5 Questions to Discuss With a Clinician When You Don't Feel Like Yourself

Date the change as specifically as you can, and describe its pattern: every day or some days, a particular time of day, steady or getting better or worse over weeks. A short written log kept for a week or two before a visit is easier to share accurately than memory.

Write down anything that started, stopped, or changed near the time you first noticed the difference, even if it seems unrelated.

• —Sleep — how long, how often you wake, and how rested you feel.
• —Eating, physical activity, and routine.
• —Stress at work or at home.
• —Any new, stopped, or changed medication, prescribed or not.
• —A recent illness.

Some situations should not wait for a routine appointment. MedlinePlus, the National Library of Medicine's consumer health resource, advises contacting a health care provider right away for any of the following:

• —Confusion or dizziness.
• —Blurred vision.
• —Little or no urine output.
• —Recent swelling and weight gain.
• —Thoughts of harming yourself or of suicide.

It also advises making an appointment for unexplained weakness or fatigue, especially with a fever, unintentional weight loss, or regular sweats. If you think you are having a medical emergency, call 911 or your local emergency number. If you are thinking about harming yourself, you can call or text 988, the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.

A clinician can only work with what they are told, and a provider you see through a telehealth service may not have your complete medical records. Bring:

• —Every medication you take, including non-prescription products and supplements, with doses.
• —Allergies.
• —Your medical history and any current diagnoses.
• —Recent lab or test results, with their dates.
• —Your notes from questions 1 and 2.

If a prescription becomes part of the conversation, these questions are worth asking directly:

• —Have other possible causes been considered, and is any testing needed first?
• —Is this medication FDA-approved, or is it compounded? Compounded medications are not FDA-approved, and FDA does not verify their safety, effectiveness, or quality before they are marketed.
• —How could it interact with my current medications or conditions?
• —What side effects should I report, and to whom?
• —Who is the prescriber, which pharmacy dispenses it, and how do I reach each of them?
• —What follow-up is expected, and what happens if it turns out not to be appropriate for me?

A checklist cannot diagnose you.

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