jacki long: photography

Thursday, October 8, 2020

Day 2995: Disclaimer.: Oh what a day!

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Disclaimer.

Many days of the 2995 posts so far, have been about what I did or saw that day. And, by the numbers, more people seemed to like those days. So here is one of those.

This is going to be heavy on details, as that is how it happened. I had a 1 pm appointment for a MRI on my right shoulder. I got there a little early, stood in line on safe distance floor stickers. When I was checked in, I found out I had a $215. co-pay. Wow!

I was sent to the imaging department with a clipboard, questionaire and wristband. As soon as I sat down, a nice man named John called Jacquelyn and I responded. We went down a long hall into another building, he weighed and measured my height (or the lack of it). He looked at my record and realized I was there for a MRI and he did bone density tests. He checked my chart, and evidently there was another Jacqueline in the waiting room? I thanked John, and returned to the imaging waiting room. John said Tim would be coming for me. I brought a book, so I got another chapter done before Tim called me.

Still another nice young man took me to the MRI department, and after discarding everything and wearing 2 hospital gowns, each facing the opposite way, I was ready. A huge round-shaped thing awaited.

A pillow was put under the sheet below my head and knee. Tim put

in solid cone in each ear. I was given a round ball to squeeze if anything went wrong while I was inside the machine. I am claustrophobic, but I said to myself, I can do this. Last step was a fur lined football-helmet-like thing, he slid onto my right shoulder. It felt good on my poor shoulder. He told me it would take 15 minutes. What could take 15 minutes? Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) uses a large magnet and radio waves to look at organs and structures inside your body.

Tim allowed me to take a picture of the image of my shoulder, after.

What I didn't expect was the noise. I counted 9 different sounds, repeated each time they moved the bed table. One sounded like a warning sound when a truck backs up, another sounded like a stapling gun, repeating, another sounded like a jackhammer, and so on. I visually measured the space between my face and the wall as 2-3 inches. The sounds were loud and syncopated, thank goodness for the cones. I realized that my breathing was shallow, so I started breathing 4 in and 6 out sequence. I might as well get my breathing done while in isolation. It seemed longer than fifteen minutes, but it was doable.

I kept wondering how young kids or more fragile elderly cope?

I'm smiling, it's over.

I told Tim I was going to do a blog about the MRI experience, so he took a photo after. And, I took one of him, but I can't explain what went wrong? Maybe I'll blame it on the MRI?