To ask you to explain what general anaesthesia is like...?!

[nonotquite]

I'm getting a gastric sleeve surgery on February and I am TERRIFIED of the anaesthesia!
I haven't ever been put under before and so I have absolutely no idea what to expect. I'm praying it will all go smoothly and I won't freak myself out too much, but right now it's just consuming me and I'm feeling more anxious about it by the day!!

Is anybody able to put my mind at ease..!! What is is really like? Do you really wake up and feel sick and nauseous afterwards?! (I've got a terrible phobia of sickness)

Thank you for any help in advance!!

Have had multiple GAs. The only thing I can say is that the only difference between going to sleep and GA is that there is no sense of time passing. When you go to bed at night and then wake up in the morning.. you have a sense of having been asleep a few hours. With GA it's like you close your eyes and open them the very next minute.

Last GA involved a 5 hour op. Still felt like less than a minute asleep.

@nonotquite

I'm getting a gastric sleeve surgery on February and I am TERRIFIED of the anaesthesia! I haven't ever been put under before and so I have absolutely no idea what to expect. I'm praying it will all go smoothly and I won't freak myself out too much, but right now it's just consuming me and I'm feeling more anxious about it by the day!!

Is anybody able to put my mind at ease..!! What is is really like? Do you really wake up and feel sick and nauseous afterwards?! (I've got a terrible phobia of sickness)

Thank you for any help in advance!!

I should have said I also have a phobia of sickness and I didn't feel at all sick afterwards. Don't worry you'll be fine

I've had a couple and loved it. The feeling like having gin and tonic intravenously is just gorgeous and all too brief.
Five keyholes sounds like gallbladder removal, but whatever I wish you luck.

I've had 3 and all I can describe it as is a very quick sensation of feeling very light and sleepy then suddenly you're awake.

It seems like you've only been asleep for a minute but of course you haven't, I personally like the feeling of going under.

You'll be fine OP, lots of deep breathing and once they put the oxygen mask on you and tell you to take deep breaths, you're out like a light.

Forgot to add, I've never been sick and wake up feeling a bit groggy and wobbly but that's normal. Always feel thirsty though.

I bloody love them, wish I could have a nice long one for a break!

How I wish we could just have them as an alternative to going on holiday for those that can't go on holiday for whatever reason! Genius! 😅

I’ve had 2. Both times went from feeling wide awake to nothingness.
First one (intravenous) I was out for about an hour and (sorry!) I did feel very lightheaded and slightly queezy afterwards. But they were very quick to administer something to get rid of that feeling: also, it was more like feeling sick but absolutely no urge to actually be sick. I also needed oxygen for a good while afterwards, hence feeling so rubbish.
The second one (gas) I felt less calm going under but was just as quick, felt just groggy waking up.

Tell the anaesthetist how you’re feeling beforehand.

It's amaaaaazing I bloody love going under GA

I was terrified too as last GA I had was when I was a child and I didn't remember it. One minute you are chatting to the staff, and then you are out, and next thing I remember was being woken up in recovery by a nurse. Just remember being hungry and thirsty as had no breakfast obviously, so got a cuppa and a sandwich and was fine. It was day surgery so was home a couple of hours later.
Was told not to drive for 24/48 hours, that was worse!

@Aardvarkitsabloodyaardvark

It's ok Op. I had a countdown from 10, got to five and out of it. I talked a lot of nonsense when I was waking up 🤣

I only get to seven! I've had 8 operations for various things, and never had any problems. Some people are dozy for a day or so until the anaesthetic gets out of their systems, but I'm usually awake quite quickly. (One time I woke up as they were wheeling me into recovery!)

I had GA as a teenager and again fairly recently. Both times it was lovely as described so eloquently by PPs.

The first time I was sick a couple of hours later but I had not awakened with any queasiness and had been given morphine. About ten years ago I was given codeine in the absence of GA and also got sick. I learnt then that taking opioids by mouth causes nausea in a significant minority.

I agree with PPs to raise your concerns about nausea with the anaesthetist ahead of time - concerning both the GA and pain relief. I am sure they will have a solution for you. Best wishes!

I had a gastric sleeve a month ago now. They popped a Cannula into my hand and told me they were injecting the anaesthetist. I didn't feel anything and thought it wasn't working. Then the air vent on the ceiling started to vibrate..... And I woke up an hour later! No nausea, usual and expected pain from the 6 incisions, as well as gas pain (I'm saying this not to frighten you, to make you aware of what to expect). I asked for pain relief, had 3 small ish doses of morphine and told the lovely nurse I loved him. Yep. And I meant it.

I slept on and off for the rest of the day, had regular pain relief and very small sips of water.
My advice is as follows - get up and mobile as soon as you possibly can, it will help with gas pains. Take pain relief regularly, it will prevent pain from becoming overwhelming. Remember your lansoprazole (or similar) as this will protect your new pouch. Get some broth / similar in the house, you'll bloody love it once you're allowed think / watery soup. Keep some of the yogurt pots you're getting through on the LRD - they're perfect for freezing small portions of soup when you're on stage 2. Freeze them and pop them into a sandwich bag, make a note on the outside and you have different flavours of soup so you're not eating the same soup for 5 days straight. The injections you'll be sent home with burn as they're injected. If you can get someone else to do them, get them to inject in the back of your arm (I got DH to inject into my bingo wing) and SQUEEZE the skin as hard as you can take, then inject slowly - I detest these injections but this made them bearable.
Take photos - lots of them. You can always delete them but you'll likely never see your body how it currently is, again. You'll be able to look back and see changes, even if you can't see them in the mirror.

