Dealing With Fear Before Surgery
Information, a pre-op chat with the surgeon and anaesthetist, and structured breathing in the days before.
Pre-operative anxiety is normal and does not predict the outcome of your surgery. It almost always peaks in the days before and settles dramatically once you arrive in hospital and the team takes over.
Practical tools: bring a written list of questions to your pre-op consultation, meet the anaesthetist before the day, walk through the day-of-surgery sequence with the rooms, and limit late-night reading of unmoderated online forums.
Structured slow breathing (4 seconds in, 6 seconds out, for 5 minutes twice a day) measurably reduces pre-op anxiety. If anxiety is overwhelming, talk to us — a single dose of a mild anxiolytic on the morning of surgery is appropriate for some patients.
Educational content only. Prefer to speak first? Try the Knee Check or contact the rooms directly.