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Notes on My Colon Cancer

charlieharrington.com

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Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#101

Post by meowface »

tonyhb wrote: post #95
graeme wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Recommend anyone considering this to ask your doctor about using a sedative instead of general anesthesias. As best I can tell general anesthesia for colonoscopy for low risk appears to be a cultural custom especially prevalent in the northeastern USA. Anesthesia has many more possible side effects than sedatives and ought to be avoided unless needed (this applies to any unneeded treatment). Plus if you’re awake you…

Propofol or ketamine are both safe, low risk, and have minimal side effects when used correctly.

Is propofol not a general anaesthetic? That's what I was given for my colonoscopy. Totally knocked out, and when I opened my eyes again it was all over.

Side note: I was never warned about a particular effect of propofol. They started pumping it in and told me to count down from 10. At about 5, I suddenly felt this horrible searing, burning pain in my IV-connected arm that I felt spreading throughout my body. Thinking something was terribly wrong, I opened my mouth to say I'm feeling awful pain, but by then I was already falling unconscious. So I only consciously felt the pain for a few seconds, feeling totally fine (besides grogginess) when I woke up, but it was panic-inducing and some of the worst pain I've felt.

Apparently it's pretty common for propofol. I think they might have told me I might feel a little discomfort, but they didn't mention the possibility of sudden, dramatic pain, for some reason. I could've grit my teeth through those seconds if I knew it was possibly going to happen, but I feared that I was having an unexpected severe allergic reaction or something, so I spent those few seconds absolutely terrified.

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#102

Post by taneq »

shalmanese wrote: post #87
dbcurtis wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Plus if you’re awake you can actually watch the scope going, it’s cool! Not painful at all. For sure! My first colonoscopy I was sedated and enjoyed watching the screen. In fact, I remember I was making HILARIOUS jokes the entire time. I could not remember them afterwards though. My second colonoscopy my doctor sedated me again, but put me further under for reasons that remain a mystery. Also, a year ago we buried…

> For sure! My first colonoscopy I was sedated and enjoyed watching the screen. In fact, I remember I was making HILARIOUS jokes the entire time. I could not remember them afterwards though. My second colonoscopy my doctor sedated me again, but put me further under for reasons that remain a mystery. It was the 15th time that week he'd heard the "rectum, damn near killed them" joke and he didn't feel he needed another…

Couldn't handle another joke about "crappy jobs". :P

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#103

Post by colonoscopie »

FWIW (and not to stop you from getting a colonoscopy—you should!), I have had symptoms like this on and off through adulthood (20 years or so).

For this reason and a couple other IBS symptoms, I've gotten two colonoscopies, one capsule endoscopy, and one sigmoidoscopy in my day. And all have come back negative for anything whatsoever.

Again, if you've got symptoms, see a doctor. But if you're like me and freak out at everything and assume you're dying at the drop of a hat—it's likely not something awful.

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#104

Post by lemming »

graeme wrote: post #31
stevecalifornia wrote: post #5

Fellow readers: Do not be afraid of a colonoscopy. Do not avoid it-- in fact, look forward to it. They are easy and painless. Waking up from the anesthesia I felt more relaxed than I ever have in my life. Also, the prep of clearing your system will reset your digestive system and you'll feel like a new person. I think the prep cleared out whatever it was that was causing us to investigate my digestive system in the f…

Recommend anyone considering this to ask your doctor about using a sedative instead of general anesthesias. As best I can tell general anesthesia for colonoscopy for low risk appears to be a cultural custom especially prevalent in the northeastern USA. Anesthesia has many more possible side effects than sedatives and ought to be avoided unless needed (this applies to any unneeded treatment). Plus if you’re awake you…

This is something I've been wondering for a while, perhaps someone here knows. I've had two colonoscopies, and my understanding was that what they used was a sedative, but I was definitely totally unconscious. What's the line between sedation and general anaesthesia?

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#105

Post by Kosirich »

Since "becoming an adult", I've lived in three cities in two countries, which means that've generally had no idea who my primary care doctor is or was, only that I'd need to find one to give me a referral to get this wart on my foot removed.

F?%k, this is way to relatable. Same as the author I'm an expat which hasn't had a GP check in 5 years, not counting getting a dermatologist procedures. I feel like this is an experience of a lot of expats. Those of us coming from small towns mostly had a GP from when we were 6 all the way until we left the town for good. It's difficult to get that relationship with someone else and I'm afraid that it might be a contributing factor to people getting less checked. Also, in my case all the family members went to him, so he kinda knew the family history. I still mourn for him, he would always greet me at the door of his office with something like "wtf, you again? why are you here?". He was an excellent diagnostician...

