My 10 year old needs to have a MRI. She hates being in closed spaces and I am nervous she is going to freak out during the procedure. Has anyone else had to take their child to have this type of test done? How did they handle it? What did you tell them before the test? The doctor said it should only take 10 or 15 minutes. Thanks!
My 6 yr old daughter had one this past year. The hospital she went to offered a type of hypnosis for kids - I think they called it "guided imagery" or something like that. It worked for her, otherwise (especially at age 10), I would give her a sedative......
And you have to not let on that YOU are nervous.
Our son had one when he was 13 last year and he was sedated for it through an IV. He has autism, adhd and anxiety. I believe they gave him Versed (sp?) to relax him enough to give him an IV. It took about an hour or so from when they first sedated him til he was in recovery. Recovery was another hour. We took him to Childrens Hospital in Pittsburgh, PA. Are you taking your daughter to a Childrens Hospital in your area? That's probably your best bet since all they do is work with kids day in and day out.
I hope it goes well!
I had a closed MRI and as an adult it was hard to not freak out and move. I didn't realize it but for adults most people I now have talked to recommend taking some sort of tranq./antianxiety pill. For an adult, I would recommend taking a pill. The MRI is not just very loud (neither loud noise nor enclosed spaces bother me) but there's vibrations with the loud bangs and weird noises. The noise is not the same sound continuosly but a lot of different bangs, hammering then buzzing noises at different decibel levels with various levels of vibrations.
I hope the descriptions helps. I knew it would be loud but didn't realize that there would be a quiet hum and buzz to then extremely loud bangs and vibrations for 45 minutes.
My son was sedated..... just a little, and slept through the whole thing. He had two MRI's. Once when a baby, and once a tad younger than your child.
I would go out of my way to get an open MRI or have her sedated.
I had an open MRI and it was hard enough to be so still. I hate closed in spaces and the open was still not great with all the beeping, noises and movement of the machine.
She'll think it is cool and be impressed by the technology! The techs take such perfect care to make you comfrotable-that it is actually kind of relaxing-good luck!
It is the scariest test I have ever had to live through and the worst monites of my life. I have to take a Valium before I go in the room to get it done and only if it is absolutely necessary.
I don't even like the open ones unless I have some Valium in me.
If she is truly claustrophobic then by all means ask the doc for a sedative.
Some places I have had them done will let you bring in a favorite cd and they give you headphones so you can listen to that while it is being done. Several of my students have had MRI's and they are usually given an mild sedative. I think my mom would have to be out cold to get in the MRI machine. I'm sure if you call the doctor or the place where she is having the test they will have some suggestions. There are a lot of people who hate being in tight spaces, so it won't be an unusual question for them.
Good luck with the test and the results!
If she does not like closed spaces, trust me she will not like this at all.
I need drugs to go in there. I have never heard of an MRI taking 10
minutes. They can give her something, just a very mild sedative just to take
the edge off, and then if they put earphones on with music and she closes
her eyes she might get thru. Open is not an option?
i was 10 when i had my first MRI, and it took nearly an hour if i remember right, so 10-15 minutes doesn't sound too bad. if your daughter is fairly mature, just talk to her about it. let her know that it doesn't hurt, it's open on both ends, and if she closes her eyes she can imagine she's somewhere else - warn her in advance that there will be some loudish knocking sounds, so that she doesn't panic when it happens. most of all, just reassure her that it will be over quickly and that she'll be fine. good luck!
Make sure they explain about the noises she will hear. They may be able to pipe in her favorite music. A good tech will talk to her throughout. Most importantly, tell her to close her eyes before she goes in and keep them closed. I am very claustrophobic and that has worked for me through several very long MRIs.
My daughter had to be sedated. The idea of having to stay completely still for that long wasn't an option and I wanted them to get what they needed to get, the first time.
I would call ahead and let them know about her not doing well in enclosed spaces. I agree that the sound is tremendous, but maybe they could first let her see it and hear it..
They also speak to you through out it at some points, so maybe that would also help her.
I am not claustrophobic at all, so the only thing that surprised me was the sound.
