Does a gallbladder attack cause muscle stiffness?
Posted , 4 users are following.
I'm trying to figure out if I've injured my oblique muscle or have a problem with my gallbladder. Tuesday night I started to get very intense pain on the right side under my ribs. With time the pain wrapped around my side to my lower back, down toward my pubic bone and also to the middle section of my ribs. It felt like my muscles were all going into spasms. My husband felt them and said my muscles were very tense and indeed spasming. Now this hadn't been the first time it happened, for the past 2 or so months I had two other attacks, just not nearly as intense as this one! I was diagnosed with Dysbiosis and have several food sensitivities. I'm very sensitive so my doctor decided I go very small with probiotics at first and gradually start taking more and more. I was warned about die off symptoms but this isn't listed as that. The probiotics have changed my bowel movements (for the better) and I do from time to time get bloating and gas. Granted I'm still taking less than a 1/4 teaspoon and the probiotic contains nothing I am sensitive to. I can't quite remember what exactly I did to cause the first attack, if I even did anything at all. However, the day before my second attack my son had asked me to jump and dance crazy at the same time. Now I am a stay at home mom and work from home on the computer. I sit a lot, and due to all the food sensitivities I'd been dealing with unknowingly for years I have been very tired so I stopped working out for a year and a half. Mind you I was diagnosed with Dysbiosis late September of this year. I had the first two attacks before I started probiotics so I doubt it's that. This most recent attack I had for almost 2 days. The pain was so bad I couldn't sit, lay, stand or breath without being in constant pain. I'm good with pain, but this had me in tears. I couldn't sit still and because I have dybiosis I went as long as I could without taking ibuprofen. I only took a small amount so I could fall asleep finally. The night before this happened, I was taking photos of my items I sell for my website and had to lay, sit and crouch in very weird positions to get the photos since my new light box is very large and our office is so small. I even remember thinking "I'm going to be sore tomorrow!" after finally finishing with the photos which took me about 2 hours to complete. I had to balance and probably put all my weight on certain areas of my body (mostly my core) to get clear professional shots. Yes, this was a terrible idea, but it's what I had to work with at the moment. After I was done, I noticed I was very shaky and that's when I knew I'd be sore. Just didn't think THIS sore. Now still I have no idea if it's what I suspect it's been this entire time or my gallbladder. What I suspect is I injured my oblique muscle and I keep re-injuring it. Which I have spoken to someone that has experienced injuring their oblique and they basically had all the symptoms I had. Healing took them 4 months! They however went to the ER and their doctor thought it may be their gallbladder as well- turned out to be their oblique muscle. This person is a fitness workout nut, BUT reading the ways that cause injury I fit the bill as well- poor posture, sitting for long periods of time. Not only am I sitting for work, but my child's school is online so we're sitting for that as well. My child is still very young so school takes a lot longer and I have to be 100% involved. Anyhow.. before the attack I also had softer stools than usual (with cramping and gas) and have been having these issues every once in a while which is a common thing for people with food sensitivities. I do admit a rotational diet has been very overwhelming for me and I've been treating myself every weekend with a donut or two. I also followed a strict Paleo/AIP diet for 2 1/2 years with very little sugar, no grains, lots of good fats (lard, coconut oil, olive oil, butter) but that started to bring on new symptoms which is a whole other story in itself. However, my weight dropped pretty quickly and I lost all my pregnancy weight that I couldn't shed and was back to the weight I'd always been. I understand rapid weight loss can cause gallbladder issues. Anyhow, it's now day 6 since the attack. The intense pain has subsided and I still have random muscle spasms and soreness under my ribs on the right side near liver and in the center of my ribs. My husband says my muscles are still very tense and he can feel them spasm. Now after all that, I am curious to know does a gallbladder issue cause muscle stiffness? Or does this sound like I've injured my oblique muscle. Both issues seem to be a nightmare to deal with in the pain department. I had some nausea when the pain was at it's peak, but so did the person that had the oblique injury. I told my doctor and will be getting blood tests done and an ultrasound. Very nervous, but definitely don't think I can handle that type of pain again seeing I can't take much medicine due to the dysbiosis I'm trying to reverse. Any input to this would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
0 likes, 9 replies
lynda20916 silvermoth
Posted
You're moving in the right direction by going to your doctor and getting the appropriate tests. I was told by my MD that dieting and weight loss, especially yo-yo dieting, can lead to gallstones.
If your doctor ordered a "liver panel" blood test that will show if your liver is stressed. Also, sometimes an ultrasound won't show very small stones and sludge. A CT scan often works better.
Best of luck to you and let me know how you get on!
silvermoth lynda20916
Posted
Hi Lynda thank you for responding! The pain was dying down, so I started to move around a bit since laying constantly was making my whole body ache. I admit I did a load of laundry, but couldn't do anything more. The following morning I woke with very bad gas-like pains. I had soft stool which was yellowish brown. All I had eaten was vegetable soup my husband made from scratch with carrots, turmeric, onions, celery, garlic.. so I figured the color was due to that. I rested that entire day and read way too much scary stuff on gallbladder issues, my anxiety got very high and I couldn't sleep a wink that entire night. Around 5am I felt ok, and started to fall asleep. I slept maybe an hour before being woken by the intense cramping (could be muscle spasms) in my abdomen accompanied with intense shivers, but no fever. I had more soft stool and it was the same color. Still all I had eaten was the vegetable soup and nothing else except drinking water. I just wanted to sleep and no matter what whenever I laid down this would get worse. The pain was real bad in the center of my ribs and I couldn't tell if it was muscle spasms or not but it did make me nauseous with no vomiting. After a few hours of waiting for this to pass I decided it best to check myself in the ER. They checked my blood, urine, and did an ultasound to see my gallbladder. All tests came back normal and they had discharged me with a packet that said "unknown abdominal pain" They said I could have caught a nasty stomach bug that's going around here right now. I kept mentioning my muscles and they showed no concern in that whatsoever. I was also very dehydrated so they put me on an IV. I've been home doing absolutely nothing and randomly get what feels like muscle spasms. Nothing too bad though, no pain like I was in before. Yesterday I started to get fed up with laying down and did a few things I probably shouldn't have and couldn't get to sleep for a few hours now with pretty bad pain on the left side under my ribs that radiated towards the middle which made me feel nauseous again. My husband felt the area and said my muscle was twitching a lot. This lasted for an hour or so, and I finally managed to lay in a position that eased it and fell asleep. I woke up with the pain gone and I've rarely had any spasm like pain today. I will be seeing my doctor tomorrow to go over my results from the ER. I'm not sure how to read the results so I have no idea if they checked my liver or not. I'm sure if they didn't my doctor will have me get more tests done. I'm still confused, if a gallbladder issue could cause muscle spasms throughout the body? I
cmross1108 silvermoth
Posted
I wouldn't think this is a gallbladder problem as you seem so sure that it's your muscles being tense. Nausea can happen at those intense pain levels in general, and isn't necessarily due to the gallbladder. Does the pain happen shortly after you eat certain foods (specifically fatty or greasy)? That would be more of an indicator of gallbladder issues. I also doubt it's your dysbiosis - I don't think it would cause severe pain like that, just bloating, indigestion, crazy bowel movements, etc. Things that affect your digestive system, not your muscles. Like Lynda said, the best thing to do is go to your doctor and get tests.
silvermoth cmross1108
Posted
I've been eating a low fat diet in fear of having another "attack" so I can't say if I get any pain after eating. I ended up going to the ER (you can read about it above) I've felt odd stiffness and random pain from spasms in the area of the liver and gallbladder, but I have no idea if it's my gallbladder or muscle. I know dysbiosis would not cause such intense pain, but I guess it could have contributed to my crazy bowel movements while dealing with this (especially after taking the ibuprofen) Which makes it hard to understand if it is my gallbladder or muscle strain. The symptoms are all very alike. Also thanks for the response!
lynda20916 silvermoth
Posted
I'm glad you're feeling a bit better. You know, eating anti-inflammatory spices such as tumeric can cause diarreha. If your stools and the liquid surrounding them are yellow and acidic, you could be having issues with bile salt malobsorption, too.
