The anesthesiologist was very snappy with me because I asked if I could keep my tongue jewelry in. She bossed me very rudely " Take it out now!" and the nurse explained that I wanted to keep it in until the very LAST possible moment (because tongue piercings can close very quickly). She said "The tongue ring comes out NOW!"

When the anesthesiologist said "I'll go get the goodies" and left the OR Prep room to get medication, another nurse asked me if I understood that one of the medications they would issue would cause amnesia- I asked if they could hold off on all medications until the catheter was placed- that I wanted to remember it. Every nurse in the room agreed. However, no one explained to me AT THAT TIME, that the medication would cause RETROGRADE amnesia. I don't even know if this is true.

When the anesethesiologist came back, the other nurses told her that I'd like to hold off on all medication until after the catheter was in. She walked behind me and started fiddling around with "something", as she rudely agreed to wait on the meds. She said in a way that frightened me "That is very unusual". I asked her if I had upset her and she said "No! Let's go! Let's do this!" very rudely.

I was immediately wheeled out of the room. Very quickly I started getting drowsy. I don't remember the trip to the OR. I have short snippets of memory- the feeling of being wheeled, waking up with my gown up and my legs open, the pain of the catheter insertion. I remember talking at times throughout this duration- trying to say that I shouldn't be feeling sleepy yet, asking why I was feeling drowsy.

However, I could not see straight, just bodies moving to the right of me and at my head, arms reaching toward me, people grabbing my legs etc. I kept drifting in and out of conciousness, I don't recall anyone answering my questions and my last memory is rolling my head to the right and giving up.

The next thing I remember is waking up (if you could call it that) in recovery, shivering, trying to sit up and talk. There were people talking around me, removing the EKG wires from my chest etc. I was trying to ask questions, and once again, I don't recall anyone responding to me.

They wheeled me to a regular hospital room. When I was able to see the clock, I noted the time, and asked for my husband who was in the waiting room. The nurse came back a while later and said that my husband was not in the waiting room. I began to cry for the next hour, confused and drowsy. Two more nurses who noticed said they'd try to find him.

Finally he came in an hour or an hour and a half later and said he'd been in the waiting room the entire time-asking about me at the desk. It turns out that they just didn't have my paperwork there yet, so my husbands name was never on the "To Page" list.

My surgeon didn't see me for 2 more days. I asked him why I wasn't awake for the cath insertion and he said that I was. He said he was there, I was awake, and talking. As the days go by, I realize that I am completely disappointed in my surgeon-who I really liked. I'm now realizing that he lied to me as well.

He told me that the Versed caused retrograde amnesia-implying that the drug wasn't administered until after the cath insertion, and I just didn't remember it because the amnesia was RETROGRADE. This is an obvious lie, as I REMEMBER fighting sleep, trying to talk, not being able to see straight, and waking up periodically during my move to the OR and the cath insertion. Why would I have an immediate realization that I was getting sleepy, if I wasn't even drugged yet?! 

I requested the operative report, which stated that I was placed in a lateral decubitous with low lithotomy position. I am distressed by this as I did not know my legs would be open. I also did not know that they would "prep" my perenium before surgery.

My surgeon failed to tell me that he DEFINATELY WOULD be performing a cystoscopy (a camera up the urethra to view the bladder). I signed a paper that gave consent to perform one- but as I signed it, my surgeon told me that he would only do one in the event that he could not place the stent through the the incisions "sometimes it's difficult that way".

According to the operative report, he WAS able to place the stent through the incisions. He performed the cystoscopy to check the position of the stent after everything else was done. Why then, did he omit the fact that he would check the stent that way? Why do doctors try to hide what they do? I signed the freakin consent...why then not inform me about things happening TO me?!