Lived Experience Forum

[Cooper52]

Hi there. I’m new to the group but feel Iike I need to talk about my recent medical experience which in the eyes of many won’t be a big deal but I’m struggling to cope and catastrophising my future. I had septoplasty 5 weeks ago, everything going really well and at my 3 week post op was told to get back in to life. Last Sunday, I had a massive posterior nose bleed that landed me back in hospital for 4 days.  I haven’t been able to speak to my surgeon yet but I’m massively struggling with what occurred and the likelihood of it occurring again. Its put the fear of god in to me and for the last two days I’ve been really emotional, getting teary at the drop of hat. I’m so concerned about what it means for my future, what if it happens again, what if I’m in the middle of the country or more than hour away from good medical help. I felt like I was going to pass away and I was in an emergency department 20m after it happened. I’m really struggling to rationalise and apply common sense to this 

[Jynx]

Hey @Cooper52 welcome to the forums. I'm sorry to hear that you've been experiencing complications after surgery, I absolutely believe that is a big deal, and it's understandable to be feeling a lot of uncertainty and fear. Sometimes, we can rationalise and apply all the common sense in the world and still feel completely shaken by it - the part of our brain responsible for our emotions can sometimes ignore logic when we feel unsafe. I also honestly feel like the emotional challenges of situations like yours are sometimes neglected within the medical world, but it is very legit to be feeling really out of sorts at the moment. 

I'm glad you found us so you can connect to others who may be able to relate to what you're experiencing. Do you have much in the way of other mental health supports? Do you know if there's any counselling or other emotional support offered by the medical practice/hospital? You definitely don't deserve to go through this alone 💜

[Cooper52]

Thanks for the reply.. as for support, not really. I think most close to me simply don’t understand how traumatising I found the expierence and still dont I feel like my nose is literally a ticking time bomb. I struggle to sleep as I’m scared of waking up to a further blood nose. I’m sure when I speak to my surgeon he might be able to put my mind at ease of tell me what the next strategies are… albeit I know it to be a more invasive surgery. 

[Jynx]

@Cooper52 yeah it can be pretty isolating when folks can't quite comprehend why we're feeling so intensely about certain things. Doesn't mean your feelings are wrong or unwarranted. 

Do you see your surgeon any time soon? 

[Cooper52]

Yes I do.. on Wednesday… feels like it’s an eternity away. The next 3 days are going to eat at me

[Jynx]

Mm can absolutely feel like an eternity when you're in an anxious frame of mind hey. I'm glad that it is soon(ish) and hope that on the day, you are able to share all of your concerns, and that they are met with kindness and understanding. I suppose if anything does pop up in the meantime that sparks a lot of worry (but maybe isn't severe enough to head to the emergency room) you could contact the Nurse On Call? 

Do you have much to do over the next few days? I really hate waiting, and waiting for something I'm also anxious about is double-nasty. I find that having something to occupy my focus can really help. I try to engage in activities that require most of my attention or that require an active role (i.e. not just passively watching tv); bonus points if it is a creative endeavour that also allows some emotional expression along the way. 

PS just a lil tip, if you want other members to be notified that you've responded, you can tag them - use the @ symbol and a drop down will appear, and you can choose their name. If their name isn't there, you can type it out and it should then appear for you to select, and it will show up in blue, like this: @Cooper52