Have any of you had your surgery without general anesthesia?

I've never been put under, but because of family history they're concerned about putting me under fully, and are discussing my being awake but drugged during the surgery.

Have any of you had your surgery done this way?

that thought scares the crap out of me! I have had three surgeries where I was to be in a "twilight" sleep.. I felt the beginning of each of them. There is NO way I would sign off on having this done without being totally and completely under.

Also, it is my understanding that a person is entibated (sic?) and a balloon is fed down the throat into the stomach in order to help with pouch definition. I'm not sure it's possible to do that in a less than completely under state.

I'm not a doctor.. but I do watch House. :smile:

I had a cardiac cath and stents place in my coronary arteries in September while just drugged. The procedure lasted about 90 minutes and all I remember is the first 30 seconds or so. I wasn't completely unconscious per se, but I was wasn't awake either.

In my opinion, there wasn't much difference between this and the couple of times I was completely anesthetized.

I'm not a doctor.. but I do watch House. :smile:

LOL, thats cute.

I have had knee surgery where they didnt put me under. But I slept thru it anyways.

Hey, women get C-sections and they're awake, and I think completely cutting across your abdomen and yanking that bugger out is much worse than a few incisions. =)

They can give you a spinal just like they do for C-sections. Good luck.

I didnt think they could becuase that will paralyse your lumgs. I thought they could only do a surgery that required a spinal below the waist.

So to have lapband surgery it wouldnt be a spinal where you feel absolutely nothing? Its more sedation. Eeeeek. I'd far rather be out cold.

But then again, lapband surgery is not particularly complicated, it doesnt involve cutting up your organs, only entering your abdomen, so it probably wouldnt be as freaky as the though of having a caesar and being awake was to me.