Self-harming & unexplained cuts
Discussion
Backstory:
I've been to see the doc today to get some anti-biotics for what I'd self-diagnosed to be the beginnings of cellulitis in my left leg. I've had cellulitis before which was caused by an insect bite and got infected probably due to me scratching the area with dirty fingernails. Being a typical bloke not wanting to cause a fuss I ignored it hoping it would go away and the end result was that I nearly lost my leg and spent nearly 4 weeks in St James Hospital with a seemingly endless conveyor belt of IV anti-biotic drips being pumped into me which thankfully cured it in the end.
I am guessing that the story is much the same this time as I do have a couple of cuts on my leg (the opposite leg to the one which was affected before) and it's entirely possible that I may have picked the scabs at some point recently and that's how it's got infected. Anyway the doctor agreed with my diagnosis and prescribed me a bunch of flucloxacillin torpedos which will hopefully kill off the infection before it can gain any traction.
All good then.
But during the examinations he saw that both of my lower legs and shins in particular are quite badly marked and have a sizeable number of cuts, scratches, grazes, bruising and other discoloured blotches and wanted to know the reason for them. The truth of the matter is I haven't get a feckin clue where they're all coming from!
I mostly work from home these days and am never in any situation where my legs are coming into contact with hard objects for these cuts and grazes to occur. I do occasionally pick at the scabs if they get a bit itchy but many people do this to some extent and it's certainly nothing excessive. What does puzzle me is that I can go to bed at night with my legs 'fine' but then when I get up the next morning I'll see that a huge 1ft long graze/scratch has appeared that looks similar to what you'd get if a cat scratched you with its claws or you'd lighly grazed your exposed skin against something sharp. There are no cats or animals here and there's no evidence of any blood on the bedding so I'm totally confused as to how these are occuring. I'm fairly sure I'm not scratching my legs in my sleep, certainly not enough to break the skin anyway.
The doc has said "those are not normal" and he is "very concerned" about them. After quizzing me about my medical history, family history and other stuff he told me that he wanted to take blood tests (despite only having them done 7 months ago and all clear, including a urine test) and then went on to say there is help for people who self-harm (!) and wants to refer me to a mental health specialist who deal with these kind of issues. WTF! I asked if he was joking and his response was quite clear that he was not and reiterated his "deep concern" for the condition of my shins. The thing is, they don't concern me at all as my legs have always been a bit rough due to having eczema since I was a kid and the skin on shins is (imo) rather thin and easily marked. He concluded by saying he would be putting some notes on my record about it which has left me rather disgruntled to say the least.
I'm particularly disgruntled with his insinuations that I'm a few marbles short of a full bag despite my making it crystal clear to him that my marbles are all present and in fine fettle. Also him "adding some notes" about it on my medical record does not sit well with me and could be used against me in the future.
In one respect it's nice to see a doctor showing concern for your health, but it's quite another for a doctor to be sticking his beak in and making decisions for you on unrelated issues that you haven't sought his advice on and have made clear to him that you don't share the same concerns and are happy with things as they are.
How would you feel about this in my shoes? Welcome also comments from any resident quacks too.
I've been to see the doc today to get some anti-biotics for what I'd self-diagnosed to be the beginnings of cellulitis in my left leg. I've had cellulitis before which was caused by an insect bite and got infected probably due to me scratching the area with dirty fingernails. Being a typical bloke not wanting to cause a fuss I ignored it hoping it would go away and the end result was that I nearly lost my leg and spent nearly 4 weeks in St James Hospital with a seemingly endless conveyor belt of IV anti-biotic drips being pumped into me which thankfully cured it in the end.
I am guessing that the story is much the same this time as I do have a couple of cuts on my leg (the opposite leg to the one which was affected before) and it's entirely possible that I may have picked the scabs at some point recently and that's how it's got infected. Anyway the doctor agreed with my diagnosis and prescribed me a bunch of flucloxacillin torpedos which will hopefully kill off the infection before it can gain any traction.
All good then.
