With Midazolam there is a time of first onset and a time of peak effect...they average at 2 minutes and about 5 minutes respectively. With 5 mgs of Midazolam, the doctor or nurse should be giving you an initial dose and then the rest in increments. The target state is conscious sedation and experienced professionals should be aware that you are not reaching that state. Beforehand they should be checking your weight and asking about your overall health. Midazolam is lipophilic, so if you're quite a bit overweight (as I am, so don't feel bad about me wondering aloud) then it will take longer to reach the target state. 

Nurses should be registering your anxiety and should allow your boyfriend to sit with you. Also, they should be asking you to stay much longer afterwards than 10 minutes...were your vital signs being taken after the procedure at all?

I'm afraid this unit sounds like it's not working as it should be...such long waits beforehand, especially without any explanation why, are not acceptable. I would report a concern, because you won't have been the only one who's had a terrible experience. One word of warning though...the medical profession is very defensive and sometimes vindictive...ask to speak to someone in patient relations over the phone and whilst being polite tell them exactly what your experience was like and how it has affected you afterwards. If you or your partner are feeling very brave, ask if you were attended by a dedicated sedationist and if an adverse event report was made and if not, why not, but if so, was it reviewed by the sedation committee?

I am new here but I would ask the gentleman above to try and  reference reports involving GA and incidents of mortality or provide a link...vague recollections are not helpful and claims need to be factual if they are to be made at all. 

Anyway, your sensitivity to pain intrigues me...have you always been like this? Do you have any other sensory sensitivities?

Well, that's enough for now. I hope the fella above is not angry with me...I'm definitely envious of the boat...

Saluti

I thought it was me that wasn’t normal as I had one today and my husband said they don’t hurt but jeez it was excruciating.. it was like that shooting pain that occasionally shoots up your butt but was prolonged! I only had gas and air after two failed attempts of a candular, it did zero and I’m convinced it was only air as was nothing like the labour one that tastes odd and trips you out.. I literally couldn’t breathe or move at times and they were saying suck in the air but the pain was paralysing. I thought it would never end, I moved on to each side and on my back and a nurse was pressing on my stomach to try make it less painful.. the upside of the traumatic experience is it was all clear 

hi emma

i had a colonography a few weeks ago and was ok with it, i have a needle phobia so putting the iodine in was a problem, the iodine gives a very uncomfortable feeling in your chest like a burning and your heart racing, they said that was normal, because of what they found....a malignant tumor, i have to have a colonoscopy this friday, so they can take a piece of it so they know what they are dealing with,  i have asked for sedation as i am very nervous, i dont like being touched which left me shaking and brought on a seizure as i have epilepsy,  the staff at the hospital were great as i had explained how stressed i was with everything and they did everything they could to keep me calm and stopped if it started to hurt too much and only carried on when i was happy for them to do so, i am dreading this colonoscopy and i am so scared, the doctors have already told me that if i dont have treatment for the tumor then my chances are zero.....i have had to promise my son that i will do all i can to get through this as i lost my husband, his dad  due to a doctor making a mistake so i dont have any trust in doctors.

i wish you all the best emma and hope that they do not find anything serious. xx

Hi Emma,

I've just had the same procedure with 20mg buscopan, 100 and 50 mcg fentanyl and midazolam. It did not touch me at all, wasn't even drowsy and the pain was horrific so they had to stop. I know have to wait for a ct colonoscopy, a proctogram and a colonic transit study as up to now they have found I have redundant anterior rectal mucosa, a large rectocoele and internal rectal intussusception with perinatal descent. I know it's a prolapse but not sure what it all means and this was just from part way round as the tube kept getting stuck and looping. The pain was excruciating. Labour wasn't as bad as this. I'm worried sick about what else they may find. Does anyone know what op I will require reading this as my next appt is st surgical clinic in 4 weeks. Not sure if the other tests will be before this or after to see if there is any other findings but as you can imagine I'm not only scared of having more tests I'm worried about what they need to do to put it right. I also thought the moviprep was awful  and I'm have to do it again for one or 2 of the upcoming tests. Any feedback would be great. Hope it goes ok for all that r having the same issues. Thanks

I had a colonoscopy on 21st Jan this year and I can honestly say it was one of the worst experiences in my life. Worse than giving birth. I don’t think the doctor waited for the sedative to work because I felt as tho a red hot poker was up inside me. I was screaming and crying all the time while the nurse was trying to feed me gas and air. Which did nothing. They turned me into my back and it got worse. They then aborted the procedure. 

I now have to wait until the 8th March for a cr scan and have recently discovered that the prep will be almost as bad.  I have to take 2 days off work as they informed me to not be far from a toilet. 

I was not happy about the doctors conduct. After the scope was removed he walked away and didn’t say another word to me. The nurse was quite helpful I suppose but this experience has made me never ever allow it to happen to me again. I was hurting for days afterwards and didn’t go to the toilet for a week. 

I’m now quite nervous for the scan but hoping it won’t be as excruciatingly painful. And that it works. And if not they actually speak to me afterwards and tell me why!!!

I had colonoscopy done today, had sedation and felt every bloody thing I’ve had a horrendous two days starting with the moviprep you have to take first , which gave me the boak. I felt every thing they done today they also done a biopsy and I was told I would hear back in 14 days. I think this type of investigation you should be completely out cold. 

22.2.19

Today I had my 4th Colonoscopy ,  it was the worst by far. I thought I was having a G/A as I did last time but was given sedation and gas & air which had no effect in lessening the pain or sedating me.. From the off I told the Nurse, the Anethatist and the man doing my procedure that I had to have a general last time because of the pain caused carrying out the test. 

The procedure was aborted as I was actually screaming with pain, I said I thought I was going to  have G/Aanesthetic  as before because the tube has difficulty moving around my colon, the person doing the procedure said " I told you  that you would be awake ! quite honestly I don't recall this, he did have a strong accent  and was hard to understand so if he did it was lost on me. My simple query to him was received by a hostile response, closing of ranks and I was trollied out of the procedure room and no one bothered to ask if I was ok, or still in pain. I was made to feel I was causing a problem by being in agony.

The atmosphere was frosty, I quickly got dressed and txt my husband to come and collect me asap.if I was sedated fully surely I wouldn't be able to climb off the bed and hurry to get dressed?

Now I don't know what will happen,  the reason I had the test was I was admitted to hospital in January for passing blood, severe stomach pains which have been diagnosed as divictulits and Colitis. Unfortunately after waiting 16 and a half hours in A&E, I am totally put off of  having a re-test and of ever being re-admitted to hospital in the future.  

Hi there, 

I had a colonoscopy and I was in agony. I screamed in pain and the next thing I knew I was waking up in recovery. They told me I'd had maximum sedation. I'd be a bit miffed that you were in a hospital setting having a very important test done and they couldn't even complete it because of your pain. Did they not have another pain killer to try? It just sounds wrong to me. 

Xxxxx

I had my first colonoscopy yesterday and hasn’t the sedative . it was so painful I cried and they gave me gas and air and a nurse pressed so hard down on my stomach I thought i would die ...they said they gave me more sedative but I’m not sure they did .they took 10 biopsies and said there were no polyps present .got to wait up to 6 weeks for the results