# Online Dr search with reviews



## artms (Jul 23, 2011)

I have to find a new Dr. I am having no luck looking online so far. I'm looking for a MD not a herbal vitamin only person. I need someone who understands Hashi and adrenal issues. Any links would be appreciated. I'm also not sure what specialty I should be looking for but I would definitely like a Dr takes all my complaints into consideration and can put it all together. Endo?GP?Rheumatologist?Internist? I haven't a clue. I want to have a few possibilities to start out. BTW I'm near Santa Rosa Ca


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## bigfoot (May 13, 2011)

Having just gone through the doctor search recently, some of it is research and the rest is plain luck. (I kinda wish I had done more research! LOL)

I know folks here have mentioned calling around to doctors offices (especially endocrinologists) and asking how they treat thyroid issues (such as with levothyroxine only, or are open to things like Cytomel and Armour), along with how they run tests for thyroid labs (TSH only vs. using Free T3 & Free T4).

Another option I've read about is to contact a local compounding pharmacy and ask which doctors in your area prescribe things like Armour, etc. Not that you necessarily need it, but that it can help find a more open-minded doc.

Realistically, you don't have to have an endocrinologist, but at least someone familiar with treating your issues (thyroid, adrenals, etc.). You might try checking out some internists, too. I had one that was pretty good and willing to investigate things further.

Good luck! :anim_32:


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## hochelaga (Jul 10, 2011)

I had success in finding an MD who prescribed dessicated thyroid through my local compounding pharmacy. Unfortunately for me the particular doctor I ended up seeing seemed to think he knew everything there was to know after reading probably one book on Hypothyroidism. I was drastically overdosed and ended up extremely hyper - lost all subcutaneous fat on my face and around my eyes and haven't been able to regain it, ugh!... but I digress! Caveat: just because a doctor will prescribe Armour doesn't automatically mean that they know what they are doing! Just my two cents.


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## artms (Jul 23, 2011)

I've been surprised at how many Drs onine sound ok then you read down and they start talking about kinda weird stuff (they usually sell tapes, books and vitamins)or how people seem to have trouble with endos who wouldn't order tests.. I was surprised people struggle to find a Dr who will order dessicated thyroid or that little bit more of T3 when you can get it online apparently without a Rx. Then there are the Drs who everyone raves about but they don't take insurance and charge $600 to $800 a visit. Really? Been strange. I did find a website that is helpful,,,vitals.com.


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## Andros (Aug 26, 2009)

hochelaga said:


> I had success in finding an MD who prescribed dessicated thyroid through my local compounding pharmacy. Unfortunately for me the particular doctor I ended up seeing seemed to think he knew everything there was to know after reading probably one book on Hypothyroidism. I was drastically overdosed and ended up extremely hyper - lost all subcutaneous fat on my face and around my eyes and haven't been able to regain it, ugh!... but I digress! Caveat: just because a doctor will prescribe Armour doesn't automatically mean that they know what they are doing! Just my two cents.


Amen to that. That is what gives Armour a bad name. Inappropriate use.


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## webster2 (May 19, 2011)

hochelaga said:


> I had success in finding an MD who prescribed dessicated thyroid through my local compounding pharmacy. Unfortunately for me the particular doctor I ended up seeing seemed to think he knew everything there was to know after reading probably* one book on Hypothyroidism*. I was drastically overdosed and ended up extremely hyper - lost all subcutaneous fat on my face and around my eyes and haven't been able to regain it, ugh!... but I digress! Just my two cents.


The GP that diagnosed me was 3rd year resident. He told me that for the general practitioner, thyroid hypo & hyper, was a very very brief part of their education. He was at the end of his residency, and told me that it was exciting to him that my case fell into place, but he had to go back and review medical texts as they were not well covered. Too bad for all of the thyroid patients that are blown off because their doctor doesn't have the knowledge or confidence to admit they are not familiar with treating it. The GP sent me to an endo and surgeon. Good guy!

*just because a doctor will prescribe Armour doesn't automatically mean that they know what they are doing! Just my two cents.*

Wow, what a huge statement that is!


