Afraid of coming to Mayo, but I need a diagnosis

I am having a similar experience, but about to go up to the Mayo Clinic for my third visit in about a month. My fear is more based on things like: did I forget to pack everything I need, will I be alert for an early morning appointment, will I be bored and lonely over the weekend, will I be accepting of all of their recommendations, etc. Unfortunately, I don't have a large support group to provide me reassurance that everything will be ok. I just have to trust that it will and may have to adapt to some physical limitations. I can say that the Mayo clinicians are very thorough, provide results almost immediately, and are courteous and friendly. The facilities are unbelievably clean and I'm sure their diagnostic and treatment is state of the art. The best strategy for me is to plan every detail ahead of time and complete one or two little pre-trip tasks each day, like organizing my meds, withdrawing cash from an ATM, etc. and just letting the future happen without worrying about it too much. I learned that surfing the Internet to read about my problems is a bad idea, because it causes more worries and leads you to believe that you have more ailments than you really do. Good luck and try to focus on the present moment.

@rfh1957, wise counsel to plan carefully for your visit - control what you can control. And for the things that you can't control or may go slightly differently than planned, focus on the present. You see to have well test coping mechanisms to manage your fears.

For the question "will I be bored and lonely over the weekend"? I have a thought. Have you ever used Mayo Clinic's Concierge Services? It's a free service and may be able to give you ideas of things to do on the weekend. There might be interesting tours or self-directed activities you could do.

Here is information for Contacting the Concierge Services:
– In person: Concierge Services desk
Mayo Building (lobby level, in the International Center)
Monday-Friday: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
No appointment necessary
By phone 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday-Friday: 507-538-8438
Email: concierge@mayo.edu

The Concierge services are physically located in Rochester, MN, but they can answer questions about any of the locations.
https://www.mayoclinic.org/patient-visitor-guide/minnesota/concierge-services
Do you usually go to Mayo Clinic on your own?

I didn’t find it scary or lonely when I went for the 1st time alone. I know we’re all different though. I wouldn’t hesitate at all to do it all over again. I stayed at the Kahler which is connected. I explored the buildings when I had nothing to do (no need to ever go outside. Everything is connected). I never felt weird being lost or exploring because most people didn’t know where they were either lol. I didn’t stick out like a sore thumb 🙂 There’s signage everywhere which made it easy. I have severe social anxiety and was proud I handled it well. Everyone is kind and you absolutely won’t regret going to Mayo! I decided to pretend I was on vacation and a tourist looking for photos to take to let people at home see what I was seeing. That worked well for me.