"Teh lobotomy" consultant didn't believe me when I said, thanks but no thanks to the general anesthetic any more than she believed me when I told her I had not had surgery since the birth of my son. So she asked again, and again, and again if I was sure. Then she tried the carrot and stick approach, the carrot being that I wouldn't get the stick "it's going to hurt you know". Sure give me the options but let me weigh the pros and cons and make the final decision. Then she tried to ignore what I was saying and sent me the anesthetist anyway, for a chat. That's when she lost the battle for good, I know all the answers the anesthetists don't like. "I am allergic to paracetamol" tends to make them grumble and "no I have not been fasting, I had breakfast just before I came here" makes them roll their eyes. The numerous "you are so brave" from the nurses amused me greatly and I wanted to reply "no i'm not, I'm just too chicken for a general and 15 minutes of slight discomfort and a couple of minutes of actual pain seems like a better deal than a few days of total dozyness. Furthermore, if I'd been asleep I would have missed the opportunity to see my insides on a screen, in colour (how cool is that?). Before I left, the consultant asked was I allergic to anything, "yep, paracetamol and penicillin" and on hearing this she crossed out the script for paracetamol she had been in the process of writing (I find the number of times hospitals prescribed me the stuff when it's written in capitals on the file in front of them quite astonishing, previous culprits: John Radcliffe and West Middlesex). "Do you need any painkillers?", "not really", she sighs and rolls her eyes "I thought not". Once again, I look like the weird one for turning down something which is likely to cause me more pain than it will ease, surely it's a no brainer: mild bearable pain vs jaundice (paracetamol) or sore stomach (aspirin or ibuprofen ) or drowsiness and foggy brain (codeine - ask MFC how amusing it is to make me play Big Brain Academy on a mere 15mg of the stuff). I fear the days when I am no longer capable to assert my wishes in a medical setting. I hope when I can't speak for myself anymore somebody will be my advocate and ensures that my assessment of what treatment my body can cope with best is taken into account and my choices respected however nonsensical they may appear in the first place.
All fixed
5.2.08 22:03
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Fimb / Website (6.2.08 15:30) Advanced decisions are now law in the UK.. I obviously only know of their impact on mental health, but next time you see your GP, ask for an advanced decision form. Allows you to continue being your own advocate, even when you can't actually ~make~ the decisions. |
