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Sep. 2nd, 2011 03:13 pmLast night I had my MRI. I was really worried that I would freak out. Not because of the closed in thing, but because I have a strong aversion to silence. Strooong. Like getting test accommodations in university so I can write listening to a prechecked cd aversion to silence. In more stressful situations quiet has made me burst into tears.
I got there early and they led me in to change early. Except I wasn't wearing anything with metal, so I got to keep wearing my own clothes (this comes up later). The shower cap went on, and then he told me to lay down. He put the restraint on my chin first, and then either side of my head. The plugs went into my ears and he started the machine.
The nice thing about the restraints were that they had mirrors attached. I could see my eyebrows if my eyes were open, so I didn't start hallucinating. I could also see my chest and that I was still breathing. And the bed slid in and out at various points, and when it was nearer the end another mirror let you see part of the wall outside the MRI. There was even a blue line painted on the top of the MRI that you could try to focus on or cross your eyes at. It sounds stupid, but you end up playing with it when you're locked in place for 35 minutes.
The silence that I was really concerned about turned out to not be a factor. It was constantly making noises, most of it sounding like industrial techno. I swear there was this entire section that was like the backbeat of Zero Percent, and another part was like thirty three seconds into Hello. It would go quiet for a second and the machine would slide you further in or more out and a different section would have a different noise.
It wasn't super claustrophobic. I mean, it might have been worse for me than the average. I'm fat, so my arms were pressed tight against the plastic. A skinny person would have had actual room to move their lower half. (no moving your head, or they have to start over!) But I don't actually have enclosed spaces issues, so that was fine. I only freaked twice. Once when the CHUNKA CHUNKA CHUNKA stopped and it was silence that went on forever. Not. Cool. And the other time when I was looking at my chest inhaling and exhaling, and remembered I was wearing a shirt with zombies on it. I'd like to pull my Voice Of Experience hat on for a second and say 'if you ever have the opportunity to imagine yourself stuck in an MRI machine as zombies invade a hospital? Don't. Nothing good can come of it'. But I didn't press the OMG GEMME OUUUUT! button, so good on me.
Towards the end I started to get a headache. I think it was less the loud noises and more having the back of my head pressed hard against a flat surface for so long. Once I got home it was really hard to focus on things, and I couldn't read, so I just laid on my bed and listened to tv. I feel fine today though. It just sucks I don't get results until the 29th.
I got there early and they led me in to change early. Except I wasn't wearing anything with metal, so I got to keep wearing my own clothes (this comes up later). The shower cap went on, and then he told me to lay down. He put the restraint on my chin first, and then either side of my head. The plugs went into my ears and he started the machine.
The nice thing about the restraints were that they had mirrors attached. I could see my eyebrows if my eyes were open, so I didn't start hallucinating. I could also see my chest and that I was still breathing. And the bed slid in and out at various points, and when it was nearer the end another mirror let you see part of the wall outside the MRI. There was even a blue line painted on the top of the MRI that you could try to focus on or cross your eyes at. It sounds stupid, but you end up playing with it when you're locked in place for 35 minutes.
The silence that I was really concerned about turned out to not be a factor. It was constantly making noises, most of it sounding like industrial techno. I swear there was this entire section that was like the backbeat of Zero Percent, and another part was like thirty three seconds into Hello. It would go quiet for a second and the machine would slide you further in or more out and a different section would have a different noise.
It wasn't super claustrophobic. I mean, it might have been worse for me than the average. I'm fat, so my arms were pressed tight against the plastic. A skinny person would have had actual room to move their lower half. (no moving your head, or they have to start over!) But I don't actually have enclosed spaces issues, so that was fine. I only freaked twice. Once when the CHUNKA CHUNKA CHUNKA stopped and it was silence that went on forever. Not. Cool. And the other time when I was looking at my chest inhaling and exhaling, and remembered I was wearing a shirt with zombies on it. I'd like to pull my Voice Of Experience hat on for a second and say 'if you ever have the opportunity to imagine yourself stuck in an MRI machine as zombies invade a hospital? Don't. Nothing good can come of it'. But I didn't press the OMG GEMME OUUUUT! button, so good on me.
Towards the end I started to get a headache. I think it was less the loud noises and more having the back of my head pressed hard against a flat surface for so long. Once I got home it was really hard to focus on things, and I couldn't read, so I just laid on my bed and listened to tv. I feel fine today though. It just sucks I don't get results until the 29th.