Detoxifying the diagnosis. Use diagnosis only to the extent helpful. Individuals are not defined by their diagnoses. A diagnosis can be helpful, for example, to provide a starting point for treatments, can help put individuals in touch with each other for support, and can provide a label for further research. But at a certain point, a diagnosis becomes tremendously self-limiting.
Practical partnering in health care. Bernie Siegel, M.D., notes, “the most important kind of assertiveness a patient can demonstrate is in the formation of a participatory relationship with the doctor. Most patients don’t talk to their doctors or ask a lot of questions for fear of angering this person who is going to ‘make’ them well.” In health care, compliance and choice are often mirror images, and active partnering steps by professionals, consumers, and family members, within current systems, can radically improve the procovery process.
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