BIG surprise!

Last Friday's MRI went well, and was weathered well. Once we finally...

Finally!

...got them to do the test my doctor asked for, rather than the (completely useless) test the insurance company imagined they'd like to pay for or the where-did-THAT-idea-come-from test the MRI place had originally thought for whatever reason was The One To Do, they finally decided to do just the test my doctor actually asked for.

I got a chance to briefly! see my skull MRI. Eh, a few more sprinkles of scleroses here and there, but hardly a "Sunday in the Park With George" pointillistic extravaganza. Besides, I already knew I still had M.S. Whatever it was gonna show, it was no news.

But here is the big surprise. BIG surprise...

They took one scan of "stuff" without the contrast medium, then they shot me up with whatever it was they were using and took the second one. The contrast stuff is what makes the scleroses "light up," it's what makes M.S. so much easier to diagnose nowadays.

While they were doing the "no-contrast scans," my legs were spasming quite a bit. The folks at the console asked me not to move my legs; I told them I was trying not to--and I was trying very hard not to, but that wasn't doing any good. My legs were twitching, verging on nastily twitching, and at least one of them was starting to ache while it was twitching. The lab techs actually laid gentle/soft weights on my legs to try to ameliorate the effects of the twitching, and that kinda worked, but not really.

Then, they shot me up with the IV contrast medium. Last time, it was gadolinium, but I didn't get the "gadolinium buzz" so I guess things have changed.

But here's the surprise.

My leg spasms stopped. Completely.

My leg aches went away. Completely.

I am 100% positive that there was no analgesic, muscle relaxant, anything, besides the contrast medium. I had no change in consciousness, I was able to converse and even drive completely unencumbered in any way by the injection. It was nothing but "inert" contrast medium.

And it made my leg spasms, and aches, stop. Completely. And as of last night, two nights after the MRI, the leg spasms mayyyyybeeee might be kinda vaguely hinting towards starting up again at night (which is when they're worse), but they haven't CLICK! returned. They're still far less than they've been in a long time.

I am so calling the place on Monday, and (politely) demanding that they give me the precise name, if not contents, of the contrast medium. Because my care-giving team is gonna be very interested in what it was, and how it did what it did.

Friends, I gotta tell you, that was the number one best side effect ever!

We should all be so lucky. And me, I should be so lucky way more often.

If I get a clear answer besides "WTF? It did what?!?" You can dang betcha that I'll share it, certainly under the very thick proviso "Your mileage may vary." I'll be surprised if it turns out to be anything besides "Well, we had no idea that would happen, but cool!" But I will definitely share what the Medico's say about it.