My EHS and MRI expereince

Last week I had to have an MRI on my rather dodgy knee. I knew it was something that was needed but I had been putting off for such a long time because after having had one years ago I knew that it might wipe me out for a day afterwards.

After waiting for over half an hour in a build that is definitely not conducive to those who are electrically sensitive, I was finally called in. I explained to the technician that I don’t do well with high level EMR exposure and will try mu best to get through it however, if it became too much, I would let her know. Interestingly the technician said she had never heard of such a thing, so I felt it was a good opportunity to educate her a little on the subject.

MRI or magnetic resonance imaging uses a combination of alternating and very intense magnetic fields and radio waves to interact and take information from the hydrogen nucleus which is why it id great for soft tissue. In addition, it can use peripheral nerve stimulation, where the nerves, mainly in the extremities are stimulated and excited creating what can be a very intense twitching and needling feeling.

Having experienced strong reactions to body scanners and X rays which while often leaving me with a headache and fatigue, the MRI was a slow process taking around 15 minutes. Although my head was not inside the machine, as would be done with brain scanning for example, it felt as though it was in a vice, with the pressure increasing throughout the experience. My body was twitching, and my stress levels began to rise. About 10 minutes into the scan, I could feel tightness in my chest and started to feel chest pain. I was in two minds as to continue, knowing I didn’t have left or whether to abort. I just tried to breathe through it.

When it finally finished, I couldn’t get out of there quick enough. Every part of me just needed to be outside and away from anything electrical. Putting on my clothes I felt very unstable and the pressure in my head continued to increase.

Upon walking outside, I could feel my whole body start to relax a bit. I took my shoes off and walked to the small park opposite where I just stood and tried to ground myself knowing I needed to drive home. By the time I got home I felt as though I had been hit by a bus. I was completely exhausted and could not tolerate light.

When I have experienced such exposures in the past, I generally try to get my body into water, preferable the beach but that wasn’t going to happen and so I ran myself a bath and filled it with Epson salts and magnesium chloride and just allowed my body to destress. Water can be incredibly healing when the body needs to find its electrical homeostasis. I didn’t get out for a good 45 minutes and when I did, I went back out and grounded myself on the back lawn.

Feeling much better but still exhausted and unable to look at any screens, I used only amber lighting inside the house and allowed myself to rest. One of the biggest advantages I have when it comes to allowing my body to recover is that both my home and workspace have minimal exposure to all parameters of electropollution, meaning that I have spaces where my body can easily rest.

Having experienced such a strong reaction, I started really thinking about its use and the fact that and MRI brain scan is often suggested as a way to test for EHS! Surely there is a better way to diagnose EHS, such as listening to the patient, removing sources, and seeing how the body responds. With often delayed responses to the EMR stimulus, as in the fatigue is often notices long after the exposure once the stress response has reduced, we have a large subset of society who are sadly unaware of their sensitivity and many medical practitioners who lack education on the subject. Unfortunately, there is no pharmaceutical to counteract the impact of electropollution on the body. It takes time, education and understanding. Knowing your body, your tolerance (and for some this may mean avoidance) and having safe places to allow the body to rest after an exposure is key.

As our ambient exposure to electropollution continues to climb exponentially, so does our need to reduce exposures where we can.