Best of Mother Earth

Yesterday I got an MRI.

Between that and SOBCon08, I feel like I am in this warped time zone where I am moving at one speed and the rest of the world is at another

I am so behind.

In December of 06 I was rear ended.  It was a low impact accident in that nothing happened to my car, yet my glasses flew off my head and I was thrown forward enough to sprain my back and neck. Enough to still be dealing with that issue today.

Additionally I slammed my wrist on the steering wheel.  I have had wrist issues before, but this was very different, the pain was indescribable.  I couldn’t pick up a glass of water, I couldn’t comb my hair. Today I can use my wrist generally, but I am in constant pain. The alternative paths I chose to rebuild my hand have taken me far, however something is still wrong – thus the MRI.

I had to go to Cook County Hospital, as I don’t have health insurance. What a place that is – what a process! The first time I went my very dear cop friend went with me.  I was there 6 hours to get a referral for the MRI. 6 Hours! I was only there 5 hours yesterday. 5 hours for a 45 minute procedure, in which I had an appointment for at 2. They took me at 4:30. I had to get there 90 minutes early. The small waiting room had one other individual that was an outpatient. He was snoring so loud - he could have opened and closed doors. If you want to know something about me, my tolerance for snoring is nill, private snoring – have at it, but public snoring?  I thought I’d lose my mind.  At one point I pulled a chair over to the other side near the receptionist… could I sit here? I am going to otherwise ring that guy’s neck.

 
This is the old building, quite the place flickr image credit

They only imaged my wrist, but in order to be positioned correctly I had to lie on my stomach, my right arm stretched out super-hero style, my neck turned to the left. My neck today is tweaked, and the pain that position caused during the procedure had me silently weep – you have got to be kidding.

The tech shoved me in this tube and said almost as an afterthought close your eyes and relax – yeah right.

I tried to find a pattern in the noises I heard, some of the noises were very loud - the ear plugs they provided were a good thing – some noises just by the mere nature of them made my heart palpatate and some of the noises, formed words I thought that sounded like …get me out, get me out, get me out.  Besides palpatating I found myself a bit panic stricken.   I didn’t know what to think about, or my thoughts would be interrupted by the get me out chant. It was a real head trip. I did find that I eventually chilled. Proudly I got through it.

Turns out during the procedure there was a major fire drill, the hospital has these very very very long hallways, so when you are walking down you can see from one end to the other. The drill has all the doors along this long hallway close automatically, so what used to be a long hallway became a bit like alice and wonderland, VERY disorienting.
 
I never heard the fire drill

When I left the MRI department I couldn’t figure out where I was. I have to tell you that the staffing at Cook County are very very helpful.  You’d have to be to work in a place like that. The parking lot is remote and we shuttle to the hospital on a bus, on the way home this HUGE woman, like a 4 seats wide woman – struck up a conversation with me. I could have talked with her all day. If she would have let me curl up in her lap I would have. 

These are the kind of experiences where a husband or a mom would have come in handy.


MRI flickr image credit

Karen Hanrahan ~ Wellness Educator/Nutritional Consultant/Blog Author
708.482.0678 ~ Websites: Nutrition Weight Loss, and Green Clean