What can I do so that I can get an anaesthesia/general anaesthetic despite my fear?
The fear of a general anaesthetic is no reason to cancel an operation. Nevertheless, you and the hospital staff can take some measures to keep the fear as small as possible. Before the operation, the operation and also the anaesthesia are explained in personal discussions.
In this context, you will have time to ask all the questions that have arisen and also to express your fears. If you know in detail about the process of the anaesthetic induction and the waking process, this can take away some of your fears. In the induction room, where the anaesthesia is prepared and started, doctors and nurses try to calm the patient and make the situation as pleasant as possible.
Should the fear still be present and be unbearable, sedatives can be given on the ward before the operation. You should honestly express your fears yourself. The better you are informed before the anaesthesia, the less you have the feeling on the day of the operation of being defencelessly exposed to an unknown situation. There are also relaxation techniques that can be easily learned and which can help to relieve tension and fear.
What are the alternatives to general anaesthesia?
In addition to general anaesthesia, there is also the so-called regional anaesthesia. This is an alternative to general anaesthesia for operations from the hip downwards or on the arms. In regional anaesthesia, local anaesthetics (local anaesthetics) are used to anaesthetize the respective body regions.
However, the patient is fully conscious during this procedure. However, if organs in the abdominal cavity or the head area have to be operated on, there is no alternative to general anaesthesia. Are you interested in alternative anaesthetic procedures?
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