Anxiety and Dealing with Impatience

Yesterday, I had a visit with my surgeon. I had cosmetic surgery last year. Unfortunately, I need a revision, where I need to go over anesthesia again.
The process of waiting to have this revision has been emotionally difficult. I waited a while to see if my results would improve until I'm even "eligible" for the surgery. Now, I am. We went over the procedure.

The surgeon said he'd knock down the cost. It's still twice more expensive than anticipated. I am still going to follow through. What's mostly bothering me more than anything though, is the fact that I will have to wait a long time to get in for my surgery. I thought I'd be able to schedule a month from now.
He has no availability. The earliest appointment they had is April 13th, but I cannot take that appointment since my to-be caregiver/family member will be unable to care me and has a birthday. We ended up having to make it for April 27. I had to schedule, or that spot would have been easily taken.

When important dates are scheduled that far in the past, I obsess and obsess daily to the point of almost making myself sick that something is going to go wrong that day, where I won't be able to make it. I need help being able to cope with impatience, especially when it involves something as big as a surgery. Any thoughts?

This has been emotionally draining. It was bad enough that 2.5 months after my surgery, we pretty much determined that a revision would be needed, but I did not get clearance to do it until up to this point (8 months post op). As you can see, I've been waiting for a while to be able to do this. Also, I did not anticipate the emotional rollercoaster that I would experience with getting the procedure done. Of course, the anxiety of hoping the outcome will be as expected is there as well.

I do that too. Sometimes I'll worry over going to just my therapist or pdoc. I love both of them, but I always have anxiety over seeing them. In the waiting room is torture for me. It seems like 5000 hours wait when it's only 5 minutes.
I've had to wait really long for appointments. I have changed doctors because of it. I'm not saying you should do that but if I need a doctor and they can't be available, I'll find one that is. I'm probably doing myself a disservice this way, but if enough people cancel enough appointments then some practices may look at the whole idea of "still accepting new patients" when they're overbooked. I'm probably wrong.
My 2¢ not worth one

I definitely know what you mean.

I am sorry you need a revision. I am also sorry it's taking so long.

When I must wait on something and find myself thinking about it too much, I assign a daily time in which to think about it.

I might choose 9am-10am. I might choose a morning time and an evening time. When I catch myself thinking about the topic, I stop and remind myself of the time set aside to think specifically about it.

This may or may not work well for you. It takes some practice.

As always, my best to you.

WC

I think raven before you know it will be here and you’ll have it done over with. But did you ask to be put on his cancellation list in case there was an earlier date for instance?

I had cosmetic/plastic surgery when I was 17 that’s been years since that happened but I happened broke the same object when I when I was 27....and I need surgery but I am too chicken poop to get it done.

Thank you this does sound like a good idea for me especially since I need that structure. I'm going to try to limit myself to 15-20 minutes a day since the surgery is pretty far away. When it's only a month away, I'll allow myself half hour to an hour to think about it, because that's the time where I really should prepare (without over prepping or ruminating, that is).

I scheduled crying for a while. I eventually replaced it with meditation, and didn't even notice if done that until now. Hmm

Thanks for sharing. I am on the cancelation list, so I have my fingers crossed, although I have my doubts that someone will cancel....but maybe I should stay positive. I just want this to be done, or I hope time will fly by so it could be April already!

So sorry that you are going through that. it's frustrating. I should try some meditation too. I can be so fidgety, but it does work.

Be fidgety. Just be in the moment. It's ok to be in meditation in any physical state, except potentially dangerous ones. I was meditating at a women's rally recently, fully adsorbing and fully allowing without judging the moment. Works for me anyway. Yoga taught me meditation.

I'm not doing well at all. I have given it some thought, and I am having second thoughts about the revision plan that the doctor came up with. Of course, I put down my credit card and scheduled thinking I was 100% confident, only to realize later that I have other concerns and questions that I didn't even get to ask at my visit!
The lady who schedules pre-op appointments will be out for 2 weeks. At least I bought myself time so to speak by having the surgery at the end of April. I literally worked myself up into getting a panic attack. What if I decide to back out indefinitely? I'm having reservations about it, unless he can meet me in the middle where the procedure isn't going to be more risky than it is worth. When he went over the advantages, disadvantages, and options to the procedure, now I am thinking about the potential disadvantages and questioning everything.

I hope they'd be able to give my money back until I make a decision at a later time. I'm so upset with myself. I need to get in to see him, but won't even be able to do that until the lady who makes the appointments comes back from vacation.

How can I try to cope until then?

Are these entirely cosmetic surgeries? Curiosity has gotten to me there.
If they are, and even if not, do you really need them for quality of life? Is it worth the anxiety you're going through?
I've heard from one very pompous cosmetic surgeon that was very drunk at a party for the wealthy I worked, "we always do just a good enough job to make them come back. Even if I could fix the elephant man in one trip, there's no money in it." He then laughed like he thought he was both Robin Williams and the crowd but only him. Most people at those parties said really stupid stuff like that about an hour before the bar closed.
I think I make butts look cute, but that's my self esteem usually. It's taking tiny steps past myself to see that I'm not all that ugly. Maybe I'm ok.
I'm sure you're ok no matter what. Most people are very beautiful, the rest haven't realized it yet.

Thank you. That's terrible regarding the surgeon who was acting that way at the party and saying things like that, when people put trust in him.

It is a corrective cosmetic procedure, where I had a complication after previous cosmetic surgery. It's not an immediate concern, but it's something I've been wanting to fix and have been anxious about getting done. I had to wait 8 months to even be able to discuss my options with him. The thing is, I am afraid that I have "locked myself" into a decision since it is now scheduled. They did require me to put down a deposit to even be able to schedule. I hope I'm able to get my money back if I feel I'm not ready without penalty. I definitely want to talk to him again before following through with this.

That reads exactly like you've got a plan. Follow it