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could it be my gallbladder?

Posted , 10 users are following.

carriemh1983
carriemh1983

Hi,

I've been suffering with i belive to be indigestion for nearly 2 years now, its not a constant thing, i get what i call "attacks" every so often, i can have one then another a week or 2 after then nothing for months.

Sometimes its straight after eating, sometimes hours later.

I start with a horrible pain either below my rib or in my back which always gives me a pain/ache in my right shoulder tip. The pain is so bad i cannot find a comfy position to sit/lie. After a few minutes i go grey in colour and start sweating profusely to the point where its literally dripping off me, once the pain starts to subside which can take up to and over an hour i then get cold and shivery and have goosebumps and my whole body feels odd. Sometimes indigestion remedies work but they are never instant and i need to take a lot of them

Could this be gallstones as from what ive read my symptoms cross over between indigestion and gallstones?, any one else get symptoms like this?

Many Thanks

0 likes, 11 replies

11 Replies

  • Tom_Peters
    Tom_Peters carriemh1983

    Posted

    It's entirely consistent with gallbladder problems.  You should see your GP.  They will be able to test you even if you are not having an attack at the time.
    • carriemh1983
      carriemh1983 Tom_Peters

      Posted

      I have seen my GP about this a few months ago and he gave me lansoprazole but i want 100% convinced it was indigestion due to the severity of the attacks when i do get them, think il go back for a second opinion! 
  • natasha3982
    natasha3982 carriemh1983

    Posted

    Hi Carriemh1983

    I suffered with attacks very similar to yours before being diagnosed with gallstones. The pain was excruciating with no way of alleviating it, hot and cold sweats and shivers and nausea. If you are concerned, I would speak to your GP and ask to be referred for an ultra sound.

    Take care x

    • carriemh1983
      carriemh1983 natasha3982

      Posted

      Thanks Natasha3982,

      I can cope with them at the moment as they are so few and far between but when i do have them its the worst pain ever and as you say there is no way of getting rid of it, the nausea has been a recent thing with it, my last attach 10 days ago i nearly vomitted a number of times and felt that i needed to open by bowels which i did with no relief. Think a trip back to the GP is needed   

  • renee15737
    renee15737 carriemh1983

    Posted

    When I first got diagnosed my attacks were exactly like yours. At one point my "attack" was so bad an ambulance was called. I was on lanzaprozal and it did nothing. Go ask your GP for a gallbladder referral and don't let them say you don't fit the criteria
    • carriemh1983
      carriemh1983 renee15737

      Posted

      Thanks renee15737

      I think i will make an appointment, there have been times where ive been close to ringing 999 but then its subsided and i know it will eventually stop but the pain is so bad 

    • renee15737
      renee15737 carriemh1983

      Posted

      You poor thing. It won't stop unfortunately. You can maybe look at what you're eating to try to improve things. I stopped so many foods which resulted in weightloss the pain lessened so I never went hospital again but it still remained and I just couldn't take it anymore cause my quality of life wasn't what I needed it to be. Hope it gets sorted x
  • Moonday
    Moonday carriemh1983

    Posted

    I was the same as you: I suffered attacks now and then for over 3 years and only went to the doctor when they became so unbearable and I was vomiting.   I had the usual MRI, scans, endescope and a scope down my throat (can't remember what that's called).  I had my gallbladder removed back in April of this year.   So, in a nutshell, though I'm not a doctor, I would say you have gallstones.

    There are things you can do to help your condition - namely, consume a fat free diet, drink cloudy apple juice (the mallic acid contained in apples softens the stones so you can excrete them naturally, though I think you should also take olive oil  or similar).  You will have to Google.

    Go to your doctor and explain your symptoms and I'm sure you'll be sent for the usual pre-op requirements.

    Good luck.

  • sensfan5502
    sensfan5502 carriemh1983

    Posted

    When I had my first attack I didnt think anything of it but after the second one I  started to keep a diary of everything I ate and drank in the hours prior to an attack and I rated how bad the pain was on a 1 to 10 scale. After a few attacks and trying different combinations of foods i was able to work out the kind of things that would set me off. For me my attacks had me puking/laying on the floor for 3 to 6 hours due to the pain intensity. I had 4 attacks that I would clasify as 9 out of 10 when it came to pain. When I ended up in emerg for the 4th time i brought my little diary with me and the doctor's were able to look at my symptoms and the info from my diary to help fast track me into getting an ultrasound and getting my diagnosed with gall stones. it took 6 months more to finally get my gallbladder removed but 6 weeks post op im really glad i kept my diary because had i not who knows if i would still be unsure of what was going on. Good luck! smile 
  • dawn51292
    dawn51292 carriemh1983

    Posted

    Hi,

    I was exactly the same and looking back I probably had these'attacks' for the last 10 years and like you often big gaps in between.  I too put them down to indigestion until November of last year when I was in constant pain with exactly the same symptoms as you which was when I went to the GP and had a scan and was diagnosed with gall stones.  My GP put me on omeprozole which seemed to help I would also take colpermin which seemed to help with the pains.  I too kept a diary and apart from coffee I never seemed to be able to find the trigger.

    Had my gallbladder out three weeks ago and am so pleased to finally be pain free.

    Good luck!

  • sarah50457
    sarah50457 carriemh1983

    Posted

    Hi Carrie,

    your attacks sound very similar to how mine began, and I just had emergency surgery last week to have it out. No indigestion remedies would help, in fact some I found made it worse, and none of the PPI blockers worked for me.

    I would definitely go back to your GP and get another opinion. It took me 12 months and then it exploding before they believed me, so make sure you are firm and get as many tests as you can - endoscopy, ultrasound, MRI with contrast, and get some decent painkillers. People say codeine makes it worse but I never had a problem with it in 12 months.

    Some others have already suggested keeping a food diary, it's a really good idea especially if you're at the beginning of this and don't necessarily know what triggers an attack. You want as low fat a diet as you can get, less than 3% fat per 100g, and eliminate any oily products.

    i hope you manage to get a diagnosis soon

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