Gastroscopy - anyone had one?

Gastroscopy - anyone had one?

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Jonboy_t

Original Poster:

5,038 posts

182 months

Wednesday 26th August 2015
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Got to go for one in a week or so and am not looking forward to it in the slightest!

I am not good with things going in my mouth (ooo errr!) and regularly gag when I'm brushing my teeth, so fk knows how I'm going to get on with some bloke shoving his Polaroid in my gob! According to the letter, I've got the option of some kind of sedation but, having never been into a hospital for anything more than my lad being born, the thought of the whole thing is just leaving me scared stless!

Anyone ever had one? Is it as bad as I'm thinking it's going to be? I'm planning on getting all of the drugs they can throw at me - good idea? Or is it a big old case of MTFU!!

Rowley Birkin

26,271 posts

221 months

Wednesday 26th August 2015
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Jonboy_t said:
Got to go for one in a week or so and am not looking forward to it in the slightest!

I am not good with things going in my mouth (ooo errr!) and regularly gag when I'm brushing my teeth, so fk knows how I'm going to get on with some bloke shoving his Polaroid in my gob! According to the letter, I've got the option of some kind of sedation but, having never been into a hospital for anything more than my lad being born, the thought of the whole thing is just leaving me scared stless!

Anyone ever had one? Is it as bad as I'm thinking it's going to be? I'm planning on getting all of the drugs they can throw at me - good idea? Or is it a big old case of MTFU!!
It won't be a polaroid. You know those cameras Victorian photographers used? Hood, Tripod, long concertina lens? It's one of those.

But seriously the camera is suitable for sticking down your throat and it slim - you'll be given a sedative, probably intravenously in your hand. It will calm you, not knock you out, and it will make you forget about the experience swiftly.

The process is still slightly uncomfortable, but if you lay back and enjoy the drugs it's no biggy.

Be warned, though, you will be wobbly and useless for a little while afterwards, due to the sedative. Don't trust yourself, have someone with you to look after you and drive you home. Prior to mine I put two valuable items in an envelope for safe keeping, afterwards I removed one and threw the envelope away. I never recovered the item.

No Bend

591 posts

121 months

Wednesday 26th August 2015
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You won't know a thing about it. The sedation for this is pretty light. You'll go in, say hello to the man with the sedation business, then wake up felling woozy. Won't feel tender at all.

Now, the other end of the spectrum… THAT leaves you feeling like Jumbo has snuck in and done nasty things to your jacksie...

StevenB

777 posts

196 months

Wednesday 26th August 2015
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Go for the sedation and not the mouth spray, so long as you have someone to take you home afterwards

No Bend

591 posts

121 months

Wednesday 26th August 2015
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Just re-read this. No sedation shouldn't be an option for the likes of you and I.

No way could I have it done without it.

Jonboy_t

Original Poster:

5,038 posts

182 months

Wednesday 26th August 2015
quotequote all
Rowley Birkin said:
It won't be a polaroid. You know those cameras Victorian photographers used? Hood, Tripod, long concertina lens? It's one of those.

But seriously the camera is suitable for sticking down your throat and it slim - you'll be given a sedative, probably intravenously in your hand. It will calm you, not knock you out, and it will make you forget about the experience swiftly.

The process is still slightly uncomfortable, but if you lay back and enjoy the drugs it's no biggy.

Be warned, though, you will be wobbly and useless for a little while afterwards, due to the sedative. Don't trust yourself, have someone with you to look after you and drive you home. Prior to mine I put two valuable items in an envelope for safe keeping, afterwards I removed one and threw the envelope away. I never recovered the item.
Cheers thumbup I'm wobbly and useless on a good day, so this should be an experience.. smile

I completely get that they're set up for a moron like me and the equipment is designed to make it as comfortable as functionally possible, so I guess it's just the unknown that's worrying me!

condor

8,837 posts

247 months

Wednesday 26th August 2015
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I had the throat spray and it was OK. It numbed your throat so you didn't feel anything...in fact was a bit of a struggle as you have to swallow the very thin tube that has the camera attached. Remembering swallowing actions without feeling you're swallowing is strange , but the doc and nurses encourage you that you're doing it right.
Once the pics have been taken, off you go to wait for throat spray to wear off (about 20 mins). Cup of black tea ( don't have milk, might make you feel queasy) and then you're back on your way home.
Nothing to it - and a lot easier to deal with than sedation ...which doesn't knock you out btw, but supposedly calms you biggrin

eta The nurse puts a plastic guide into your mouth for you to chomp down on, so the very thin tube just slides down smoothly and doesn't make you gag.




Edited by condor on Wednesday 26th August 21:48

RegMolehusband

3,959 posts

256 months

Wednesday 26th August 2015
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I too have a strong gag reflex. I've had it done twice, the first time without sedation. I will never, ever do it without sedation again.

Mexican cuties

686 posts

121 months

Wednesday 26th August 2015
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Ditto. Had one for coeliac disease but never felt a thing, although hubs said he could hear me retching🙆 don't remember that!!!!!

