Upcoming surgery scared

[coconutty101]

Hello,
I've got surgery scheduled for 8th Jan to have my gall bladder Removed, I have lots of little stones, altho not had an attack since beginning of November!

I only had the letter last week to give me 8th Jan, originally it was 5th Feb.

I've never been in hospital (apart from giving birth to DS). I've never had an operation, absolutely bricking it!

Any tips for me to remain calm, and get through it.?
I realise I'm being totally irrational, it needs to be done!

You'll be fine. Are you having keyhole surgery? Do you have a date for your pre-op check? Ask about being given a pre-med to help you calm down before the anaesthetic, and maybe a mild sleeping pill for the night before.

Make sure you pack comfy pyjamas, lots of moisturiser, lip balm, some nice squash to add to the water you'll be allowed to sip at after the operation, a decent pair of slippers to get to and from the toilet, maybe some audio books and music to listen to at night - hospitals can be noisy. If it's keyhole surgery you won't be in long. Even if it's not keyhole, you will be home before you know it, with district nurse care.

It’s okay I promise! Most trusts have site wide WiFi now but sometimes streaming is blocked so always worth downloading a series before hand if you can. Books are good but wards can be busy so sudoku, crosswords, colouring work better for me personally as I can weave in and out. A good pair of headphones is handy, the tv systems sometimes offer free channels before 12pm so you can zone out with some mindless this morning etc, and most radio always free.

I always take snacks in case meals are meagre but to be fair my hospital has m&s, Starbucks, two costas, a Burger King etc so I tend to live on sushi, salad and coffee but no change there 😅

It can be daunting but better than living with gallstones and they always look to discharge you as soon as safe. Good luck, and take care, I wish you all the best. 😊

I had mine out In 2014. I was mostly scared of the general anaesthetic so I did lots of research first and know how safe it is. It’s normal to be nervous but the likelihood of complication is so small it’s not worth thinking about.
I was taken down at 3pm and was awake by 4pm in recovery. Super easy. You’ll be just fine doll.

Since then I’ve had another 2 general anaesthetics and learnt to enjoy being put to sleep! It’s actually rather nice. Little head swim and then nothing else until you’re waking up. Amazing stuff!

I’ve been inpatient three times this year sorry that was a waffle, but happy to answer specific questions! Definitely pack slippers, anything that will make you feel more comfortable (I always take a big scarf I can wrap myself in, fleece lined leggings and baggy shirts, my slippers, a sleep mask to block out light, earplugs really handy too).

I had my gall bladder out by keyhole in April. It was fine, I stayed one night simply because I didn’t have another adult at home but otherwise I would have been a day case.

I felt dreadful for the first few days (not in a lot of pain just felt really tired) then suddenly I felt sooo much better. I didn’t realise how unwell I’d been before the op and I really enjoyed eating the foods I couldn’t before!

You’ll be fine, and honestly I never think about it now it’s just done and dusted. Way better than coping with the gall stones which made me really ill and I was in for a week with a nasty bout of cholecystitis prior to the op. Just put your trust in the nurses and take loads of stuff to do as hospital is really boring. Good luck

My only experience of hospital and surgery (so far) was an emergency C section. As I didn't know about it I didn't worry beforehand and at the time I remember how relaxed I was after the pre med, I felt like I'm having an op so what?

Thank you for your replies.
Yes it's Keyhole as far as I'm aware, I'll be in a private hospital, but Nhs patient!
I've got my pre op a few days before, I'm a nurse so that probably makes it worse!
Bad patient 😂