Gallbladder Problems Anyone?

[Miss Kelly]

If so, what were your symptoms? How were you diagnosed? Did you have to have surgery? Do you still suffer? Thanks!

 

[Pop Daddy]

running nose and and watery eyes , no waite that was a cold

 

[Cruisin]

My main symptom was pain in my back between my shoulder blades.

I don't remember exactly how they made the diagnosis, that was about 10 years ago now. I know I had a number of tests done.

Yes I had surgery, laproscopic surgery. The very first one done on the brand new equipment in our local hospital.

Sometimes I will get pains and I will think, that feels like when I had gallbladder problems but it doesn't happen very often.

 

[SeaSpray]

I had very bad pains on my right side, they went towards my back, but also up under my ribs. I had a feeling of bloatingness, and nausea, too. I'd have to curl up into a ball while on my knees, and that was the only position that I could tolerate. (Twice I had attacks in the middle of the night that woke me up, and I didn't realize they were gallbladder attacks, so I didn't wake up DH to take me to the hospital). I eventually told my doctor about the symptoms and he sent me for an ultrasound which showed the gall stones, and then I was scheduled for surgery. I also had the laparoscopic surgery and came home the next afternoon. I know a lot of people go home the same day but my surgery was in the afternoon so the doctor said I could stay overnight and I was glad I did because we had a waterbed at the time and no way I could've gotten in and out of bed. lol A week later the sutures came out and I felt great

P.S. I also will still get some pains which feel very similar to the gallbladder attacks, but not too often and they go away rather quickly.

 

[Pooh67_68]

My sister also had major pain in her back between her shoulder blades, than one night she thought she was having a heart attack. Went to the doctors the next day and was immediately sent for test, she had so many stones they were affraid her gallbladder would burst.(luckily it didn't) She had sugery the following week.

 

[Miss Kelly]

Well I seem to be having pain in some different areas than all of you. My pain is mainly in the lower right abdomen. I will hurt under my breast bone and some in my back too. I get pretty sick first thing in the mornings and after I eat. It seems to lessen after an hour or so. Funny thing is, intially food helps relieve the pain and then after I finish eating, I get sick because of the food I just ate. I've cut out all greasy foods and it has helped but not enough.

At first they thought I had a cyst on my ovary but after an ultrasound, that turned out to be the wrong diagnosis. I am so sick of doctors and tests so I haven't been back yet but I'm going to have to go back soon. Whatever this is is interupting my daily life. I can't seen to concentrate or make concrete plans to do anything. I just have to "wait and see" how I feel every morning.

Thanks anyhow for the responses. I just needed to vent.

 

[Pooh67_68]

I just did a quick search on www.webmd.com for pain lower right abdomen and it said Appendicitis. Get to the doctor soon because if it is appendicitis your appendix could burst and that will posion your system.
Go to webmd and do the search read the small article on appendicitis and at the very bottom is a link for other conditions with the same symptoms.

 

[Miss Kelly]

I just did a quick search on www.webmd.com for pain lower right abdomen and it said Appendicitis. Get to the doctor soon because if it is appendicitis your appendix could burst and that will posion your system.

Well I asked the doctor about that and she didn't seem concerned.

Mom thinks I am having mirrored pain?!?! She's obviously got me thinking its my gallbladder.

 

[KLAIT]

Miss Kelly-

Those were close to the symptoms that I had with my gall blader....when I was first diagnosed I had the same symptoms as you just explained..plus I had a pain in the left shoulder/chest...went to the hospital 2x telling them I was having a heart attack....when I was diagnosed with those symptoms, I had what they called "sludge" - not stones yet....as time went on, it developed into stones and then the pain got different...

I also had laproscopic surgery and went home about an hour after I woke up....I still have problems with it.

I was told the tell tale home test for this is to eat and drink clear liquids only for about 3-5 days....jello, juice, broth, water.ect..

Low and behold...I did it and felt better and I knew it was time for the surgery.

 

[Miss Kelly]

KLAIT, Thank you! I may try that this week to see how it goes. Is it just liquids period or could I have flavored jello and pineapple juice for example? Thanks again!

 

[cassie]

My gallbladder pain was under the right breast and around the back between the shoulder blades. The pain became so severe, there was not much I could eat that would not bring on an attack. I had my operation in the 70's when they cut a long incision from lower abdomen up towards the chest. They grabbed my appendix on the way. It was a 10 day hospital stay and very painful. No problems since. Boy, I wish they had the laparoscopic surgery then.

Have you been checked for gallbladder, ulcer or reflux?

