shaking

A well’a bless my soul
What’sa wrong with me?
I’m itchin’ like a man in a fuzzy tree
My friends say I’m actin’ wild as a bug
I hadda’ MRI
I’m all shook up!

Well, please don’t ask me what’sa on my mind
I’m a little mixed up, but I’m feelin’ fine

I hadda’ MRI
I’m all shook up!

(If you have been around a while, like me, you are familiar with those song lyrics!)

OH, DON’T GET ME WRONG; THERE ARE REAL ADVANTAGES AND I WANTED THE MRI PERFORMED. This post is about something personal–fair warning. But if you are sensitive to energy and to your own body, and if you need an MRI, maybe something here will be, in a small way, useful.

I hadn’t really considered any side effects of an MRI. They are minimal in the grand scheme of things, I suppose; yet, consider the subject to be worthy of a write-up. So, here goes . . .

It wasn’t until later in the day (yesterday) when alone that . . . well, that the “out of sorts” feeling was clear. It was evident that something was energetically wrong and of course, I knew why. The MRI naturally.

It was subtle, but I am sensitive, a psychic. My own body’s natural electromagnetic field, especially in the area of my neck and brain (cervical scan) were rocked and rolled yesterday–and shook every which way but lose.

Which is, apparently, the method behind the MRI madness in the first place… the body’s own magnetic energy field gets confused and sends out a signal of some-such that the MRI machine picks up the confused atoms as images. I think something close to that goes on anyway.

Here’s a Google blurb about the science behind what happens:

How does an MRI scan work?
The MRI machine is a large, cylindrical (tube-shaped) machine that creates a strong magnetic field around the patient. The magnetic field, along with radio waves, alters the hydrogen atoms’ natural alignment in the body. Pulses of radio waves sent from a scanner knock the nuclei in your atoms out of their normal position. As the nuclei realign back into proper position, the nuclei send out radio signals. These signals are received by a computer that analyzes and converts them into a two-dimensional (2D) image of the body structure or organ being examined.

All I know is that last evening after the scan… there was the re-living the whole MRI, banging sounds included. Like someone who re-lives a trauma–like an auto accident or a similar disturbing event. I was surprised by the flashbacks of the whole thing; truly. After a bit of momentary disorientation on the table just after coming out, then I thought, “Okay, Done deal. It’s over. Moving right along with my life now….”

Yet, the residual feeling experienced as the day wore on was one that would be expected if someone had grabbed me by the shoulders and shook the heck outa’ me. I distracted myself with TV and then reading. I had some trouble pulling my energy together for any kind of quality meditation and felt too wiped out to do any yoga.

I found myself snacking late into the night in a misguided way to restore order. That’s my old pattern! The first sign of a problem, find something to eat. Fell right into that one.

This morning I still feel somewhat shaken–similar to the feeling of when first set free from the MRI coffin-like machine. Oh, was I glad to be let out of there!

Alright. Facts. My body has been bending, lifting, turning and twisting for 70 years now. Nothing lasts forever. Impermanence: a fact of life. Degeneration of the cervical spine can cause radiating pain, numbness, weakness in shoulders, arm, and hand –my symptoms exactly. Nothing lasts forever, especially the human body. Decades of bending, lifting, turning, and twisting can really take their toll on your neck and in my case cause radiating numbness in shoulders, arm and hand… mostly at night when sleeping, go figure.

How about the MRI’s benefits? Well, I got to see the photo images which were given to me on a CD before leaving the hospital outpatient facility. Uploaded it to my computer to view when I got home and with my minimally medically trained eyes, do see some degeneration of the vertebrae and some disc herniating toward the spinal cord. Yet, just what the radiologist will make of the images and what the recommendation, if any, will be handed out, is unclear to me still at this time. My general intuitive impression is not much can be done and maybe a cervical pillow and new mattress could help too as the symptoms show up when sleeping.

Nighttime numbness (and a bit of pain) increases just as the upper body strength training that I’ve been doing increases the strength in the shoulders and arms. It’s a rock and hard place kind of scenario.

All in all, feeling shook up for a little while (this too shall pass) is probably a small price to pay in order to know a few things about my body. Speaking of shook up, what brought this all to a head (pun intended) was a recent freakish wind event that caused an object to hit me on the side of the head. Resulting vertigo (another blast from the past so-to-speak) which could have come from an inner ear issue. Or from something in the neck which is what I hope the MRI will clarify. Oh, what a tangled web!

My greatest celebratory moments today will be knowing that I can swallow as much as desired. THAT was difficult to NOT DO except between each of the long scans of the MRI. Really? Yeah, the guy said, don’t breathe too deeply. Okay, got that, no problem. Then said, don’t swallow until you hear the MRI banging stop. Huh? Crazy! I did my best.

No more MRI magnet banging issues and go ahead… swallow anytime and all you want, Joy!

Those last words… my happy thoughts for today.

PS — My habit is to write things out of my system. Blogs are so useful for that purpose. This post has been therapy in that way. I also wrote it for others who may feel a bit weird after an MRI to know they’re not alone. I did have those side effects from my MRI and if I did, others who are tuned into their body and vibes, in general, are likely to as well.