I was awake during my operation

A BRITISH woman who woke up while paralysed during an operation and could feel every slice of the knife is to establish a European support network for those who have suffered a similar experience.

Sally Pearson, 55, is looking to extend the Anaesthetic Awareness Network UK and Ireland (AANUK&I) which she established following her own traumatic experience 20 years ago during an emergency caesarean operation for the birth of her son James.

The anaesthetist responsible for the operation had not noticed that the tube giving Mrs Pearson the nitrous oxide gas had become disconnected at the beginning of surgery. She had been paralysed with a muscle relaxant and intubated, however was totally aware of what was happening to her for the entire operation.

The experience has been compared to being tortured and can cause life-long damage, with many people experiencing nightmares, phobias and panic attacks.

Mrs Pearson moved to the Vendée in November last year with her husband David. She said: “I am keen to be able to make this support network available to people living in France. I was invited to speak at a medical conference in Munich on Memory, Awareness and Anaesthesia, which had this particularly positive outcome of the prospect of a European support network.

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“Being able to talk about what has happened and share your experience with someone who has been through it proved invaluable to me. I haven't as yet come across any cases here but I find it hard to believe it doesn't happen.

“Perhaps somehow the French system is better and they do more to ensure it doesn't happen, or perhaps they are less willing to talk about it.”

Although Mrs Pearson's operation was 20 years ago, she only set up the network in 2005 after reading about a lady in America who had been through a similar experience. Mrs Pearson and her husband had tried to put the incident behind them and move on with their lives as the mistake was acknowledged and admitted by the hospital.

The couple were told it was extremely rare and that advances in technology would ensure future patients undergoing surgery would be protected against awareness. However 17 years later Mrs Pearson read of how Carol Weihrer had founded the Anaesthesia Awareness Campaign, Inc. in America, following her own terrible experience whilst undergoing eye surgery.

Mrs Pearson said: “I was told I was one of very few and was very unfortunate, and here I was 17 years later in a dentist's surgery reading how this lady had endured a five hour operation where she was conscious until she passed out with pain. I contacted her and realised how valuable talking to someone about what had happened was. She was campaigning on issues based around the American medical system so I contacted some medical societies here.

“Together with my colleague Meryl Davies who went through an awareness experience twice we had questions raised in parliament.”

Prof Michael Wang, and consultant anaesthetist Ian Russell, who are both advisors to the network, advocate the use of the isolated forearm technique, allowing patients to move their forearm during surgery.

Mrs Pearson is keen to hear of anyone in France - and not just in the British community - who may have been through an awareness experience.

She said: “We don't give legal advice however we can put people in contact with others who have been through a legal process. We can also put people in touch with doctors, or other people who have been through it - anything that will help. One of the worst scenarios is that somebody has been through this however they are sedated afterwards and the mistake isn't admitted.

“They have submerged memories, can't go in lifts or any situation where they feel trapped. There was a case of an elderly man in America who, after an operation, became anxious and distressed and was never himself again.

“He killed himself and it was only at his funeral that the family found out he had been awake during the operation. I was lucky because I knew what had happened and I had a lot of support - it is having that supportive after care which is crucial."

To contact Sally Pearson visit www.anaestheticawareness.net or call 09 63 01 83 78.