Got chronic illness? Use this one weird trick to get medical professionals to take your concerns seriously!
Doctors can be shit at listening to patients and often are too arrogant to admit they don’t know something and refuse to look it up during a visit. Referencing a recent study, updated screening guidelines, or CME (continuing medical education) course on the subject by sending it prior to the visit through a patient portal or by faxing it to their office and leaving a message with the front desk and nursing staff saying "golly gosh darn gee whiz, doc, i have a friend with [insert] condition who is worried I might have [insert] condition" or "golly gosh darn gee whiz, doc, I have a friend who also has [insert] condition who is worried I'm not getting the treatment I need" can go a long way by giving a doctor an 'out'. YOU'RE not accusing them of not knowing something or missing something, an invisible boogeyman has posed the question and doctors love nothing more than sanctimoniously proving people wrong!
...and in the process of sanctimoniously proving your *friend* wrong may just happen to stumble their way through a differential diagnosis and prescribe you appropriate screening and/or care.
You shouldn’t have to, and it sucks, but taking doctors' fragile egos into consideration can literally save your life.
So here. Now you don’t even have to lie! I am your good friend with hEDS/POTS/MCAS who graduated from medical school but couldn’t complete my residency due to my (at the time undiagnosed) medical fuckery who is now *very worried* you aren't getting the care you need and suggested you send this 2026 comprehensive review articule from a reputable source on POTS diagnosis and treatment to your care team because it helped me get appropriate care from mine:
Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) is a complex disorder mainly of orthostatic intolerance, often accompanied by a spectrum of
American Medical Association (AMA) format citation:
Lau DH, Fedorowski A, Raj SR, et al. Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome: A State-of-the-Art Review. Heart Lung Circ. 2026;35(2):171-185. doi:10.1016/j.hlc.2025.09.004




















