The toolkit · For teens · For parents · For providers & educators
How to speak up, even when you're nervous. 8 moments that happen in exam rooms, each with the exact words to say. Pick the one that's happening to you.
Pushing back against a provider can feel intimidating, especially from an exam table. Keep these on your phone, or print them with your Patient Passport, and read the line straight to your doctor. Each one has a copy button so you can paste it into your notes before a visit.
it's okay to read it word for word. that's what it's for. – Rachel
What just happened in the room?
I understand anxiety can affect the body, but I want to ensure we aren't experiencing diagnostic overshadowing. Can we run a differential diagnosis and test for (iron levels / POTS / autoimmune markers) before assuming this is purely psychological?
The provider attributes physical symptoms (racing heart, fatigue, GI pain) entirely to mental health without investigating.
Before starting a new medication, I'd like to run comprehensive bloodwork and diagnostic tests first to make sure we aren't masking an underlying physical condition.
The doctor prescribes psychiatric or symptom-masking medication without performing baseline bloodwork or physical evaluations.
I understand you don't believe this test is indicated today. Could you please document your specific clinical justification for declining this test in my medical chart?
The physician declines to order a test, scan, or specialist referral that you or your family feel is medically necessary.
These symptoms are severely impacting my daily life, academic performance and attendance. This is a significant drop from my baseline. I need help identifying the biological cause, not just managing assumptions.
Severe pain, exhaustion, or lightheadedness is minimized as typical teenage growth, diet, or school stress.
It is hard for me to explain everything verbally today, so I brought my structured symptom log. I would like us to review these documented patterns together.
You struggle to verbally explain complex symptoms under time pressure during the appointment.
Thank you for your time today. To ensure a comprehensive or holistic assessment, I would like a referral to a specialist (e.g., dysautonomia clinic, cardiologist, rheumatologist) for a second opinion.
You feel your current provider has reached a dead end or is unwilling to investigate further.
I see these basic screening labs are in range, but my physical symptoms persist. What additional specialized testing or diagnostic pathways do we take when basic panels come back normal?
Standard basic bloodwork comes back "normal," but you are still experiencing debilitating physical flares.
Before we wrap up today, I have two remaining symptom patterns I need documented in my visit summary to ensure we have an accurate history.
The appointment feels hurried and you haven't been able to share your full symptom record or ask key questions.