Some Realizations

Interestingly enough, drawing of blood on the forearm doesn't hurt as much as trying to take out the pressure band aid after that.

Similarly, the surgical glove used to tie my arm before inserting the IV catheter hurts as much as the injection itself.

Open surgery really only hurts immediately after. And it seriously hurts. But only a while, like perhaps two minutes. When the painkillers hit the blood stream, things become more tolerable.

Having a urinary catheter stops all natural urge of peeing. The urine flows freely into the drainage bag without any volition. And it doesn't really hurt. Or maybe I just didn't feel it, being so drugged up.

Lying in bed is tiring. When movement is limited by tubes and a recent incision scar, backache is the order of the day.

Similarly, having to lie on the back also means very sore heels, given that the weight of the legs pivots there.

IV catheters don't hurt after they've been inserted. The tubes are made of flexible material, so hands and arms are allowed to bend and move around.

Blood transfusion can hurt. When veins are small, the inflow can be very slow, resulting in possible expiry of the blood. Pressure is then increased to "force" the blood in. The arm ache feels like someone massaging muscles that have raised dumbbells a thousand million times.

Fainting is scary, unlike dramatizations in the movies. All control of the body is lost. As much as I struggled to even open my eyes, I couldn't do it, as much as I could hear people calling me to keep me conscious.

Hospitalization hardly qualifies as rest. Nurses interrupt sleep throughout the night to take temperatures and BPs. The purpose of being hospitalized, is really to be monitored.

The effect of a GA is almost instantaneous. No psychedelic shapes or wandering thoughts. It's awake one second, knocked out next moment. The anesthetist hardly had time to say goodnight, sweet dreams before all consciousness is lost.