Tips for Reducing Medical Appointment Burnout

With a rare disease, it seems it doesn't take much for us to enter the world of becoming a complex rare disease. And with more symptoms or health issues to manage, the more medical appointments we have, not to mention the toll it can all take on one's mental health, which can result in mental health appointments, too. It gets overwhelming trying to manage all the appointments, and it can quickly feel like that's what takes up a lot of our week, going from one appointment to another.

Balancing many appointments

My mother, who had 2 rare diseases and a multitude of other health conditions, would commonly have multiple appointments in one day and several such days in one week. When she would report a new bothersome symptom that would require a new healthcare provider, she'd often tell me that she didn't want to mess with it at the time. As her daughter and caregiver, I'd press on about the importance of getting in with the required provider so she'd start seeing a change. We'd argue back and forth, and I know it was because she was burned out from all the medical appointments and procedures she required.

Managing appointment burnout

I was fortunate that my dad was able to assist my mom a lot with her appointments to reduce my time away from work. I was also fortunate that while I required frequent medical appointments with multiple providers myself, I still had less than my mom.

When trying to convince my mom to not only see the importance of adding another provider and more appointments to her already hectic schedule, I also had to keep in mind how overwhelmed she felt. There have been times when a provider wanted to add more to my plate, and I also resisted. So, I get it, and I learned some tricks that helped us as patients and caregivers along the way.

Empathy and validation go a long way

Whether we're trying to convince someone else to add more to their medical schedule or we're trying to convince ourselves – empathy goes a long way. And yes, I am saying we should give ourselves all the same things as we would as caregivers to someone else.

Acknowledge how upsetting it can be to start with another provider, add more appointments, and undergo more testing. When we acknowledge something, we see what someone is going through; we validate their experience and perception of what's happening. We make them feel heard.

It's hard to convince anyone, much less ourselves, to add more to their plate when their feelings about it have been ignored. Sometimes, that's all a person wants or needs to then take that extra step. Giving ourselves that same compassion can mean a lot.

Consider the rationale

Once we've heard and validated all the bothersome feelings and thoughts that the abundance of medical appointments can elicit, we can argue why we should keep up with them and even add to them.

Making a list of pros and cons to determine if a new provider is necessary can help. But this is the time to really look at what's needed to add or maintain quality of life.

When I made sure that my mom felt heard before I told her what I thought she needed to do, she was much more receptive to me and felt less overwhelmed than when I argued with her. It's easier to keep burnout at bay when I can focus on the reason for all my appointments rather than my feelings about them.