3 ms·

I also suspect that the actual strand of opinion is being fairly uncharitably represented in that article, and the original perception was more along the lines

I also suspect that the actual strand of opinion is being fairly uncharitably represented in that article, and the original perception was more along the lines of "they won't feel and process pain quite like adults, and they won't remember it, and they won't develop any pathological fears as a result of it, so anaesthetic is less important as well as riskier", not an assumption babies didn't have senses. Let's not forget the profession used to perform operations on adults without anaesthetic before they understood safe ways of administering it too.

thaumasiotes 4y ago
> they won't feel and process pain quite like adults, and they won't remember it Mostly it's that second point. Nobody can complain about their treatment if they can't remember having it. That's how childbirth was done in the mid-20th century - you just give the woman memory blockers and don't worry about whether she's comfortable. That's also how procedures are still done now, even though consensus has moved to the view that the mid-century treatment of women giving birth was an atrocity. When I was getting a stomach biopsy (involving a large tube being shoved down your throat), they told me to take a sedative. I asked if the sedative would help with undergoing the procedure. And they told me no, people are just as unhappy either way, but if I took the sedative I wouldn't remember the procedure afterwards.
- wruza 4y ago
  Nobody can complain about their treatment if they can't remember having it Some stories are circulating about people having intense panic attacks, psychoses and sometimes becoming suicidal. Are these just myths and legends?
  - thaumasiotes 4y ago
    I'm sorry, I don't understand the question. The odds are that I don't know the answer.
    - wruza 4y ago
      There are numerous stories (maybe urban legends) about people suffering from aforementioned psychiatric issues after waking up amidst surgery but being not able to remember it afterwards. Curious if it is true or not, cause that casts a shadow on “no memories no problem” idea.
      - everforward 4y ago
        I couldn't find any stories about people that couldn't remember waking up, but still had psychological issues. How would they even know they had woken up? The cases I could find were either people under general anesthesia (unconscious) that woke up and can remember at least parts of the procedure, or people under conscious sedation who probably didn't get a high enough dose of memory blockers. I don't know enough about memory to say for sure, but I suppose it seems plausible to internalize a fear at an unconscious level even if the conscious memories are blocked. Similar to how some people have arachnophobia without ever having a bad experience with spiders.

thaumasiotes 4y ago

> they won't feel and process pain quite like adults, and they won't remember it Mostly it's that second point. Nobody can complain about their treatment if they can't remember having it. That's how childbirth was done in the mid-20th century - you just give the woman memory blockers and don't worry about whether she's comfortable. That's also how procedures are still done now, even though consensus has moved to the view that the mid-century treatment of women giving birth was an atrocity. When I was getting a stomach biopsy (involving a large tube being shoved down your throat), they told me to take a sedative. I asked if the sedative would help with undergoing the procedure. And they told me no, people are just as unhappy either way, but if I took the sedative I wouldn't remember the procedure afterwards.

wruza 4y ago
Nobody can complain about their treatment if they can't remember having it Some stories are circulating about people having intense panic attacks, psychoses and sometimes becoming suicidal. Are these just myths and legends?
- thaumasiotes 4y ago
  I'm sorry, I don't understand the question. The odds are that I don't know the answer.
  - wruza 4y ago
    There are numerous stories (maybe urban legends) about people suffering from aforementioned psychiatric issues after waking up amidst surgery but being not able to remember it afterwards. Curious if it is true or not, cause that casts a shadow on “no memories no problem” idea.
    - everforward 4y ago
      I couldn't find any stories about people that couldn't remember waking up, but still had psychological issues. How would they even know they had woken up? The cases I could find were either people under general anesthesia (unconscious) that woke up and can remember at least parts of the procedure, or people under conscious sedation who probably didn't get a high enough dose of memory blockers. I don't know enough about memory to say for sure, but I suppose it seems plausible to internalize a fear at an unconscious level even if the conscious memories are blocked. Similar to how some people have arachnophobia without ever having a bad experience with spiders.