Six months ago I saw a new internist for a physical. As is typical, the assistant brought me into a room, then immediately and politely instructed me to get on the scale. Now, I had heavy shoes on, roughly 3 pounds each, heavy jeans and layered tops. I asked if she would deduct a certain amount for clothes and she said no as it really didn’t matter. Later, after the fact, I thought about this. Really? Doesn’t matter? Well, then why even enter a number on the chart? And, if the number entered is incorrect then, conceivably, couldn’t and shouldn’t that influence a future prescription dosage? On further reflection of my medical history, it’s been almost non-existent that a physician acknowledged my petiteness and dispensed dosages accordingly. Usually, the focus has been on “industry standards.” However, rarely does one size fits all for anything work for me.

Last week I had my yearly gyn appointment. Not surprising, I experienced the same, initial protocol with another medical assistant. However, this time, I requested that she let me remove my clothes and weigh me only with the robe on. With her affirmative response, mission accomplished.