 

[phillybeth]

I had been having attacks for years and just didn't know it. I would get gassy and bloated and have really bad stomach cramps. I would take a few gas-x and the pain would be gone in 2 hours. Then one afternoon I was at an off-site conference for work (thankfully still in the area though). I started feeling bloated and took a gas-x. Then I felt like I was going to vomit so I went to the ladies' room. I started getting the chills, cold sweats, and this sharp pain that started right under my breastbone but eventually took in my whole rib cage. I was rolling around on the floor of the ladies room in agony, finally someone came in and they called 9-11. I truly thought I was having a heart attack. I was in so much pain I don't even remember them cutting my clothes off in the ER. They couldn't give me anything for the pain until they figured out what it was, fortunately I had my appendix out the year before so we knew it wasn't that. When they told me I had gallstones I could have cried I was so happy.
For me the pain with the gallbladder was totally different than the appendix. My pain with appendicitis started down low, almost like menstrual cramps but they didn't go away and they started getting worse, then they moved to midway between my belly button and left hip.

 

[KLAIT]

Miss kelly-

I was able to have anything that was a "clear" liquid. I lived on jello---both warm and cold set, plain chicken broth and water..pretty much it...but, it was easier than I thought becuase I was scared and I wanted to know if it was it.

There are so many things that can set off a gallbladder attack that if they cut out anything...caffeine, fat, spices, seed...pretty much anything that had to be disgested they were pretty sure and it was confirmed with the ultrasound.

Like I said, the pain was very different in the time when it was clearly "sludge" and the time it was actual stones....the stone felt much like everyone posted the symptoms as...that is why it was harder to diagnose because it wasn't the classic symptoms that you would see with gallstones.

The good news is that if it is, at least you know what it is and that it is nothing extremely serious as a heart attack or something and the surgery is no sweat, but the bad news that that I felt great for about 3 months after I had it removed, then started to not feel great again. Not nearly as bad as before I had it removed, but still not great at times. It is actally funny...I go in and ask the Dr if he is sure the surgeon removed the gallbladder...I gues I expected to feel completely normal again and from what I understand it may not happen like that...I even had the Dr show me the second untra-sound they did when I went in with the symptoms after it was removed...he showed me the clip that was in there that they use to clamp the duct when they took out the gallbladder.

Good luck on giving this the liquid test...If it is a gallbladder, you will be surprised how quick and how much better you feel with only these foods.

Good luck

 

[Deb & Bill]

Originally posted by cassie
My gallbladder pain was under the right breast and around the back between the shoulder blades. The pain became so severe, there was not much I could eat that would not bring on an attack. I had my operation in the 70's when they cut a long incision from lower abdomen up towards the chest. They grabbed my appendix on the way. It was a 10 day hospital stay and very painful. No problems since. Boy, I wish they had the laparoscopic surgery then.

Have you been checked for gallbladder, ulcer or reflux?

I had the same operation, but I only stayed in the hospital for about 4 days. Then at home for another week. I had mine done in the late 80's.

My pain was bloating and stomach pain. I couldn't lay down at night to sleep I would be so uncomfortable. I had to sleep sitting up.

 

[Alice28]

I had that chest pain; felt like I could not breath. I only felt comfortable laying down or in the bath tub. Then my urine turned orange and that's when I went to the E/R. The doctor had trouble diagnosing me at first (said I was the most unusual gall bladder presentation he had ever seen), until he pressed on the gall bladder area and I just about jumped out of my skin. I had an ultrasound which showed stones in the gall bladder and one stuck in a duct going to my liver (hence the orange urine). So I had a surgery where I was in the twilight sleep where they stuck a tube down my throat and go the one out of the duct. The next day I had the
laproscopic surgery and went home about 2 hours after it was over. I slept the rest of the day and a lot of the next day. Then I was up and about a littel bit more each day after that and back at work two weeks later.

 

[Miss Kelly]

Thanks for the responses everyone.

 

[momof2inPA]

I believe when my sister had gallbladder problems, she had discolored poo. Just thought I would mention it since it has not come up. (She would be thrilled to know that 50k people are reading about her bodily functions.)

 

[Miss Kelly]

I believe when my sister had gallbladder problems, she had discolored poo. Just thought I would mention it since it has not come up.

Well that's definately not a problem here. Thanks!

She would be thrilled to know that 50k people are reading about her bodily functions.

WHERE AND HOW DO YOU HURT WITH YOUR APPENDIX?

 

[Planogirl]

I had a sharp constant pain on my lower right side. DH took me to the ER since it was a Saturday and they discovered that my gall bladder was completely stuffed with gallstones and my appendix was fine. My stomach had been bothering me for a long time particularly when I ate fatty foods.

I had the surgery done that weekend and now have no problems unless I overindulge in fatty foods.

Interesting how many people have back pain.

 

[hockeymom7691]

I just had my gall bladder out about two months ago.

The first time I had an attack it hurt from my stomach up to my chest along with sweats/chills. I ended up in the emergency room and they said that gall bladder symptons sometimes are the same as heart attach symptons. They had me on a heart monitor along with keeping an eye on my blood pressure, etc. They didn't bother doing a sonogram at that time but the very next day I called my doctor who sent me for one right away.

Turns out I did have gallstones and they did the surgery. No pain since but I also have to watch the fatty foods!