I never had, and it was a scary experience. They wheel you into a room with a Star gate in it, get you to lie down on this sliding table, and so you will fit into this tiny hole, they strap your arms to your sides tight enough to be uncomfortable. In your right hand they put a rubber bulb that you squeeze if you get into trouble. All it really does is get a response from the operator that your doing great and it won't be too much longer.
Time is relative.
Then they stuff you in this hole and you can't see anything except a neutral grey surface in front of you, which you estimate to be anywhere from 1/8" to 1 1/2" from your nose. Oh and they have put ear plugs in so you can't hear.
This tiny voice way off in the distance says "relax"
" breath in"
"breath out"
"hold your breath"
BANG BANG BUZZ SCREETCH HOWL BANG BUZZ WHINE BANG for about ten seconds, then
"relax"
Yup... no problem.
This goes on for what seems to be an hour and I complain.
"Your doing great Mr. Norwood... we are just about to inject the dye in, and that's the important part. You may feel warm all over, and it might feel like you are urinating"
Now, they have been giving me pee pills all week, and I peed before the procedure, but I really had to go again.
I started worrying about electrical shorts in the Star Gate. These things have their own transformers.
"breath in"
Breath out"
Hold your breath"
BANGBANGBANG SNAP SQUEEAL for 10 seconds.
"relax"
Over and over and over and over again.
No problem.
Finally they squeeze you out of the thing like a sausage machine, unstrap you, look disapprovingly at the "soak-er" pad they had you on, and say " you did really well. That happens a lot. relax".
Total time in the machine 1 1/2 hrs.
I hope the dreams aren't too bad.

Look at the good side, you could have woken up in 2371 with no Savage friends here on the forum...    and no Savage.   Your frightening description with all the anxiety almost reminds me of my colonoscopy.

I have claustrophobia if I can't control the situation. Doing construction I would squeeze into about anything. Had an MRI in a tube open at both ends. Not so bad except for lying still on my back with the pain. I think you will appreciate the experience better after you get the bill.  

MRI, CAT scan, IDK, I was allergic to the dye,, didnt drive for 6 weeks, wife says Ive never been the same,

I've had MRI's (both in the older closed tube and the newer open MRI machines,  Not much difference really when they are doing it on the chest area.) Cat scans and most of the other machines that are the in the Tube type machines including the cardiac x-ray machines.  None of them are fun at all.  The worst part for me is the laying still on that hard metal table.  I have fibromyalga and arthritis in my back, shoulders and knees, plus other joints as well.  

I feel for ya Arteacher,  I've had 2 heart attacks since Feb of 2010, and they are talking about putting in a pace maker as well.  My heart problems are not because of diet or anything like that, but because of a disease I was born with, that makes my heart weak, so it's something I'll have to live and work with for the rest of my life.  Since the first Heart Attack in Feb, '10 I haven't been able to pass a stress test at all.  plus I'm having to take all sorts of heart meds including a time release nitro, that keeps me with headaches most of the time.

Hopefully your recovery goes well, and you can get to your normal activities soon.

Best of luck to ya.

R.F.

Years ago I worked in a hospital. When we got our first MRI, they asked for volunteers to try it out, partly to give the techs some experience. Our was one with the closed magnet. I volunteered, and didn't find it at all unpleasant. All I noticed, besides ordinary room noises like fans, was a rapid series of "clicks" as it made the image. As said, you ride into the tube on a little trolley, and then they tell you to hold your breath. They imaged my head. I tried to get them to give me some of the pictures so I could prove to my daughter I actually had a brain, but they refused.

I'm just curious if these things can really rip steel chips right out of your eyes. It's gonna be interesting when I have to get one of these for the first time because I have a few stuck in there.

Cavi Mike wrote on 11/18/12 at 21:49:56:


Make sure you tell the techs about those steel chips, as well as any other metal implants. Normally, they will ask. Normal dental fillings are non-magnetic.

For those curious, Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) actually images hydrogen atoms, primarily found in the water in your body. It does an excellent job imaging soft tissues, unlike X-rays. It takes some heavy-duty computing to actually make the images.