Hi All-
Well, I have absolutely no idea what happened to the message I carefully crafted last night in my valium-induced haze, but I blame the valium!
Anywho ... I've got nothing in my brain!!!
Arrived at NYU a little early, got checked in at the MRI unit in the basement, popped my valium (Phyl, I'm pretty sure it was 5 mg - I asked for the biggest dose they could give me!) and then bravely walked into the lair of the beast. With Willie holding my feet (prepared to snatch me out at the slightest provocation) I entered the "spirit-sucking tunnel of death." 30 minutes later, all done. Waited about 5 minutes while they burned a CD for me, then made our way to Dr. Golfinos' office, also in the NYU complex.
Dr. G was able to just pull the film up on the NYU intra-net system, which made this very efficient indeed. He showed us where the fat was (yep, it is still there, and there it will remain) and the black spot where Ethel used to reside. He said that the nubs they left behind would be too small to show up on film. He was very pleased with his handiwork - and so are we. Chatted a bit about my ongoing bouts of head pain - he had no explanation, just suggested paitence. He said that a fair amount of trauma to the nerves around the base of my skull is normal, and I probably have a little bit of muscular trauma too which explains the pain down my neck.
While there, I made my one-year appointment for the next MRI - April 28, 2009. The first of many, I am sure.
I have tried, so far without success, to get a copy of one of the views from my CD. I will take another stab at it later, with the hope that I can figure it out and then post a picture of the film here.
Thanks, everyone, for your support - you guys all rock!
Debbi