Three ways to get the best from office visits:<\/p>\n
1. Ask for the first appointment of the morning whenever possible. This guarantees that you won\u2019t spend a half hour in the waiting room!<\/p>\n
2. Take someone with you to ask questions if you feel too overwhelmed to ask them on your own. Whether you\u2019re alone or with someone, it\u2019s always a good idea to write down your specific questions before you see your HCP. I even tell people to hand the list to their HCP as it saves time.<\/p>\n
3.\u00a0 Have a goal before you go. Is it to get new meds? Find a support group? Ask a specific question about bipolar disorder? Often we get to appointments and forget what we need from the HCP.\u00a0 I have often come out of the office and said- darn! I forgot to ask \u2026.\u2026 and that was one of the main reasons I wanted to see him!<\/p>\n
HCP visits can be short- it helps to make the most of them every time.
\nI have a chapter in Take Charge of Bipolar Disorder that goes into this with me detail.\u00a0 It can be complicated to manage an illness and manage office visits!<\/p>\n
Julie<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Three ways to get the best from office visits:<\/p>\n
1. Ask for the first appointment of the morning whenever possible. This guarantees that you won\u2019t spend a half hour in the waiting room!<\/p>\n
2. Take someone with you to ask questions if you feel too overwhelmed to ask them on your own. Whether you\u2019re alone or with someone, it\u2019s always a good idea to write down your specific questions before you see your HCP. I even tell people to hand the list to their HCP as it saves time.<\/p>\n
3. Have a goal before you go. Is it to get new meds? Find a support group? Ask a specific question about bipolar disorder? Often we get to appointments and forget what we need from the HCP. I have often come out of the office and said- darn! I forgot to ask \u2026.\u2026 and that was one of the main reasons I wanted to see him!<\/p>\n