FiF

43,963 posts

250 months

Wednesday 26th August 2015
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Few years ago had to have a sigmoidoscopy followed by a gastroscopy.

T'other end first, highlights and lowlights, as the camera ahem entered the chap said " trust me I'm a doctor" which got a laugh. They inject air to blowup your gut to give room to move around, which at worst mmakes you feellike yyou've not had a dump in two years, quite excruciating, but afterwards allows the longest most languorous fart of your life. Highlight was that you have to lie still, in my case one nurse lay across my legs, and what must have been the most generously endowed one in the place grabbed my headu and buried it in her ample assets. Really! Not making it up.

So it came to the gastroscopy. After assuring me that it wasn't the same camera as the other end, he asked if wanted sedation and suggested that he wouldn't have it without. Small injection in back of hand, and next thing I know is waking up in recovery after a nice sleep. Except hadn't been asleep at all apparently. Don't know any more about what happened. Cup of tea toast and marmalade and off home.

You'll be fine
Best of luck and hope the results are good news. Fortunately mine all were.

Elysium

13,756 posts

186 months

Wednesday 26th August 2015
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Have the sedative.

It's no big deal with a shot of Valium!

Mexican cuties

686 posts

121 months

Wednesday 26th August 2015
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Ditto. Had one for coeliac disease but never felt a thing, although hubs said he could hear me retching🙆 don't remember that!!!!!

otolith

55,899 posts

203 months

Thursday 27th August 2015
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It's already been said, but just for emphasis - TAKE THE FECKIN' SEDATION.

I didn't. It was horrible. Painless, but horrible.

My wife had it done privately, and the doctor there was quite surprised that I'd been allowed to decline sedation - his words were "tantamount to assault ".

mph1977

12,467 posts

167 months

Thursday 27th August 2015
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otolith said:
It's already been said, but just for emphasis - TAKE THE FECKIN' SEDATION.

I didn't. It was horrible. Painless, but horrible.

My wife had it done privately, and the doctor there was quite surprised that I'd been allowed to decline sedation - his words were "tantamount to assault ".
hardly 'tantamount to assault ' - it;s an option you are given whether to take the discomfort or have the issues and delay post procedure

same as when suturing small wounds that needed suturing becasue of location when i worked in A+E, if the wound only needed a few stitches we'd discuss it with the patient whether they wanted the extra ( un anaesthestised) jabs to put the local into the skin arounbd the wound or whether just to get on with it ...

otolith

55,899 posts

203 months

Thursday 27th August 2015
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He had pretty strong opinions on it, but perhaps he'd been in private practice for a long time and was somewhat detached from life in the trenches wink

(or maybe just a bit more sensitive about dissatisfied customers)

otolith

55,899 posts

203 months

Thursday 27th August 2015
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Anyway, it's highly unpleasant, IME, take whatever drugs they offer.

RegMolehusband

3,959 posts

256 months

Thursday 27th August 2015
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A lot of these comments will be striking fear into the OP. But opt for the sedation and there's nothing to worry about.

C0ffin D0dger

3,440 posts

144 months

Thursday 27th August 2015
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I tell you something more unpleasant to make your ordeal sound like a walk in the park biggrin

I had a Bronchoscopy at the start of the year, same principal but instead of the camera being shoved into your gut it goes into your lungs instead. Whilst I was sedated I remember every bit of it, there's no way I could have done it without. Probably should have asked for a bigger dose really. In combination with the the sedation I also had the throat spray which is rank to say the least. As this wore off the urge to cough to remove all the gubbins in my wind pipe was overwhelming but I had to try to resist.

Whilst they were poking around in there they used an ultrasound camera to look into my chest then passed a needle out through my wind pipe and into my lymph glands to take a biopsy. This was done several times in different locations. This was why I didn't want to cough eek

When they finally hauled out the stuff out I had a good cough and brought more gunk out of my lungs than I ever seen in my life. Fortunately this was quickly whipped away biggrin

Worst bit of all was being told a week later that the results were inconclusive. All that for nothing frown

Good luck and definitely have the sedation smile

Edited by C0ffin D0dger on Thursday 27th August 09:40


Edited by C0ffin D0dger on Thursday 27th August 09:41


Edited by C0ffin D0dger on Thursday 27th August 09:42

MurderousCrow

392 posts

149 months

Thursday 27th August 2015
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I'm going for mine on the 18th. Health care professional, I've seen it done, I'm thinking 'I'll be right with the throat spray, just need to man up a bit'. Humble pie currently being digested, think I may well go with the sedative. OP, good luck smile

Jonboy_t

Original Poster:

5,038 posts

182 months

Thursday 27th August 2015
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Cheers for the replies everyone! Its odd really, I play a lot of rugby and can quite merrily deal with a 20 stone tank running at me full tilt, but a tiny camera scares the bejaysus out of me smile

Anyway, think I'm going to stick with the same principle that got me through my teens - take all the drugs I can get and hope for the best :thumb up: