DEAR ABBY: I object to your advice to the mother who regrets how she treated her 18-year-old daughter in the past, and said she was feeling suicidal. You advised her to "pick up the telephone and tell your doctor exactly how you are feeling."
I am a family physician who gets far too many of these phone calls now. If someone wants substantial attention from a physician, an appointment should be made. Most of us have no time to give to callers, and it's not fair to promote us as a mental health hot line, particularly for chronic problems. (This woman's main problem seems to be taking responsibility for her actions; she needs to do more than emote to someone on the phone about her misery.)
It's also interesting that you suggest "medical help" can quickly fix her problem. No antidepressant relieves one of stepping up to the plate and accepting the fallout for failures in the essential challenges of life. I know we're living in an age of medicalization of behavioral issues, but beware of deceiving your readers by suggesting an easy fix!
I cannot sign this because some of my patients might think I lack compassion for them in similar circumstances, which is wrong. -- A DOCTOR IN MICHIGAN
DEAR DOCTOR: I advised the suicidal woman to talk to her doctor because I assumed her doctor would be caring enough to take the call if she said the matter was urgent and personal, and because thoughts of suicide might be something she'd rather not discuss with a medical receptionist. Also, many people don't know which psychology professional to see, and they depend on their physicians to refer them. If that was a mistake, you are the only doctor who has written to tell me so.
I'm sorry you didn't sign your name. Had you done so, your schedule would probably open up sufficiently to allow you to accept phone calls from patients in emotional pain.