Another gall stone question

waterlily1072 · April 19, 2007

I have been having weird back pains in the center of my back and sharp pains throughout my instestines from top to bottom but not all at the same time it's like it's travelling and every once in a while over the course of several hours I will feel it in a different spot lower than the time before. I know I have issues with Constipation and have been using milk of mag at least twice a month. Is it from constipation possibly or could it be small gallstones? Either way it is not bad enough to go to the doctor for yet, just curious. My sister had gallstones and hers caused back pain that they kept misdiagnosing. The same foods that triggered that for her are the same ones that trigger bad indigestion for me so it makes me think hmm....

RVasconi · April 19, 2007

About 6 weeks ago I had my gallbladder out. They found that I had gallstones as part of my pre-opp test for lap-band surgery. I've been having serious trouble with my gallbladder for years. I've had stomach nausa after I would eat, sharpe stomach pains (where I was hospitalized) after taking antibiotics, feeling blah, sick and not enegy, and I've had a very sharp pains in my upper back and right shoulder blade for years. Well, after my gallbladder was taking out, all those problems went away, even the back pain. There's a pressure point in you back that goes to the gallbladder causing that pain. While my doctor was taking out my gallblader, he looked at my liver and said it was very large. I'm now loosing weight to reduce the size of my liver before I have lap-band surgery. Good luck.

waterlily1072 · April 20, 2007

Thanks, yeah the back pain is hitting right between my shoulder blades which is not where I've ever injured it. Well I guess if it is my gall bladder it will eventually get bad enough to make me go to the doc about it, until then it's nothing I can't live with for now.

RVasconi · April 20, 2007

Hi, I lived with a bad gallbladder for years without knowing it. I've complained about many problems to my doctor and he never picked up that it was a gallbladder problem. I'm a diabetic and my blood sugar levels were in the 300 to 500's. I felt terrible from that alone. My blood pressure was very high and I had unbearable stomach pains and much pain in the back. All that is gone since I had my gallbladder out. My sugar levels are normal, blood pressure is down, no more stomach problems and no more back pain. I just want you to know that the gallbladder has many different affects on your body. If you are having lab-band surgery, they should do an ultrasound of your gallbladder as one of the pre-test. That's how they found out that I had a bad gallbladder.

Good luck!

kyethra · April 22, 2007

And if you don't have stones you can still ask for a HIDA scan to evaluate how it functions. I don't have stones, but I have all the symptoms. Mine just isn't functiong like it should. I swear it has turned evil! Its comming out in a few days. I hear you about digestion in general being bad. Thats how I felt. The food goes down fine, and its not until after it starts digesting that there are problems. And then its the whole digestion thing! I would be waiting hours and thinking, damn I never was aware of the digestive process so acutely before. My pain is also a little atypical. I do have tenderness and some pain under the right ribs, but the pain started and still has a stronger presense in my lower right back. I know that that can be a presentation of it sometimes, its just not the most usual one. My nausea has also been just overwhelming-- an all the time thing too.

For now you probably just want to keep clear of fatty or other troublesome foods. I see ads online for gall bladder flushes that are supposed to help. Personally, I suspect that if they actually worked doctors would recommend them instead of cutting the things out. I found that the more solid something was, like bread versus a shake, it was harder for me. I've been on Clear liquids for the past several days and my body likes those the best, but I do realise thats not exactly a practical or nutritious diet.