Comments for Musings of a phenomenologist

Comment on Is it ethical to lie to patients? by soveda

soveda — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 16:07:27 +0000

I’ve got a hard copy, I don’t know if it’s available online but I can email the authors’ names to you if you like.

Comment on Is it ethical to lie to patients? by Zarathustra

Zarathustra — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 08:35:43 +0000

Thanks for this. I’ve been trying unsuccessfully to track down this RCN evalution of Specal. Is it online anywhere?

Comment on Is it ethical to lie to patients? by Neuroskeptic

Neuroskeptic — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 07:55:19 +0000

I think it would be ethical if it really worked. Certainly, if I were suffering from severe dementia, I’d want my carers to do whatever made it less unpleasant, whether that involved lying to me or anything else.

But as you point out the evidence base for SPECAL is rubbish. And the fact that Oliver James likes it only confirms that…

Comment on It’s just a little prick by soveda

soveda — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 21:38:16 +0000

Thanks for popping by, I hope the post actually on bpsd wasn’t too derivative for you.

Comment on Not smoking can kill by soveda

soveda — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 21:23:23 +0000

Now fixed, thanks, not sure how that happened, I had my BNF in front of me and still read it as Varencycline

Comment on Not smoking can kill by Mark

Mark — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 14:03:08 +0000

It’s varenicline, not varenicycline.

Comment on It’s just a little prick by The Shrink

The Shrink — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 16:31:16 +0000

Ah, you tricksy wee scamp, you.

I read BPSD and though “Behavioural and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia” since BPSD’s a term we use dozens of times each day, in that way. BPSDB? What’s this? A BPSD Bulletin, perhaps? A new dementia care resource to sleuth out?

Imagine my crushing disappointment!

Comment on When MMR attacks (or LBC and Jeni Barnett, what were you thinking?) by Jeni Barnett, LBC Radio and the MMR Vaccine Segment « Holford Watch: Patrick Holford, nutritionism and bad science

Fri, 06 Feb 2009 22:41:15 +0000

[...] Solveda at Musings of a Phenomenologist: When MMR attacks (or LBC and Jeni Barnett, what were you thinking?) [...]

Comment on It’s all in the mind surely? by The_Minkey

The_Minkey — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 23:49:23 +0000

I have been slapped with a diagnosis of cfs. I fell ill back in June last year. I had a moderate level of symptoms initially, thankfully reducing to mild so was able to return to work reasonably quickly. After several months and lots of tests, I requested a referral to a fatigue specialist on the advice of the OH GP at work.

I was rather surprised to find myself going to see a psychiatrist based at Kings Hospital in London. He ran through my medical history. I was completely frank about being a half pint empty kind of person and about the shit that has occasionally rained down at times I haven’t always been waterproof. However, it was his opinion that the symptoms I have been experiencing were due to cfs not due to depression. The psychiatrist btw had some input into the NICE guidelines (for what they’re worth) on cfs so I have to assume he was qualified to assess the difference.

So, having had episodes of mild/moderate depression from time to time, none which had caused me to take any time off work, I can certainly attest to the fact that cfs is a different beast. I may have felt bad when depressed, insular, lacking in motivation, pessimistic, lethargic etc but I never felt physically unwell like I had an everlasting hangover. I never felt faint, desperate to lie down or nauseous, I never felt wired tired or unable to tolerate sunlight or noise.

It’s now 7 months on and I’m not yet able to work to the same level I did before I got ill. I do 4 days a week, with a midweek day off to recover. There have been days, I can count them on one hand where I’ve felt a return to normality. Oh, and how wonderful it feels to be fully functioning. Still, I’m so lucky – it’s only in its mild form most days.

A diagnosis of cfs is a curse. There’s no advice or support from the GP, whose sigh as you walk into his surgery has become audible. Your boss thinks you’re in the grips of a psychological condition. Your colleagues think you’re swinging the lead. You feel embarrassed having to explain to people why it is you can’t commit to social invites.

It’s even got a lousy name. Chronic fatigue syndrome sounds like tired a lot of the time, if only it were..

Comment on It’s all in the mind surely? by soveda

soveda — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 16:24:51 +0000

Hence the need for specialist services. Both specific CFS/ME and liaison psychiatry. The interface between so called mental health and physical health is a fascinating and important area for clinical work.