to ask about your gallstone symptoms

[foxyrox79]

I have been diagnosed with gallstones (had a scan to confirm) and need to have my gallbladder removed. I have an appointment with a surgeon soon. But I am genuinely scared that gallstones are not the real issue, instead something really awful.

My symptoms are: pain (impossible to describe but not sharp, stabby pain) in the centre of my stomach, just below breastbone that radiates to my upper back/shoulders and sometimes to the left or right of my stomach.
I am on a very low fat diet to control and can be pain free for the odd day, sometimes a week but am usually uncomfortable to some degree for part of every day.
I find I naturally curl into a very tight ball when the pain is bad. This helps a little -sometimes. Paracetamol/nurofen do nothing.

I am finding it increasingly difficult to lead a normal life because of the pain. It can't just be gallstones, can it??

I thought I was dying. I was in so much pain that I could not face getting out of the bed for any reason whatsoever. I couldn't lie down, I couldn't curl up, I was in a weird position that involved a lot of pillows. I got my dh to get me two tylex (which I'd had for section and never finished) and some motilium (with the theory it might relax the muscles) and I was so bad he had to put the tablets into my mouth. The pain eventually just suddenly passed. Absolutely horrific. Diet had no impact for me, there were no particular triggers.

I am so glad that little bastard is gone. Plus pancreatitis can kill you and it is a horrible death. I think mostly the strong advice now is to whip the thing out before complications set in such as sludge in the bile duct or something. I'm no medic now so get your own advice!

I still get faint sensations of it from time to time but nothing like the real thing.

Yes, that sounds like mine. I had a couple of attacks that were hellish but short-lived, then a really bad one that kept me in hospital overnight, and then about a month of near-daily pain before the op to remove the bloody thing.

Op went fine, no side effects since and pain totally gone. So glad I went for it.