So how does everyone else remain calm in the operating room?

I am the same way .. the last surgery I had was the worst .. the drs or I didn’t know if I was going to wake up and they were clear about the seriousness, I was hemorrhaging ( from a pregnancy I didn’t know was there ) . I had no idea if I would live or if I would have my lady parts when I woke up . I had my beautiful baby girl a year later and she is 12 now :)
 
Your doctor can prescribe an anti-anxiety med to take the morning of surgery, or you can ask them to push something through your IV once in.

I've had 3 major surgeries (2 spine and a hysterectomy) and several minor procedures (2 colonoscopies and an endoscopy). Frankly, I look forward to being put under. It's the best sleep. Uninterrupted...total. I'm told I'm a cranky waker though. Like trying to wake a moody teenager LOL. I have had issues with the sedation though...

On my first surgery (spine) they brought me in to pre-op and had a terrible time finding my vein. I was dehydrated from not being allowed food or drink for 12 hours. Once I was hooked up to everything, I sat and waited FOR FOUR HOURS. Not pain management meds allowed. No nerve block. I was in excruciating pain (the reason surgery was needed). It was utter misery. And they didn't give me anything for anxiety until they started wheeling me down the hall towards the OR. gee...thanks.

On my seconds spine surgery (four years later, a repeat of the first) I told them that I was a hard stick for the IV. The nurse was struggling bad...digging around in my hand. I am not squeemish and I have a high tolerance for pain but this was rough. I almost passed out and my skin was white as a sheet. Even Dh nearly fainted sitting there watching! She finally got it in and mumbled about how it wasn't great and the anesthesiologist would probably want to fix it. Then she ran the saline in, full bore...through my shriveled dehydrated veins. My arm immediately swelled to 3x normal and hurt so bad I wanted to chop it off. We yelled for the nurse who came dithering over and slowed the drip down which helped a little. When I was wheeled into the OR, the anesthesiologist ran Heperin through the IV to clear it out before running the sedative and I yelled that it burned. She was like "what??" And she looked down at the IV and immediately got super angry at how it was left in my arm like that. the nurse NEVER told the anesthisiologist that the line was not in good. She apologized profusely and removed the line and told me if they couldn't get a new line in my other hand they would have to do a central line. I had the OR nurse standing at my head stroking my hair and telling me to breath while the anesthesiologist dug for a new vein. It was like i was giving birth LOL! Everyone yelling at me to breathe!

They did get a new line in and pumped in the good drugs. As I was falling asleep I told the OR crew to have fun, take lots of pics and enjoy having me around (and fix my back)!
 
Frankly, I was looking forward to the peaceful nap....then I went home and spent another several hours sleeping off the anesthesia. :cloud9:
 
Exactly. My wife (nurse anesthetist) gives it to patients that are either nervous, if they want, or obnoxious patients she can't stand.

At my wife's hospital they tell patients they can drink clear liquids until 3 hours prior to most surgeries to help prevent dehydration.
 


You couldn't GET me back there! When I last went in for a series of procedures, they mixed up the paralytic and the sedative. I was paralysed but unable to communicate that I was in distress. For about a minute. That's a long time to be in such a state. Thanks to that, listening to the machines beeping away and watching doctors creep over me, that I now have acute PTSD and can't even sit on a dentist's chair.
 
Exactly. My wife (nurse anesthetist) gives it to patients that are either nervous, if they want, or obnoxious patients she can't stand.

At my wife's hospital they tell patients they can drink clear liquids until 3 hours prior to most surgeries to help prevent dehydration.

Obnoxious patients she can’t stand?
Hope this was a joke
Because it’s her Job....Eek!
 
I rather not have medications that make me tired or loopy as that contributes to the lack of being in control and makes me wanna freak out more.
I've definitely come a long way since I was a child though. I had surgery 10 years ago done by the same doctor that had done the same surgery on me 10 years prior to that and when he came into preop he was shocked to see how chill I was since the first time he did the surgery I was crying for my mom. What he didn't know is I felt like crying for my mom as an adult but I was trying hard to not let it show. I just want to actually feel calm instead of pretending ya know?
 


I have typically been given an IV ahead as I tend to dehydrate rather quickly. If that did not happen, it was administered in the OR (ie, my pressure sky rocketed last surgery) so meds given.
The warm wrap... (like bubble wrap) warms and relaxes you as well.
Perhaps verbalizing your concerns ahead of your procedure will give you confidence that all will go well and they will offer you meds etc to help you.
My hospitalizations/procedures have been good experiences and I feel Very lucky to have “Centers of Excellence” hospitalization coverage.
Hope your surgery is Uneventful and your recovery is Quick!
 
I’ve had a lot of surgeries and painful procedures in my adult life. Unfortunately there’s more to come. I need a knee replacement, maybe even both.

