|
|||||||||||
 |
Be an Advocate!
Why Won’t He Go to the Doctor?Fear and denial often prevent men from getting timely care.“Picture this,” says Ken Matthews, host of B-104 FM’s morning show. “A guy driving home hears a knock under the hood. He stops immediately, checks it out and calls his mechanic. But if that guy has chest pains, he’ll keep driving. When he gets home, he’ll call it indigestion and hope it goes away.”Why do so many men refuse to seek medical help? Denial and fear play a big part. “And both those things reflect our society’s expectations of men,” says psychologist Tom Lane of Lehigh Valley Hospital and Health Network. “Girls get attention for small injuries and illnesses. Boys get rewards for ignoring pain and being tough.” He’s in denialMany men view illness, with its loss of power and independence, as a loss of masculinity. So they deny anything’s wrong. “This has nothing to do with intelligence, education or status,” says Michael Kaufmann, M.D., chair of psychiatry at Lehigh Valley Hospital and Health Network. “It’s about protecting their image.”Health care isn’t even on the radar screen for many men. Regular checkups are part of women’s lives, especially in the childbearing years, but young men rarely establish a routine of medical exams. “We think the good health of our 20s will last forever,” Matthews says. “When something goes wrong, we can’t believe it’s happening to us.” That attitude can be deadly if you’re having a heart attack. “Denial causes delay in getting help, and the longer the delay the less chance of making a good recovery,” Kaufmann says. “Ideally, you should get treatment within 30 minutes after symptoms begin. In reality, men waste more time in denial than they spend in the ambulance or emergency waiting room.” He’s afraidMany men avoid the doctor because they fear pain or bad news. Partly, that comes from not knowing what a medical test or procedure will actually be like. “Fear of pain and death is only natural,” Kaufmann says. “What men need to remember is that early detection and treatment can minimize pain and even save your life.”Men also worry about the job fallout they may suffer if they take time off for medical care. And they fret that the high cost may jeopardize family finances, especially if they’ll be on sick leave for a while. In cases where there’s no health insurance, both men and women have been known to postpone a needed doctor visit, says family practice physician Jack Lenhart, M.D., medical director of Valley Preferred health plan. “Still, an uninsured man often will insist his wife get treatment while he resists getting help himself.” The result? He doesn’t call the doctor until the condition gets so severe he can’t work. “Obviously, this doesn’t make good economic sense,” Lenhart says. “Early treatment costs less and gets you back to work sooner.” Changing the patternDue in part to their reluctance to call the doctor, “men live sicker and die younger than women,” Lane says. Will that ever change? Today’s fast-rising level of health care knowledge is an encouraging sign. “As men become better informed about the value of early treatment, and what to expect when they need an MRI or a prostate test, they’ll be more comfortable seeking care,” Lenhart says.To truly change their attitude, men also need to step forward and share their stories, Kaufmann says: “Hearing a friend talk about his recovery, or reading about a man who went through the same illness you did—this kind of personal connection really makes a difference.”
Want to Know More? For a list of important health screenings for men or great health web sites for men,
call 610-402-CARE. This page last updated 2/12/08 04:08 PM
ARTICLE TOOLS:
|
|
|
|||||
|
|
|
||||||
