Hi dmom
 

They could not put you out for those proceedures? I thought they always did. Yikes! ginnie

Hi,
Sometimes the docs use moderate sedation, also called "twilight sleep." The patient is still partly aware of what is going on and can even watch on the monitor.

This depends on your doctor. Ask some questions and tell him/her what you prefer.

M

Dear Bobby,

Here they don't do sedation for these procedures, period. Not upper or lower.

If you pay extra, they will give you valium - 1 vial which i believe is 20mg IV, which for most of us used to taking 1-2 mg worth of Klonopin or whatever, would be sort of a "normal" anxiolytic dose added on to our regular meds.

i know of someone here who was on several meds similar to ours - (an anticonvulsant + a benzo i think) and they refused to give them valium because they said it was too "risky" :rolleyes: ... that person could have taken an extra anxiety med but did not because they expected the Valium, ha!

however, i can see where full sedation for someone on a lot of meds might be a problem and it will be entirely the anesthesiologist's call whether to sedate or not.

Bobby, you should ask about this beforehand. you should tell them every single one of your meds, and the daily dosages, and also that you suffer from GAD and require full sedation so you need assurance that it is possible. if there is any uncertainty, or hohum answers like "oh, it should be ok..." request that the anesthesiologist be consulted, when you still have time to cancel. you don't want surprises like... being fully awake.

there may be mid-way solutions like local anesthesia (i don't know) or what Mari said, or they may even ask you to suspend a medication for a day or two before... just find out. :o

love

~ waves ~

Donna...

i also know of someone who had a colonoscopy + endoscopy same time, and they strongly recommended full sedation, which they did. i really can't understand why they needed you awake....

:Hum:

... unless it has something to do with your having asthma. that could be it.

~ waves ~

Bobby,

I try to be careful when I write about medicine because I do not know what causes you anxiety and what does not --- each of us here seems to have very different ways that our anxiety responds to medical issues.


This sight is useful:
http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2012...scopy-a-luxury

According to NPR,

1 The doc can get in and out more quickly if the patient is fully under with Porpofol and under the care of an anesthesiologist. Fast is good and bad -- depending.

2 It is SOMETIMES better if the patient is only given Valium or Versed and does not need an anesthesiologist.

This particular article focuses on the cost of the anesthesiologist being in the room but it is still informative.


When I was in-patient after my stroke, the docs wanted to look at my heart. I was told that I would be in a "Twilight Sleep." That is not what happened. I was fully out in about three seconds. I found out later that they used Propofol.


Years ago when I learned about colonoscopies with friends, I was told that as patients get older they do not need as much medication for the "Twilight Sleep." A strong healthy male in his thirties might get more medication because the docs do not want him to jump accidentally or knock the equipment or the people in the room.

I am hoping that this helps.

M

Hi,

You are supposed to meet with the anesthesiologist before hand. That is standard care as far as I know.

The first time I was out years ago, the anesthesiologist and I met a few days before the procedure.
The second time I was out three years ago, the anesthesiologist met with me about 30 mins before the procedure.


In the situation with no anesthesiologist, you need to talk ahead of time to the the MD doing the procedure.
M

Yep, I had the twilight procedure. reason they said, there is a point they
have to ask you questions sometimes. I don't remember, its been
a while now.

Anyway its over, and I hope I don't need another one.

Donna:grouphug:

Hi waves
 

What state are you in Waves where they don't do sedation for upper and lower GI? I think that is lousy. I have to have an upper GI every six months with biopsy. No way would I do it without sedation. Personally I think that is asking quite a bit from person. 20 mg of valium isn't much help either. Are they cutting costs, rather than making people comfortable? ginnie

Hey ginnie,
Donna was the one who did not have sedation.
and she lives in indiana where I was born and raised!
bizi

Dear Ginnie

i am living outside of the US at the moment - i don't share further details on forum for personal reasons. Anyway, i am in a country that has a public health system (like Canada does). and indeed, here they do NOT sedate for colonoscopy (or endoscopy). and yes i agree, 20mg Valium not much, especially for someone already used to taking benzos.

from what i have seen, people are treated a little better than cows. in some cases perhaps cows are treated better.

to answer your question, is it for cost reasons? - i think so. from what little news i hear, they keep placing more and more restrictions... on what tests can be done & how often(seldom!) etc. also whenever the government needs to invest money elsewhere they seem to suck it out of health and education, go figure.

obviously one can go for private care (expensive), but the standards are still different so who knows. Things are not as rigorous as in the US. the person i mentioned who had the colonoscopy awake could not have afforded to do it private most likely... and in any case didn't realize they would refuse the Valium they had requested and paid for.

---------------

i have had some really bad experiences here simply with doctors yelling at me, and i do mean hollerin'! i realize there is good and bad everywhere, but i have *never, EVER* been treated that way in the US! The first experience of that nature here was so bad, i had a panic attack. For a few years following that, i had panic every time i had to go to a specialist :( i guess it caused a mild ptsd-like thing. (i seem to be ok in that regard now. :))

~ waves ~