly think of all of this because I have a particularly militant biology professor), but the antibiotics probably wouldn't be any more than a placebo anyway. Most sinus infections and the common cold are both viral, not bacterial. It seems like a fair precaution to me. Antibiotic resistance is a scary thing, so like you said, I respect him for not prescribing them when they aren't necessary.