When Fear Becomes a Psychological Issue
Surgical anxiety becomes a psychological issue when your fear of surgery is so significant that you may begin to have physical symptoms like a racing heart, nausea, and chest pain. A severe bout of anxiety is commonly known as a panic attack and can be caused when someone who is afraid of surgery dwells on their fear.
Patients with an anxiety disorder may be more prone to surgical anxiety and fear that the average patient, but many people first experience anxiety when they’re preparing for surgery.
Causes of Surgical Anxiety
The reasons for surgical anxiety vary from fear of the unknown to having a bad experience with previous surgeries. Surgical anxiety can also be caused by fear of the result of the surgery, like an alteration in the appearance of your body, such as a mastectomy.
Another surgery that can affect your self-esteem is prostate surgery, where you have to face the risk that you may lose sexual function. While all surgeries have a risk of death, some surgeries have a higher risk than others, which may cause you to ponder your own mortality.
Here are 5 tips to cope with your upcoming surgery, whether you’re dealing with normal or severe anxiety:
If your anxiety is caused by a lack of knowledge about the procedure, it’s essential that you ask questions and find answers until the decision to have the surgery and the choice of surgeon is fully understood.
An understanding of anesthesia and the low risks of having anesthesia may also help with your concerns about surgery. For many, anxiety is a normal response to being expected to make a life-altering decision with minimal information. Once you have the necessary facts, your anxiety may be relieved.
If your anxiety is due to financial concerns, make sure to find out ahead of time what sick time or disability coverage you have available, as well as what health insurance will cover and what costs will be passed on to you. Making a payment plan beforehand with the hospital may help alleviate your financial worry too.
When your anxiety is related to the surgery itself and understanding the procedure doesn’t help alleviate it, some surgeons will recommend prescription drug therapy to calm you enough to make the surgery possible. Antidepressants and anti-anxiety medications are typically used for this purpose.
If you have had a bad experience with surgery, or you’ve had a loved one who has, speaking with the surgeon may provide reassurance that this is a different surgery and a different situation.
Herbal supplements, including teas, powders, and other all-natural plant extracts should not be used without consulting your surgeon. Many herbs, despite the label “all natural” are known to interact badly with anesthesia and other medications. Some can cause blood thinning, heart arrhythmias, and other reactions that are not desirable during surgery.
Studies have shown that something as simple as listening to music or reading a book during the preoperative phase can alleviate anxiety by taking your mind off of what’s about to happen. If you have a normal way that you cope with stress, such as taking a bath or a walk, it should help with surgical anxiety too.
If you’re having surgery for a life-threatening illness, such as cancer, you may also benefit from speaking to a counselor. Being able to discuss your concerns openly with someone who isn’t directly involved can be very therapeutic, especially if your friends and family members are unable to be impartial.
Counseling may also help you conquer your fear if you’ve had a bad experience with surgery or with health care in general. Most therapists are able to recommend exercises to help you control your anxiety and your physical response to stress.
Children should be told about the procedure with enough time to have their questions answered. Surprising a child with a surgical procedure can lead to a lasting fear of health care and should be avoided whenever possible.
If you have a healthy attitude toward the surgery, your child likely will too, so it’s important to be upbeat and positive about surgery in general. Here’s a great example: “After your tonsils are removed, you’ll be able to eat ice cream and popsicles,” rather than, “After your surgery, you’ll get cold things to eat because your throat will hurt.”
The best way to approach preparing your child for surgery varies with the age of your child. With young children, parents often decide not to tell the child about the surgery until a few days prior to the procedure since it can be a long time to wait for a child.
Older children may be well aware of the scheduled surgery but should have multiple opportunities to ask questions of the surgeon. In older children, their view of surgery may be skewed by what they’ve seen on television, so a meeting with the surgeon may be necessary in order for your child to have a clear understanding of their surgery.
Most pediatric hospitals offer pre-surgery tours and information sessions to help relieve anxiety.
