MRI scary or not???

[mallenfaye]

Hi,

You'll all probably laugh at me but should I be scared of getting an MRI scan done?

I am scheduled to get one on 29th December and this is the only thing I have never had done, been violated in every other way so to speak but I am getting myself really worked up about it.

Does anyone know what the "Klean Prep" is? Is it as bad as picolax (the stuff i took before my cameras and ct scan?

Any and all advice very appreciated, thanks.

(One very scared crohns lady, which as you can imagine is not helping my gut!)

 

[ormsklad]

Hi Faye

First of all I fully feel for you, Im a man who is scared of MRI Scanners because I think I will get stuck and hate it when I touched the sides. I had mine done in July they allowed me to lie on my stomach and go feet in and my head was sticking out. I was in for 1 hour and hated every min of it. As for the prep, I had moviprep and had to drink a litre of it in 15 mins as normaly you take 2 hours over it and yes I was full. By the time I got out the scanner the prep was starting to work. The hospital I had it done at was an hour and a half from home so I stayed in a hotel down the road. I have had Klean Prep and I think is nasty but you need it in you to show the pictures. Dont worry about and have it done, better than being opened up to Good mluck and let me know how you get on

 

[mallenfaye]

Thank you very much for your quick reply.
I get a little claustraphobic so thats not helping my worries.
Is the klean prep designed to clean you out or is similar to the barium and just illuminates your insides for better pictures?
Your right in saying its better than getting opened up but sadly thats where I am heading, the mri is to look at the extent of scar tissue I am left with as they want to operate to remove it as its causing me a lot of pain.
This disease is hideous!
My hospital is sadly an hour and a half away so will be booking a hotel!!

 

[StarGirrrrl]

Kleam prep is designed to clean you out and it's well nasty tasting i'm afraid. I found it so bad if I ever need prep again I will be demanding something else!

 

[Mister_Hotspur]

Hi Faye, if you've had everything else, the MRI scan is a walk in the park. Feels a bit like being trapped inside a electric razor with all the noise but nothing to worry about.

I had Citramag as prep for mine which is 1000 times easier to drink so ask for that instead. Klean prep is just awful. Good luck.

 

[Jennifer]

If you let the techs know that you get claustrophobic and might freak out then they can give you something to help calm you down (I've never needed one but its like a Zanax or something, my finance gets claustrophobic too and they gave him a sedative). None of the preps are fun and they all taste like crap but, "you may drink clear liquids (e.g., water, ginger ale, decaffeinated cola, decaffeinated tea, broth, gelatin) up until the time of the test." http://www.drugs.com/cons/klean-prep-local.html Make sure there's no red or purple dye in it (wouldn't want to mistake it for blood). So since you can have other clear liquids, I always mix preps with a soda (like Squirt or Sprite) and have a chaser of a different drink (last time I did gatorade) and drink it that way. You drink more fluid but it gets the job done without the whole "I'm being tortured" feeling.

 

[xX_LittleMissValentine_Xx]

I had an MRI in Jan.
I went in feet first so wasn't too bad. I cant remember which preps I've had now. I think picolax is the worst!
The one I had for my MRI, I didn't really understand cause I drank it all before I went in and then didnt get the chance to go to the loo. It was only when I got home (A couple of hours later) when it all came out the other end and I felt horrible all evening.
Lets be honest, they are all nasty!
But yeah I would chose an MRI over a colonoscopy any day!
Good luck! x

 

[robbo87]

I've had about 5 MRI's but only had to drink the prep for one of those, as already mentined it's pretty similar to the picolax, I've had both and dont remember much difference in taste tbh, they are both horrible. If its anything like my first mri you will have the prep and then when you turn up they will give you a solution to drink which then also dyes your bowel, Again, not nice tasting im afraid...

