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Oh I think I am gonna dine out on this story for a while. I had this moment today...a moment that blew my mind away as an RN and a patient. I had a CT scan scheduled for today...and as a patient I innocently thought it was just.."Go in, get an IV, lay on the CT table, they inject IV contrast, CT scan done". It was only when I was braless in a patient gown awaiting my scan that someone thought to mention that there was another huge step required. That I would be guzzling 4 ginormous cups of a foul diarrhea inducing oral contrast solution masquerading as some sort of strawberry drink. What I thought would be just 20 minutes of my meditating through a medical test turned into 2 hours of me bargaining with my guts "Hold firm soldiers....don't let those contents out until we are in a private bathroom" I lay on the CT table looking at a reflection of myself on the ceiling repeating to myself "Don't Shit Yourself Musa! Don't You Dare"....and then as if that wasn't bad enough, I forgot that the injection of IV contrast feels like a wave of heat surging through your body...one that comes to rest in your crotchal region. So now not only am I commanding myself not to defecate myself, I'm reminding myself that feeling that someone just set my groin on fire...that will pass..."And No...It just feels like you peed yourself but you haven't". And it didn't end there. I was lucky my husband drove me to and from the hospital...because I needed to hit up 4 different bathrooms before we got home! So this is my public service announcement as an RN. If you are ever getting a CT enterography...IV contrast will make you feel like you either peed yourself or set your crotch alight...be sure to be prepared to feel like you are going to shit yourself (bring a change of clothes just in case)...and plan a route home that will allow you access to bathrooms(very important)....and since you will be drinking lots of water for the 12 hours after to flush out contrast material...be prepared to spend the rest of the day with your butt plastered to the toilet...get a good book, or Netflix and just settle in.
