thoughts on getting an MRI

I had my MRI on Thursday (for those who are wondering, I've had a lot of pain in my ankle for the last month, and a growth of sorts on the side of my right ankle - it's soft and tissuey, yet restricts my range of motion) and I'm pretty sure the experience lacked any traceable element of fun.

I enjoyed a sense of peace and time to chat with the Lord about things to come in the new year and whatnot. I'm quite excited to see what God had instore in all aspects of my life. This was the only good part.

However, like I mentioned in the first sentence, not only was this experience lacking fun, but it was quite unpleasant as well. The man doing the MRI had little personality, and seemed like he was rushed (or was it just slow?? -- I waited in the waiting room with NO other living being for close to 45 minutes and read magazines.) Once I got into the actual MRI place, there was a giant tube looking thing. He stuck some yellow dot to my ankle and then locked my foot into some gaget that was supposed to help them take pictures inside the MRI. I didn't realize an MRI took pictures, so that was fairly interesting.

As soon as I laid my head down, he pushed me in the tube and told me, "Okay I'm going to take some pictures...hopefully that will work...but if not, and the doctor may have me inject some dye in your arm."

So imagine me, laying on some strange table, halfway in a giant tube with my foot strapped down in some big magnetic contraption, looking up at some man who has just suggested shoving a needle in my arm and injecting dye. I was not okay with this idea. Three thoughts when he said this:
1) Who is this "doctor"??
2) Why would he want to inject dye in a place very far away from my ankle- in my arm?
3) Is this really necessary?

To make things even better --- my foot went numb after the first 5-10 minutes of laying in the tube and every few minutes the numbness would travel a little further up my leg until most of the right side of my body was tingly and/or numb. Yeeh...what an 'amazing' experience. It was extremely uncomfortable.

Let's just say when I finally got out of the tube thing 40-50 minutes later, I was quite cranky and it made me mad that I was cranky. I hate being cranky. I also hate when my legs go numb. There was a bit of humor tied to this, I was so anxious to get out of the tube/table thing that I hit my foot a few times, jumped off and speed-walked into the changing room. Then I grabbed my sneakers and it hit me, my whole right leg was giving way, tingly and all...oh fun...wouldn't it have been lovely to jump off the table and fall because my leg was all the way asleep??? I am quite surprised that I even made it to the changing room without realizing my leg was asleep - I suppose it's a good example of *mind over matter*. I was cranky and didn't want to take it out on the poor MRI guy with no personality, so I hurriedly fled the scene - and overcame the physical restraint of a sleeping leg. (Thankfully, they never injected me with dye).