Apparently I had a hernia when I was a baby. Don't remember it at all, for which I'm glad; the photos looked horrific.
Was there a reason you had to go through the procedure conscious? If you can't take anesthetics at all, that sucks. I went under the gas when I was 12 or so, for an ear canal operation, and waking up while you're still drugged is an incredibly bizarre experience, I couldn't hold my head up properly, it just kind of rolled to the side, and walking was a hell of a challenge, you feel like the floor is spinning and rolling around you.