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## Octavia (Aug 1, 2011)

artms said:


> I have to find a new Dr. I am having no luck looking online so far. I'm looking for a MD not a herbal vitamin only person. I need someone who understands Hashi and adrenal issues. Any links would be appreciated. I'm also not sure what specialty I should be looking for but I would definitely like a Dr takes all my complaints into consideration and can put it all together. Endo?GP?Rheumatologist?Internist? I haven't a clue. I want to have a few possibilities to start out. BTW I'm near Santa Rosa Ca


artms, it seems to me that you would be looking for an endocrinologist. A GP wouldn't be highly trained in thyroid and adrenal gland function and would likely refer you to an endocrinologist for issues related to Hashi and adrenal issues.

Below is text from the Santa Rosa Medical Center website: http://www.kaisersantarosa.org/endocrinology

Endocrinology
The endocrinology department at Kaiser Santa Rosa Medical Center, located at the Round Barn offices, offers specialists certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine in Endocrinology and Metabolism. Along with our nurse practitioner *we offer consultation for a wide range of hormonal and metabolic disorders including thyroid disorders, osteoporosis, pituitary and adrenal disease. *

That might be a good starting point for you.


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## artms (Jul 23, 2011)

Thanks. Someone told me that Rheumatologists deal with immune issues and are good for Hashi's.I mentioned to my GP that maybe I should see a specialist but she would just side step. Unfortunately it's clear she's just not on the ball at all and is making my life difficult as a result. Anyway, I figure she would send me to one in the group and probably would follow the same protocol of treating by TSH. given all that, it's time to move on. Anyway, lesson learned.In the mean time, I'm following her request for me to take a dose that doesn't treat me adequately and I requested labs based on my research so far. When I have the labs I'll have a definitive picture of what's going on and then I can carry that to the next Dr. Thanks for the link to Kaiser. I don't have Kaiser but that's a start.


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## bigfoot (May 13, 2011)

FWIW, I would avoid Kaiser like the plague. Not to ruffle any feathers, but I have heard a LOT of horror stories about them. My understanding is that as an HMO, they run their operation like a business (which is fine) but patient care can suffer at times as a result due to trying to implement cost savings. Quite honestly, I'd be surprised if you find anyone there who is going to think "outside of the box" for you.

Since your doc isn't willing to cooperate and help you find an endocrinologist, I would _seriously_ be thinking about changing primary care docs ASAP. I just ran into this earlier in the year, and is part of the reason why getting my existing thyroid and hormone issues maintained has dragged out so long this summer. My primary doc didn't think I needed to see an endo, so I had to take it upon myself to find one. (Needless to say, I don't see that primary care doc anymore.)

Times like this I kinda wish we had a Doctor listing here on the forums. At least it would give folks a place to start...


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## Octavia (Aug 1, 2011)

I'm not very familiar with Hashi's, so I won't comment on whether a rheumatologist is the right person to go to for that. But your thinking about finding a specialist instead of seeking care solely from your GP is right on the money. Based on other comments (and the fact that you don't have Kaiser), the link I posted probably won't do you much good, but I would look for something like that--a group that specializes in thyroid & adrenal issues.

As for the rheumatologist, maybe you could call a couple of them and ask the receptionist whether the doctor treats Hashi's patients. I know when I was searching for a doc, the receptionists were quite helpful--if their doctor didn't treat the issue, they had a list of others who did.


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## Octavia (Aug 1, 2011)

You also asked about online reviews. Someone suggested vitals.com. Another site is ratemds.com. But the problem is that most of these specialty doctors have very, very few ratings on sites like that, which makes the ratings pretty unreliable. Plus, many people are reluctant to provide negative ratings. For example, I think my oncologist is a little bit creepy, but I would never write that on an online review site. He's very, very well-respected, and maybe I'm the only person who thinks he seems like a child molester. Who knows...a lot of the way we feel about our doctors is just personal preference. It's not as easy as rating a product you bought on Amazon, which is simple to put into objective words.

When looking for a surgeon, I was lucky because I have a friend whose husband is a nurse anesthetist at our largest hospital, so he not only knows all of the surgeons, he's worked side-by-side with them. He told me who not to go to and who would be good. That was more helpful for me than anything I read online, but I did use the doctors' own websites as a starting point to find out about their backgrounds, education, and specialties. If you know somebody who works in healthcare locally, that person might be a good starting point...if they don't know the right doctor to refer you to, they might know someone who does.


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