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#106

Post by thaumasiotes »

stevecalifornia wrote: post #5

Fellow readers: Do not be afraid of a colonoscopy. Do not avoid it-- in fact, look forward to it. They are easy and painless. Waking up from the anesthesia I felt more relaxed than I ever have in my life. Also, the prep of clearing your system will reset your digestive system and you'll feel like a new person. I think the prep cleared out whatever it was that was causing us to investigate my digestive system in the f…

> They are easy and painless.

That sounds good.

> Waking up from the anesthesia

Hm, that's not something that would happen if they were easy and painless.

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#107

Post by thaumasiotes »

dbcurtis wrote: post #47
graeme wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Recommend anyone considering this to ask your doctor about using a sedative instead of general anesthesias. As best I can tell general anesthesia for colonoscopy for low risk appears to be a cultural custom especially prevalent in the northeastern USA. Anesthesia has many more possible side effects than sedatives and ought to be avoided unless needed (this applies to any unneeded treatment). Plus if you’re awake you…

> Plus if you’re awake you can actually watch the scope going, it’s cool! Not painful at all. For sure! My first colonoscopy I was sedated and enjoyed watching the screen. In fact, I remember I was making HILARIOUS jokes the entire time. I could not remember them afterwards though. My second colonoscopy my doctor sedated me again, but put me further under for reasons that remain a mystery. Also, a year ago we buried…

> In fact, I remember I was making HILARIOUS jokes the entire time. I could not remember them afterwards though.

This is the primary purpose of the "sedative".

I had samples taken from the interior of my stomach via a machine that went down my throat. It was an intensely unpleasant experience; you're trying to vomit for most of the time the cable is there.

Anesthesia was not even recommended, but they really wanted me to take something that would inhibit memory formation. I asked if people who took the drug struggled or retched any less. "No." (I declined to take it.)

This is also how women were drugged for childbirth in the mid-20th century. No anesthesia, but memory inhibitors so they couldn't remember what had happened. That was eventually "discovered" by the press and became a huge scandal. I don't get how the approach persists elsewhere.

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#108

Post by fireattack »

nerdbaggy wrote: post #14
drewg123 wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

the bowel prep is easy and painless Bullshit. I've got Crohn's, and have had more colonoscopies than I can count since age 13. About 75% of the time, I'm throwing up due to the prep. The prep is the WORST part. It has gotten better over the years. If you go for one, do NOT let them give you the jug full of powder. I've had much better luck with prep-o-pik. The other PITA is they generally won't let you go for the pro…

The laxatives make you puke? Is it from the flavor/consistency or something else?

Depends on what you use of course, but mine tastes like oil. Definitely puke-inducing after a few liters.

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#109

Post by newsbinator »

stevecalifornia wrote: post #5

Fellow readers: Do not be afraid of a colonoscopy. Do not avoid it-- in fact, look forward to it. They are easy and painless. Waking up from the anesthesia I felt more relaxed than I ever have in my life. Also, the prep of clearing your system will reset your digestive system and you'll feel like a new person. I think the prep cleared out whatever it was that was causing us to investigate my digestive system in the f…

> I think the prep cleared out whatever it was that was causing us to investigate my digestive system in the first place.

I experienced the same.

Re: Notes on My Colon Cancer

#110

Post by elihu »

nikomen wrote: post #16
stevecalifornia wrote: post #5

Fellow readers: Do not be afraid of a colonoscopy. Do not avoid it-- in fact, look forward to it. They are easy and painless. Waking up from the anesthesia I felt more relaxed than I ever have in my life. Also, the prep of clearing your system will reset your digestive system and you'll feel like a new person. I think the prep cleared out whatever it was that was causing us to investigate my digestive system in the f…

I just had a colonoscopy a few weeks ago because of some minor bleeding. Ended up just being hemorrhoids and a small polyp. Definitely worth having the peace of mind. The worst part or the prep was not sleeping much that night because I was up until 3am. Watching TV most of the night was relaxing, though. After the procedure I took it easy all day while the propofol effects wore off. Don’t wait to have a colonoscopy.…

I had a colonoscopy almost two weeks ago (a 3-year follow-up on having a large not-quite-cancerous-yet polyp removed), and got in a lot of Factorio the night before.

So in a sense it wasn't that different than a regular night of staying up till four in the morning playing Factorio, except that I had to drink a gallon of stuff that tastes like diluted seawater. I had forgotten how gross that stuff is, but in the end that was the worst part.

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