Not long ago a middle aged gentleman came into my office. He was one of those well to do, clearly pleased with himself types. An arrogant soul who thought he knew more than he truly did, particularly about chiropractic.
Anyway, he presented to my office with a 'pain' in the upper right quadrant of his abdomen right at the junction where the ribs meet the abdomen. Had it not been for the smirk that he just couldn't hide or the fact that the pain seemed to move from one side to the other whenever I'd begin examining him, I would have thought maybe, that he had gas, or a duodenal sphincter spasm or possibly even an irritated gall bladder.
However, after the third shift in the pain location I began to realize he was suffering from PIA syndrome. It is a condition in which arrogance overrides ignorance allowing the person to become a gigantic Pain In the Ass. It is a condition I have diagnosed certain personalities with prior to my dismissing them from care.
These people come into a chiropractors office with the intent of making things difficult for the doctor by not having anything wrong with them. What seems to be the common mindset for these souls is that they each have a 'pain' somewhere they want the chiropractor to find the cause of. It is usually as far away from the spine as they can manage and if the chiropractor falls into their trap they find themselves being embarrassed by these individuals who then make a public proclamation that the chiropractor couldn't fix their problem.
Thankfully my father gave me a heads up to such personalities and was aware of the tactics used by those suffering from PIA syndrome. When they presented to my office for 'care', or whatever it is they wanted, I was able to address the problem by showing them the door. As a result I've had very few of these unfortunate souls present to my office. I have yet to discover why such people do what they do. Clearly ignorance feeds the syndrome, but what do such people hope to accomplish?
It is clear that these individuals have a desire to prove chiropractic doesn't work, to their own satisfaction. Trouble is they are often so far off the mark in terms of understanding the purpose of chiropractic that they come in complaining of a pain they've clearly had to invent in order to prove their point. What point is their to making a false complaint other than to cause trouble? Why would a person want to cause trouble for a licensed, practicing chiropractor? Clearly ignorance is one reason but another would be a profound and enduring lack of respect.
This is caused by their contemporaries who spread rumors and tell stories of how terrible the chiropractor is. Then to prove they are right they come into the chiropractic office with a fake problem to justify their ignorance by feeding their arrogance.
Sadly their is no cure for this other than knowledge and understanding. Something these souls are not interested in seeking because they believe they already know 'everything' there is to know. The best method of addressing this syndrome is by removing these toxic minded people from your practice and from your personal life. I noted that when I see these people on the street they are usually alone. Perhaps, they are seeking validation. Sadly, validating someone with PIA syndrome is a self defeating proposition.
Just smile and pray for them.
Dr. Bend
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