In Praise of Lost Time
Here's a common sci-fi trope. A character is obsessed with the future and science and all the advantages it could bring. This blinds that character so that they don't see that they are losing their essential humanity.
Moral: All that dirty stuff that is unpleasant is also part of what makes us human.
I don't buy it. My cube mate Yoni said to me a few days ago, "You'll miss your body when it's gone." I don't buy it. It seems to me that we can definitely point out the things that we don't want any more of that are essential bits of humanity. Lets get rid of them even though they are essential bits of humanity.
Example: I just got 2 wisdom teeth pulled. How's that for some unintelligently designed hardware? I didn't stay awake for the procedure, even though that might have contributed to my character, even though those moments were mine, and they might have changed who I am...
I didn't want those pain-filled uncomfortable moments. I'd rather trade them for other moments or just turn them down flat. And, thanks to the modern miracle of general anesthesia, I didn't have to have those moments. Next, we've just got to nail down the details on the recuperation.