Brain Scan

I had a CAT scan of my brain today.   Too bad it was not this easy:

I was so grateful that Steve was able to watch the boys and Timee drove me down to the hospital.  Stephen was able to meet us there, since he got off work at around the same time.  Even though no one goes back to the room with me, it's always comforting knowing some of my peeps are there. 

This procedure was one of the easiest in the history of my cancer journey. I didn't have to drink that *delicious* chocolate shake and wait an hour for it to become effective. The rad tech was great, especially at IVs; It only took one try, with no digging and adjusting, and I didn't even feel it. That is a small miracle! Plus, the entire scan only took about 8 minutes!

First, I had to take my hair down and my cancer love necklace off. (I remembered not to wear my other jewelry and watch, but forgot about the metal in my hair pins and that tiny necklace.). I laid down on my back, which is actually painful these days, but the wedge pillow under my knees made it bearable. I had to be completely still, but only for 2-3 minutes at a time, which was a piece of cake compared to the 2 25-minute sessions of Monday's  MRI.  After the first set of pictures, the tech injected the contrast through my IV. It almost immediately causes a warm, tingling sensation, mostly around the pelvic region, making you feel like you have urinated on yourself!  After a few minutes, I was ready for the scan with contrast.  Another 2-3 minutes, and I was done.

It basically looked like this:

I tried to convince the tech to give me some sign--a wink or a hug? A thumbs up/down? A smile/frown?---but the results go through my referring doctor. I pleaded to know something, since my doctor is on vacation, and I don't want to have to wait 10 days for that information.  In a gesture of kindness, on the way out she did remind me that I can come in and pick up my own reports as early as Monday. She even walked me up to the front and found the paperwork I needed to fill out to allow myself or Stephen to pick up the full report.  Now, even though DR. Fleener won't be back for another week, I *might* have some connections in the medical field who can explain the radiologist's findings just as easily.