To ask about your MRI brain?

[Seeshellshear]

Shamelessly posting for traffic.

I’m due to have a brain MRI done soon without contrast. I’m just wondering how long the scan is likely to take? And if I will have to go all the way into the claustrophobic little tube? I’m not usually that claustrophobic but I think my anxiety about the possible results is now getting transferred onto the scan itself! I think I will cope ok but trying to grasp what to expect.

Thank you!

Also I do think it gives me a weird but very mild sensation at points but maybe that's just me? It's only during certain cycles. It's not uncomfortable or painful at all. Just a weird sensation

I had one about 2 years ago, they let me keep my own clothes on (I made sure I wore a non underwires bra etc). I went in up to my shoulders so it wasn't too bad, the top of the machine felt quite close but I closed my eyes and it was okay. I could have taken a cd with me but forgot because I was anxious. It wasn't too bad all told though xxx

No it wasn’t. They did an MRI because I couldn’t have a CT as they would have needed contrast and I’m allergic to it so I had to wait 12 hours in A&E for an MRI instead.

I’ve had three MRIs in the last ten years and I’ve never been in one that’s covered my entire body, only head/upper body.

Dont think anyone has mentioned but you should be able to ask for an eye mask. The first MRI I had, I was terrified to open my eyes and the claustrophobia was getting to me (Im a larger lady and feel the sides on my hands.)

The second one with a head brace, they gave me an eye mask which took that risk away and I could just relax knowing I could open my eyes and still not see anything.

I've never been offered headphones but could hear the music behind the noise of the machine.

Both times were in a mobile MRI unit which may make a difference.

I was anxious too but it turned out to be unexpectedly good and sort of like a going back to the womb style experience. It's so noisy that ironically it's a bit like a sensory deprivation and I felt really rested. The important thing is they give you a thing you can squeeze if you need help so you know you always have that emergency option there.

You can imagine techno music into the noise of the machine which I found entertaining. When I had one they accidentally kept the communication button pressed while talking among themselves and said something that had me completely paranoid for weeks, and repeated the scan with contrast, but then it all turned out fine, so worth remembering that them doing their job thoroughly doesn’t mean bad news about the results.

Really relaxing, like white noise. Almost fell asleep in mine. They said lots of parents said that 🤔.

I had a little mirror over my head so I could see the people at the control desk.

I’ve had numerous brain scans and at a guess I would say I usually go into the tunnel to the point where my knees are level with the entrance hole (for want of a better term).

I don’t like having the cage thing closed over my face and I definitely don’t like being in enclosed spaces, so as soon as I lie down on the scanner, even before the radiographers do anything to me, I close my eyes and I do not open them again until I’m out the scanner and it’s all over.

That way I can’t see the cage over
my face, I can’t see the fact I’m lying in a tiny tunnel and I can’t see exactly how far inside the tunnel I am.

Ignorance is definitely bliss in my experience 😂

I just wanted to come back to thank you all again and report back! It went really well. The radiographer was lovely and thanks to the advice here I actually looked properly at the machine before lying down. I realised that it is in fact a TUBE rather than a tunnel! I hadn’t registered before that the other end of it is open and just knowing that made me feel hardly claustrophobic at all. It was a totally different concept than going deep into a narrow tunnel. The sound was certainly loud but the headphones and radio helped and I did feel almost sleepy by the end. I am genuinely grateful to those of you who took the time to write in such detail about having had it done.

That’s brilliant to went good for you. Best of luck with the results

I fully appreciate OP that you are also worried about the results but try and take the view that knowledge is power, once you have a diagnosis you and your doctors can work out where you go from here, I hope in the long run you’ll feel better once you know.

Great op, best of luck with results!!! Well done!