As an advocate, he or she can listen, take notes, ask questions, monitor your medications, and provide support. Give all the facts. When you withhold medical information, you handicap your doctor and jeopardize your own health. The patient whose leg had to be amputated failed to tell his podiatrist that he had a hereditary circulation disorder. The doctor never asked.
Incomplete information can lead to all sorts of accidents, including fatal drug interactions.
Even details that may seem trivial should be mentioned to your doctor. Trust your instincts. A client of mine went to her HMO physician complaining of bowel problems. When blood was detected in her stool, she told the doctor she feared she had colon cancer. The HMO didn't bother to order a simple diagnostic test.