Feel free to drop me a PM if you have any questions though, good luck!!!!!

I had a general back in 2012 for eye surgery. For me, the process of "falling asleep" was honestly like switching off a light. One second I was fully aware, then next, I was gone. I have zero recollection of drifting off, or feeling woozy.

Waking up, was like being woken up from the deepest sleep you've ever had. I gradually became aware of someone shaking my shoulder and calling my name, and it was like crawling out of the deepest, darkest hole to be able to respond. It wasn't unpleasant per-se, but I was very aware of how deep I'd been under.
But once I was awake, I did wake up fully very quickly, and within about 15 mins or so, I was sitting up having a drink.

I didn't get any sickness until that night (my surgery was early morning). I wasn't actually sick, but did feel a bit queasy and delicate. It wasn't too bad though, and passed pretty quickly. My understanding is that they give you anti-nausea medication when they put you to sleep, so you won't feel sick immediately upon waking. But talking to others, it seems that medication works better for some people than others.

I had 2 long naps the afternoon the same day as surgery, then again the following afternoon, then I was completely back to normal.

For me, the process of "falling asleep" was honestly like switching off a light. One second I was fully aware, then next, I was gone. I have zero recollection of drifting off, or feeling woozy.

It’s such a funny feeling isn’t it? I think the best is when it’s injected into the cannula. I thought I was having a nice chat with my anaesthetist and the next I was waking up from black nothing thinking ‘oy! I was talking, you cut me off!’. The mask version isn’t quite so immediately lights out. The seconds you’re breathing it and counting at least make you know what’s coming but even so it’s pretty fast.

And don’t get me started on the joy of propofol sedation. I’m feeling quite nostalgic 😂

Propofol always feels to me like little sparks running up my vein.

Underwent GA in August.
Going under us fine, coming round was ok too.
I suffered horrendous sickness for around 4 days post op. BUT the hospital were fantastic, totally on top of the situation and tried various sickness meds.
Yes, I had a tube from stomach, through my nose, to a bike collection bag but again - it was all handled expertly.
Best sickness med was Scopoderm.
You'll be fine. Despite my recent op I would have no qualms about GA again.
Good luck

I mean bile collection

Had it twice. First time I was in septic shock so it’s a bit of a blur but I remember having a really nice dream about being on a deserted island and when I woke up I couldn’t stop laughing, I was completely delirious. DH has a photo of me with a sick bowl on my head laughing, I was so sick and weak having lost 3 pints of blood but I couldn’t stop laughing…

Second time I was alert so remember it better. You go under very quickly, within 2-3 seconds. I don’t remember dreaming that time and I woke up crying, I couldn’t stop for ages. Only physical side effects I had both times was a sore throat from the tube.

Love a GA! It’s like you’ve slept for a week!

When they put it in it feels like your arm is in a cold ice bucket (just the coldness) which goes up your arm and they say to count down from 10. By 8 you’re gone. Then I’ve always woken up feeling amazing!
I might have had a bitter taste in my mouth at the same time as the cold arm feeling, but nothing bad.

Its the best! I love GA!!

I love the feeling of going and you just can’t fight it. I have asked them in the past to give me more and just let me be for hours.

They refused ☹️

I love that drifting off to sleep feeling from GAs. Last time I was annoyed the nurse seemed to be making me talk more than normal as I wanted to enjoy the feeling of going to sleep and she was interrupting me. 😂

I've had quite a few and wouldn't be worried about another. It's actually quite a nice feeling.

I had it three years ago after a miscarriage, as I needed surgery to end the pregnancy.

You feel yourself drift off slowly. For me, I felt like I was in a grey room. You then wake up, as though it's been only moments.

Late to the thread but sharing anyway. I had GA about 5 years ago. I was terrified, physically shaking. The anaesthetist was lovely and asked me what my favourite drink was at the pub. When I told her she laughed and she said great, here's a double on the house. A few seconds later I felt nice and sleepy but not out. It was a nice dreamy place and nerves gone. Then about 5 seconds later I just went to sleep.

Woke up very quickly in recovery, not disorientated at all.

I’ve had two. As a child I had my appendix out and was given the injection. I don’t remember being asked to count, but I remember drifting off and I swear to this day I heard the dr say “ok, I’ve got these scissors, I’m just going to cut you open now. 😂. And waiting for it to happen and then waking up.

I was really quite sick afterwards and had to be given anti sickness.

My most recent one was for heart surgery 2.5 years ago. The worst bit about it was that I had to have probes fitted and chest pads etc for if I arrested. Having had a cardiac arrest two weeks previous the putting on of the chest pads brought back some not pleasant memories, but she then put in some sedation before doing the actual anaesthetic, and then I woke up 3.5 hours later with my mum saying how it had gone etc. I’d had something called a mitraclip inserted so it wasn’t open heart but through the groin, but was far more involved than e.g. an aortic valve replacement which is done under mild sedation.

Thing is I knew going in there was a chance I wouldn’t be coming back. But as you’re drifting off to sleep you don’t think of such things.

In my case both anaesthesia and sedation knock me out for about 12 hours, but this isn’t everyone’s experience.

IMO anaesthetists are under valued. I personally think they’re like Gods. Because they have to look after so many things and they are exceptionally skilled and hold a lot of a patient’s life in their hands. And where other dr’s have failed to find my veins for cannulas, and during childbirth the epidural space, the anaesthetist has often stepped in and just done it.

I love them.