re: Having surgery while awake

Had surgery on my right hand and didn't want to be put to sleep, so I went for what the doctor called regional anesthesia. Received about 15 injections in my hand to put it to sleep.

My palm was cut open, I had a tendon removed, and then my ring finger was cut open at the distal joint, Cartilage was scraped out of the joint and then bone fragments sprinkled into the joint to help the finger fuse in a slightly bent position.

Then the doctor drilled a pin into the tip of my finger and out through the middle of that distal joint. All the while I was awake. I got to see my hand sliced open with the tendon hanging out before he cut it out. Also got to see the x-ray of the pin sticking out of my finger before he cut the excess off.