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Mother's Day Gift: Maternal Instinct
Buy those flowers yet?Better hurry, time is running out.
Having responded to thousands of member inquiries at our WebMD Vision & Eye Disorder message board, I can attest to the accuracy of the claim that mothers perform as a family's Chief Medical Officer. They handle the children's eye appointments, help their spouse pick a stylish pair of bifocals, and often assist the grandparents with their health concerns.
Besides offering the unmatched affection and thoughtful care mothers bring something else to the table: maternal instinct.
Nobody could count the number of times WebMD receives messages from a worried mother about a family member. Although the initial health care provider offered reassurance, the mother suspecs that a family member's symptoms have not yet been accurately diagnosed. So these persistent, loving mothers logon to WebMD and ask what should be done.
It's not that these worried mothers distrust clinicians, it's just that mom is most familiar with her spouse's habits and behaviors.
It's not that anxious moms know more than the school nurse, it's just that the mother has been with the child since birth and can tell when something is abnormal.
In a recent interview Dr. Jerome Goopman, author of the best seller How Doctors Think, recalled how his nonphysician wife saved their child's life. A confident ER physician said their infant son's intestinal problems were caused by a stomach virus - it would clear in days. Mrs. Goopman didn't buy it because the baby's diaper smelled different than usual. The mother pushed, pushed hard. Emergency surgery relieved the baby's potentially fatal bowel obstruction.
By the way, more than one insistent mother has helped me be a better doctor, too!
So, as you gather the gifts, cards and bouquets for another Mother's Day, cherish all that your mom has already given you - including that uncanny knack that tells her when something is wrong.
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