So recently this past Friday I had an MRI with contrast and figured I would write about my experience to help give others insight on what the procedure was like. Before I had my MRI, I had attempted to research other experiences from people who had had an MRI with contrast and I didn't find as much as I was hoping to. I hope my experience helps those of you who may have to have an MRI in the near future. Please keep in mind that I am not a doctor, and furthermore, every facility is different, so your experience may vary somewhat from mine.
Sometime within the last month I had an ultrasound that showed a large mass on my liver. My doctor thought that the mass was more than likely fat, but was not 100% sure, so she wanted me to have an MRI done on my liver to see exactly what the mass was.
Every MRI procedure is different depending on the location that is being looked at. When I called and scheduled my appointment, I was told that I could not eat or drink anything including water for 4 hours before my appointment. I was also told to get there early. My appointment was at 3:30pm but they told me to get there at 2:50pm I guess in case I needed to fill out any paperwork or what have you.
So fast forward to the day of my appointment. I was a little nervous, because I had never had an MRI with contrast before and did not know if the contrast was going to hurt or what it would feel like. Contrast is a dye that is injected into your body before or during the MRI that makes the images clearer. I was called back at 3:30 and was led into a small room that had lockers for me to store all of my belongings in. The technician who did my IV looked me over and asked me about any metal I may have had on my body as you cannot wear anything metal during the MRI. I wore a sports bra, yoga pants, and T shirt, none of which had metal, so I was able to keep all of my clothes on. I would definitely recommend wearing a sports bra. I was also able to keep my various ear piercings in as my jewelry is implant grade titanium which is nonmagnetic. If you have body jewelry that may get in the way of the site being MRI'd, you will have to remove it, so keep that in mind. I removed my nipple bars prior and put retainers in so that they would not close up.
I was then taken to another small room where the technician took my blood pressure and vitals. She asked me some questions about my overall health, and then proceeded to start my IV which is where the contrast is injected. She asked me about my veins and I told her I have bad veins that are deep and hard to find, so she ended up doing my IV on my hand, which I was thankful for because I only had to get stuck once versus my usual 2, 3, or 4 times when I get blood drawn. If you know you have bad veins or know that they usually have a hard time drawing your blood, I would let the technician know because it could save you a lot of pain. Now I've heard that having an IV done on your hand hurts worse than on your arm because there are supposedly more nerve endings on your hand, but I actually found it much less painful than my arm. The pain of have the IV put in was very minimal. It really was not bad like I was expecting it to be. It was very quick and did not hurt much. Once my IV was in place, I was sent to wait in another area by the MRI room. Another technician called me back after a few minutes and set me up for my MRI. He was great, and I truly believe that having an awesome technician like I did makes all the difference in your experience.
I had to lay down on this long bed. A pillow was placed under my legs propping my feet up. I was given something in my left hand to squeeze in case I needed the technician to stop the test for whatever reason. The technician hooked up some machine that delivers the contrast into my IV on my right hand. For my particular test, I had to take deep breaths and on the inhale, hold my breaths for long periods of time while the pictures were being taken. The tech made me do some practice breathing. I was told to wiggle my toes once I had taken the deep breath and that would be when the tech would start taking the pictures. I was given headphones that the tech spoke through during the test to tell me when to breathe and how to breathe. The bed I was laying on was then moved back into the MRI machine. The machine is this long tube that is open on both ends. It was kinda snug, but wasn't too bad. I was able to see the light coming in from behind me, which actually made me feel less claustrophobic. During the exam the tech was constantly asking me if I felt okay and how I was doing. He made sure to guide me through the whole process.
The test lasted about half an hour. The machine may vibrate some and will make some really loud, weird noises, but nothing should hurt. The machine just takes pictures of your body. The tech first took pictures without the contrast, and then told me when he was putting the contrast through my IV. I could feel the contrast going in; it felt very cold, but did not hurt. It made my hand and arm feel really cold. There was also cold air blowing inside of the MRI machine which also made me freezing. After the test, the tech took the IV out of my hand and wrapped my hand in a bandage. I then went and grabbed my belongings out of the locker and waited up front for a copy of my pictures on a disk to give to my doctor. I felt no negative side effects from the contrast, I was able to drive myself home. I felt completely fine after the test. From the time I was called back to the time I left it was no more than an hour.
The procedure was much easier than I was expecting. If you have to have a MRI with contrast, don't sweat it. It really isn't bad. If you are nervous, bring someone with you for support. If you are claustrophobic, talk to your doctor before hand about being sedated for the procedure or getting a mild sedative to help you relax. I hope my experience helps put you at ease at least somewhat and gives you a little bit more insight on what the procedure is like. If you have any further questions, do not hesitate to leave a comment below.
