Good Shape
Disturbed and anguished, she told me what her doctor said.
She is thinking about getting a new doctor.
But at her age, it seems daunting to find a new doc.
Why in the world did her physician tell her she is "in good shape for the shape she is in" ??
I mean, isn't there a limit to medical honesty?
Having lived and worked behind the scenes in the medical field I can guess that doc was having a good day and thought he was relating well to the old woman in front of him. He was doling out the compliments like crazy that day my aged friend popped into his office.
Either that, or he was having a bad day and was in bad shape for the shape he was in.
Who knows?
But I know what Liz means.
Here is what my Barely-30-Something doctor said to me:
"Go ahead! Try to look younger than you are. If you look younger you will act younger and you will then feel younger. Go ahead."
Say what??
What the hell is this young doc trying to say to me?
It sounds like a bit of a compliment when you read it,
but if you had been sitting there with me you would have heard and felt the mild contempt in his young voice.
Not an upper.
Was this merely a "tacit permission" to continue dying my hair?
If so, he could have just said, "Nice dye job. Fool the world. You are not fooling me! I read your lab work!"
That could have been a little bit funny (maybe, maybe not) if there were no contempt attached.
But since my friend and I are both Medicare patients, I can tell you that the docs charge about $100 for an office visit and Medicare pays them about $50, or even less.
Not an upper for them.
Heck, it costs more than $50 to get a massage! True it is that the massage lasts 50 minutes and the doc only sees you for 7 minutes max, but you did clog up his waiting room for 53 minutes.
Oh, dear.
As my mom always told me, "Damned if I do, damned if I don't."
Cheer up. This too shall pass.
Thanks.
Your visit warmed my heart and that means a lot on a chilly day.
Riverwatch
