How to lose a stone in an hour! (Gall Stones)

Member Name: FairyG

Product:	Gall Stones
Date:	28/01/09 (557 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Improved quality of life.

Disadvantages: Takes a few weeks to get over.

I've had several years of stomach pains after eating rich foods, and thought it was due to stomach ulcers which were diagnosed years ago and flared up now and again. However over the past year, the pain had grown considerably worse. It was triggered by foods like fish and chips, curry and rich creamy things. The pain would start in the upper part of my stomach and feel like an intense ache going right through to my back between my shoulder blades. I'd end up sitting with a hot water bottle behind me to ease it off. I also couldn't bear any pressure on my right side, or my stomach as that would trigger the pain as well.

I already knew I had a small gallstone which was discovered about eight years ago, and after reading up on the internet, I had a strong suspicion that this was really gallstone pain. My doctor agreed to send me for an ultrasound to see what was going on. The sonographer spent ages looking at my right side with the scanner, so I knew she'd found something interesting. I saw a consultant a couple of weeks later and sure enough he told me I had still had a gallstone and it was now 22mm! Wow! No wonder it was causing trouble.

The consultant explained my gallbladder was going into spasm around the stone and was unable to function properly, so he advised having my gallbladder removed. The gallbladder stores bile which is released when we eat fatty food, to help digest the fat. Mine just wasn't able to do its job, which is why greasy foods triggered the pain. It's possible to live without a gallbladder though, as bile is then released straight into the digestive system on a constant basis.

I agreed to the operation at once as I was just fed up of the pain, which was now daily. I had my operation about two and half months later. It was done laparascopically, which is easier to recover from than open surgery as the wounds are smaller. Not everyone is suitable for this operation, as it depends on the condition of your gallbladder and how easy it will be to get out. I was given a general anesthetic and the operation took about an hour. I had a one inch cut in the upper abdomen area just between my ribcage, another just below my navel, and two smaller ones on the right side. The gallbladder was taken out through the cut below my navel.

When I came around I had already been given morphine and anti nausea drugs, so was feeling okay although very woozy for several hours. I was on a drip to top up my fluids and the nursing staff monitored my blood pressure, heart rate and temperature all night. They also offered me painkillers every few hours, which were very welcome! You don't realize how much you need to use your stomach muscles until they're full of holes! The pain was kept under reasonable control though, so as long as I moved around carefully it was bearable.

The most difficult thing was eating. My whole digestive system had switched off, so although I was able to sip water, food just wouldn't go down. I also had waves of nausea, although I wasn't actually sick at all. Luckily I had taken my trusty travel wristbands to hospital with me, and I think these helped. The nursing staff were reluctant to let me leave until I could demonstrate I could actually eat, as that can be a big problem after this operation. Finally my digestive system started to cooperate and I managed to eat half a sandwich and a bit of pudding and custard, so they allowed me to go home. I was back home about 28 hours after my op with my husband to keep an eye on me. It's important to have someone to keep an eye on you for at least a couple of days.

They sent me home with a supply of Tramadol, paracetamol and anti-nausea tablets. However the anti-nausea tablets can have unpleasant side effects, so I avoided those and used my wristbands which help to suppress nausea. The nausea did ease off over the next few days, although I was still only able to eat small amounts at a time. Mostly just a yogurt, a banana, or a small dish of soup. It takes a while for the digestive system to adjust and it took me a couple of weeks to start eating proper meals.

For painkillers, I mostly managed with paracetamol during the day and took a Tramadol at night. Tramadol turned me into a zombie, so I didn't want too many! One of the worst things was trying to sleep because every time I turned on one side the wounds were pulled by gravity and started with a burning pain. It was really only possible to lay on my back for well over a week. Also, on the first night home, my tablets wore off in my sleep and I woke up with HUGE burning pains in the wounds. If you ever have this op make sure you set the clock to wake you up and take your tablets on time! I didn't have to have any stitches out as these were dissolvable stitches. They healed up very neatly, without any problems.

This is a very tiring operation, even done laparascopically. After all your body is adjusting to losing an organ. I began taking short walks to get moving around, but apart from that I made the most of it and lounged around catching up on some reading! I was quite shaky for the first couple of weeks and even after that I couldn't go in the shops without frequent rests, or a shopping trolley to lean on. I was also very nervous about crowds, in case someone elbowed me in the stomach. It was four weeks before I felt confident about going to the gym again.

It's now two months since my op and I'm feeling fine. Although I deeply dreaded the operation I now have no regrets about having my gallbladder removed and feel much better for it. I realized after having it removed, that there had been a feeling of constant aching pressure in my side from the gallbladder and that's now gone. I still have to be fairly careful about eating very fatty foods as that can cause digestive upset, but I'm a fairly sensible eater anyway, so mostly I just eat whatever I want. And the odd cream bun doesn't do any harm!

A lot of things I've read on the internet about this operation are very negative, usually by people who have persistent digestive problems afterwards and are disappointed with the results. I decided to tell about my operation to show that the results can be very positive and that if you have gallbladder problems, having it removed can greatly improve your quality of life. But if you do have this operation, it's important to take care of yourself, rest, and not rush back to work too soon.

Summary: Not an operation to be frightened of. Just take it easy and rest.