Above all, because you're feeling so ill, don't let your doctor fobb you off, or take too much time to discover what's going on at the price of your health. I'm assuming that you are seeing a gastroenterologist. Is that correct?
silvermoth lynda20916
Posted
Not sure why my comment was deleted. It's now been about 5 months since my first bout of pain. I unfortunately haven't been the same since. I've had several scans and a HIDA scan showing 72%. They said this was normal. I had a colonoscopy and endoscopy which came back normal. I had another MRI done on my pelvis and abdomen with a brand new machine. It showed a retroperitoneal cyst (lymhpocele) and my doctor made the radiologist look at all my scans, showing the cyst has been there since day one. They told me this would not cause my pain and discomfort. I have issues with what feels like I'm carrying a baby and they're pushing on my bladder. The lymphocele is behind my kidney and 2cm. I have mild S shaped scoliosis so I assume it may be pushing on nerves as ever since I had the scopes I've had bad issues with burning and tingling after eating certain foods. I do not have any nausea or diarrhea. No yellow liquid surrounding my stools. I am almost always bloated and I've lost far too much weight and try daily to get my weight up, but if I eat too much I get the bad burning/tingling. I'm so exhausted from it all. I've read the cysts I have can cause pain, but it's rare and because of this no one wants to help me.
lynda20916 silvermoth
Posted
So sorry you're dealing with this. You can have small stones and sludge that may be missed, even though your HIDA scan came back normal.
So, is the doctor you're speaking of a gynecologist or a gastroenterologist? I'm asking this because they seem to be throwing up their hands, and not looking into what's causing your pain. The doctors I've mentioned could be more interested in diagnosing what's going on, instead of telling you that what you're experiencing isn't possible. xx
silvermoth lynda20916
Posted
I was referred to a urologist by my primary care doctor. I waited three weeks to be told the cyst would not cause my pain and it's far too small to be removed surgically. He then gave me a referral to another urologist and said getting a second opinion may be a good idea. I didn't bother going to the other urologist. Wednesday I got another ultrasound on my pelvis and abdomen. The lady doing the test said she saw nothing that would be causing my pain, but I have excessive amounts of trapped gas in my intestines. I see my doctor later today to go over the results. I've been having pain on my left side (under ribs) mostly these days. It feels as though my body isn't digesting food properly. I went out to dinner in a restuarant for early Mother's Day dinner and within 10 minutes of eating I started to get very bad cramping on my right side that radiated downward into my intestines. I couldn't finish my food and it lasted for about an hour and a half. The following day it felt like someone kicked me repeatedly in the ribs. This pain slowly subsided after about a week. I ate filet mignon (only three bites!) and a sweet potato with nothing on it. Last night when I sneezed I felt my ribs "catch" onto something on my left side. I've had this feeling before, it always feels weird when it happens and doesn't happen too often. I figure it has something to do with my scoliosis, however an hour later the area was sore. I woke up still sore and the pain is still there after a full day. Throughout all this I'm worried about my gallbladder, pancreas, kidneys.. it seems my symptoms vary so much that no one wants to focus on any one thing. I would assume if there was an issue with these organs they would show in two CT scans (with contrast), two MRI's of abdomen and one of pelvis (no contrast) All that's seen is this cyst. Does anyone know if I need to see a laparoscopic surgeon? Would they be able to see if there was anything wrong with my pancreas, gallbladder or any organs from this surgery? I'm a mother and I just have absolutely no energy anymore. I've never had any issues with health and I don't even drink alcohol. I've always eat very healthy for the most part as well.
lynda20916 silvermoth
Posted
A gastroenterologist would order a colonoscopy, endoscopy and HIDA scan to check out the inner workings of your digestive tract...also blood tests to check your liver and pancreatic functions.