Speaking of Uncomfortable

Today I had an MRI. My doctor ordered it over a month ago but it took awhile for us to get the insurance company to agree to pay for it. It was actually scheduled for last Friday but the technician that does them had a heart attack so they rescheduled it for today.

Why was I having this MRI you might ask. Well, it seems the docs can't read my mammograms because of an overabundance of cystic tissue so they thought the MRI might give them a better looksy at what is going on in there.

I have had two other MRIs done but they were done 15 and 13 years ago respectively. The first one was a brain scan and the second one was of my brain and spine.

Have you ever had an MRI? Have you ever seen one? Let me just say that I never knew I was claustro- phobic until I had the first one done. You lie down on a table that is barely wide enough for you and then they insert the table into an 8 foot long tube. The first MRI I had done, the table was only halfway into the tube when I made them take me out. I felt like I was being buried alive. It really freaked me out. After a little coaxing, I did eventually get through that one.

The second MRI was long. They do your spine in three sections so it was like having 4 MRIs all at once. I knew better what to expect but that might have been a bad thing. Thankfully I was given a little something to help me relax and all I really remember is singing Amazing Grace over and over again to myself during the whole thing.

Needless to say I wasn't really too excited about the thought of having another MRI. I was doing okay with the idea until last week when they called to reschedule. That got me thinking about it and I started to panic.

On Tuesday of this week I decided to call my doc to ask about the possibility of drugs to get through this "ordeal". His nurse was very sympathetic since she can't even get in an elevator due to her claustrophobia. I was relieved that she didn't laugh at me. She said that the doc would be happy to help except that he's on vacation all this week. Yea!

She recommended that I call the hospital where they do the MRI to get some more info. Here is what they told me: It takes about 2 hours - STRIKE ONE; You have to be completely in the tube - STRIKE TWO; and Oh, by the way, you are on your stomach the whole time - STRIKE THREE and I'm definitely OUT!!!!! As in running away. :)

Okay, I am not a stomach sleeper so that does not sound comfortable to me and the thought of being on my back 8 feet inside a tube for 2 hours was bad enough but you're going to stick me on my stomach and then shove me in. I don't think so!!!!!! Claustrophobia levels were definitely rising.

I called my doc on base and he agreed to prescribe a little helper. I picked up the two tiny little pills yesterday and was very skeptical that anything that small could do much for me (think the size of baby aspirin).

My husband and several of my friends have been praying for me to get through this thing. I woke up this morning intending to have Tyler take me to the hospital since they told me not to drive while taking that medicine. When it came time to take the stuff, I just decided not to. I didn't feel nervous and I thought I would just wait and see how things felt when I got there. I took them with me just in case.

I will admit that I had second thoughts about the time the table started to move but I'll save the rest of the story for tomorrow.