But during the examinations he saw that both of my lower legs and shins in particular are quite badly marked and have a sizeable number of cuts, scratches, grazes, bruising and other discoloured blotches and wanted to know the reason for them. The truth of the matter is I haven't get a feckin clue where they're all coming from!
I mostly work from home these days and am never in any situation where my legs are coming into contact with hard objects for these cuts and grazes to occur. I do occasionally pick at the scabs if they get a bit itchy but many people do this to some extent and it's certainly nothing excessive. What does puzzle me is that I can go to bed at night with my legs 'fine' but then when I get up the next morning I'll see that a huge 1ft long graze/scratch has appeared that looks similar to what you'd get if a cat scratched you with its claws or you'd lighly grazed your exposed skin against something sharp. There are no cats or animals here and there's no evidence of any blood on the bedding so I'm totally confused as to how these are occuring. I'm fairly sure I'm not scratching my legs in my sleep, certainly not enough to break the skin anyway.The doc has said "those are not normal" and he is "very concerned" about them. After quizzing me about my medical history, family history and other stuff he told me that he wanted to take blood tests (despite only having them done 7 months ago and all clear, including a urine test) and then went on to say there is help for people who self-harm (!) and wants to refer me to a mental health specialist who deal with these kind of issues. WTF! I asked if he was joking and his response was quite clear that he was not and reiterated his "deep concern" for the condition of my shins. The thing is, they don't concern me at all as my legs have always been a bit rough due to having eczema since I was a kid and the skin on shins is (imo) rather thin and easily marked. He concluded by saying he would be putting some notes on my record about it which has left me rather disgruntled to say the least.
I'm particularly disgruntled with his insinuations that I'm a few marbles short of a full bag despite my making it crystal clear to him that my marbles are all present and in fine fettle. Also him "adding some notes" about it on my medical record does not sit well with me and could be used against me in the future.
In one respect it's nice to see a doctor showing concern for your health, but it's quite another for a doctor to be sticking his beak in and making decisions for you on unrelated issues that you haven't sought his advice on and have made clear to him that you don't share the same concerns and are happy with things as they are.
How would you feel about this in my shoes? Welcome also comments from any resident quacks too.
All sounds a bit weird.
Sounds like you have a perfectly reasonable explanation, and I wouldn't be too happy if I was in your shoes.
As a mental health nurse, we regularly have patients go through a formal (and pretty simple) process of applying to access their case notes.
I've never thought about this in other settings such as general practice/general hospital settings but I assume you can do the same to see what's been written about you and raise a complaint if you are not happy.
For some reason I sometimes get a really itchy arm or hand, scratch it more than I should, and when things settle it looks very much like I've been self harming. Did it to the back of my hand a couple of weeks ago and was pretty self conscious for a few days, especially when at work and surrounded by fellow MH professionals. So I believe you, it happens. Shame your doctor didn't!
Sounds like you have a perfectly reasonable explanation, and I wouldn't be too happy if I was in your shoes.
As a mental health nurse, we regularly have patients go through a formal (and pretty simple) process of applying to access their case notes.
I've never thought about this in other settings such as general practice/general hospital settings but I assume you can do the same to see what's been written about you and raise a complaint if you are not happy.
For some reason I sometimes get a really itchy arm or hand, scratch it more than I should, and when things settle it looks very much like I've been self harming. Did it to the back of my hand a couple of weeks ago and was pretty self conscious for a few days, especially when at work and surrounded by fellow MH professionals. So I believe you, it happens. Shame your doctor didn't!
It is quite the conundrum how I am waking to find fresh red scabs on my legs (so were clearly bleeding before becoming soft scabs) yet no evidence of blood on the bedding. Even the tiniest amount of blood will leave a very visible mark on light coloured fabric.
Andy, yes, I think next time I'm at the quacks I'll ask to see my file. I go so infrequently that it's always a different doc each time, not that it bothers me.
Andy, yes, I think next time I'm at the quacks I'll ask to see my file. I go so infrequently that it's always a different doc each time, not that it bothers me.
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