jitters and anxiety meds

Surgery is now less than a month. I have a preop visit later this week. I am nervous about the day of surgery before going in. I know that I will need something, but Versed knocks me out and I blabber. Is valium possible? What did your doc do to make you less anxious in the hours just before? I am not worried about sleep as pain interrupts that most nights, so it's really just incredible worry...not of horrible results but of unknown, being so exposed physically and emotionally and of pain.

You need to ask your DR, and especially the anesthesiologist, whether or not you can take something before going to the hospital. Usually they do not want you taking anything until you get there and they will give you what they feel you can have. So, ask at the pre op visit - the nurse there may know how the anesthesiologists feel about this.

I was not allowed anything by mouth, INCLUDING medications, the morning of surgery. (They would have made an exception for certain vital medications such as insulin and heart meds but that's about it.)

I coped with the anxiety through meditation - that sounds a bit trite, but really what I did was imagine that I was watching the proceedings in a detached way, that it was happening to someone else. It really helped me to let go of the anxiety and fear that I had about the anesthesia (was not afraid of the surgery).

As soon as the IV went in, the anesthesiologist gave me a little bit of Versed - just enough to take the edge off so I didn't care when they wheeled me into the OR, though I do (sort of) remember it happening. Next thing I knew I was waking up in Recovery and it was all over.

s,
-Linda

Yeah, I hear you! I have 1 week left and I am jittery and feel like I am going to hyperventilate or something. I would love to have some way to get rid of this. So what I have been doing is keeping busy, which works..while I am busy, but during the down times, forget it! I go back and forth from feeling like I am going to throw up to feeling like crying.

I'm with you ladies. My surgery is Nov. 16th and my pre-op clearance appt. is tomorrow morning. I'm starting to freak out just a little bit.

I realize that I cannot take random medications, espcially before the surgery. I have been perfecting fine, but now it's starting to consume me and I have to wait until the end of the month. I'm just going to beg to be first the day of surgery so I don't explode and pray that they move fast and get me out. I swear I don't want to remember anything from the moment I get to the hospital until comfy in my room. I'm trying so hard to focus on work, but the moment I get home, the brain and worry starts. It's even making me kind of fuzzy headed. Ugh...it's nice to know we're all in the same boat though.