Admitted in emergency room with suspected cardiac problems....UPDATE #44 - Page 2

[neetling]

I posted above about being misdiagnosed with GERD and having gallstones and a diseased gallbladder.

Try and eat a very very low fat diet until you can see your doctor and have surgery. It will help some.

[BellinghamCrunchie]

Originally Posted by babygrant

My question though, can anxiety be caused by gallbladder or are gallbladder symptoms similar to anxiety?

You won't find this anywhere, but from my personal experience (I'm scheduled to have my gallbladder removed in 3 weeks) there is a physical sensation that feels a lot like anxiety that is associated with a malfunctioning gallbladder. Purely based on my own experience.

Also the surgeon whom I met with two days ago said that a dysfunctional gallbladder can cause sensations that feel like GERD, including heartburn, but that it isn't actually reflux. When they did my endoscopy, they saw no signs of acid damage even though I had sensations like you described that felt like GERD.

[New_Natural_Mom]

Total side note ( and for your pain) acupuncture can alleviate anxiety. It got me off xanax.

[WuWei]

Acupuncture can help gallbladder pain, anxiety and liver function/digestion.

Pat

[SweetSurrender]

I had gall stones during my first pregnancy and incredibly panful gallbladder attack which can definitely feel like anxiety/GERD/etc. I had to be on an extremely low fat diet for the last 5 months of my pregnancy since nothing could be done to alleviate the situation until the baby was born (surgery was too risky). I ended up getting it removed 3 weeks after having my daughter but though i feel OK in general, the more I venture down the road of holistic wellness and nutrition, the more I regret having it removed. My body does not seem to be properly absorbing all the healthy fats I am eating (because the gallbladder bile is no longer available) and sometimes I have a hard time digesting certain types of fatty foods (I get painful cramps & bloating). I wish i had looked into the natural ways to excrete the gallstones such as flushes, etc. I subsequently had great results with acupuncture for a few other health issues so perhaps that would have helped as well. Just my 2 cents I do know how painful it is though and I'm really sorry you're having to go through all that

[babygrant]

Originally Posted by SweetSurrender

I wish i had looked into the natural ways to excrete the gallstones such as flushes, etc. I subsequently had great results with acupuncture for a few other health issues so perhaps that would have helped as well. Just my 2 cents I do know how painful it is though and I'm really sorry you're having to go through all that

Well when I was looking at the ultrasound monitor and I looked at the stones, they were quite big. Then I asked her to see the bile duct and it was TINY! She said as much as she would love to see someone be able to naturally remove their stones she said that if it was HER she would defenitely NOT attempt it because the stones are far too bit and too big of a risk of one getting caught. Of course she said to speak to my doctor, so I will do that.

[SweetSurrender]

Originally Posted by babygrant

Well when I was looking at the ultrasound monitor and I looked at the stones, they were quite big. Then I asked her to see the bile duct and it was TINY! She said as much as she would love to see someone be able to naturally remove their stones she said that if it was HER she would defenitely NOT attempt it because the stones are far too bit and too big of a risk of one getting caught. Of course she said to speak to my doctor, so I will do that.

Yes, the mainstream medical professionals will probably not recommend the flushes, etc but then again I'm not surprised since they are not trained in that arena. They are trained in seeing a problem and attempting to find a solution. I definitely understand your reticence but I know it can be done as i have heard of many successful attempts at flushing gallstones. I think you would probably have to consult a naturopath though to go down that route. But, in the end, we all do what we have to do and what we think is best at the time...and when you're in that much pain (which I remember all too well) it's completely reasonable to do whatever you can to make the pain stop! You might feel more prepared if you looked at all your options though before deciding on a permanent course of action (ie surgery). Either way, I hope you can get this figured out soon and with as little pain as possible. Hugs to you!

