Telehealth Visits Helped Ease My Anxiety

When COVID began shutting down our town, one of the first things the healthcare system I worked for implemented was telehealth appointments for those who didn’t have to be seen in person. I got to experience both sides to this. The provider side of troubleshooting is to make this as smooth as possible. As well as the patient who wasn’t able to be seen in person and required telehealth appointments.

IBS and telehealth

You are probably wondering what this has to do with IBS about now right? Well, you see one major flare for my IBS is stress and anxiety. Just the thought of having to go into a doctor’s office would set my gut off even if it’s the office I work in. My mind is one of those that constantly thinks I am being judged or laughed at for something I don’t even know I might be doing so you can see where telehealth appointments are appealing to me.

Telehealth has empowered me

Not only being able to have appointments from my house has also helped me to speak up more. I hate confrontation. Speaking up for myself has always been hard. It’s just how I am. This has given me the chance to be able to speak up without as much worry as I would normally have to be face to face. It just takes a little bit of the pressure I normally would feel away. To others, it may be just another day but for me to stand up and have a voice is hard. Especially in person. Being able to use telehealth visits as another option has greatly improved this for me. I’m sure it is just the comfort of being in my house, but I have found my voice again. Telehealth appointments can be daunting if you think of the technical side of it but try to take a different approach to it.

Staying at home is a comfort

Being able to be in my house, with my bathroom close if needed, surrounded by my pets is comforting to me. Thinking of it this way makes those telehealth appointments so much better. I don’t have to worry about someone else being in the bathroom. No more worries about others watching you. I am free to be me without the anxiety and stress of others around me.

Working on my mindset

One thing I am working hard on is trying to see the bright side to things and this is a way I have been able to do that. I know how extremely hard it was in the beginning for providers to get acclimated to using telehealth as another tool to take care of patients. I also know how frustrating it can be for a patient who just feels like they need to be seen by their provider. Being able to put all of that aside and look at the bigger picture can really change your point of view on things.

Seeing telehealth visits as an opportunity to be me and have the courage to speak up and advocate for myself has been a blessing. I would have never thought I would have gained the confidence I have in being myself just by using Telehealth as another tool to better myself.

Have you found you have enjoyed being able to use Telehealth as an option to see your provider?