I can understand why the claustrophobic side to things may worry you but it isn't so bad, you wear headphones which help block out the noise a little bit, It just gets a bit boring lying there for so long! However you will still be able to see the room around you and there is usually a button you can press if you get uncomfortable

 

[Cat-a-Tonic]

I haven't had an MRI of my intestines yet, but I did have an MRI of my liver last year. I didn't have to drink anything gross, but they did inject me with contrast and I had a bad reaction to it. I am not claustophobic so I had no problem going into the MRI, except for when I had the bad reaction - suddenly I became very dizzy and was going to pass out and I just panicked and told the techs to get me out of the machine NOW (they can't be in the room with you because of the magnets, but they have a microphone hooked up so they can talk to you and you can talk to them). They pulled me out, calmed me down and I got over the reaction pretty quickly and I was soon able to continue the MRI without any further issues. So in my experience, if you do freak out inside the machine, they are really understanding and will pull you out, hold your hand and say reassuring things, and get you to feeling okay again before they try to continue. The MRI staff has seen it all - they told me that some people actually puke inside the machine - so a little bit of panic or claustrophobia is nothing new to them and they are trained to deal with it and put you at ease. I wouldn't worry too much - considering all the other invasive tests there are, MRI is really pretty easy.

 

[Norseman]

My MRI appointment was the day after my colonscopy, so it could be why the same evening as i had my MRI done, it was back to the hospital with a 39 degree celcius (102,2F) fever, a resting pulse of 130 and low blood pressure. They kept me at the hospital for 4-5 days as the doctor said: You are overweight so you should have a high blood pressure, wich makes it even more serious...anyway they where concerned that my small bowel was maybe perforated again, but they could not find anything and I was basically fine after the first night.

Anyway it ended well, and with a toothing 9 month old baby at home it was actually quite nice as I had not slept properly in days...lol

 

[kllyeve]

Well, if I ever have another MRI done, I WILL definatley need to be sedated. I wasn't happy. I felt like I was in a coffin or buried alive. I couldn't move one single muscle and kept saying the Hail Mary over and over. Just about the time I really started to freak out, they did finish.

I was in head first so if they could somehow do it and leave my head out I'd probably do ok.

 

[Artificial]

Hi Faye,

Glad you started this thread, I've got an MRI booked for 20th Dec and am pretty scared!

Rachel x

 

[Richard414]

MRI's are not bad. If you are concerned about claustrophobia, put a handkerchief over your eyes. It tricks your brain into not being so bothered by it. If they are just scanning the intestines, your head may not be inside the machine anyway.
I think some doctors enjoy torturing us with bad preps. Klean prep is a gallon of polyethylene glycol, the horrible tasting stuff that's impossible to finish. There are better preps out there. Google Miralax Gatorade prep for one. Personally I just go on a clear liquid diet for 2 days (apple juice, grape juice, gatorade, etc. and take Ducolax tabs. Works for me, but I clean out pretty easily. Find what works for you. Good luck!

 

[rygon]

I laid down on my belly and went in feet first. Was given a relaxant to slow down my bowel movment, and moviprep to drink (again I didnt go to the toilet until an hr after the MRI). I didnt find it bad at all. Got to lay down and chill out for a bit. The noises were pretty loud, most of it sounded like some heavy banging. To take pics of my small intestines my head went up to the scanner but never went in, and its pretty big hole for someone like me who only weighs 11st anyway

 

[Angrybird]

Hi, I have had 2 MRI's, one for my back in an older machine and I must admit I didn't like going through the narrow part. The second one was to confim how much narrowing I had in the small intestine and I laid on my tummy and closed my eyes and it was fine. I did have picolax which they didn't tell me about on my appt letter so I only found out about it when I arrived for my scan. I was really annoyed as I had planned to go back to work afterwards but instead I had to try and get home before the explosions started. Luckily on a good day it is only a 20min drive home from the hospital. Overall much better than a colonscopy though.

 

[mallenfaye]

Thank you everyone for all these experiences and helpful hints. I most certainly will go on a liquid diet a day or two before hand, that way there wont be much left in me for the prep to work on! WHoever designed the preps should be shot! They are all vile!

This forum is a life saver at time as I can safely say I am feeling a lot better about this MRI now, I can look forward to christmas now and then the 29th will be here and over and done with in no time!

x