Hi, I am in need of a neurologist. Preferably in Chicago and the surrounding suburbs. Thank you.
Hey Elizabeth,
Iāve found a few neurologists in Chicago. I have no clue of whose best or worst, nor what sorts of referrals may be required, but at least it will give you somewhere to start.
Neurology Consultants/EMG Centers of Chicagoland
Website http://neurologycentersofchicago.org/
AMITA Health Medical Group Neurology Chicago | 2845 N. Sheridan Rd.
Hope it helps
Merl from the Modsupport Team
Thank you. I found a neurologist. Afterwards I cried in my car. She told me after I had too much nervous energy and I made her anxious. I was dumbfounded. Yes I was worked up because I am in pain and need answers.
Elizabeth, Iām so sorry this has happened to you. I donāt have facial pain, but I am a rare disease patient, and I donāt remember ever feeling so helpless, hopeless and desperate as I did when I sat in my car and sobbed after a specialist appointment. Been there. Itās awful.
Did the neurologist offer any constructive advice at all? Bad news, bad impressions, pain and anxiety can all cloud other important business that took place in the consult. If youāre not sure, thatās not surprising given your physical and emotional state.
Do you have a follow up appointment? Whether you do or donāt, it might be a good idea to see whether you can have the office staff send you a copy of the report or notes resulting from your appointment. That will give you a better idea of what else happened besides your being understandably dumbfounded by what the doc said.
Seenie (I work on ModSupport with Merl)
TY. The appointment was a blur. I can remember her saying the MRI was clear. She offered me tegretol and an ssri. I have a televisit Feb 2022. Great tip on asking the office for note. I didnāt know that was a possibility.
This is not uncommon. Our minds are often running at 1000 miles an hour on hyperdrive in these appointments. We go in with preconceived ideas of whatās going to happen. Often the medicos can seem a little unconcerned, they deal with this sort of thing everyday, but for usā¦OMG.
For my appointments I now take someone with me, my wife. What I miss, she picks up on. You are allowed to take a support person or an advocate to your appointments with you.
This is fairly common too. There is āsomeā evidence that for some people pain can be an electrical signalling issue within the brain and both tegretol and ssriās can have an influence in regard to the electrical messaging (Thatās how it was explained to me). My advice: Trial them all. You may just find that one of them might work.
Merl from the Modsupport Team
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@Elizabeth72, I second everything that Merl said. Thereās nobody in this neck of the woods who has as much experience with brain āthingsā as Merl.
Yes, you should be able to get a document which reports the result of your consult, as well as reports from the MRI and any other diagnostics that youāve had. They are about you, they are yours. No, you probably wonāt understand most of what they say, but having them is potentially very valuable to you. Example: if you moved on to another doctor, you can easily give them a quick perspective on whatās happened to you. They will then be able to start working with you at square 3 rather than square 1.
Keeping as much of your own medical record as possible is something Benās Friends highly recommends.
Seenie
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Thank you all so much for your input.