medical condition

I’ve known a wonderful man named Ishmael for at least 15 years of my life and was his girlfriend for about 6 ½ of them. He use to be a kick boxer who was very independent and outgoing .  After losing touch for 7 years and reconnecting, the Ishmael I met again was not the Ishmael I used to know. This new Ishmael had a physical problem that made him become very dependent on the people surrounding him. He was falling uncontrollably, struggling to find the right words to speak and was slowly giving up on all hopes, dreams and aspirations of becoming the best he could be; all because of an accident on the job and doctors who could not pinpoint the problem.I’ve stood by and watched him struggle with the doctors in hopes that at some point one of them would take the time to figure out what causes his falling and seizures or refer him to somewhere like the Mayo. In November of this year he had been denied there because he didn’t have a referral, so his neurologist gave him one.  After their review of his medical history on file, they denied him, stating that there was nothing else they could do for him, that had not already been done in the cities.  Is that really the case? Don’t they usually see the patient in person before denying them?  Are there really no doctors out there that are willing to start fresh with tests to see what they find?  This poor man his been living like this for over 10 years. He deserves more than it just being ruled out as a “conversion disorder” or dismissed all together as nothing found.  You can ask any one of the people who knew him before the accident and now, and you will hear the same story…that this is not the man that we all knew when we were younger , this is the new and fragile Ishmael.

[Abhijeet Ghosh]

Dear Ellynm,
I really value your concern towards Ishmael.But after understanding the detailed history, it's really getting more and more difficult to arrive at a conclusion.
To be frank, i would require to examine him personally, but that's simple not possible.Mayo Clinic is one of the best premiere clinics in USA, but due to lots of patient loads, they may not be able to give full time to him.
I would surely recommend him to have a frank consultation with the neurologist as well as Psychologist and an occupational therapist.All of them will help him in a combined effort.A combined doctor's teamwork will really rule out the faking part/reality part.Once we are clear on this, maybe they will take the issue seriously.
Feel free to ask me more for further clarifications.
Regards

[Abhijeet Ghosh]

Dear ellynm,
Please tell me the details of the accident happened at the job, it's impact.Also please tell me the results of all the investigations done as soon as possible.
Regards,

[ellynm]

He was working on a construction site and a truss (spelling?) fell down onto him.  There was no impact that day, but the next morning he had a seizure. Since then he still has seizures, but they are controlled with meds.  He also has this uncontrollable falling issue.  He will be walking and all of the sudden his legs or back give out (we dont know which) and he will drop down to the ground.  He use to be a kickboxer when he was younger but all his muscles are getting weaker, along with his knees and arms due to falling and having to catch himself.  The doctors cant figure it out.  Some have said he is faking and its a conversion disorder...???!!!  Why would a man fake this?? I have witnessed the seizures and the falling and everything.  No one will take this on...some have totally dismissed it as nothing found.  I can get more details from him...

[ellynm]

Thats the problem...once they get a hold of his medical file, all the sudden there is nothing they can do.  The pschologist is the one who came up with this conversion disorder in the first place but his neurologist must believe that something is real if he subscribes him carbatrol (though he had taken him off it until i wrote a letter describing what i witnessed each time he seized)

I looked into the meaning of "conversion disorder" and this is what I found: Conversion disorder is a condition in which a person has blindness, paralysis, or other nervous system (neurologic) symptoms that cannot be explained.  Some doctors falsely believe that conversion disorder and similar disorders are not real conditions, and may tell patients that the problem is "all in your head." However, these conditions are real. They cause distress and cannot be turned on and off at will. Research on the mind-body connection may eventually increase understanding of these disorders.

It seems like as everyone see's the conversion disorder in his file they change thier attitude and he keeps running into walls.  Its like they can't figure it out and don't want to take the time.  I am trying to find someone who is willing to start fresh...thats why i came on here.  

[ellynm]

thank you for being like all the rest.

[Abhijeet Ghosh]

Dear Ellynm,
It's not like i am "being like the rest".I want to help you out, but i have my limitations via this forum.My judgement depends upon the inputs provided by you.I don't examine the patient , i just thrive on the wording provided by the person who asks the question.
And since i am not from your country, i would not be able to recommend you to a doctor who can start afresh.Mayo Clinic if one of the most valued clinic in the world and if you believe that his past reports makes the decision biased, lets do one thing.
Why don't you take him to a good tertiary care center (new), and don't show the past case files to the doctors.This will help us to start afresh and give a new frank opinion.
But if the new opinion is same as the previous one, then you really would need to accept the reality.However if their opinion changes, then i would be really happy for both of you.
Please let me know as what you thought about proceeding this way.
Regards