anyone ever have a gallbladder attack?

[ScottFromGA]

if so...what was it like and what were the symptoms?


I've read up about this online, and I have the same problems....but I'm not one of those that just read something and go, "Hey, thats what I have!!"

I have a sharp pain in my abdominal region that comes when I eat something, usually hardly anything at all the past few days. I get sick feeling like I'm going to throw up....and I had a fever yesterday with chills but it has subsided a little, but the pain is still in my stomach.


any suggestions? :help:

[drjoek]

I think Gvac is our resident expert on that

PM him

[ScottFromGA]

ok will do...


but has anyone ever heard of this problem at a young age?

I'm only 24 and have had this case in my family. My mother had gallstones.


:help:

[GonzoStyle]

Gvac and I had the gallbladder removed, basically I have no insurance so I dont go to the doctor until like im basically dying. It persisted for about 3 weeks of intense pain in my abdomen, on the left side, upper section of the abdomen. It also felt kinda painful in the back as well as front so for a while I thought maybe it was my back acting up again. The pain eventually became unbearable one day and I went to the hospital and had to have emergency surgery that same day to have it removed. It was an easy procedure though, I was released the next day and there was no scars at all cause they use lasers and just make 4 small incisions. Some people have issues after but thankfully I didnt have any at all, then again I was also on the diet so I wasnt eating anything fatty. I was back at work within a week after the surgery, discomfort lasts a few days but thats just due to the surgery aspect.

24 isn't too early, I had it done in september of 2005, so I was 27.

[HBox]

Oh man, one time I was sitting at a restaurant eating dinner, minding my own business, enjoying a nice dish of Chicken Parmesan. It was delicious. But then all of a sudden, out of nowhere, BAM, a gallbladder runs up and punches me in the face. He got me good, my face fell right into my plate and I woke up with marinara sauce up my nose. I smelt it for days.

Oh wait, that's not what you're talking about, are you?

[saramo]

I got these stomach attacks that you are talking about and I was only about 26 at the time, it would usually be after I ate something and it was like a cramping pain in my stomach where I thought I was going to throw up, however I never did throw up it eventually passed and after about 15 minutes I was okay again. I got tested at the hospital where they did this thing called the "cheeseburger test" (not a medical term), but they injected me with stuff that had the same quantity of fat as a big cheeseburger and if you had nauseauting pain from that it was usually a good sign that it's your gallbladder. After that, they had me lay on a table to check the contents of my gallbladder and see if it digested any of the fat, which it didn't so I ended up having mine taken out. I actually still have stomach problems even 2 years after the surgery, but I think I have some other GI stuff going on. The surgery wasn't too bad, it was outpatient and they do it laproscopically so you just get 4 tiny holes in your torso. And your question about being too young for it, I had the same questions for the doctor and they said it's actually becoming quite common for people our age, it might be due to diet, I don't know, but yeah typically I had associated gallbladder disease with old people. Anyway, hope that helps somewhat. Good luck.

Sara

[HBox]

Seriously though, go see a doctor. If it's not too late they can treat it with medicine. I myself am on Actigall, been on it for a while and I'm only 26. This isn't something you want to wait around on. The pain is horrible and the longer you wait the more likely surgery is.

[GonzoStyle]

they can basically see with an ultrasound, takes like 15 minutes. It also felt like I wanted to throw up but I didnt actually vomit but yeah its an awful cramping pain. But seriously its an easy and simple thing to get checked and just as simple to get it taken care of. Especially if you have insurance, go get an ultrasound asap.

[Gvac]

Get it checked out ASAP Scott, but make sure all of your insurance is in order. The bills are obscene! The best route is to go to the emergency room and have it done immediately. I made the mistake of leaving the ER after waiting for the surgeon for over 6 hours and being told it would be another few hours before he would be available. It took me almost two months to find a doctor that would do the operation and accept my insurance.

In the meantime, try to eat fat free. Consuming fats can bring on another attack, as can carbonated beverages and alcohol.

The night I had my attack I was doubled over from the pain in my solar plexus, like I had been kicked by a mule. There was also a stabbing pain in my rib cage, as if a knife had been plunged in there. Then I began vomiting violently. I thought I had food poisoning. Like an idiot, I waited 4 and a half hours before I called an ambulance.

Like Gonzo said, the surgery is nothing. I was wheeled down to anaesthesia at 7:45 AM, woke up in the recovery room at 10:45 AM, and was discharged at 11:30 AM.

I've heard of kids as young as 15 having their gall baldders removed, so apparently age is not a factor.

Good luck!

[ScottFromGA]

Thanks everyone....after a long night last night, I decided with my wife that I need to go ahead and get checked this morning. I, too, am one of those that wait till the last minute to go to the doctor for anything.

The pain I have is in my right side and it extends around to my right side to my back. Its not too intense as I type this, but last night it was touchy to moderate. It REALLY hurt me Tuesday more so, but I still feel like I wanna throw up whenever I eat something.

Me thinking its a stomach virus or food poisoning like Gvac said....I've been eating, (or trying to) chicken noodle soup and some bread for something light on my stomach to keep me from dehydrating. After I get done is when I feel like I could throw it all back up and my side goes to hurting me.....

I think the clincher on this is the discoloration of my face and eyes. I look like my little girl did when she had jaundice.

Anyways, Thanks once again for all the advice. I just wanted to know if any other guys on this board had had this problem before and what they went through with it. I really appreciate everything.

isn't it ironic that we get this thread, and NOW my gallbladder acts up.....its a conspiracy mannnnnnnnnnn. :bye:

[spoon]

To this day I still have Gvac's gall bladder on the mantle over my fireplace.

[A.J.]

My Dad did (http://www.ronfez.net/forums/showthread.php?t=57848&highlight=gall+bladder).

[ScottFromGA]

ok, went to the doctor and they did blood work then an x-ray on me. They both came up negative.

They sent me to do a Ultrasound and found out that its a baby boy!!!


nah...but they did get a good shot of my gallbladder. She rubbed the probe around on my belly for a little bit, then when she got around the area of my gallbladder, she applied some pressure and I about jumped off the table. Holy Shit, it fuckin hurt....from what my wife and I seen on the screen when she eased off the pressure and was able to get a good shot of my gallbladder, I had a lot of white dots inside of it. I asked the woman performing the task if she knew what it was and she gave me the, "I'm not allowed to say, its the doctors place" speech.....but she did tell me that she was going to forward this report to the doctor ASAP and get results fast because of my pain I was experiencing. She said it usually takes 3 to 4 days to get results, but in MY case.....it might be best to get them fast.

so now I'm waiting on the doctor to call.....anyone ever have a ultrasound done to check for stones before?

[GvacMobile]

Absolutely, Scott...those white dots are stones. Like I said, eat FAT FREE and avoid carbonation and alcohol until you have the surgery.

Good luck.

[GonzoStyle]

ok, went to the doctor and they did blood work then an x-ray on me. They both came up negative.

They sent me to do a Ultrasound and found out that its a baby boy!!!


nah...but they did get a good shot of my gallbladder. She rubbed the probe around on my belly for a little bit, then when she got around the area of my gallbladder, she applied some pressure and I about jumped off the table. Holy Shit, it fuckin hurt....from what my wife and I seen on the screen when she eased off the pressure and was able to get a good shot of my gallbladder, I had a lot of white dots inside of it. I asked the woman performing the task if she knew what it was and she gave me the, "I'm not allowed to say, its the doctors place" speech.....but she did tell me that she was going to forward this report to the doctor ASAP and get results fast because of my pain I was experiencing. She said it usually takes 3 to 4 days to get results, but in MY case.....it might be best to get them fast.

so now I'm waiting on the doctor to call.....anyone ever have a ultrasound done to check for stones before?

yea its probably stones, its weird tho that they're taking 3-4 days to get the results back, they let me know within a couple hours at the hospital. Possibly cause I waited so long and it just got to a point where emergency surgery was needed? cause they had me in the operating room within an hour after the diagnosis. Naturally after I had to pay the surgeon up front in cash cause I had no insurance, thankfully I received temporary medicaid to cover the hospital costs, cause it was close to 10 grand for just 1 night!

