I've pretty much done that with my allergies, because apparently I have to get a GP referral before anyone will let me test which ones I have. So I use over-the-counter antihistamines, a lot of off-brand Kleenex & an air purifier, and I live in hope that a bystander will have an epipen if I ever have a really bad reaction.
this post was submitted on 19 Feb 2026
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Allergies girl here, if you can get to Costco, their tissues are a gift from heaven. I have a giant box in each room of the house, lifesavers!
Wait do you mean you're avoiding getting allergy tests because they've made it hard to do so?
Go and get them. Yes you might have to talk to a GP but it'll be a short conversation and you just have to fight (i.e sit through jt and keep on making appointments) for your right to health care
Please get those allergy tests if you haven't already! I was in your shoes once
3 months...
My knee popped around Christmas time (alcohol induced injury)... thought it was getting better... went to a friend's birthday party last weekend... had alcohol... it's hurting again.
Ought to go I 'spose.
Mind you... I still have a weird patch of skin that changed colour when I had Covid, maybe they need to see that first...
Okay that's weird, I didn't know alcohol could make your knees hurt
Ah, you've probably not tried enough yet.
Is it a risk of something getting worse? GP.
Is it just a fixed reduction in HP with no serious complications? Meh
I waited a year for a shoulder injury to go. Turns out it was massive diabetes and now I've got nerve and eye damage at 41.
Be careful everyone!
Genuinely curious, how did diabetes caused your shoulder pain, was it nerve damage? When I caught the 'beetus I just could not stop peeing, I never had any pain anywhere.
https://111.wales.nhs.uk/encyclopaedia/f/article/frozenshoulder
I'm a programmer and gamer, my right shoulder spends quite a lot of time tensed up (apparently) and I had started doing weights and bench presses after a few years off. It started not very painful, despite no incidents I assumed I'd torn something so gave the weights a rest. Seems not moving it was the worst thing to do, after a few months I'd have to do a savage click to free it up and that was getting harder and not painful.
Doc sent me to physio, physio said to get bloods. Nurse called me up after bloods to come in and get meds asap. Never heard a nurse sound panicky like that.
Now my dick don't work, Right eye don't work and AI took my job 😀
Oh my I'm so sorry 😔
❤️
I've been ignoring sleep apnoea for about a decade.
In my experience if you go to the doctor they also ignore it
If it's been going on for a deacde i'd get that checked. I think it's a quick fix? They'll maybe watch you sleep for one night and then give you some stuff to help with it
Yeah, you're probably right. The last time I mentioned it they didn't seem too convinced or concerned so I've just been shrugging it off. It is on my to do list I assure you.
Waiting lists are (supposedly) at their lowest in 5 years, and it does seem like it too - strike whike the iron is hot!
This year, I promise (and thank-you).
Depends how bad it is that I can tolerate the 15 hours of automated bullshit I have to listen to before I can speak to a receptionist.
I changed GP to my uni's dedicsted one while i study there and it's been wonderful because you just fill in a form rather than do a phone call. But i still couldn't go or book appointments there for a long while because the NHS app didn't let me creste an account 😮💨
"Your call is very important to us"
Depends whether I think it'll be a massive battle to get them to even pretend to give a shit (it usually is).
Is it getting worse? If so, is it because I'm not treating it? If not, do I have anything left to try? If not, I'll go.
For me, one factor is always whether the illness/injury can be unarguably, definitely, 100%, no-doubt-about-it, proven to the receptionist who wants to stop you having an appointment.
Doesn't every GP have to offer online booking now? You should just be able to book an appt, even if it's a week or so out.
Doesn't appear so, sadly. Mine used to, but they got rid of it and replaced it with "same day appointments only - no advance booking" and "phone between 8:00am and 8:01am".
Admittedly, I've not tried to contact them for quite a few months, so maybe it's working again.
Find a new one then. They make money off you being registered but not using them
(Apologies for the rant) The only accessible ones are either not taking on new patients, or insist you're not in their catchment area.
The one nearest my house (~5 minutes walk away), which I used to be registered with before Covid, decided I wasn't in their catchment area any more and kicked me off. We tried to sort it, but they just "computer says no" at me.
There's this "find a GP" thing on the NHS website, but seemingly none of them update it, and the ones which say "taking on new patients" aren't. They've pretty much all been bought out by these "healthcare partnership group" type things, and they're pretty much all as shit as each other now - the non-shit ones have no vacancies.
It took years to get this one. It's less then an hour’s walk away, and if you can get an appointment, they're actually quite nice.
It's one of those "postcode lottery" things. I live in a fairly poor "shithole" area, so we seemingly get the absolute dregs of service for doctors and dentists. The local council were trying to do something about it, so perhaps it'll get better sooner or later.
Lol. Why are they all like thst? Part of the job description?
If it hasn't fixed itself after 5 years, I'll consider the GP as an option.
You'll just be reaching the front of the phone queue by then 👍