advice for staying calm in medical settings?
i have a hysterectomy consult coming up and while im glad to be making progress the entire process of dealing with healthcare as a genderqueer person has made me extremely distrustful and flat out scared of doctors at this point basically. i feel like i am starting to get short with people too at this point because i feel so defensive which also obviously isnt great. i went to a gynecologist for the first time at age 26 a few a months ago and i spent the entire first half of the appointment having a panic attack in which i was unable to talk because i was terrified that she would touch me. it turned out that wasnt necessary and im trying to remind myself that its not necessary for a consult either but im worried ill have the same thing happen again. i cant handle having anything put inside of me for exams so im expecting to have to go to a few of these before finding a surgeon who is ok with that so i really want to get better about this. does anyone whos dealt with similar levels of anxiety have an tips or advice for how to get through things like this & stay calm? i have already made a list of questions to ask there that i have prepared with my therapist but im worried that wont be enough to help me feel grounded in the situation. i dont really have anyone to go to the appointment with unfortunately so thats not an option either. thanks