Eric's Journal

Kimberly Eisenhut  Eric, I have not had surgery yet, but I am sure someone will see and answer your question. I will be thinking of you and sending good wishes and I am sure if there are any questions that are making you feel some anxiety, the surgical nurses can answer any of these questions and are usually happy to. Just give them a call at surgeons office and they are really so helpful in letting you know exactly what to expect and to ease your mind. I've called my future surgeons office and the nurse is extremely kind and actually told me to call if I ever have any concerns or questions about anything at all. You will do great!!! Keep us posted :)

Rose Madura  I was worried about that too. For many people, the breathing tube was removed before or as they woke up. For me, I had the breathing tube still in because for some reason, I didn't want to wake up! I finally did (after about 14 hours after the surgery was over) and at first I freaked. I'll be honest. But once I calmed down, they immediately called in the pulmonary guy who spoke with me (or to me - I just nodded) and he explained they needed to turn if off to see if I could breathe on my own. Once I did that, he took it out. I don6know how long all that was but it really wasn't all that bad. You'll do fine and chances are, you won't have to worry about it.

  Hi Eric, where are you at? Wishing you a successful surgery and recovery. Don’t worry too much about the breathing tube, it will be ok. Blessings

Delanee Durham  For me, I had to be awake for the breathing tube to be removed. They woke me up and allowed my family, one at a time, to see me. I kept falling back to sleep, they told me to wake up and they would remove the tube. I was trying so hard to keep my eyes open! I freaked a little because I could feel the tube and your hands are secured (so you don’t pull it out) and me being an over thinker thought I might choke. My family told me the nurses were right there with me the whole time monitoring me so all that anxiety really was for nothing. My advice is if you wake and still have the tube, relax and it will be taken out within seconds. I now would know what to expect, just breathe and it all will be fine!

Susan McKinnis  The vent tube was my biggest worry, however it turned out to be not as awful as I had built it up in my mind. I was on the vent a total of 6 hours (surgery was 1/5/2022-mitral valve repair). I remember waking up with the vent tube in. The surgeon was in ICU with me as well as my husband and my nurse. They took me off sedation for 30 minutes to make sure I was breathing in my own. They did ask me if I was OK with this and I used a hand motion to indicate I was. After 30 minutes they were able to remove the tube.
During the 30 minutes my husband was with me holding my hand. I had prepared some scripture passages that he read to me during this time and I remember they helped a lot.
Just stay calm and breath and it will be fine.

Rita Savelis  It's really common to freak about the breathing tube. It's there as a precaution and gets taken out as soon as possible, sometimes you are still out. I don't remember mine being taken out as I guess I was still groggy. Take care.

Marie Myers  I was also worried about the breathing tube. As i was waking up, I vaguely remember chewing on the tube, and next thing I remember, it was gone. The medical team will Take it out as soon as it is safe to do so. Remember, you are loaded up with hours of anesthesia, and those first several hours will be a blur. And this is coming from someone who puts in those tubes in for a living...

Deena Elani  I was totally out of it when they took breathing tube out and while I was using it. I remember a split second of feeling my mouth “stretched” with the apparatus, and zonked right out again.

Susan Lynn  You want to ask about 'early extubation' - essentially, removing the tube as soon as possible. I told the doctor that I have an easy gag reflex and unless he wanted to see a reenactment of Linda Blair from the Exorcist, they better remove that tube as soon as possible. They listened! I have no recollection of it and didn't even have a sore throat. Don't be shy about communicating what you want from your medical team. You'll be fine! Best of luck! ❤

Paul Lechiaro  I had it taken out pretty quick after I woke up. A bit of nausea but not too bad. Voice was hoarse for a few weeks but back to normal now. I am coming up on 9 weeks post op.

James Breland  I am having a little anxiety over the breathing tube also. I told my surgeon that I was worried about it, and he told me at Ochsners their cardiac team tries and remove it before I'm fully awake and hopefully this will be the case with you. I hope this is the case, but i will be praying for you man. I think I can speak for you and I that we are having a lot anxiety over our upcoming operations and we will be glad when it's over.

George Gardopee  I was terrified about the tube also to the point that I had nightmares about it before my surgery. It was not nearly as bad as I had feared. I expected to be gagging, etc. but it didn’t happen. I did have to cough and of course you can’t, but it doesn’t last long. I had found a terrific YouTube video entitled “Video 3 of 4 – What to expect as you are waking up from your OHS”. The source is “A Heartbeat Away 4U”. The presenter is a doctor who has also experienced OHS. He describes how you will likely feel with the tube in your throat but he is very reassuring that you won’t suffocate or strangle. He recommends internalizing before you go under that you just need to relax and allow the machine to breathe for you. It was excellent advice. Good luck with your surgery.

Karen Marvenko  Yes, good luck, I’m facing my surgery in 3 weeks, please let us know how it goes. Prayers for a speedy recovery.

Mike Tirrell  Hi Eric, I too was a little apprehensive about the breathing tube. I remember waking up with it and them telling me to cough when they removed it. Having it in when I woke up didn't bother me at all really since I knew it would be there. It was a little unpleasant when they pulled it out I guess but it only lasted a couple seconds and I was very groggy. Don't worry about it, it will be over before you know it.

Bradley Dunn  I don't even recall my breathing tube. What got me was pulling out the drainage tubes.. that felt strange and not pleasant.

Thomas Brusstar  Hope you did well in surgery, Eric. For others reading about the breathing tube, I woke up with mine in. I was calm and doing fine. They actually had my arms restrained, strapped down to the bed, because some people freak out when they wake up and start pulling at tubes and wires. I was calm, but I remember I just had to spell things with my fingers in the air to talk. Like to ask about how the surgery went. Then I spelled "GAG" and the nurse immediately knew to suction out a bit in my mouth. It was not pleasant, but it did not really hurt. My mouth was getting dry. When they could see I was conscious and breathing on my own once the anesthesia was gone, they pulled it. They told me to cough on 3, and 1-2-3 they yanked it out when I coughed. Ahhhh. But it really didn't freak me out being awake for the breathing tube for an hour or two. (I'm not sure the time. Long enough to experience it and find it annoying.) Every time they removed a tube or wire was a good thing. The drainage tubes in my chest actually hurt, so it was really nice to get those pulled the next day.