Viky and Misty, I appreciate it. Betty Cox30, would you mind sharing the link to that American guide? Additionally, it would be incredibly helpful if everyone could specify the names of the institutions where they had positive or negative experiences.
Could you please go into more detail regarding what it feels like during the procedure and when the anesthesia starts wearing off—specifically during a second surgery where you likely received an "infraclavicular block"? I am curious if the numbness first took hold around the shoulder before spreading down to the fingers—and similarly, when it began to fade, did it start at the shoulder and slowly recede toward the fingertips?
They gave me the nerve block and told me it would kick in gradually. Since they were working on my shoulder and wrist, they warned me I’d feel it in my fingers because I wouldn't be able to move them. My arm was laid out flat on a side table, so I couldn't really move anything except my fingers. About ten minutes in, I started feeling this tingling in my arm and shoulder, and my fingers—starting from the thumb and going down—just felt completely numb. Even after they put up a privacy screen between my arm and my head, I was still twitching my pinky, and I actually pointed that out to them, though it only lasted a few more seconds. The surgery started at 11:00 AM, but the nerve block didn't start wearing off until after 3:00 PM. It began at the shoulder—where I could at least wiggle things a bit—and then the tingling and burning sensation crawled from my pinky inward, one finger at a time. It’s such a bizarre sensation when your body starts "waking up" piece by piece. I started wiggling my fingers one by one, and once my whole hand finally felt alive again, I tried to pull my arm toward me. That’s when my arm just bolted toward my face! I couldn't stop it. It was the same with my arm slipping off the bed; it felt so heavy, like it was going to pop right out of my shoulder socket. I couldn't lift it myself, so I had to use my other hand to reposition it. Even though I had feeling back, I had zero control over the movement. Eventually, I asked for a scarf to wrap around my neck so I could tuck my arm into it, because that uncontrolled flailing was causing me terrible pain. This went on until the next day when everything finally leveled out and I could move my arm normally again. It’s an ugly feeling, honestly—like you have a stranger's limb attached to your body. I remember a friend who broke her leg a few months before me and had this same experience. She told me that when they were moving her out of the OR, they tried to shift her leg and she snapped, "Don't you dare put that stranger's leg in my bed!" I laughed about it at the time, but I ended up experiencing that exact same sensation myself. In my case, there were just three tiny incisions, maybe 2-3mm each, where they inserted the camera to perform the surgery. Man, microsurgery is unbelievable. You don't deal with massive cuts or those long, drawn-out recovery periods. I forgot to mention that they tied my upper arm really tightly above the armpit to limit blood flow and prevent bleeding. I had some red marks around my arm for a couple of days afterward. If there's anything else you want to know, just ask. Best,