[babygrant]

So I saw the nurse practitioner today and got the results of the ultrasound. I defenitely have quite a few gallstones, some are quite large (largest is 1.8 cm's). Also, they noticed that I have an inflammed liver. All of the other organs were fine. He put in a request for a consultation with a surgeon and I'll go from there. Hubby wants me to go a gallbladder flush and I'm thinking about it, but I'm scared. Even the nurse practitioner suggested that I NOT try the gallbladder flush because of the size of the gallstones and because of the liver inflammation. If I knew 100% it would work, I would do it, but I'm afraid of damaging my liver or getting a stone stuck. Argh. I don't know what to do.

I'm going to make an appointment for accupuncture since I don't believe I can do any damage by doing that.

[Purple Sage]

I am so sorry you're going through this! It makes me so angry when doctors misdiagnose gallstones as GERD. They tried to do that with me, and they did that with someone else I know which led to many problems for her. I can't say what you should do, but I opted to have my gallbladder removed. Well, actually, once I had the ultrasound done (at my insistence - they wanted to send me home with a prescription for Nexium instead) they insisted I stay in the hospital and have surgery as soon as possible. I personally would not try a flush on my own with gallstones that size. Hope you feel better soon!

[WuWei]

Personally, *I* would not do a "gallbladder flush". I'd consult an acupuncturist who can help optimize the liver from many energetic and physiological levels. Additionally, there are dietary alternatives to improve liver function. A surgeon can only offer surgery. Alternative practitioners have more tools to offer. I'd also immediately consult our classical homeopath.

For liver support, I'd do Black seed oil (nigella sativa), bone broths for the glutathione, and green smoothies for the nutrients which help the body to process toxins, and nettle leaf infusions for the vitamins and minerals to support the immune system. Additionally whole food probiotics and Epsom salt baths, specifically magnesium for liver support. And Milk Thistle.

Pat

[SweetSurrender]

Originally Posted by Purple Sage

I personally would not try a flush on my own with gallstones that size.

I agree...definitely consult someone if you have gallstones that are that big and liver issues. I think it's a good start with the acupuncturist and I second the classical homeopath suggestion. In addition, a trained naturopath may be able to guide you through any process you take to tend to this problem. Don't try this on your own at this point! Had I not just had a baby and having gallbladder attacks (& not a lot of money ), I would have gone the alternative practitioner route so i could at least know what my options were before deciding on permanent surgery. But that's just me. I've lived relatively well without a gallbladder but I'm still quite young and I'm starting to notice more ill effects from not having a gallbladder and I'm concerned they will increase with age and my body slowly deteriorating in general

[babygrant]

No better today. Blah. Is it normal to have ongoing nausea?? I'm not terribly sore....it comes and goes, but the nausea is horrible in the mornings and then the evenings.

[BellinghamCrunchie]

Originally Posted by babygrant

No better today. Blah. Is it normal to have ongoing nausea?? I'm not terribly sore....it comes and goes, but the nausea is horrible in the mornings and then the evenings.

Yes, on-going nausea is pretty normal for this condition (I'm having similar issues). I pretty much rotate through Phenergan, Zofran, and Compazine. Usually one of those will knock the nausea down to tolerable levels. Also do not eat ANY fat or cook anything with any fat at all (not even the non-stick spray stuff).

[babygrant]

Originally Posted by BellinghamCrunchie

Yes, on-going nausea is pretty normal for this condition (I'm having similar issues). I pretty much rotate through Phenergan, Zofran, and Compazine. Usually one of those will knock the nausea down to tolerable levels. Also do not eat ANY fat or cook anything with any fat at all (not even the non-stick spray stuff).

I've just been using gravol 50 mg. If I take anymore I am OUT.

I need to overhaul my diet that's for sure. So when you mean fat, is that nuts too?

[SweetSurrender]

Originally Posted by babygrant

I've just been using gravol 50 mg. If I take anymore I am OUT.

I need to overhaul my diet that's for sure. So when you mean fat, is that nuts too?

Yes, when I had my gall stones, because taking the risk of having another attack was actually pretty dangerous for my baby (I was preggo) I had to watch every gram of fat I ingested. I stayed away from all forms of fat even that in nuts. I slowly worked my way up to ingesting 6-7 grams of fat per meal without negative side effects but it took me a few months before I could do that. I ate A LOT of fruits & veggies and found creative ways to make things taste good. Because i was preggo and I needed extra calories for the baby, i would go get Jamba juice smoothies on a fairly regular basis because some of them have fairly high calories with relatively low fat (otherwise it's hard to ingest enough calories just eating produce !

