What are your thoughts and feelings about the intersection of personal privacy and medical treatment?

Everyone is human. I don’t trust doctors any more than I trust lawyers, mechanics, strangers, etc etc etc. American society places doctors on an undeserved pedestal. That said, obviously if you need treatment and that treatment requires flashing a doc I’m sure you’ll oblige. You need to be informed about the problem and what needs to be done to rectify it and make an educated decision on your own treatment rather than just blindly following a doc. When I walk into a hospital, I already have an educated theory on what is wrong and usually don’t even need it confirmed (that’s how certain I am), just need the treatment. It’s easier to be prepared obviously when it isn’t a dire emergency. In that case, you probably just have to trust that most people are decent.

No. Infact I’m the classic comedian. I handle stress with humor.
Last time I had my yearly pap smear I had my doctor and nurse falling over with laughter.
My doctor said ” I’m sorry, hang in there, I can’t find your cervix.” I said ” Well keep looking it was there last time.” haha

I am way past the point where appearing naked would bother me. I have had male and female doctors and PA’s. Other that wanting to see some of the PA’s naked, my semi-clothed condition was medically necessary and non-threatening.

I got over the naked problem in my first days in the military.30 guys in a dorm and 10 shower heads means there is a little naked wait time. Contrary to what the Marines think, sailors do not share showers with eachother.

No. I actually find it rather liberating. It’s nice to be able to be that intimate with someone, and know that if they talk about you behind your back, they will get in a ton of legal trouble.

I do, sometimes, find having to disclose certain information (usually, various mental health issues or relationship statuses) to doctors to be uncomfortable, but I usually make a point to not see any doctor I don’t feel totally comfortable and trusting of more than once.

Oh jeez, there is nothing “personal” when examining body parts as a physician.
Anymore than there is something sexual when changing a babies diaper.
It’s a clinical setting. I’m a horse person and I don’t get excited when I’ve cleaned the sheath of a horses penis. Sure, it’s OBVIOUS horses have a huge penis but, it’s clinical when it comes to cleaning it. lol

It is a loss of privacy. You are exchanging your privacy for medical information.

The doctors do not regard the patients personally. They do cover as much of you as possible.

I doubt you would get a medical staff who would perform the colonoscopy naked.

You just have to gird yourself mentally, shielding yourself from the physical invasion.

I can also guarantee that the crew doing the colonoscopy are not getting any gratification from the procedure. It is likely that yours in not the first of the day and they are probably thinking about sore feet and making sure they do no harm to you. I’ve had it done twice the worst part is the “cleansing” the night before.

@Ron_C – I agree – the cleansing the night before was the worst part for me too. I work at a hospital, so the person who assisted the dr with my procedure is someone I see everyday at work. She assists in so many of them she probably doesn’t remember mine. I was just glad to hear the surgeon say when I was in recovery “congratulations, you’re on the 10 year plan.”

A couple of months ago I had a rash on my scrotum and the dermatologist was looking at it. She left, and came back with her attending and another intern, and they were both women, and there I was showing off my stuff to three women who were avidly examining it.

I’ve been naked in front of a dozen people at a time at nude hot springs in California. In theory, I don’t believe in modesty as far as bodies are concerned. It’s just an idea and there is no particular significance to it except what I make up. So I can be being examined and belittled by women, or I can be examined and admired by women. It’s all in my head. The doctors are going to be professional. They want to help me.

I have no modesty in a doctor’s office. I trust their medical frame of mind. I believe in HIPPA. I believe they will keep my confidences. I believe their minds are on their jobs and nothing else. Besides which, it would be a joke to think a group of women would admire my genitalia. They are just ordinary genitalia. Nothing to write home about.

I don’t feel like it is a loss of privacy. Especially as I got older it is very much a non issue to show my body to a doctor. In fact, I have been unhappy that sometimes doctors have not spent enough time looking when I have had problems. Long story.

