What does it feel like?

[TheEponine]

Ok, I'm sorry if this is a dumb question but I'm pretty curious what it feels like to be put to sleep right before a surgery. Could anyone answer that? Sorry about the dumb question

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[sanford_w/o_son]

they gased me up first with nitrous, and so my anxiety was completely relieved about the procedure. then the guy told me to count back from ten. i thought for sure i would make it all the way down to 1, but somewhere around 5 i just completely blacked out. as if a second later, i woke up with a context different enough to know it was over. can't explain it any better than that.

 

[Fermata]

LOL.

It is funny, isn't it?

You think you can make it to the count of one but you never do.

 

[stoleyerscrubz]

I've been operated on 4 times and you will go under in less than 10 seconds. you do not feel the drug kicking or feel a drowsiness coming on. You blink and you find yourself in the OR or the recovery room. That freaks me out.

The talks I've had with the anesthesia team befre going under have always been the most positive experiences i've had in a hospital even before I knew what anesthesia was.

 

[St. James]

i've heard a handful of people in the media saying that they were awake/aware during surgery but paralyzed and unable to tell the surgeon that they can hear and feel everything.

if this happens, is it something about that individual that makes them less responsive to the drugs, or is it some mistake made in the OR?

 

[Febrifuge]

Some procedures involve two different types of drugs; a paralytic (so the team can secure and protect the airway) and an anaesthetic and/or amnesiac agent. If you somehow got the first but not the second, you would have a REALLY bad day.

 

[Jamaican MD]

I had surgery in March. It was my first one, so I was up the night before. By the time they wheeled me into the OR (after 1 demerol I believe and lactated ringers) I was asleep. I literally fell asleep after they moved me from the stretcher onto the table. When I woke up, I was in the PACU looking at the clock in disbelief that 1.5 hours had passed already.

I too was worried about being awake during surgery because when I had my wisdom teeth taken out in 2001, I was put to sleep. But I woke up mid surgery, and was awake enough to feel the pain, and describe the procedure, but not awake enough to move or scream. That was horrible!

 

[!dr_nick!]

The anesthetist told me id feel i slight burning sensation at the IV site. When I did, I sat up and grabbed my arm (not THAT painful, just startled me). I then blacked out. It must have been funny seeing me sit up, grab my arm, and then fall straight back. LOL. It felt like I was in an incredibly deep, dreamless sleep. For ten minutes.
Anesthesia typically wipes me out for the next 24-36 hours as well after it has stopped being administered. Maybe plan on sleeping a lot afterwards.

 

[jpro]

I've had two operations. The second time I tried to fight the anesthesia as long as I could so I could remember it. I fought like hell to remain couscous for the last few moments. The only things I can remember is that everything began to blend together. What I mean is that things began to look like they were all the same color and the same distance away. This is very hard to explain. At the same time my hearing faded at about the same rate. It becomes extremely hard to move, like you are being restrained with bungycords. This all happens very quickly (probably a few seconds). Next thing you know your awake. I didn?t really pay attention to waking up though. I think that is a little too difficult.

 

[jwk]

i've heard a handful of people in the media saying that they were awake/aware during surgery but paralyzed and unable to tell the surgeon that they can hear and feel everything.

if this happens, is it something about that individual that makes them less responsive to the drugs, or is it some mistake made in the OR?

Awareness in anesthesia is far more of a rare event than recent media articles and programs would have you believe. Those in the anesthesia community are fully aware of the raging debate about this topic and how commonly or rarely awareness occurs.

Much of the debate is over the marketing practices and questionable research offered by companies selling "awareness" monitors. I'm sure there are other threads about this topic, so I don't want to get much deeper than that and rehash old material.

 

[hndrx1a]

I was knocked-out w/nitrous, when I had my impacted wisdom teeth removed...sensation of not being able to breathe midway through my "count" was terrible.It did seem as if surgery only lasted couple of seconds; curiously enough, I awoke to a nurse fondling my genitalia, which all in all, made it a pleasant experience.

 

[TheEponine]

i've heard a handful of people in the media saying that they were awake/aware during surgery but paralyzed and unable to tell the surgeon that they can hear and feel everything.

if this happens, is it something about that individual that makes them less responsive to the drugs, or is it some mistake made in the OR?

that's what totally freaks me out, I'm so afraid of that. And then my mom keeps telling me that when I wake up I'm going to be in the most pain I'll ever feel in my life. Is that true?

 

[lemonlite]

not really,

you might be thirsty. Also, it's fun waking up all !@#& faced, and everyone else behaving like it's totally normal. Then, usually, they give you some more painkillers, which are always great. So, don't worry about it.

 

[stoleyerscrubz]

I was put under 4 times and the only time I felt bad post surgery was when I asked the anesthesia team to "give me the good stuff". I had to be awake during that surgery. Time went by so fast that I remember getting the drug and then realizing I was laughing about a conversation I was having with my doctor about personal training. I stopped talking and was embarassed about what I may have said in all of this time I was under. They timed it pretty good because the operation was over 10 minutes later. I felt like garbage after that though. perhaps similar to withdrawl symptoms.

Don't make suggestion to the anesthesia team

 

[sanford_w/o_son]

ah percocet. "simpsons" is coming on in a half-hour, but that means i first have to sit through the local news or change the channel? nah, i think i'll just fall out of consciousness for a half-hour and come back when the simpsons are about to sit on the couch. ah percocet . . .

 

[TheEponine]

So, how do they really know how long you're going to be in surgery and how do they time it correctly with the medicine (I really don't know how to put this into words but hope you get the idea) it's like how do they know you won't wake up in the middle of surgery

 

[!dr_nick!]

I was knocked-out w/nitrous, when I had my impacted wisdom teeth removed...sensation of not being able to breathe midway through my "count" was terrible.It did seem as if surgery only lasted couple of seconds; curiously enough, I awoke to a nurse fondling my genitalia, which all in all, made it a pleasant experience.

Id like to go that dentist's office!!!
BTW any reason she was fondling you? Are you just that irresistible?

 

[jwk]

So, how do they really know how long you're going to be in surgery and how do they time it correctly with the medicine (I really don't know how to put this into words but hope you get the idea) it's like how do they know you won't wake up in the middle of surgery

You must be under the impression that someone gives you something in your IV to put you to sleep and then they leave and hope they gave you enough. It doesn't work like that!

An anesthesia provider is there the entire time. A combination of anesthetic gases and IV drugs are used to keep you asleep. When the surgery is over, the gases are turned off, the IV medications reversed if needed, and you wake up. It doesn't matter if the surgery is 5 minutes or 30 hours - the basic techniques are the same. You go to sleep, they do the surgery, you wake up when it's done.

 

[TheEponine]

my personal trainer suddenly started talking about this subject today because she has to have surgery this summer (she's had like 5 surgeries to 2 years) and she was like "I love being put down, it's awesome", lol. She says it's the best feeling in the world

 

[jwk]

I was knocked-out w/nitrous, when I had my impacted wisdom teeth removed...sensation of not being able to breathe midway through my "count" was terrible.It did seem as if surgery only lasted couple of seconds; curiously enough, I awoke to a nurse fondling my genitalia, which all in all, made it a pleasant experience.

I've got real doubts this actually happened - wishful thinking or dreaming on your part perhaps?

 

[hndrx1a]

Dr.Nick...It was "Hollywood Upstairs Dental School"