Word: patiently
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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...there is indeed bias, among those responsible for it are orthopedists, who are conventional medicine's chief authorities on the back. When consulted by patients, these and other back specialists will usually start off with some rigorous questioning. When and how did the pain begin? Where is it now located? What treatments have been tried? Do other family members have similar difficulties? The doctor will also inquire closely into the patient's general health, past illnesses, work and leisure activities, even sexual habits. Orthopedic Surgeon J. William Fielding of New York City's St. Luke...
...actual physical examination begins even before the patient crawls onto the examining table. Says Columbia's Keim: "I like to watch the patient undress, see how he moves, sits, stands." The doctor may ask the patient to perform various exercises -walking on heels and tiptoes, bending from the waist, twisting, reaching as high as possible with the hands. Lying on the table, the patient will probably be made to continue the gymnastics with movements of the legs and hips. The doctor will feel around the abdominal area for tumors, which may be the real problem. He will also probe...
When all the prodding and poking are done, the patient's spine will be Xrayed. If this does not reveal the exact nature of the problem, the physician may turn to a more complex radiological examination...
...fact, some people seem to have a heavy emotional investment in continuing their pain, which is quite real to the patient, even if it is of psychosomatic origin. Explains Dr. John Bonica of the University of Washington in Seattle, co-founder of the first major pain-relief clinic in the U.S.: "Take the case of a middle-aged lady who has been married for about 20 years and whose children are grown and have left home. She has an emotional need for love and affection, but her husband is always busy with his work. One day this lady falls...
...despair. By the cathartic ending, when there are no more tears to shed and no more afflictions to remember, Martha Lear is finally able to forgive. She realizes that the professionals could not per form a miracle: "The doctor does not exist who could treat such a gravely ill patient for such a long time without making mistakes . . . given their mortal limitations, they were more than good...