Well, it's been a while since I've visited this site. I've been very busy with work and life. Things are going as planned as far as weight-loss is concerned so I am very happy.

This post is intended as a heads-up for all of us who have lost some significant weight. Nobody told me about this before so I feel it is important to tell you all about it now. Apparently, there is a potential side-effect to losing a lot of weight ... the development of Gall Stones in the Gall Bladder. A few weeks ago, I had a 4-hour period of extreme abdominable pain. It was strong and constant. I did not vomit or have diarhea but it did concern me. It went away as quickly as it came and I pretty much forgot about it, attributing it to some fish I ate the night before, maybe I swallowed a bone or something. A couple of weeks later the same thing happened in the middle of the night, again after eating fish. So, I figured no more fish and I'll be ok. After a routine blood test my doctor showed concern that my liver enzymes where elevated. When I explained that I didn't drink alchohol and described the couple of painful episodes, he ordered an ultrasound which showed numerous gall stones. Doing some research online, I read that the development of gall stones is indeed a side-effect of rapid weight loss. WebMD says that "Crash or "yo-yo" diets can cause the liver to release more cholesterol into the bile, disrupting the normal balance of cholesterol and bile salts. That extra cholesterol can form into crystals, leading to gallstones" Even though I have not been on a crash or yo-yo diet, it did explain the reason that my doctor was not surprised at this development. I've now have had a total of 4 very painful episodes and one mild one. Each one was the painful passing of a gall stone.

What is a gall bladder? According to WebMD ...

"The gallbladder is a small pouch that sits just under the liver. The gallbladder stores bile produced by the liver. After meals, the gallbladder is empty and flat, like a deflated balloon. Before a meal, the gallbladder may be full of bile and about the size of a small pear. In response to signals, the gallbladder squeezes stored bile into the small intestine through a series of tubes called ducts. Bile helps digest fats, but the gallbladder itself is not essential. Removing the gallbladder in an otherwise healthy individual typically causes no observable problems with health or digestion yet there may be a small risk of diarrhea and fat malabsorption."

So, what did the pain feel like? First I felt an almost unbearable hunger pain. One that could not be satisfied because I didn't feel like eating. Panic sets in because you are not sure what is going on. Applying pressure to the area below the right rib cage causes extreme pain. That is where the gall bladder is near your liver. For me, the pain lasts a few hours and then simply goes away when the stone passes. If it happens in the middle of the night, I'm wasted the next day. If it happens during waking hours, I'm okay and return to normal. One night it was so bad I called the EMT. By the time they got there it was over.

How to avoid the episode? The nurse told me to eat a very bland low-fat diet. Even then, I've had problems.

The answer for me is to have the thing removed. I've contacted my lap-band surgeon who also performs gall bladder surgery and will visit with him tomorrow. I'm looking forward to having this surgery to solve this problem.

So, please be aware of this potential problem and don't panic or assume it is related to the lap-band. Contact you doctor immediately if you experience any kind of extreme abdominable pain as that might be a problem than can be solved. It is my understanding that it is a simple laproscopic surgery that is usually done as an out-patient procedure. This is similar to what most of us have already done with our lap-band surgery. They basically go in there, grab a hold of it and pull it out, stones and all. Problem solved.

Funny that there are all these posts now about this. I had my first gall bladder attack 2 months ago. I ended up in the E.R. It hurt soooo bad. The pain was also in the center of my chest. I thought something had happened to my band. After the 2nd I had an u/s and it showed the stones. I saw the surgeon and he said that gall stones was common when there was a significant weightloss. So I had it removed last thursday 8/13/09. So far it has been great. I have had no pain at all.

I'm so jealous that you've had the surgery. I'm still waiting on a clearance from a cardiologist because my EKG was abnormal. It's taking forever for records to be transfered between my surgeon, my primary caregiver, and the cardiologist. Don't these people understand this has GOT to come out?????

Anyway. How long did it take you to get back to normal activity after your surgery?

I had surgery on Thursday and actually photographed a wedding on Saturday. I probably should have took it a little more easy. I did take off on Monday and was back to work on Tuesday. I feel fine, just the incisions are a little bothersome. Wayyy less painful than my lapband. I never even took the pain meds. =)

UPDATE: I had my surgery last Thursday. FINALLY!!!.

Everything went well except my blood pressure and pulse went down really low during surgery and again in the recovery room. After that I felt great. Only had one dose of pain meds to get me the 70 miles home then after that just Tylenol. Was back at work fulltime on Monday. Still a little sore but only when I think about it.

Weird thing is that now I feel I have no restriction in my lap-band. Also, I had thought that taking the gallbladder out would bring me down in weight, but actually I gained like 5 lbs in one day. Very strange. I guess my body needs to adjust to it not being there. I wonder when I will feel restriction again.

I had the same issue. I actually gained like 9lbs. But then about a week later Wooosh all that water decided to leave. I think things started getting back to normal after that. Now I am actually down about 8lbs from pre-gallbladder surgery. =)

The weight gain is probably just from the fluids they give you when you're in the hospital. I know I got at least 3 bags of fluid when I was in there a month ago. My pain was in the center of my chest/stomach area, a few inches below the bra line. I thought it was just gas pain and I had at least 5 episodes, probably more like 8, over several months with pain lasting 30 minutes at a time and suddenly stopping. The last episode I had was the worst because a stone had gotten stuck and I was in pain for 24 hours before I finally broke down and went to the ER. I'm a real trooper when it comes to pain but after being at a high pain level for long periods of time I start having trouble dealing with it mentally and have an emotional breakdown. lol So after having a short crying spell I picked myself up got dressed and went down to the hospital. lol I lost a few pounds after surgery because I had no appetite and could only eat very little amounts. I was out of work a week (desk job) and had to take it easy for a while. It wasn't that bad of an experience - better than if I kept having those episodes I was enduring!

OMG!! I have right side pain! And mid abdominal pain. I wonder if this could be it! My surgeon's office was not really interested in hearing about it. So I made a reg. doctor appt for a couple of weeks and I'll totally bring it up then. AND I'll even bring it up at my next fill.

I'd actually be happy if it is gall stones because then at least Iw ould know what the pain is. Instead of just living with it and doing nothing about it!

Thank you all!

It could totally be gall stones. Whatever it is, I hope it gets better soon for you. Gallstones are very painful and can cause other problems so its best to get it diagnosed as soon as possible. Good luck.

I'm feeling great now. Finally starting to lose weight again. The doc took 2 cc out during my surgery and put it back in plus some more at my 2 wk appt. Now I'm very tight. More important, all my abdominable pain is gone. I'm very happy.

i have been on actigall to prevent me from getting gallstones as a requirement from my surgeon. many people develop gallbladder problems as they have a significant weight loss. whether they have had any weight loss surgery or lost by other methods. someone should of let you know of all the potential risks. lisa6