I have had two incidents, over 20 years apart, where I believed the doctor to be looking at me, or trying to touch me inappropriately. Even that did not feel like a privacy issue, it was more a molestation or trying to type of an issue.

It’s not something that bothers me. If my body needs to be checked out, then so be it.

I hate having to remove my clothes at the doctor. I hate anything invasive, I mean, why wouldn’t I. A doc came in the room to do a pap smear once with about 6 medical students. I promptly told them to get the hell out of there. Then I looked at him and said, “Yeah, I mind.”

Childbirth aside (you lose all sense of modesty then), I’ve never been fully comfortable with the need to get naked in front of medical professionals. I just grin and bear it, because I must. I don’t really think of it as a loss of privacy, but I feel… vulnerable, somehow. It’s worse when you know your provider personally, too. I became friendly with my GP, outside of a medical setting, and, well, let’s just say, he will never be giving me a pap smear again.

I really dislike disrobing for a doctor. I find it hammers way too much into my personal space. When I must do this, I mentally shut down. Almost like I’m not there emotionally (as much as possible any ways). I understand it is necessary, which is why I go through it when need be. I know I can trust most of them but that is not the issue. I am very uncomfortable with showing my body to some one other than my partner (even with her, I’m sometimes shy about it). I know exactly where it comes from. I was made to feel uncomfortable with my body as a child. I was sexually abused as child as well. Plus, I was born naturally shy. I understand it well but that does not help my anxiety about showing a doctor my body.

Although I dislike the exams themselves I realized I don’t really mind about the disrobing part. I have seen the same Dr. and his nurse for 20 years. At my last physical I noticed the nurse kept trying to cover me as soon as the Dr finished with an area, but I didn’t care if I was exposed – it was just the 3 of us in the room and this was the 20th time we had done this. When I go for my mammogram I no longer bother with the gown – wear a gown to cover my back when I have to have my boobs out? Why bother?

I wonder if the people who mind disrobing in front of doctors mind disrobing in general? Lights need to be off for sex, uncomfortable being naked around same sex friends? Uncomfortable having a tailor measure you? Worried about being clothed in a dressing room when a salesperson in a department store helps you?

@JLeslie Yes to all of your questions.

@Plucky That makes sense to me. I am not uncomfortable period.

@JLeslie I don’t mind disrobing under certain conditions, like at a natrualist resort where lots of people are nude. I have never turned off the lights during sex – I guess it might be fun sometime, but it’s nice to see what goes where. I would never allow a tailor to measure me naked, and I really dislike it when salespeople assume I don’t mind them walking in on me in my underwear. Hell, I’m even embarrassed to change around my mom and my gay brother. I think I’m only comfortable with being nude in company when other people around me are also nude.

@wildpotato With your response I realize I worded one thing a little poorly, I have never seen a tailor measure someone nude, but their measure can be uncomfortable for some people anyway. An inseam measure, breasts, etc.

I feel that disrobing around any doctor counts as a loss of privacy. It is easier for me to handle if there is a reason for it which the doctor makes known to me (or if I am presenting complaints involved with the respective body part). But I’ve been asked to disrobe and wear a paper towel (oh, I guess they call them ‘robes’) when I was just going in for a regular check up/first time intake, and that felt pretty invasive. I have a history of body shaming and also childhood abuse, so I am sure this factors in for me.

Oh also, the medical industry has a history of being unnecessarily invasive and judgmental when it comes to trans people’s bodies, so, yeah. If some doctor, whom I am visiting for a completely different condition, wants me to disrobe so they can satisfy their curiosity as to what my genitals look like, “how trans” I am or “how far” I’ve gone, etc., I am going to get my hackles up. One of my exes had to completely disrobe in front of a bunch of medical students and be laughed at, just so she could get a prescription for hormones. In an endocrinologist’s office.

^Luckily not all doctors are like that, but some are and I’m skeered of them.