Craig and Pepe please check in

Sundanceh said:

Saw Pepe Checked In...

No worries on my end....

Thx Sonia...

 

Glad you and Pepe are okay. 

Glad you and Pepe are okay.  Any new news Craig?

jen2012 said:

Glad you and Pepe are okay. 

Glad you and Pepe are okay.  Any new news Craig?

No News Yet...

Well, no results anyway.....I probably won't find out until later today or perhaps tomorrow before the consult.

How about a story?

It's a good one...

For whatever reason, the onc had ordered MRI of abdomen/pelvis + CT of chest (with & without contrast)...

The chart had said the MRI was going to be about 45 minutes.  So, I got changed and rigged and they headed me inside the chamber and wrapped me tighter than a blanket and I started getting warm.  They had you in these paper pants and shirts, but they retained some heat. 

I asked the guy to turn the fan on high speed and I'd be alright.....

So, they had to cram my sides into the tube and my hands were confined to my sides - all I had was the call button I could barely hold onto....and in we went.....I was so far back in there with all of the padding over my abdomen etc etc, that I could no longer feel the breeze of the fan. 

It started to get warm rather quickly.....

I shut my eyes and even had to pray....as I got hotter, my breathing became more shallow and I started getting that feeling of being buried alive....I said I will be alright He is with me etc.  And I thought what's wrong with me?  You've been through this before, Craig....a few times.....get it together so we can get through this and on with it....

Time seemed to stand still.....I could hear no voices or anyone letting me know what was going on or when this was going to start...I had geared my mind towards about 45-minutes.

But with all of this disconnect and lack of airflow, I was sweating profusely and couldn't get my hands free to wipe the sweat off my faced....it felt like a ballroom full of dancers with all of those beads of sweat parading around.

I hit the call button...

And asked to be pulled out....I thought cooling off a minute might help me, but I was drenched from the hair follicles down to my toenails.  So, I asked the guy now how long are we going to be?

And he said 2-hours! 

I said they had told me 45-minutes...and he said it was supposed to be an hour with no contrast - and then another hour with contrast...

I pulled the trigger....and told him we're done...I wasn't going to be able to do it....I wasn't going to be able to last that long in there ....just too long a time for me....stuffing me in that tube is like shoveling sausage into those casings...

It dawned on me that my earlier MRI sessions (through the years) were never that long...

Now, one technician started questioning me and couldn't believe I was holding things up..needless to say, I let him know that over the years I had done MRIs along with many other things fighting cancer - so this was not something I was taking lightly.

The other guy was cool....he got it...I apologized over and over, but he said it was cool and it happens more often than you think...I told him when I get overheated, it's just plain bad...

Doesn't matter if I'm in an MRI tube or getting into your car in the blazing heat of the summer...I need cool ventilation....and pronto...or there's going to be a problem.

I decided to play my own doctor and asked the guy if we could just switch everything over to CT...chest/pelvis/abdomen...

I said I'm here now, if we can get something done...otherwise, I'll reschedule the CT of everything with my doc, but the MRI was history......

After waiting awhile, the nurse went ahead and okayed that...and my insurance agreed to the switch....

Instead of drinking one bottle of barium, this time I got 2 bottles......did the scans...and then went home and promptly got sick all night....and still today.  That stuff really upsets the gastro trac....been extra bad this time, probably because they doubled the dosage....it just has to finish running its course....that much is hard on the kidneys too....trying to flush as much of that out as possible.

So, got to stay on schedule and will see doc tomorrow...hope to know something before I get to his doorstep...

Not really sure what to think anymore - I've beat this thing every way there is...

Of note, I talked to the CT tech about the protocl change between MRI and CT....and he said more oncs are now moving to just CT of the chest.....and MRI more for the abdomen/pelvis.

I would think due to the radiation exposure to some degree....and perhaps imaging is a bit better for how they want to see the organs in the pelvis/abdomen.   It's a tight squeeze in there. 

So, if you find your onc switching up on you, it just might be a new protocol they are trying....

I wish I could have done my MRI...I just feel really terrible that I failed in my attempt this time....but I did what I could to salvage the day with something. 

