Endoscopy tomorrow (second attempt)

[bernie1977]

I understand exactly how you feel Claire as the same happened to me.

I read on here about people saying you wouldn't remember anything with the sedative they give you. I was fully aware of all what was going on and didn't feel calm at all. Like you they tried twice with me. I couldn't stop gagging and tried to pull the scope out. They took it out then calmed me down and tried again about 5 minutes later, I freaked out and kicked out and sent the doctor flying.

3 years later I still don't know what's causing my reflux. I don't get it in the day or after eating, I just get it in the night and can taste it when I wake and my throat burns. I'm on 20mg omeprazole and 300mg ranitidine. I was recently upped from 150 ranitidine to 300mg. If this doesn't stop the night reflux I don't know what my GP will do next.

I hope you're ok now after today's events and that your GP can sort something out for you xx

[claireypoo]

Hi, it's great to hear from someone else who this happened to but at the same time I'm so sorry it didn't work for you too. I think I must have been the same, flailing and fighting, but I have no memory of it at all. Everything is a blank, I only have what they told me I did. The thing is I know that sitting up and pulling the tube out would be dangerous, so it's shocking to me that I did it. My nature is to avoid danger at all costs! Everyone else who had the scope that morning did just fine, even the very nervous sedated ones came round happy and the ones who just had the throat spray seemed ready to go home straight away, in just a few minutes, then there was me, a total mess, mascara everywhere, apologising, crying my eyes out and begging for them to try the scope again. :(

I do have trouble with anaesthetics, so maybe that's why. Takes a lot to put me under. I felt half of my c section and diazepam and the like have never made me feel sleepy, or calm, just very depressed after taking them.

So now I am feeling miserable. All that worry and effort to get there, having the scope down past my throat (the hard part) and then me ruining it all because I wasn't in control of myself.

I have a month now to see if I improve, I'm doing all the reflux things, raised the bed, taking gaviscon advance last thing at night, not eating big meals or 3 hours before bed etc. My reflux is a burning feeling in stomach and chest after eating, burping a lot, (odd tan coloured poo - sorry tmi), gnawing pain between my shoulder blades (mostly right side of spine, but rarely the left too) and discomfort in my right ribs, under my right ribs and sometimes in my side and around the back. I also sometimes have a stingy dry throat in the mornings. I always wake up feeling fine, and my symptoms reduce when I am happy or very busy. Lansoprazole helped a bit, but I found the side effects harder to deal with than the reflux (back pain). I find gaviscon advance liquid helps me the most.

Hope your GP helps your reflux. It is horrible. The worst part for me is wondering WHY I have it and WHAT IF it's something *bad*. :( xxxx

---------- Post added at 07:51 ---------- Previous post was at 06:36 ----------

I have to say for anyone reading this about to have an Endoscopy, my experience of it clearly isn't the norm, and my consultant and the nurses were absolutely fantastic with me, no rush, I could have the scan done in my own clothes, could have as much gas and air as I wanted to calm me (made me giggle a bit). I was in there an hour before I attempted the scope. (Took me 15 minutes just to sign to consent form). It really WASN'T that scary, it was just that I couldn't control myself with the sedation and my previous experience with anaesthetic and also having my stomach pumped has obviously traumatised me. (It was pretty awful)