I have a wife and a daughter who have worked in and around ICUs -— a LOT
What you say is true essentially. After all, the ventilator is working directly against normal breathing instinct. It takes an act of TOTAL submission to deal with one consciously.
Hell, just getting the breathing tube crammed down the airway is a monumental accomplishment on some patients
Could be called “airboarding”. Doesn’t sound so “torturey” that way.
One must also relearn how to swallow and eat again after being on a ventilator. And you are a “choking risk” from then on.
While on it, you have to be fed intravenously and you feel like you are starving.
Only time I ever saw my dad cry.
#976 after major surgery they brought me out with it still hooked up. I don’t remember it but they immediately put me back under because I guess I went full gorilla on them
They waited until my wife was there when they did it a second time, while restrained. I was awake long enough to direct them to get that thing out of me.
Not fun!