[Kathy]

I have had 2 discograms. The first one, I had no sedation, just drugs afterward; but they just dulled the pain, didn't take it away or put me to sleep. Let me add, that I have a high tolerance for pain, did 36 hours of induced labor on pitocin and delivery with no epidural (not by choice); but I handled all but the last few hours very well. I also process pain medication very quickly, hence why I had no epidural, it was given and within 30 minutes it had worn off. I had the same issue with the second child. 10 hours of induced labor on pitocin, had the epidural, wore off, given amount of pain killer they give someone having a cesarean and it didn't do anything. Had to get the whole thing yanked out and re-inserted. So, I had a good 2-3 hours of hard labor, which is a 10 of 10. I have the same problem at the dentist, they have to keep injecting my mouth. I have also been awake for about half of all the procedures I have had done, where I should have been in a drug induced state and not remembered a thing (I gave them a play by play afterward and they were stunned that I remembered) I am told I have a very good liver and kidneys, a good thing; but not so good when you need pain relief. That discogram was bad for me and the pain lasted for weeks. That was just my experience.
Saying that, I would still do it again; because it brought me an answer.

My second discogram, I was put to sleep while all the needles were put in, then woken up, asked a few questions to make sure I was coherent, put the dye in the good discs first (I just felt pressure), put the dye in the bad disc (10 of 10 pain), then given more drugs and put back to sleep, taken to the CT scan and to recovery. This discogram was a breeze. I was happy with everything about it. Funny, because I was completely dreading it, based on my experience with the first one. I did have increased pain for a few weeks afterward; but that is normal for my body. I always have more pain after injections, nerve ablations, and anything where they are putting needles in my spine. The dr who performed the second discogram said he thought it was cruel to do discograms in the traditional manner with no drugs, which is why he sedates for the majority of the procedure. He said that the reasoning behind no sedation is that the person won't be coherent enough to tell the pain with sedation or that the drugs will dull the pain, thus causing an incorrect pain level, or no pain in the affected disc.
Moral of the story: Depending on who does your discogram, drugs given or not given, and your body's ability to process medication; you may or may not have a horrible experience, might even have a good one. Also, if you are worried, try to find a dr. who sedates for the discogram.
Kathy