Thanks for all your advice!
I'll do my best.

I did try and find an open mri, but I can't find any listed anywhere in Australia (where I am). And I'm in the public hospital system, so don't think I'd really get a say.

I'm thinking I should try the blindfold thing too, so thanks for that.

The place where I'll have my MRI I also had a CAT scan and even that freaked me out. Mostly as the doctor said it would be 3 minutes or something, so i counted, and I was actually lying there for ten minutes (I confirmed this afterwards incase I was speed counting!). I'm not sure if the machine was on the whole time (I'm sure it wasn't if that's not safe), but apparently they had to go and get someone else to have a look at my results so they just left me there. Maybe incase they needed to do one with contrast or something.

But I was terrified! I irrationally imagined everyone had gone and I'd been left in this room by myself until the radiation melted my brain!

I'm afraid i'll get in the MRI and that's what will freak me out (even though I know it's not using radiation), that I've been left alone. I'll make sure I tell them my specific fears so they know to keep talking to me when they can.

I opened my eyes once in the CAT scan and felt claustrophobic, I'm not even sure if your head goes in anything or not for that as they weren't open long enough! But that experience has kind of added to my paranoia.

Thanks again everyone! I'll make sure to read over all of your responses again and take action to create an environment in which I'll be as calm as is possible. I just wish the tube was big enough i could bring a friend in with me!

Luna, there is another thing you can try, it's a tip I picked up from Sylvia Browne, the psychic. It works for every health or stress issue, anyone who reads this should try it.

Create yourself a room in your mind. She suggests something like a dining room or den, with paneling and huge windows, maybe a pond or lake out the window. Put a big heavy table in the center. Give it huge sturdy legs. That's for strength to hold you in your weaknesses.

Now decorate and color it! I mean go all out, make it the room of your dreams, your perfect place to escape from the world. Green is the color for health, and add blue, yellow and purple too. They each signify other aids such as peace, but I forget which is what. I just know it helps me a lot.

Now, lie down on the table in the center of the room and relax. Use your mind to look around the room, don't get up or look around. Take a peek out the window and feel the cool breeze coming across the lake. Hear the birds, smell the trees and freshly cut grass. Relax and breathe. Ask God or Mother Nature or Allah, whoever you believe in to take away your problems. Be specific, such as "the fear I feel being in this machine" or " the pain I am feeling in my legs". You can ask for more than one thing, but it's better to focus on something, deal with it completely, and then move on.

I know this sounds goofy, lol. I have tried all sorts of other relaxation methods, including yoga and meditation, tapes, all of it. This "room of health and peace" is the only that works for me. If it works for even one more person, then "I done good"

I AM NOT LYING!

When I first had my very first MRI, I didn't know what
it was, the Doctor simply said it was a special X-Ray
Machine. And I thought, well OK. So I went in, I was
MORTIFIED to see this, what looked like "Star Trek
Space Tube" ~ since this was a long, long time ago
(I've had a lot of MRI's performed since) - these Techs
were well trained in dealing with patients fears.

So they got this guy out and 2 girls and I can remember
because they had me laughing so hard and it went some
thing like this (All the girls were doing were holding signs
behind him and then making circles behind their ears (you
know like - he's crazy)...)

GUY: I'm gonna put you in this tube and it's gonna suck
you in and I got this bull whip (he's holding it) here to beat
this machine to get you out when we're done

GIRL: (Holding sign) HE'S LYING

OTHER GIRL: (circling her ear and shaking her head)

GUY: This machine is gonna suck all the life out of you
and a whole bunch of aliens are going to enter inside of
you.

GIRL: (Holding another sign) HE'S NUTS

OTHER GIRL: (Holding another sign) HE SHOULDN'T BE
WORKING HERE

(I forget what all was said)

But they had me laughing so hard - I don't know who
I was laughing at - HIM or the GIRLS.

But I could tell they've used these signs a lot as it
was pretty worn. But they did tell me it would make
noises and asked me what music I liked to listen to.

And after my first MRI, it wasn't bad at all, in fact,
they even let me see some of the pictures and I
thought it was cool!



I wonder if they required these MRI Techs to take
DRAMA? Because they were very good at it!

I never did become fearful of MRI Machines since,
because of them. ALIENS? LOL!

Where are you in Australia?

There are quite a few open MRI's in the country. I live in Wagga Wagga and there is one there.