Category: Health and Wellness
This sounds spooky. Am going for an MRI of the brain and have been told the test is loud. Will be given earplugs. Am chicken enough to take 5 mg of Valium before this test. Anybody else gone through this test? My caregiver is coming with me so I won't be alone going home in a cab. This slight dizziness I have I want to know if there is an underlying problem. If it is just blood pressure fluctuation, that's okay. I do have high blood pressure. Any replies appreciated.
I've had several MRI's but all have been on my feet and ankles. Never the head. It is loud. You have to hold perfectly still, and the first one I had I kept jerking every time a new series of noises started, so they had to do it over again. So maybe valium isn't a bad idea. LOL wish I'd thought of that. I always was given earphones, and they asked what kind of music I liked and would then put on that kind of music for me to listen to through the headphones. But the MRI machine is still loud.
I have had 3 MRIs. 1 on each knee and one on my head and neck. They really aren't that big of a deal. The machine makes a lot of clicking and thumping noises that can be a little loud but really not bad. When I did the head and neck scan, I had to wear a collar/helmet type thing that had a plastic piece that covered my face. It took a couple of minutes to get used to but it was ok. I was given headphones to listen to music and just tried to focus on that instead of the machines. Usually I get so distracted by my random thoughts that I start to tune out all the noise. I've even gotten so bored that I dozed off through it. Just relax, listen to the tunes if offered and remember that you are totally safe and nothing is going to happen to you despite the noises you hear. If you get clausterphobic or are particularly jumpy, I suppose vallium would be a good idea but I did it fine with no drugs. That's something only you can decide. Good luck and I hope your tests don't reveal anything serious.
mris can be cool. i had one on the back and it sounded like the base line of techno. not a bad way to spend 45 minutes. just make sure you have no metal including wedding rings or jewelry on you.
I have had two MRI's, both on my head. It was when I started having migraines in the 90's, and then when they got worse again a couple years ago. I had retino blastoma as a child, so they were doing the MRI's to make sure it was just migraines, not something worse.
Yes, as others have said, they are very loud. If you're claustrophobic, that can be a problem too, since you are lying in an enclosed place. The Valium is probably a good idea if you're nervous, and I don't think you're a chicken for taking it. The good news is that the test is painless, you just lay there while the machine does all the work. As long as a test doesn't involve needles and pain, I'm okay with it. LOL.
thanks for the feedback. It helps. Like somebody said, there are no needles or pain and the machine won't hurt you. thanks again. Hope it is nothing serious either.
i couldn't even start to tell you how many m r i 's i have had on my head. i had a blood clot and they still check it every once in a while. just to make sure it hasn't came back. it's not bad at all. I don't like to be closed in, and the machine is. but you have a fan blowing on you and they keep it kind of cold in there for the machines to run correctly and to help prevent germs. the noise is loud, but not so loud that it's going to really effect you. it's just random moises that change with each image they are taking. it only lasts fourty five minutes. i can't tell you how many times i have fallen asleep. don't be nervous. i was at first, and i soon realized there was no reason to be. they can hear you at all times and if you need to stop for some reason they will. not all have music, but some do. sometimes they do use needles, not to scare you. but they inject a die in you through iv, that helps them check veins, and all that fun stuff. it's an m r i/ m r v. they almost always use the die on me. you go half way through the test, without, then they pull you out and put the iv in and inject the die, and do they rest of the test. it's not bad at all. good luck,
thanks shea. I am so glad I have a computer and can get on these boards to get answers to questions. It's a different world for us and I am always happy to get answers to questions from folks who are on the same road I am. I am a senior citizen and guess I am just tired of doctors and stuff, because of having been sick in childhood. My caregiver will be taking me back and forth too which helps. Staff is funny about us being alone and taking cabs back and forth to tests like this one. that's why i hired somebody to help out.
update. Not bad except for the noise. But in my chart I forgot I am allergic to iodine for the contrast. The day before the test I had to go get prednisone and benadryl for premedication. Glad I did. so was premedicated anyway with the 5 mg of Valium. The tech was good about telling me about the series of noises coming up each time. Have to say I am fascinated by the test and wonder about the pictures it shows. Guess that's because I had been a medical typist for quite a while in my life.
Did the dye not make anyone feel weird? I've had numerous CT and Pet scans and they always inject contrast dye halfway through, it makes me feel like my butt is on fire, which is a very awkward feeling, to say the least. The other thing that is discusting is they sometimes make you drink the foulest tasting liquid ever, think it's something to do with contrast and radioctivity as well, I don't ask, just drink it and try to keep it down. The scan itself I like and usually sleep right through it.
cheers
-B
you may have a dye allergy. That's what happened to me in the 1980's and I was told to make sure techs new I have a dye allergy. this time, having ben premedicated with prednisone and benadryl, I did not have the weird sensations.
i am allergic to the die in the cat scan, not the m r v d ie though. strange i know. but it's different kinds of die. i am also allergic to prednizone. so they have a hard time doing the cat scans on me. heheh but yes b,it does kind of feel funny. the nucleiur med die does anyway, they use does give you that feeling. the regular die doesn't effect me that way though.