My most recent surgical procedure has proven to have a bit more residual pain than I expected. Or perhaps; my tolerance for pain is declining with each additional procedure. Or even perhaps; my mind has chosen to not remember what the last surgeries felt like so that I could enter this one without any trepidation for what was to come. Who knows.
But it does make me wonder just how many young physicians who choose to become surgeons have actually experienced surgery as patients themselves. Would it be possible to make that first cut upon a living, breathing patient if you actually understood how you were going to make the patient feel? Of course you would be making the cut with every hope of improving their life. But would it give you just a little extra pause? Having at one point in my life nearly taken the path to become a physician (a hard decision given that the opportunity was actually presented to me, but one which looking back I think I can honestly say I was wise to turn away from), I believe that I would have flinched at least a little.
Perhaps even a bigger question is how many practicing surgeons have ever experienced surgery themselves. Do they really understand what their patients are going through? Having now had multiple surgeries of multiple types performed by multiple surgeons I have formed a fairly strong opinion on this subject. I must admit it is not in any way a scientifically justified opinion, but here it is. Most surgeons are very technically competent. Most surgeons are very interested in a successful outcome for correcting the problem for which the surgery was performed. Most surgeons have a good understanding of the normal symptoms experienced by the patient post-surgery. Most surgeons do not have a clue what the difference is between a little pain and a lot of pain.
Honestly I do not blame the surgeons. They spend such short periods of time with the patents post surgery that unless they have had personal experience as patents themselves, pain is beyond their frame of reference. So if you want to understand how you will feel after your surgery, ask the nurses. They will know much more than the doctor. And by the way, they are the ones who can help you through the pain. So if you must have surgery, find a good surgeon but also make absolutely sure the hospital you chose has an excellent nursing staff. They are the ones that will get you through any pain.
Is Still Here
You are so right! Even though I have had surgery four times before, the surgery I had in January was much more extensive and required some resection of my intestines as well. I never expected to have all the different pains I am now experiencing. When I asked my Gyn surgeon about the horrible ache I have on the right side, she really couldn’t give me any definitive info about it. I am now assuming that it is the anastomosis that is still healing and has tension on it. It’s very difficult to know what certain pain is like until you experience it, even when people tell you.
I have almost come to take the occasional pop of an abdominal adhesion that I still get from time to time when I push just a little past more normal levels in the gym as a badge of honor. Perhaps it is a little sick, but it reminds me of just how much I have survived and there is a perverse satisfaction knowing I am still strong enough to overcome the scar tissue. When I mention this to my doctor, he just laughs at me
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