An individual will seek care in an emergency department, to get immediate relief from what is ailing them. Why does an individual go to the emergency room instead of to urgent care or their primary physician? One reason is that their primary care physician is already booked and unable to fit them in. Two, their symptoms began after the medical offices had closed for the day.
The patient provides their health history to assist the doctor with a diagnosis. A preconceived assumption is that the doctor looking at your current symptoms and your medical history. The patient expects that medical professionals will not judge them prematurely.
First impressions can be deceiving. When a person is sick, they are not their typical self. The patient may act out from the pain and get frustrated, angry, or confused. The staff caring for the patient should be mindful of this. Healthcare professionals should listen to the patient, not interrupt, and show empathy, they should not be pointing blame, nor should they attribute the cause of a medical issue to a mental health condition. “Medical gaslighting describes a behavior in which a physician or other medical professional dismisses or downplays a patient’s physical symptoms or attributes them to something else, such as a psychological condition” (Vinney & Verywellmind).
Example of medical gaslighting. My story!
The first symptom I had was chest pain, not too concerned. Thinking it was a bad case of acid reflux. I couldn’t get in to see my Primary so I went to Urgent Care. Urgent Care prescribed omeprazole. Trip one, four days later the chest pain got worse and now my left arm and shoulder were radiating pain and I couldn’t lay back. I thought I was having a heart attack so my partner and daughter took me to the emergency room. Diagnosed with heartburn. I was prescribed a stronger heartburn prescription. Trip two, two days later the pain was getting even worse so my family took me to the ER. Tests were scheduled and completed. All tests returned negative. Discharged with a frozen shoulder due to Parkinson’s.
Medical history
- Diagnosed Parkinson’s in 2011
- Depression and anxiety
Emergency Room Visit 3 -Ambulance
- Stroke symptoms include sudden painful headaches, ear pain, loss of vision, loss of speech, loss of memory, and cognitive issues.
- MRI scheduled and completed
- Test results were negative and discharged
Neurology Appointment
Three days after the ambulance ride, I got in to see my Neurologist. He did an exam and reviewed the MRI. During this visit, my voice had returned & my cognitive issues got somewhat better. He agreed with the assessment that I was experiencing progression of Parkinson’s.
Emergency Visit 4
- Loss of voice, trouble communicating.
It was at this point that the ER completely shut down and began gaslighting me. The ER refused to run any more tests. The attending physician talked over me to my family like I wasn’t even in the room. The doctor asked my family if I had a history of depression which was true. I lost my temper, upset that no one was taking me seriously and without my consent, they were discussing sending me to a mental health facility. I was not depressed. My partner and I were supposed to be on vacation in Florida, I published a book and had just gotten government approval for my 501 © e charity. I was the happiest I had ever been.
Why would anyone go to the emergency seeking answers to their symptoms, especially four times if they were depressed and suicidal and how does one convey this without a voice and cognitive issues?
If my symptoms were stemming from the progression of the disease, the increase in Parkinson’s medication should have improved my symptoms. This was not the case.
My family checked me out of the mental health facility 48 hours after I was admitted. We contacted my Neurologist and requested another MRI. The MRI results came back positive for a stroke.
The emergency room prejudged me and failed to recognize the symptoms for what they were and instead focused on my mental health. Their failure to listen caused me a delay in treatment.
Those symptoms I had were an early warning for me to get help before it was too late. I believe that the hospital should have admitted me on my 3rd visit to them to run additional tests or to rerun existing ones. In my opinion, it would have been better to admit a patient and find nothing than to do nothing or force them to seek mental health help. I was lucky this time because the stroke could have been fatal or left permanent damage. With time, I did recover. I am not 100%. Parkinson’s has progressed which limits my abilities and I do suffer to some extent from both short-term and long-term memory loss.
Did you Know? (Resto NYC, 2023)
- 1 in 20 strokes are not detected on initial scans.
- Brain tissue damage can take 24-72 hours after the event to show up on MRI.
During my research on strokes, I discovered that a stroke may not show up immediately in an MRI, and here are a few reasons why (Resto NYC, 2023).
- The stroke is too small.
- Scanning is too early.
- The area involved is difficult to evaluate due to the location
- Superficial cortical stroke or isolated small vessel stroke may not appear on the initial scan
Stroke types (Garrick, 2022).
- Ischemic-CT scan will miss an immediate stroke like this but will reveal a hemorrhagic one.
- Chronic subdural hematoma (brain bleeds) MRI/MRA will show immediate bleeding but not the severity of the damage for 24-48 hours.
Stroke Symptoms (Brown, 2025)
- Trouble speaking & understanding
- Numbness, weakness, or paralysis
- Loss of vision, blurred vision
- Sudden severe headache
- Trouble walking
If you are having an ischemic stroke, you only have a 4-hour window for the emergency room to attempt to remove the clot to reverse the symptoms. There are situations like mine that no matter how proactive you are you will miss the window of time to prevent damage. It is unlikely that the emergency room will rerun the tests especially if you have another disease like Parkinson’s where symptoms are dismissed as a symptom of the disease. Potential roadblocks are cost, availability, the number of patients waiting, and insurance approval issues.
If stroke is suspected but not showing on MRI request the following (Resto NYC, 2023)?
- Repeat CT or MRI within 24-48 hours.
- MRI with diffusion-weighted imaging
- Angiogram
- EEG
- Lab tests
In conclusion:
If you believe that medical professionals are gaslighting you there are several things you can do. Locate a doctor who will listen to you without prejudgment. Speak up, if you can’t speak for yourself appoint someone who can advocate for you. Keep a journal or diary of your symptoms. You know your body better than anyone. Listen to your gut, and do what is best for you even if it means seeking another hospital or a 2nd or 3rd opinion. If all else fails contact an attorney.
References
Brown, Robert (2025) Overview what is a stroke? Mayoclinic.org Retrieved from https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/stroke/symptoms-causes/syc-20350113
By Resto NYC (2023, October 23) Can you have a stroke and it not show up on a scan? Resto NYC Retrieved from https://www.restonyc.com/can-you-have-a-stroke-and-it-not-show-up-on-a-scan/
Garrick, Lorra (2022, November) Can an MRI Miss a Stroke? MRI vs. CT Scan for Stroke Detection. Scarysymptoms.com Retrieved from https://scarysymptoms.com/2018/05/can-an-mri-miss-a-stroke-mri-vs-ct-scan-for-stroke-detection/
Vinney, Cynthia (2023, May 18) How to Spot Medical Gaslighting and What to DO About It. Verywellhealth Retrieved from https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-medical-gaslightig-6831284#:~:text=Medical%20gaslighting%20describes%20a%20behavior%20in%20which%20a,to%20happen%20to%20women%20and%20people%20of%20color