Thanks, Jen...

 

 

Sundanceh said:

No News Yet...

Well, no results anyway.....I probably won't find out until later today or perhaps tomorrow before the consult.

How about a story?

It's a good one...

For whatever reason, the onc had ordered MRI of abdomen/pelvis + CT of chest (with & without contrast)...

The chart had said the MRI was going to be about 45 minutes.  So, I got changed and rigged and they headed me inside the chamber and wrapped me tighter than a blanket and I started getting warm.  They had you in these paper pants and shirts, but they retained some heat. 

I asked the guy to turn the fan on high speed and I'd be alright.....

So, they had to cram my sides into the tube and my hands were confined to my sides - all I had was the call button I could barely hold onto....and in we went.....I was so far back in there with all of the padding over my abdomen etc etc, that I could no longer feel the breeze of the fan. 

It started to get warm rather quickly.....

I shut my eyes and even had to pray....as I got hotter, my breathing became more shallow and I started getting that feeling of being buried alive....I said I will be alright He is with me etc.  And I thought what's wrong with me?  You've been through this before, Craig....a few times.....get it together so we can get through this and on with it....

Time seemed to stand still.....I could hear no voices or anyone letting me know what was going on or when this was going to start...I had geared my mind towards about 45-minutes.

But with all of this disconnect and lack of airflow, I was sweating profusely and couldn't get my hands free to wipe the sweat off my faced....it felt like a ballroom full of dancers with all of those beads of sweat parading around.

I hit the call button...

And asked to be pulled out....I thought cooling off a minute might help me, but I was drenched from the hair follicles down to my toenails.  So, I asked the guy now how long are we going to be?

And he said 2-hours! 

I said they had told me 45-minutes...and he said it was supposed to be an hour with no contrast - and then another hour with contrast...

I pulled the trigger....and told him we're done...I wasn't going to be able to do it....I wasn't going to be able to last that long in there ....just too long a time for me....stuffing me in that tube is like shoveling sausage into those casings...

It dawned on me that my earlier MRI sessions (through the years) were never that long...

Now, one technician started questioning me and couldn't believe I was holding things up..needless to say, I let him know that over the years I had done MRIs along with many other things fighting cancer - so this was not something I was taking lightly.

The other guy was cool....he got it...I apologized over and over, but he said it was cool and it happens more often than you think...I told him when I get overheated, it's just plain bad...

Doesn't matter if I'm in an MRI tube or getting into your car in the blazing heat of the summer...I need cool ventilation....and pronto...or there's going to be a problem.

I decided to play my own doctor and asked the guy if we could just switch everything over to CT...chest/pelvis/abdomen...

I said I'm here now, if we can get something done...otherwise, I'll reschedule the CT of everything with my doc, but the MRI was history......

After waiting awhile, the nurse went ahead and okayed that...and my insurance agreed to the switch....

Instead of drinking one bottle of barium, this time I got 2 bottles......did the scans...and then went home and promptly got sick all night....and still today.  That stuff really upsets the gastro trac....been extra bad this time, probably because they doubled the dosage....it just has to finish running its course....that much is hard on the kidneys too....trying to flush as much of that out as possible.

So, got to stay on schedule and will see doc tomorrow...hope to know something before I get to his doorstep...

Not really sure what to think anymore - I've beat this thing every way there is...

Of note, I talked to the CT tech about the protocl change between MRI and CT....and he said more oncs are now moving to just CT of the chest.....and MRI more for the abdomen/pelvis.

I would think due to the radiation exposure to some degree....and perhaps imaging is a bit better for how they want to see the organs in the pelvis/abdomen.   It's a tight squeeze in there. 

So, if you find your onc switching up on you, it just might be a new protocol they are trying....

I wish I could have done my MRI...I just feel really terrible that I failed in my attempt this time....but I did what I could to salvage the day with something. 

Thanks, Jen...

 

 

Ugh - I felt like I was going

Ugh - I felt like I was going to have a panic attack just reading that!  I don't think I could handle it.   