[ScottFromGA]

Thanks for the well wishes, Gvac and Gonzo.

it kinda confused me on WHY they would take 3 to 4 days to get results on something as harmful as this.....but the woman there did tell me they would be getting back to me faster than that because of the pain I felt.


she said by 1pm.

its 2 now...hopefully I hear something soon.

[EffMeBoobs]

ok, went to the doctor and they did blood work then an x-ray on me. They both came up negative.

They sent me to do a Ultrasound and found out that its a baby boy!!!


nah...but they did get a good shot of my gallbladder. She rubbed the probe around on my belly for a little bit, then when she got around the area of my gallbladder, she applied some pressure and I about jumped off the table. Holy Shit, it fuckin hurt....from what my wife and I seen on the screen when she eased off the pressure and was able to get a good shot of my gallbladder, I had a lot of white dots inside of it. I asked the woman performing the task if she knew what it was and she gave me the, "I'm not allowed to say, its the doctors place" speech.....but she did tell me that she was going to forward this report to the doctor ASAP and get results fast because of my pain I was experiencing. She said it usually takes 3 to 4 days to get results, but in MY case.....it might be best to get them fast.

so now I'm waiting on the doctor to call.....anyone ever have a ultrasound done to check for stones before?

I'm an ultrasound tech so I know a ton about this. If she showed you your gallbladder on the screen with "white dots" inside of it then chances are you do have gallstones. If you have right upper abdomen pain that goes around your side and back that's a classic sign of gallstones; and also when she applied pressure and let go that's called a "Murphy's sign" which basically means when she lets go did you have rebound pain. If you did that's a positive Murphy's sign that goes along with the diagnosis of gallstones. Plus you are saying your eyes are discolored like jaundice? Dude you seriously need to call your Doctor asap!!! I'm not a doctor or anything just see this all the time on the job. Good luck!

[ScottFromGA]

I'm an ultrasound tech so I know a ton about this. If she showed you your gallbladder on the screen with "white dots" inside of it then chances are you do have gallstones. If you have right upper abdomen pain that goes around your side and back that's a classic sign of gallstones; and also when she applied pressure and let go that's called a "Murphy's sign" which basically means when she lets go did you have rebound pain. If you did that's a positive Murphy's sign that goes along with the diagnosis of gallstones. Plus you are saying your eyes are discolored like jaundice? Dude you seriously need to call your Doctor asap!!! I'm not a doctor or anything just see this all the time on the job. Good luck!

Yeah, when she ran the probe thingy (sorry...I don't know what its called) around on my stomach and when she got to this one spot, around the area of my gallbladder, it shot pain through my body. It hurt so bad that it almost made me jump off of the table.

I'm still waiting on them to call me...I'm pretty sure its gallstones now, it just sucks because this has came at the wrong time in my life....oh well... thats why they call it just that, I assume.

[EffMeBoobs]

Yeah, when she ran the probe thingy (sorry...I don't know what its called) around on my stomach and when she got to this one spot, around the area of my gallbladder, it shot pain through my body. It hurt so bad that it almost made me jump off of the table.

I'm still waiting on them to call me...I'm pretty sure its gallstones now, it just sucks because this has came at the wrong time in my life....oh well... thats why they call it just that, I assume.

It's called a transducer, but I call it a wand or probe to my patients.

I know how shit goes, nothing happens at the right time. I had to have an emergency appendectomy at 1am, I was scared for my life, so I know how you're feeling. Trust me everything will be okay and it will get taken care of. We're here for ya!

