re: This is what it’s like to wake up during surgery

I woke up during a heart procedure. I'm a big guy and still lift. They were freaked out and screaming at me to hold still. I was not really in my right mind and wasn't listening and kept trying to sit up. I didn't wake up in recovery for a Looooonnnnnggg time. They must have given me enough drugs to knock down an elephant after that. I don't really drink and must have a REALLY good liver.

None of you “woke up” under General Anesthesia. This method includes a tube being put down your throat, and being placed on a mechanical ventilator.

Since when did they start gassing people to have wisdom teeth removed? I had all 4 removed the same day in the 80's with just shots to the gums. I was okay with that

Couple definitions for everyone:
General anesthesia: anytime you lose consciousness when anesthesia drugs are given

Everything else is MAC anesthesia.

Whether under general anesthesia or Mac anesthesia, regional anesthesia can be used (spinal, epidural, or peripheral nerve block).

You do not have to be intubated (tube in your throat) to be under general anesthesia. For example, if at anytime during a colonoscopy you lose consciousness, it can be billed as a general anesthetic no matter the drug being used.

If you can wake up and talk to someone during surgery, you were not intubated. However, you could have been under general, Mac, and/or regional. The planes of anesthesia are fluid and move from plane to plane as your body metabolizes the drugs and the concentrations are changed.