Sundanceh said:

No News Yet...

Well, no results anyway.....I probably won't find out until later today or perhaps tomorrow before the consult.

How about a story?

It's a good one...

For whatever reason, the onc had ordered MRI of abdomen/pelvis + CT of chest (with & without contrast)...

The chart had said the MRI was going to be about 45 minutes.  So, I got changed and rigged and they headed me inside the chamber and wrapped me tighter than a blanket and I started getting warm.  They had you in these paper pants and shirts, but they retained some heat. 

I asked the guy to turn the fan on high speed and I'd be alright.....

So, they had to cram my sides into the tube and my hands were confined to my sides - all I had was the call button I could barely hold onto....and in we went.....I was so far back in there with all of the padding over my abdomen etc etc, that I could no longer feel the breeze of the fan. 

It started to get warm rather quickly.....

I shut my eyes and even had to pray....as I got hotter, my breathing became more shallow and I started getting that feeling of being buried alive....I said I will be alright He is with me etc.  And I thought what's wrong with me?  You've been through this before, Craig....a few times.....get it together so we can get through this and on with it....

Time seemed to stand still.....I could hear no voices or anyone letting me know what was going on or when this was going to start...I had geared my mind towards about 45-minutes.

But with all of this disconnect and lack of airflow, I was sweating profusely and couldn't get my hands free to wipe the sweat off my faced....it felt like a ballroom full of dancers with all of those beads of sweat parading around.

I hit the call button...

And asked to be pulled out....I thought cooling off a minute might help me, but I was drenched from the hair follicles down to my toenails.  So, I asked the guy now how long are we going to be?

And he said 2-hours! 

I said they had told me 45-minutes...and he said it was supposed to be an hour with no contrast - and then another hour with contrast...

I pulled the trigger....and told him we're done...I wasn't going to be able to do it....I wasn't going to be able to last that long in there ....just too long a time for me....stuffing me in that tube is like shoveling sausage into those casings...

It dawned on me that my earlier MRI sessions (through the years) were never that long...

Now, one technician started questioning me and couldn't believe I was holding things up..needless to say, I let him know that over the years I had done MRIs along with many other things fighting cancer - so this was not something I was taking lightly.

The other guy was cool....he got it...I apologized over and over, but he said it was cool and it happens more often than you think...I told him when I get overheated, it's just plain bad...

Doesn't matter if I'm in an MRI tube or getting into your car in the blazing heat of the summer...I need cool ventilation....and pronto...or there's going to be a problem.

I decided to play my own doctor and asked the guy if we could just switch everything over to CT...chest/pelvis/abdomen...

I said I'm here now, if we can get something done...otherwise, I'll reschedule the CT of everything with my doc, but the MRI was history......

After waiting awhile, the nurse went ahead and okayed that...and my insurance agreed to the switch....

Instead of drinking one bottle of barium, this time I got 2 bottles......did the scans...and then went home and promptly got sick all night....and still today.  That stuff really upsets the gastro trac....been extra bad this time, probably because they doubled the dosage....it just has to finish running its course....that much is hard on the kidneys too....trying to flush as much of that out as possible.

So, got to stay on schedule and will see doc tomorrow...hope to know something before I get to his doorstep...

Not really sure what to think anymore - I've beat this thing every way there is...

Of note, I talked to the CT tech about the protocl change between MRI and CT....and he said more oncs are now moving to just CT of the chest.....and MRI more for the abdomen/pelvis.

I would think due to the radiation exposure to some degree....and perhaps imaging is a bit better for how they want to see the organs in the pelvis/abdomen.   It's a tight squeeze in there. 

So, if you find your onc switching up on you, it just might be a new protocol they are trying....

I wish I could have done my MRI...I just feel really terrible that I failed in my attempt this time....but I did what I could to salvage the day with something. 

Thanks, Jen...

 

 

I have only done one MRI in

I have only done one MRI in all of these years and it was open. Sounds zimilar to a PET scan. I did do a full bone scan a few years ago. It wasnt a tube but they lower the machine to what seems like 1/2" from the tip of my nose. That freaked me out a little.