Pain involved with gallstones?

Question

Just wondering if anyone who has had gallstones or has had a loved one who has had gallstones can tell me the types of symptoms that usually come with them. Someone very close to me has just recently been diagnosed with gallstones and I am worried about her. Are the symptoms so bad as to cause inability to socialize or to live your daily life? She has been prescribed vicodin, but not sure how much that will help. Can anyone share their experiences on how much gallstones have affected them or their loved ones? Thank you.

Does the pain usuallly occur in attacks or is it continuous?

Answer 1

I do not have gallstones, my gall bladder spasms. This causes very similar symptoms.

Everyone in my father's family has had gallstones, though, so I am well versed.

Can it debilitate you? Absolutely. When I have an attack, I have yet to find anything that will help.

There is a terrible pressure pain in my right shoulder and sometimes radiates into my chest and other shoulder. This pain usually extends down my back and under my ribcage. It is an indescribable pain, one where you just have to stop what you are doing and ride it out.

Some things that I have found aggrivate it:

soda
sugar/sugary foods
alcohol
high fat foods
high salt foods

Some things that I find help:

Fresh fruit and veggies (broccoli sometimes aggrivates - be careful)
adequate rest and sleep
regular exercise
Sometimes antacids help some, take the edge off. Liquid is best.

The pain is horrible, gives me a headache and can even cause shortness or breath and nausea. The symptoms are sometimes very similar to those of a heart attack and you do feel like you are dying during some attacks.

I am getting a hysterectomy for endometriosis in a month or so and I am going to request that my gall bladder be removed at the same time. It is debilitating, stress makes it worse and it definitely interferes with your social life.

It is miserable It can come up with no warning and literally floor you.

Answer 2

I had 2 gallstones combined they were the size of a golf ball. I saw the picture after my doctor took out my gallbladder.

I had the stones for several years and never knew it. The doctors thought I had acid reflux. I would get this burning pain in my stomach, I lost alot of weight because I would hardly eat. It stopped for a while but then started up again about a year and a half later.

Then last year I started getting nausea and the burning again. I had nausea everyday for like a month before I finally went back to the doctor. They looked into my stomach and found nothing, then when they did an ultrasound they said I had stones. Well, I had 2 and they were pretty big.

They took everything out, I think the worse pain came after they took out my stones. I didn't do well with the anesthetic medicine they gave me to put me to sleep. I was on morphine for like 3 days because of the intolerable pain but I'm perfect now.

It never affected my loved ones, they were helpfull and made sure I was ok before and after the surgery. I didn't have any inability to socialize or live for day to day. I guess it just depends on the person.

Tell your loved one to be carefull with Vicodin, it's addictive and it will constipate you like crazy. They need to take her or his gall bladder out, you can live without it. It's just a storage unit for extra gall bladder fluid.

Answer 3

Go to www.myspace.com and type "gallstones" in the bar at the top; there are many links. Also the Wikipedia and Google websites: Yahoo may have, as well. Hope this helps. Get a second medical opinion about having them broken up and removed the modern way. Some sufferers recommend a change of diet.

Answer 4

Get Rid of Gallstones in as Little

Answer 5

I had gallstones. Over a period of 7 years I had ultrasounds many times because of pain in my right side, before they finally diagnosed them. One night we purchased donuts at a local bakery. We went home and I ate a couple of them in the course of the evening. I had pain come on very suddenly. It was so bad that it doubled me over and I was hanging over the back of our couch. I couldn't hardly draw a breath in. I had severe pain in my right shoulder as well. (The pain reflects) I refused to go to the hospital because I don't like them. The next day I was sent by my doctor for an ultrasound and they found that my gallbladder was full of stones. So a week later, a surgeon removed it. It's an easy overnight surgery. It's done with a laproscope so no scars to really speak of. Mine was about 14 years ago. Once it's gone you feel fine again.

Answer 6

I have never had gall stones, but my dad has.
My mom put him on a natural remedy of apple cider for 3 days. This was her alternative to surgery, and it worked. On the third day, my dad passed over 20 gall stones. I believe the largest was about the size of a dime, and the average was about pea sized.

In my mind, I would rather go on an apple cider juice fast for 3 days and have the juice naturally break up the stones and allow them to come out on their own, as opposed to having surgery in a hospital where you run a high risk of catching a super virus among many other complications that could arise whilst being under the knife!

Answer 7

If not treated it can cause hepatitis. I blocks off the function of he liver and that what cause that and yes it can make one so sick that they want care to be around other people, she can vomit and feel very tired and want to sleep, but the pain medication will also make her want to sleep, Why are they not taking them out? This is something that is usually operated on and they take the gallbladder, and then she has to follow a diet and if she don't she can suffer a lot of pain. Ask her doc what are his plans?
Good luck and God Bless You Both.