Help me through a gallstones flare please ?

[Liverly]

I’m in tears in the bath. GP sent me to an and e. A and e GP has got me a consultant appointment for a few days time but the pain is blood horrible. Luckily I’ve got some codeine from a bad back earlier in the year but it’s not touching it. I think food flared it. Half a bloody sandwich earlier and it wasn’t even a very nice sandwich. Amy tips / magic or just healing thoughts for me ? It’s so horrible. Only just got diagnosed November after going with suspected reflux pain and finding my liver was out of whack. I haven’t drunk much this Christmas at all. Always the way. Too busy hosting to actually relax. I did however eat califlower cheese which seems to have set me off. I just can’t get comfy. Please help. Silly stories, anecdotes , anything. Talk me away from this pain. Please

I've had gallstones for around 20 years but it's only in the last three or four that they've really bothered me. Unfortunately I found Buscopan did nothing for me. An after hours GP gave me Tramadol when I was in the worst pain - it was like a miracle! That was the only time I had unbearable pain, the rest of the time it's horrible but manageable.

I have modified my diet over the past month or so and it's made a huge difference. I've eaten ice cream and chocolate over the festive season, but in small amounts, and I've been fine. One thing I can't eat too much of is egg yolk, I learned that the hard way.

If you’ve got private health, they’ll whip it out. It’s not a massive op, keyhole, I had 2 weeks off work. The relief was amazing.

I suffered for so long that I ended up with jaundice from the stones blocking the common bile duct.
I was prescribed Voltarol suppositories and they were brilliant!
All I could eat was chicken and all I could drink was UHT light cranberry juice.
The only position that helped me during a flare was being on my knees with my head and shoulders down and my bum up in the air!
I was fast tracked for a cholecystectomy, which completely solved the issue.

NB Since then I've also had my appendix out and a cataract op. I'm downsizing all my non essential organs!

@Pumpkinpuffin to reassure my son I’d be ok I breezily told him the gallbladder was like the appendix. Not really needed. My tummy is very odd tonight. Growls and gurgly. I’m glad I stayed home though gutted I missed my boy in fancy dress

I ended up with Voltarol Suppositories from my GP. Couldn’t even keep pain meds down and always had an attack at night ( I had a newborn and a 2 year old to look after during the day!) but the suppositories took the pain right away, I was managing by a full nights sleep, pain free.

Sorry you’re suffering. I had mine out last year. The attacks were as painful as labour if not worse so you have my deepest sympathy. I apologise for not reading the full thread but when I was in the middle of an attack if found 4 things gave some relief.

1. I laid on my left to remove the pressure on my gallbladder and potentially get things moving quicker.
2. I took magnesium (chewable supplements)
3. Drank peppermint tea which definitely seemed to help
4. I got a wrap around water bottle and held it around my rib cage.

some of my attacks lasted over 6 hours and being on all 4’s in A&E was far worse than being home with all the things above. Magna apologies if I’ve misread but didn’t want to read and run. I also kept a diary and the food triggers were clear quite quickly. Having mine removed was the best thing that happened quite honestly. I wish you all the best xx

To add insult to injury every male doctor I saw seemed to revel in telling me how I fit the criteria of the Five F’s used to diagnose gallstones ie Female, Fat, Forty, Fertile & Fair (ie skin colour). I’m 3 of those. I wonder what little ditty they use to diagnose their male counterparts. However I count myself lucky that I got surgery 5 months later which I think is relatively quickly compared to the wait a lot of others on here had. I was also lucky not to suffer as acute an episode or get an infection in my gallbladder again in that time but a lot of abdominal discomfort.

Don’t know if you can still get it but Andrew’s liver salts helped mine, it forced me to burp which seemed to help. I remember leaving a note on the kettle and driving myself to an and e in the middle of the night to get morphine. I could tell when an attack was coming as my bra felt tight.

As a PP said, please everyone with gallstones keep an eye out for jaundice symptoms and just know that those symptoms won't always be that you will look yellow. You need to get to A&E asap if you do get symptoms.

I recently ended up in hospital for 2.5 weeks with a gallstone blocking my bile duct causing me obstructive jaundice. I was very unwell.

It started with the usual gallbladder pain which I'd had on off for months. Then next day the pain was ongoing and my urine was brown coloured. On the 3rd day I was panicking the pain wasnt going away and my back was also sore. I felt nauseas, itchy and exhausted and urine still brown coloured and my stools were very light. Went to GP who sent me to A&E. I didnt think I looked yellow at all so didn't realise I was jaundice but my blood tests confirmed I was. Wasnt until a few days later I could see my eyes and skin looked yellow.

I had to get emergency surgery to remove my gallbladder and deal with the blockage at the same time. Gallbladder was so inflamed it was close to rupturing. The stuck stone was so large they needed to use waves to break it.

Just pls be careful. Docs are very dismissive of gallstones until it gets serious.

I had awful gall bladder pain and was lucky enough to have it taken out. That was 16 years ago and I still think the pain was worse than childbirth. Almost like cramp in your calf muscle but inside and no way to massage it or stretch it out.