Beforehand I pray incessantly and once I get that fabulous shot prior to anesthesia, I mellow out and tend to get silly and say outrageous things.

Waking up from anesthesia is worse for me. I get very nauseous and dizzy. Following gall bladder surgery that was supposed to be short stay, I couldn’t wake up properly and had to be admitted. Every time they tried to get me up and out if bed, I got lightheaded and passed out. This lasted a week. They now put anti-nausea meds in my IV during my surgery.

For your issues, I recommend praying or meditating. It’s mind over matter.
 
As others have said, you can ask for something to take to help relax you the morning of your surgery. You will obviously need to be with someone else who is driving, etc. They should also wrap your arms when you get there.

What I haven't seen anyone here mention, is to ask to see if the hospital you're going to offers Reiki before procedures. Most of the time it relaxes people so much, they fall asleep. Not every place offers it, but it's great for those who do. You can also practice some meditation on your own before you get there so you can zone out and go to another place in your mind. (I learned to do it for days that I got chemo.)
 
OP: I agree with Summer 2018. It really is mind over matter... so perhaps trying a little “mind “ game would help... assuming ur a Disney lover, start at letter A and think of a food/ride/name associated with Disney and keep ur brain busy.. you’d be surprised how ur body will relax as you’re focused elsewhere!
Now don’t blame me if u try and start now and get fixated on it, lol!
 
I’ve had 3 emergency surgeries my whole life. 2 emergency c sections and a appendectomy. I know I was weirdly calm for my first c section but I did get sick in the middle of it. They just cleaned me up and continued. But i told the anesthesiologist what happened the first time before my second c section so they could give me extra of whatever doesn’t make you sick lol
 
I just had surgery two weeks ago. I hate to think that $$ matters, but this one was at a ortho unit owned by the ortho doctors who owned it, and it was almost like a concierge experience. DH is my advocate, since I have PTSD and anxiety due to my terrible surgery experience two years ago (different hospital obviously).

I was asked MANY questions ahead of time by my doctor, the preoperative staff, and two anesthesiologists, all of whom took my concerns and mental issues seriously. What really gave me confidence was that they all said, "We want you to have a good experience. At ANY time, you can ask us to slow down or even stop."

I don't know if they labeled my chart "crazy lady" or what (jk), but the minute I got there I was treated with kid gloves. My DH was encouraged to stay with me until the last possible second. The first nurse who came in to do my i.v. went and got "the best" at it, and then the two of them took a long time to make sure it went as well as possible, stopping between steps, being truly sympathetic, etc.

I was terrified because I was getting a nerve block for the first time, but the anesthesiologists came in and promised me I wouldn't know a thing. I was crying so hard, they said, "Your DH can't stay in here, but he can stand right outside and if he hears you in pain, we will eat our hats." No, I don't remember it :).

I don't remember anything from that point to recovery. DH was worried because I was in recovery longer than expected, but it turned out that when I started to come out of it badly, the anesthesiologist came in and added to (redid?) the nerve blocks. They went out and told him as soon as it was done.

Thanks to the blocks, I didn't have the nausea and memory fog I've experienced in the past post surgery. I was in for 24 hours, and pain control was handled perfectly, with me never being made to feel rushed or a wimp. Before I was discharged the anesthesiologist came in again, adjusted it all, and made sure that my take home pack was full up.

Sorry for the book, I would just say advocate for yourself, make sure you have someone with you to advocate for you when you can't, and never let them make you feel like a bother, or a wimp, or as though you're just on an assembly line.

Terri
 
They offered me something to relax me, but I told the doctor I was fine as I wanted to nurse my newborn right beforehand.

Oddly, the OR wasn't where I was the most anxious, it was when they wheeled me out. I didn't want to leave my husband and our son. I just couldn't bear the thought of "what if", but once they were out of sight, I could pull it together.

I would definitely recommend getting the anti anxiety drug. I probably would have if I didn't have to nurse.
 
Im real calm and relaxed right up until the last couple hours, then I just hit a point where ya just got to say whats gonna happen will happen

Yep, me too. I hardly slept before my surgery because I was so anxious. Then in the morning it was a "Thy will be done." situation.
 
I’ve had 5 surgeries in my lifetime, having another surgery soon on April 17 (hip replacement).

If I remember right, I’ve always been awake when they rolled me into the operating room. I always feel really scared, cold and clammy, and come really close to crying, but I manage to hold it back. I’m not sure what advice to give you, but I think it would be odd if you/we didn’t feel scared and/or nervous.
 
I've been given drugs to relax me. Those work well for me because I end not caring what they do. The only problem is that I have to fight to keep from telling everyone that I love them. :)

I hate waking up if I have a breathing tube. Those things make me feel claustrophobic and I end up fighting to remove it.
 

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