Ella's Brain Gets Magnetic Resonance Imaging

We're happy to be done with the MRI and on to better things! Ella did really well with the whole thing. Her stranger anxiety was at a minimum, the nurses and doctor were phenomenal, Daddy was a rock, and Mommy held herself together, all things considered.

When we got to the hospital, we were running a few minutes late so we opted to valet park - which ended up being quite handy and only cost $4. Once we were all checked in, with our security passes, we were off to radiology for the big event.

While waiting, Ella met a nice little girl in the waiting room who shared a coloring sheet with Ella. But, there was no time for coloring because we were off to our room. We were placed in our own little room that had lots of books and even a tv if Ella wanted to watch videos. Our nurses were so friendly, even Ella let them do their work. It helped that they distracted her with bubbles and let her touch their instruments. They decided to put the IV in her foot, so they put numbing cream on both of her feet, then left it for 15 minutes to work completely. While we were waiting for the numbing, another tech came in with two different wands to see if Ella had any metal in her. We passed that test, since Ella hasn't been involved in any shrapnel incidents lately. It also alleviated any fears that she'd eaten any paperclips or coins in the near past.

After 15 minutes or so, the nurses were back to insert the IV. Ella was swaddled up like a baby, with Chewy sticking out of her mouth. Mommy and Daddy were on either side of her head talking to her and soothing her. She still screamed like a maniac, but once the needle was in, she calmed down. She was mostly mad at being held down, and was probably a little ticked off that my tears kept falling in her face! They wrapped her foot up in a little towel cast so she couldn't pick at the IV and then we waited for the doctor. We could hear the MRI going in another room, so we knew it was almost Ella's turn when the machine stopped clicking away.

Ella's doctor was very friendly and talked us through everything. Ella was a little stubborn about letting the doctor see inside her mouth, but eventually relented. Then it was time for the sedation. Loran opted to keep Ella on his lap. They warned us about how it would take hold of her quickly. She wouldn't get drowsy, she'd just pass out and go limp. They gave her the Propofol and we just stared at her - then about ten seconds later, out. She just went limp in Loran's arms. They quickly took her from him so they could get her onto the bed and hooked up to the monitors. That was when I lost it. Seeing her completely limp and seemingly lifeless was so difficult. I watched her go through the doors and into the MRI room. We had a half hour to kill so we went to the cafeteria. We both enjoyed a bagel, and it was nice to get out of the radiology area for awhile. We made our way back and met the nurse in the hall who had just wheeled Ella into the room and was leaving to get her a warm blanket. Perfect timing. Ella's nurse returned with the blanket and covered her, meanwhile, we could tell Ella was rooting around for Chewy, as she took the corner of the blanket and tried to suck on it like a Chewy ear. We gave her Chewy and she was a happy, drugged, camper.

Ella was still hooked to monitors, but her medicine had just been turned off a few minutes earlier. Ella was starting to thrash around a little, the nurse thought she'd sleep for about 15 minutes and then start waking up. Nope. Little Ella was ready to be up! She wiggled and squirmed and was just all around hilarious. It was like a regular waking Ella, except she couldn't get her eyes open. Eventually, she looked over at Loran and started to giggle. It was pretty cute. The nurse kept checking on her and was so surprised how quickly Ella was coming out of the sedation. She was so wiggly, they asked if I wanted to hold her. So wiggle puppy sat on my lap and we read a book. Within minutes, she was sitting up and turning the pages, chatting away.

The nurse gave us the okay to give her some milk - which she wolfed down - since it was two hours after Ella's non-existent breakfast. They also brought her some Teddy Grams which she got a kick out of. We were discharged 10 minutes ahead of schedule due to Ella's stellar performance.

We were sent home with a CD of images for the neurologist. Within 3 minutes of being home, Loran had them up on our computer. I don't see any problems - looks perfect to me (given all of my training!). Ella ate a huge lunch and took a nap a little later than usual, but did sleep. That was good for me because I needed a nap too in hopes of ditching the headache I've had since being at the hospital. No luck, and I seem to be out of Tylenol. Bummer. TONS of Ibuprofen - the forbidden drug of pregnancy.

Ella's doctor will call with the results tomorrow and we'll meet with the neurologist in August. Glad to have this behind us, but the staff at Children's is just amazing! It takes a really special person to be a nurse at a children's hospital - angels, all of them!

These are two of the many views we have, but I think it showcases Ella's brain perfectly...

All arms and legs.