But I found a way to stop it, quite by accident. It worked maybe 75% of the time and I'm keen to keep fellow sufferers know! I know it sounds odd, but bear with me! Sing as loudly as you can, doing deep singing from your stomach. I've analysed it over the years and come to the conclusion that all the muscles involved in singing must move the stones along, causing the pain to subside. The truth is that I don't actually have a clue why it helped me, but it really did! Really hope it helps someone else!

Fat is what sets off gallstones so the cauliflower cheese is the culprit . When I had gallstones I avoided anything over 5 percent fat like the plague . It really helped. It was nearly 6 months I had to wait for my cholecystectomy and I had very few attacks in that time. Preventing the pain in the first place is the way to go as nothing would relieve it and I just had to wait it out . I do feel really sorry for you .

Buscopan, Co-codamol & if you have any, peppermint oil capsules, peppermint tea or cordial & a hot water bottle. Be on the phone at 8.00am on Friday to the doctors to ask for better pain relief & anti sickness meds. I spent so much time on my knees & elbows when I had an attack or kneeling on the stairs with the hot water bottle where the pain was, the only way mine went off was when I had been sick. When I had the surgery, my surgeon told me he was minutes away from converting to open surgery as my gallbladder was stuck to my liver, my bile duct opening was 3 times the size it should have been because I had actually passed the stone which he estimated to have been at least 2cm. The surgery was a breeze, I have had worst visits to the dentist, I could eat what I wanted straight away, I went to theatre at 2.00pm & was sat on the sofa at home eating normally watching the soaps by 7.00pm. If you haven't been referred to the hospital yet, ask for a Choose & Book appointment at your nearest private hospital, the NHS pays & you will get seen & sorted much quicker.

M & S frozen rice is the only one I have found that doesn't have any oil in it. When mine was bad I lived on plain boiled rice with soy sauce or plain pasta with balsamic vinegar.

Just here to echo what PP has said. Pretty much exact same happened to me and I was also very unwell and my liver really suffered. OP please keep and eye on your urine being dark as that was first symptom for me that a stone was stuck. Alongside not being able to eat at all, sickness and I also turned yellow. Make sure you advocate for yourself if you do attend A&E and push for another ultrasound where they can check your ducts.

This is gallstone flare up season. Gall bladder removal is the answer. I had it done and it was simple and completely successful.

You might need to call an ambulance, as I found visiting A&E was the only way of getting the operation. Sadly, those that shout the loudest are the ones that get treatment these days. Wishing you good health in 2026.

I had mine out 10 years ago. When I had attacks the only thing to stop it was being sick and the relief was usually instant. I had an understanding GP so was o received plenty of pain relief, including morphine. Unfortunately, I am having some issues with my bile at the moment which I am trying to see my gp about. Very disappointing 10 years on but I have to remind myself the discomfort I am in now is nothing compared to a gallstone attack.

Re pain, my consultant said some people like me only get the odd pain, while others get it bad and pain can be all round stomach and back, as inflammation builds up. I first thought my pain was from a UTI which was the reason I first went to GP, luckily she sent me for an ultrasound. The wait on the NHS here was 6 months from seeing consultant, I had insurance and had my gallbladder out 10 days later.

My sympathies. I had mine out in 2021, by which time there was over 200 gallstones in my gallbladder. We were coming out of COVID restrictions at the time but when the hospital saw how bad my gallbladder was I was prioritised and the wait wasn't too bad.

It was possibly the cauliflower cheese, fat is notorious for sparking an attack. My worst attacks pre diagnosis was after eating a chippy tea and after going to a wedding with all the rich foods that involves.

The only words of reassurance I can give is that an attack happens when a stone is trying to pass through the bile duct. The majority of times once it's through the pain eases (till the next time). However (worst case scenario) it might get stuck, that would need a&e I imagine.

If a stone does block the bike duct it can cause a backup of bile in the gallbladder that has no way of getting out & causes an infection inside. Without antibiotics or surgery this can rupture so I second PP’s advice to be vigilant & don’t hesitate to go to A&E.

I’m at the hospital tomorrow. I had bloods done when I was at an and e so will see what they say. If they even hint at operation then I’ll ask if my insurance will help and start a referral process It will probably be same surgeon anyway as they all work at both hospitals.

Definitely buscopan

Also you might get some relief from digestive enzymes which you can get from Holland and Barret, theres no evidence of this apparently but it contains bitter herbs that supports the pancreas deal with fats.

Also is there any way at all you can borrow the money or get finance to get the op privately. I would want it whipped out.

Fingers crossed OP - I wouldn’t hold back on the abdominal discomfort experienced even when not having a major flare up too - I had this after eating constantly till my op. I was lucky to get a surgeon that wanted to whip it out & better still offered me to go on their cancellation list. Once on that I was in & out in 2 weeks. Might be worth saying you can be (if you can be) flexible & wld happily take a cancellation as they do happen all the time. Let us know how you get on & good luck!

Buscopan really helps

I had my gallbladder out last year found that bread and pastry were my main triggers I lived on a really beige diet until it was removed. Water - gallons of it helped. Avoid alcohol and fats as most have said.

I had my gallbladder removed but suffered so badly beforehand - yes buscopan , I did get given oramorph by an ambulance a few times and Iying in the feel position did ease the pain most for me xx