Out of This World

I’m sitting here marveling at what my body underwent just yesterday and feeling so glad I was unaware of any of it.  There is a lot to be said for being knocked out when you don’t want to remember what happened.

In contrast I refused to take any drugs when in labor.  It was somewhat a matter of principle, but also I just wanted to know exactly what was going on as my two children came into the world.

I have come to love the rush that accompanies that transition from full consciousness to nothingness.  I could feel myself getting agitated as they struggled to get the EKG machine working properly before my procedure yesterday.  They cleaned the leads, cleaned my skin, and finally brought in a new monitor.

It was at that point the anesthesiologist told me that within a minute I would be asleep.  He asked me to breathe deeply a few times and by the second breath I was out.  What a rush as I gave up my consciousness to the people who would keep me vital as they explored the far reaches of my colon.  Apparently my colon is long and twisted with a lot of sharp turns.  But I never felt a thing as the scope with a camera looked around.

Upon waking up I felt groggy but not otherwise uncomfortable. It was as if awaking from a long deep sleep.  So deep there were no dreams, no memories.  Just the way I wanted it to be.