Anyway, you may want to exercise a lot of caution for a while in the fat department to see if things calm down a bit. Also, for the constant nausea, I HIGHLY recommend homeopathic Ipecac 30c (which you can find at most natural food/supplements store for about $7). It works very well for our whole family and won't knock you out the way the Rx stuff will.

[babygrant]

Originally Posted by SweetSurrender

Yes, when I had my gall stones, because taking the risk of having another attack was actually pretty dangerous for my baby (I was preggo) I had to watch every gram of fat I ingested. I stayed away from all forms of fat even that in nuts. I slowly worked my way up to ingesting 6-7 grams of fat per meal without negative side effects but it took me a few months before I could do that. I ate A LOT of fruits & veggies and found creative ways to make things taste good. Because i was preggo and I needed extra calories for the baby, i would go get Jamba juice smoothies on a fairly regular basis because some of them have fairly high calories with relatively low fat (otherwise it's hard to ingest enough calories just eating produce !

Anyway, you may want to exercise a lot of caution for a while in the fat department to see if things calm down a bit. Also, for the constant nausea, I HIGHLY recommend homeopathic Ipecac 30c (which you can find at most natural food/supplements store for about $7). It works very well for our whole family and won't knock you out the way the Rx stuff will.

I feel so weak and dizzy from not being able to eat that its really hard to find things to eat. When my husband isn't working, it's easy because he cooks up some really good food with zero fat, but when I have a break in the nausea I guess I just want a quick fix and something higher in calories because I know that I probably won't be able to eat for at least another 10 or so hours. I've been trying really hard to eat very small frequent meals of bland food, but it's just hard when I feel so shitty.

Will send dh down to the health food store to look for the ipecac 30c. Thank you.

[babygrant]

Down 25 lbs.

I am still feeling the pits. My temp is also elevated from MY normal baseline. My usual temp is somewhere in the high 96's low 97's, and right now I'm at 99 farenheit. But apparently that's not a fever, so not a biggie. I am so nauseated, so dizzy, stomach pain, and I have a killer headache. I go for my consultation with the surgeon and then will go on a 6 month wait list for surgery since it's "elective" at this point since I don't have any indication of an infection. I'm so frustrated and just so sick and tired of feeling sick and tired.

[BellinghamCrunchie]

Six months is crazy. I do not have any infection or gallstones, but they are expediating the surgery (only had to wait 2 weeks, surgery is in two days) because of the weight loss. Can you talk to them again, expressing concern about the rapid weight loss, dizziness, and daily nausea? I think most doctors would consider these symptoms priority for surgery. Get another doctor if necessary.

[babygrant]

Originally Posted by BellinghamCrunchie

Six months is crazy. I do not have any infection or gallstones, but they are expediating the surgery (only had to wait 2 weeks, surgery is in two days) because of the weight loss. Can you talk to them again, expressing concern about the rapid weight loss, dizziness, and daily nausea? I think most doctors would consider these symptoms priority for surgery. Get another doctor if necessary.

I saw the surgeon today and he is going to get me in for surgery in ONE month. He seemed to think that the surgery would help the stomach pain but believes that the nausea and dizziness are caused from something else. I found that kind of odd since nausea and dizziness are classic symptoms of GB disease.

[BellinghamCrunchie]

My surgeon told me that the pain and the dizziness were caused by something else, and only the nausea was caused by the gallbladder. Go figure. I'm not going to listen much to the surgeon; he really has little contact with patients before and after the surgery, so how would he really know. I trust my GI doc more, who thinks all the symptoms are gb.

I'm glad its only going to be a month for your surgery. Hang in there. Eat bland and non-fat - it really is better to feel starving than it is to feel nauseous and have pain. I've lost 40 pounds and weigh less now than I did in high school. My surgery is tomorrow.