Friend Sneaks Sips Of Water To Thirsty Friend Before Surgery, Knowing It Might Trigger Complications

A compassionate friend couldn’t bear watching their surgery-bound companion suffer from extreme thirst after over 24 hours without fluids, despite IV support. Desperate pleas for relief led the friend to secretly offer a few small sips of water when nurses weren’t watching, believing it harmless since tiny amounts were permitted for pills.

Their adult son fiercely objected, insisting the violation of strict nothing-by-mouth protocols endangered the patient’s safety and could trigger deadly complications.

A parent secretly gave their thirsty friend small sips of water before surgery, breaking hospital rules.

The core issue here boils down to the longstanding “nil by mouth” (NPO) guideline before anesthesia: no food or drink to minimize the chance of regurgitation and aspiration, where stomach contents enter the lungs. Under anesthesia, protective reflexes like coughing or swallowing shut down, turning even a small amount of liquid into a potential hazard if it heads the wrong way.

The poster saw the friend’s discomfort and rationalized that a tiny sip seemed harmless, almost compassionate. Many can relate. Watching someone suffer from extreme thirst feels cruel when the fix seems so simple. Yet the medical team’s strict rule exists for a reason: aspiration can lead to serious issues like aspiration pneumonitis or pneumonia.

As stated in the American Society of Anesthesiologists guidelines: clear liquids may be ingested for up to 2 h before procedures requiring general anesthesia, regional anesthesia, or procedural sedation and analgesia, but once the official NPO cutoff hits, deviating isn’t safe without professional okay.

This ties into broader family dynamics and trust in experts. We often think we know best for loved ones in distress, but overstepping can erode confidence from the care team or delay critical info.

Statistics show perioperative pulmonary aspiration remains rare in modern practice, with relatively small chance to occur, but when it does, “with almost half developing lung injury,” and “yielding a mortality rate of 8%” in reported cases.

As the American Society of Anesthesiologists Task Force on Preoperative Fasting notes that the purpose of these guidelines is to provide direction for clinical practice related to preoperative fasting and the use of pharmacologic agents to “reduce the risk of pulmonary aspiration.” While small clear fluids close to procedure time are now deemed low-risk for many, bypassing hospital-specific orders isn’t the move.

The neutral takeaway? Compassion is key, but pair it with communication, flag the discomfort to staff for safe relief options. In the end, the poster owned it in updates, relieved no harm came but wiser about rules.

Here’s the input from the Reddit crowd:

Some people strongly judge the OP as YTA because giving water violated critical nil-by-mouth rules that prevent life-threatening aspiration during surgery.

Some people emphasize trusting medical professionals over personal judgment and call the OP YTA for interfering without consulting staff.

Some people, including a medical professional, explain the serious risks of aspiration and share stories of preventable deaths or complications from similar violations.

Some people dismiss the OP’s concern by noting that discomfort from no water is minor and survivable compared to the risks involved.

A Redditor tried to ease a friend’s pre-surgery thirst with secret sips of water, sparking debate over hospital rules versus compassion, but the medical risks won out.

Do you side with the good intentions or strict protocol? Would you have spoken up to staff instead? Share your thoughts below!