General anaesthetic scared of everything

[Mzfrightened]

Hey,

On Thursday I am having a procedure done under general anaesthetic for a thickened uterine lining. I am having a d&C and a hysterscope. I am 40 and have been experiencing heavy bleeding. I also have PCOS. I am scared of the results, but I am really scared about having a general.

I am very overweight. I'm just scared of the whole thing. Going under, not waking up, having a breathing tube, what if I wake up and forget how to breath after having a tube and so many other irrational thoughts.

As you can see my mind is a mess, arggh

Does anyone have any comforting words about the general, the tube, waking up, even thoughts on a thickened lining.

Just so scared.

[ErinKC]

I'm so sorry you're going through this. I have a really big fear of general anesthesia (and really all anesthesia - I had an unmedicated birth because I was scared of the epidural! It's a control thing for me) So, you're not alone.

The only thing I can add is that back in 2011 I needed emergency abdominal surgery. I was in really bad shape with 2 liters of fluid in my abdomen. They had to cut from my belly button down like 7 inches. I have no idea how long I was in surgery. They didn't even have any idea what they were going to find because all the fluid obscured the CT scan. So, the surgeon essentially went in blind to figure out what to do. I was also like 20-30 pounds over weight at the time. I'd eaten a big meal then thrown up everything. I hadn't slept in like 24 hours, was doped up on tons of pain meds, etc...

And, I came out of surgery totally fine. I had a long recovery, but there were no surgical complications, I woke right up, breathing was fine, etc...

Any surgery is scary and I'm not really one to talk because I should be having a hernia repaired and I'm scared. But, routine, planned surgery like this where you and your doctors are prepared, have a plan, etc... is very safe. But, I do recommend talking with your doctor about your concerns. I've been reading a lot about fear of surgery to try and psych myself up to have my hernia repaired and so many articles talk about how surgeons and anesthesiologists are more than willing to talk with you about your fears and help make you more comfortable.

Good luck!

[Mzfrightened]

Thanks for your reply. That has helped me a little bit. It's just so scary.

Does anyone else have any advice?