Hello Making our Own Decisions About Our Health discussion members. I would just like to remind everyone of the Community Guidelines (https://connect.mayoclinic.org/blog/about-connect/tab/community-guidelines/) when discussing medical issues, knowledge and healthcare on Mayo Clinic Connect.

Mayo Clinic Connect, at its core, is about shared knowledge of the patient community to help one-another ask better questions and make more informed decisions in their own healthcare. Here are a couple of guidelines worth revisiting:

Be careful about giving out medical advice
- Sharing your own experience is fine, but don't tell other members what they should do.
- Experiences and information shared by members on the Mayo Clinic Connect are not a substitute for
professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.
- Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on the community.
- Postings such as advertisements for your business, get-rich-quick schemes or solicitations for a charity will be removed.

And most importantly, be polite.

Back to the conversation. @mikaylar, have you found that doing all of the research that you do has helped when you attend your appointments? I've always found that asking intelligent questions during appointments makes you an active participant in your appointment and is often greeted with a "that's a great question" and then followed typically by a thorough answer.