[GonzoStyle]

Yeah, when she ran the probe thingy (sorry...I don't know what its called) around on my stomach and when she got to this one spot, around the area of my gallbladder, it shot pain through my body. It hurt so bad that it almost made me jump off of the table.

I'm still waiting on them to call me...I'm pretty sure its gallstones now, it just sucks because this has came at the wrong time in my life....oh well... thats why they call it just that, I assume.

thankfully its not a huge deal and should take more than a day for the operation and recovery time is pretty quick, a week at the most. It's just strange that they're making you wait, hope they got back to you by now.

[ScottFromGA]

no word as of yet.....

[ScottFromGA]

ok I broke down and finally called this morning about 10am. I talked to this tech that sounded like he didn't really give a shit about what my problem was. I did the normal story telling deal, who I was and my problem....and he just gives me the results over the phone like there was nothing to it.

"You have numerous amount of gallstones and a liver disease."

me- "Oookay, so what I suppose to do now?"

"Well....we are going to have to give this to the doctor and let him decide from there...."

me- "Alright, will I hear something today?"

"Probably....if not, it'll be Monday..."

me- ".......But, I need to know whats going to go on....I have to get back to work."

"Well....your just going to have to wait and see what he wants to do."

me- (Grinding my teeth) "Well....I'll wait till this afternoon and see whats said, if I don't hear anything back by 3pm, I'm gonna call back."

"Sir, your just going to have to wait..."


I have a fucking liver disease....from what I've read its apart of gallstones, I'm assuming....But this is the exact reason I hate going to the doctors office for anything. The people there don't give a damn about a persons life and when the person on the other end is desperate, they get nothing for comfort. They charge my insurance company ungodly amounts of money and do nothing basically for it.

Someone tell me that I'm overreacting and its not that big of a deal......this really has me in a huff right now. :furious::furious:

[EffMeBoobs]

ok I broke down and finally called this morning about 10am. I talked to this tech that sounded like he didn't really give a shit about what my problem was. I did the normal story telling deal, who I was and my problem....and he just gives me the results over the phone like there was nothing to it.

"You have numerous amount of gallstones and a liver disease."

me- "Oookay, so what I suppose to do now?"

"Well....we are going to have to give this to the doctor and let him decide from there...."

me- "Alright, will I hear something today?"

"Probably....if not, it'll be Monday..."

me- ".......But, I need to know whats going to go on....I have to get back to work."

"Well....your just going to have to wait and see what he wants to do."

me- (Grinding my teeth) "Well....I'll wait till this afternoon and see whats said, if I don't hear anything back by 3pm, I'm gonna call back."

"Sir, your just going to have to wait..."


I have a fucking liver disease....from what I've read its apart of gallstones, I'm assuming....But this is the exact reason I hate going to the doctors office for anything. The people there don't give a damn about a persons life and when the person on the other end is desperate, they get nothing for comfort. They charge my insurance company ungodly amounts of money and do nothing basically for it.

Someone tell me that I'm overreacting and its not that big of a deal......this really has me in a huff right now. :furious::furious:


First of all who did you call? Did you call the techs that did the ultrasound? Did you talk to a Doctor? A tech should never give you results over the phone. At all, period. Liver disease is such a vast thing. It could range from just having a fatty liver to cirrohsis. I would call the Doctor that ordered the exam. Call that office today and tell them that the tech gave you results that scared you and you need to talk to the doctor asap.

[drjoek]

As with the heather 8 pregnancy thread Stay on them to have the doctor get back to you. What difference does it make if you annoy some office manager or med tech. Call back right after 12. I wouldn't wait till Monday. Gallstones can and will require immediate care at some point.
I hope this doesn't degrade into a Doctors suck thread.

Hit the redial button and annoy them until someone of substance will call back.

[ScottFromGA]

I called the doctors office that sent me to the place that gave me the ultrasound. Lemme go back and say this, I THINK it might have been a tech....cause I'm assuming that a doctor would have said who it was. I know it wasn't the doctor that looked at me yesterday.

