Cholelithiasis?

[sangtarah]

Is anyone familiar with gallstones?

I’ve known I have them for a couple years, but I was told that they don’t usually bother people. So I haven’t worried about them. BUT, it seems I passed one on Tuesday, which was very painful, and it’s not an experience I want to have again. My doctor’s office didn’t give me a lot of guidance, just some heavy NSAID to take if it happens again. (Which I would rather not take because NSAIDS make my stomach hurt.) 

Anyone have tips, tricks, information, things to avoid? 

[sweet2ndchance]

Avoid fried foods and anything greasy. Malic acid helps soften gallstones. You can find it in capsule form at health food stores. Apples contain a lot of malic acid so when I'm having trouble with my gallbladder I drink a ton of apple juice along with the malic acid capsules. I find pain relievers don't do much for gallstones when I have them but ymmv. I find a lowfat diet really does help with keeping gallbladder attacks to a  minimum.

My dh chose to have his gallbladder removed when he started having attacks. Having the gallbladder removed can cause problems with digesting certain foods, particularly fried and greasy foods, but he doesn't seem to have a lot of issues at all since having it removed. It's another ymmv situation.

I hope you find a solution for your gallbladder issues. Gallbladder pain is only second to kidney stones in my experience. 

[knitgrl]

11 hours ago, sweet2ndchance said:

Avoid fried foods and anything greasy. Malic acid helps soften gallstones. You can find it in capsule form at health food stores. Apples contain a lot of malic acid so when I'm having trouble with my gallbladder I drink a ton of apple juice along with the malic acid capsules. I find pain relievers don't do much for gallstones when I have them but ymmv. I find a lowfat diet really does help with keeping gallbladder attacks to a  minimum.

My dh chose to have his gallbladder removed when he started having attacks. Having the gallbladder removed can cause problems with digesting certain foods, particularly fried and greasy foods, but he doesn't seem to have a lot of issues at all since having it removed. It's another ymmv situation.

I hope you find a solution for your gallbladder issues. Gallbladder pain is only second to kidney stones in my experience. 

I had mine removed when I was in my early 30's. I've heard you can have digestion issues after surgery, but I have not experienced that. If you are having attacks, you should definitely avoid fatty or greasy foods right now.

Edited June 22 by knitgrl
for clarity

[Jaybee]

48 minutes ago, knitgrl said:

I had mine removed when I was in my early 30's. I've heard you can have digestion issues after surgery, but I have not experienced that. Definitely avoid fatty or greasy foods right now.

I had mine removed when I was in my early 40's. I have never had any issues, even when I have eaten fatty/greasy foods, though I try to avoid those for better health anyway. Before the surgery, when they asked me if I had indigestion a lot, I said no. However, after I had it removed, I realized with the contrast of how I felt afterward, that I had.

[City Mouse]

Yes, on the extremely low fat diet if it is causing you pain. My DH survived 6 weeks on an almost no-fat diet after a trip to the ER before his surgery. He was able to avoid prescription pain meds so that he could still work. (He would have had to take sick days with pain meds) My DD has had a couple of flare ups that went away after a few days of low-fat eating. 
 

I was “lucky” to be approved for emergency surgery with mine, so only had to go through the one big attack. Although I had been having symptoms for a while and just didn’t know what it was.

 

[Starr]

Years ago I ate an almost not fat diet for a while until surgery to remove the gallbladder. I was so glad when it was removed!