So true. Little kid seemed to be fine after her wisdom teeth extraction… she sat by the fireplace watching TV, then went into the kitchen to get some ice cream… thank goodness I was right next to her and caught her before her head hit the countertop! 
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I drove home right after my colonoscopy because I didn’t use a sedative. I had read that about half of Europeans who have a colonoscopy aren’t sedated, so I figured it wasn’t necessary, and it wasn’t.
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I had conscious sedation and felt pretty good after I got to recovery room. I don’t like general anesthesia and around here, they prefer conscious sedation which is pretty light and tends to have fewer side effects. I’m fine with conscious sedation.
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My first colonoscopy, almost 30 years ago, was done at a hospital in Boston by a doctor trained in Europe. Since it was my first, I had no clue what to expect. She did not use sedation.
I was conscious for the whole procedure but it was so painful due to a lot of air in the colon. The doctor could not finish the procedure as the pain was too much (I was and am not a wimp by any means).
In the recovery room, the nurse told me that doctor was from Europe and she was one of a few who did not use sedation for patients. At the time, I wished she had been a recipient of colonoscopy without sedation so she would have experience how pain full it could have been. Needless to say, I have been given general anesthesia every time after that.
I understand that some people can handle colonoscopy without sedation. I can’t and won’t try it again. Maybe, it is like given birth, some women don’t rely on sedation and others do.
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I was given the choice of whether to be awake or not for my first. I chose to be out, having read accounts like yours. Afterwards, my doc said that I should always choose general anesthesia because I had several “turns” in my colon that would make the procedure extremely painful. My guess, based on that, is that there are also anatomical differences between people that could impact the experience.
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Not to be TMI but, yes, my colon has several turns that could cause more pain if I am not sedated. I forgot the term the doctor used.
Personally, I felt there was value in minimizing sedation for labor and delivery, as I didn’t want to pass on the medication to my infants and honestly I was able to see the contractions as pressure rather than pain (for the most part).
I see no similar argument or benefit against using conscious sedation for a colonoscopy or endoscopy. I was able to have both procedures and no pain that I was in any way conscious of.
Redundant? That’s what I have, though the report said mine is “somewhat redundant.”
Here is an interesting study comparing patients released on their own with a plan (shuttle service or medical transport service) to those released to a designated escort after procedures requiring anesthesia. There was no difference in risk of adverse events between the two groups. The authors speculated that the reason was, “Advances in the shorter-acting medications used in outpatient anesthesia.”
I assume they can not do a study of patients released to ride shares and public transport as that would be inviting litigation.
Honestly, it’s pretty sad if folks can’t find any adult who can agree to accompany them home after a procedure. I can think of relatives, friends and neighbors who would have helped if H was unavailable.
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@HImom, not everybody has a support system where they live like you do. I was living in another state 2 years ago with no relatives less than 1,000 miles away. I also had no friends in the area, by choice. I was very fortunate to have one of my CC friends that lived not close, but maybe 45 min away IIRC. Thankfully they were great and not only picked me up, but went to lunch after the procedure. Thank goodness I had that colonoscopy, it was my first ever and I had a cancerous polyp. I just had another in the state I am now living in with no cancer. I’m lucky that my daughter and son in law live less than a mile from where this procedure was.
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A friend recently had this problem. Living in a city where they have no family and all friends and colleagues work. And of course, procedures are scheduled during work hours. They needed to find someone willing to take a half day of PTO for the trip home! I think I would have been in the same situation in their shoes if I were not married.
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My brother was working in another state, far from family. He had no friends - I don’t think he’s the only person without friends. He didn’t mind taking a cab if necessary. Had he been expected to have a family member or friend to pick him up, he simply wouldn’t have had the procedure. That’s not a good thing.
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My GI doc called it a twisted colon, which to me sounded like a punk rock band. He also referred to it as tortuous colon (not much better) or redundant.
I can feel the kink in it when I eat certain foods. It was exactly where he pointed to my abdomen.
Also, do people really have general anesthesia for this? I thought general was a pretty big deal, necessitating a breathing tube etc. I thought for colonoscopy you had propofol or something that was very easily reversed.
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H and I both had propofol. I thought that was considered general anesthesia until I was being interviewed by the anesthesiologist for my kidney stone surgery. He told me that what they did for me for a colonoscopy was not considered general anesthesia.
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I felt absolutely no discomfort from air in the colon. The only time the procedure became uncomfortable was at the very end, when the scope reached the end of the colon and it felt like the scope was jabbing my stomach. That lasted for about a minute and felt like cramps.
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Tortuous colon?
Propofol is often referred to as general anesthesia, even by anesthesia providers. But there is what is referred to as a “Continuum of sedation” that consists of “anxiolysis” where one is very conscious but has received a medication that reduces anxiety and encourages relaxation, to “conscious sedation,” where one is awake but drowsy, can follow commands and maintains their airway with absolutely no assistance, to “deep sedation,” where they are generally “asleep” but can react with “purposeful response” to painful stimuli and usually maintain their airway without assistance (but are monitored constantly so that assistance can be provided if sedation goes too deep), to, finally, “general anesthesia” where the patient is unarousable to any stimuli and must be mechanically ventilated because their ability to maintain their airway is seriously compromised.
The way I’ve observed propofol used in endoscopy centers and at an OR where we did elective plastic surgery procedures (breast augmentations, face lifts, breast reductions, nose jobs, etc.) is that it takes the patient to deep sedation or just under. It provides deeper sedation than the “twighlight sleep” that was standard practice in the earlier days of colonoscopies, but tpyically does not require any asssitance with airway to be given. The great thing about propofol is that it wears off very quickly. When the provider stops giving it, the patient begins to wake up within minutes. Propofol must be given by an anesthesia provider-either an MD or a CRNA. As a RN, I can give conscious sedation, but I cannot administer propofol. It requires CONSTANT monitoring as well, which is what made the Michael Jackson debacle so egregious.
ETA: I need to clarify that a RN can give propofol to a patient on a ventilator. They are often on drips while intubated. Obviously someone who is already mechanically ventilated is a completely different risk profile than a patient who needs sedation but also an intact airway.
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In the old days, air was introduced into the colon during colonoscopies. Patients often described the recovery rooms from those days in very colorful terms, as patients were verbally encouraged by the nurses to “pass that gas!” before they would be sent home.
Nowadays, the doctors usually use CO2 for the procedure, which causes far less discomfort and post-procedure shennanigans. 
At least that is how the endoscopy center where I worked operated.
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I think patients should be allowed to sign a waiver and catch whatever transportation they choose after the procedure, as many have said they may not have an adult able to be with them.
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