What I'm going to do is go to the doctor my mother went to when she had gallstones oh so many years ago....get my records from the other doctors office, let them know what was said to me and take the stuff to him. The staff at the Medical Center of Central Georgia aren't the quickest at responding to situations unless you flat out throw the shit in their laps....but they are considered the best in the southeast.

I can't wait for someone to "take a look".....

I'm sorry if I'm coming off ignorant about this....I don't do doctors, never have. I just don't trust them......

[EffMeBoobs]

Oh ok so you basically talked to the med tech who works with your doctor. Gotcha. Yeah you should still talk to the doctor. Good luck!

[ScottFromGA]

OK, Who put the GallstoneRemedy.com banner on the top?!?

I hope that just wasn't a rare occurance....

LOL!!! Thanks whoever did that....I needed that.

[FUNKMAN]

never a gallstone but i did pass a kidney stone and there seems to be a few big differences. with a kidney stone there is no vomiting but there is no choice but to get to the hospital. it's not a sharp pain but more of a pressure that doesn't go away as the stone is caught-up. i began feeling the pressure as i got dressed for work, not knowing what was going on. ten minutes or so later as i walked around the house doing normal stuff it was just a 'no other choice' decision when i told my ex-wife " we're going to the hospital "

my ex had her gallbladder removed. it was mis-diagnosed as gas on two occassions and she was sent home. eventually somebody figured it out

this thread is educational

[GonzoStyle]

I called the doctors office that sent me to the place that gave me the ultrasound. Lemme go back and say this, I THINK it might have been a tech....cause I'm assuming that a doctor would have said who it was. I know it wasn't the doctor that looked at me yesterday.

What I'm going to do is go to the doctor my mother went to when she had gallstones oh so many years ago....get my records from the other doctors office, let them know what was said to me and take the stuff to him. The staff at the Medical Center of Central Georgia aren't the quickest at responding to situations unless you flat out throw the shit in their laps....but they are considered the best in the southeast.

I can't wait for someone to "take a look".....

I'm sorry if I'm coming off ignorant about this....I don't do doctors, never have. I just don't trust them......

not at all this is just fucked up on their part, I had the same issue because I dealt with the pain for a month and let it get to the point where my liver was also in danger. After the ultrasound I got my results in less than an hour and was in the operating room within a few hours after that. Always go to a jew hospital, thats the true lesson here. I really dont know what to say at this point, if you can go to another doctor or hospital, do so.

[Gvac]

Sorry to hear about the additional problem (your liver) but I fully understand your frustration Scott. It took me seven fucking weeks to find a surgeon after my initial attack. I had people in the profession tell me I was better off faking another attack and going to the ER one night so they'd remove it immediately.

Hang in there my friend. And once you have the surgery, make sure you've got someone to look after you and be your personal nurse for 24 hours. You're not going to feel like doing much and might not be able to. I had almost no pain, but I've heard of people being in agony following their surgery. If you get someone to look after you that's half as good as the one I had you'll be fine.

[ScottFromGA]

well after that fiasco on the phone with the Medical Center, (going local here sorry...), I got my ultrasound and x-ray's, went to a well known doctor here and had him look at me. Monday, I have an appointment with a surgeon where they will luckily get me operated on by Tuesday or Wednesday and back to 100% soon.

Thanks for all the advice everyone. Cross your fingers for me.

[SHANEFROMGA]

hey, where's the phone call to let me know your sick?!?!?!? :furious: oh well, your gonna have 2 or three hole poked in ya'. brothers............

[ScottFromGA]

hey, where's the phone call to let me know your sick?!?!?!? :furious: oh well, your gonna have 2 or three hole poked in ya'. brothers............

pops told me he was tellin ya....I was gonna call ya yesterday morning, but I didn't officially find out till about 10 today after I called the Medical Center. Those fuckers acted like they didn't even give a shit...so we went to Dr. Sedgeh...or however it's spelled.

