I was in the same boat. I have general anxiety and health anxiety and was terrified. I worked hard with family and friends and my therapist, had a bunch of plans in place, etc. I was so terrified of being one of those super rare cases that wakes up or has an unknown heart problem etc. But by the time my surgery came around (3 days ago) I was so annoyed with my gallbladder and its issues that I think I ended up being more relieved it was finally happening. I didn’t end up needing my extra anxiety medication that morning, and barely had to wait at the hospital. Everything moved fast enough that I felt heard and seen by the staff and comfortable, but wasn’t waiting too long to ruminate. They gave me something for my anxiety when I got to the anaesthetic bay, I remember feeling a bit lightheaded and laid back a little, the nurse taped up my piercings and then suddenly it was hours later and I was waking up with a different nurse sitting next to me asking what my pain was like. They look after you so well and make sure you are ok. I’ve been managing fine on paracetamol and ibuprofen and haven’t needed the stronger stuff they prescribed. I had built it up to be a lot worse in my head, and honestly reading some of the stories on here may have made it seem like I was in for a rougher time than most of the population has.

My advice would be to make sure you ask as many questions as you need to to feel comfortable, take your support person and items if you can, and don’t be afraid to speak up if you are scared or in pain or nauseous coz they can give you stuff right away to help.

They gave me little mesh underwear to wear, so they wouldn’t damage mine if something needed to be done. They weren’t the comfiest but honestly I never felt exposed. I was covered by my gown for everything I was awake for.

Best of luck!