Can I wake up during surgery?

Awareness during intended general anesthesia is uncommon, but it can occur. This is different from recalling parts of a procedure performed with moderate or deep sedation, when some memory may be possible or expected. Anesthesia professionals reduce the risk of unintended awareness by reviewing your history, planning your anesthetic, monitoring you continuously, and adjusting medications as needed.

What is anesthesia awareness?

Intraoperative awareness means a patient has some consciousness or later recall during a period intended to be general anesthesia. Experiences can range from brief sounds or sensations to, rarely, distressing awareness.

How is sedation different from general anesthesia?

Some procedures, such as colonoscopies, may be performed using moderate or deep sedation rather than general anesthesia. With sedation, a patient may have faint memories of events, such as a conversation in the room, depending on the depth of sedation. These memories are generally not distressing and do not necessarily represent unintended awareness during general anesthesia. Ask your Anesthesiologist which approach is planned for your procedure and what you may experience.

Who may be at higher risk?

Risk can be higher in circumstances where deep anesthesia may be difficult to tolerate, during certain emergency, cardiac, or obstetric procedures, or in patients with prior awareness or particular medication and substance-use histories.

Tell your Anesthesiologist if this has happened before

A history of awareness is important information. If you believe you experienced awareness during a procedure, tell the anesthesia team so the event can be evaluated, documented, and considered in future planning.