I read Anneliese's write-up on 13wmaz.com yesterday. Pretty neat!

[IamFogHat]

I'm not sure what you mean exactly by an 'attack' but my grandmother had emergency surgery a few months back and almost died because of an infection in her gallbladder, don't fuck around with that shit. I think basically in terms of symptoms she just had awful stomach pains that got worse to the point of being crippling and they didn't know what was wrong until after rushing to the hospital and having doctors figure it out. Sorry, that wasn't very helpful.

[ScottFromGA]

I'm not sure what you mean exactly by an 'attack' but my grandmother had emergency surgery a few months back and almost died because of an infection in her gallbladder, don't fuck around with that shit. I think basically in terms of symptoms she just had awful stomach pains that got worse to the point of being crippling and they didn't know what was wrong until after rushing to the hospital and having doctors figure it out. Sorry, that wasn't very helpful.


you contributed, but when I say "attack"...I mean this sharp pain in my gut that had me almost in tears and throwing up Tuesday.

it was RUFF.

[GonzoStyle]

well after that fiasco on the phone with the Medical Center, (going local here sorry...), I got my ultrasound and x-ray's, went to a well known doctor here and had him look at me. Monday, I have an appointment with a surgeon where they will luckily get me operated on by Tuesday or Wednesday and back to 100% soon.

Thanks for all the advice everyone. Cross your fingers for me.

you'll be fine buddy!

[GonzoStyle]

any news on scott?

[ScottFromGA]

update!

had surgery yesterday...my first time ever.

it was wierd, I do not remember anything. Last thing I do recollect is the nurse telling me to hold an oxygen mask over my face and take deep breaths. Then it seemed like 10 minutes later, I was being woke up. My first question was, "Its over?"

but its painful...the doctor cut me above my belly button and three holes under my right manboob. The spot where my gallbladder was came alive last night....and fuck did it hurt.

everytime I took a breath, it was very painful.....so I had to resort to pain medicine. I hate doing that as well.

but its over with now.....funny thing is, I got a phone call yesterday about 3 hours after my surgery from this woman at another doctors office confirming an appointment that the Medical Center scheduled for me. I told the woman that they dragged their feet too long for me, and I got my own information and took care of it myself.

But anyways, thanks for the well wishes and concern. now its just time to recover.

[Gvac]

Welcome to the club Scott!

Glad to hear it went well.

[ScottFromGA]

wish I could've got an actual count though. I wonder how many I had or what it looked like.


my wife told me he came and talked to her afterwards, she said that he said I was "Slapful of stones". So I'm taking it as if I had a lot....

[drjoek]

Welcome back :clap:

feel better budday!

[ScottFromGA]

Revisiting this issue....

Sunday night, Monday and even today...I've been experiencing some twinges in the area where my gallbladder use to be. Is this a normal thing that happens a few weeks or months after surgery? Could this also be from something I've eaten? I heard a few folks mention that corn can make you double over in pain if one of the "husks" hit that area. I don't know how true it is, but it certainly had me in some pain......and the assholes I work with looked at me like I'm faking the whole deal.


Anyone ever have "Phantom Pains" or just pain from eating something that doesn't agree with the body that it normally would have before surgery?

[SHANEFROMGA]

to rip off ronnie b.........................steve?

[OGC]

To this day I still have Gvac's gall bladder on the mantle over my fireplace.

I've got his hat above my fireplace.

[ScottFromGA]

just realized its been over 2 years now. wow how time flys when your blowing the toilet off the ground.

[FUNKMAN]

my ex-wife had three. the first two we went to the emergency room and she was told it was most likely gas. 3rd time they determined it was the gall bladder and she had it removed with the the "two small puncture" process...

i believe she said it was a pressure pain. i would imagine it was like passing a kidney stone which I did once... just once

but for them people to not correctly diagnose on 2 occassions, they had some gall


EDIT: NOTE TO SELF - check date of thread, see if already posted a reply, roger, over!