Anyone ever dealt with gallstones??

[rangermike]

I've eaten extremely clean with an occasional pizza night or burgers with the family for the last few years. However on the 4th of July, I went all out "fat kid" crazy with hot dogs, apple pie, ice cream, oreo pie, and cheesecake. That night I had a severe gallbladder attack that lasted for 6 hours. Dealt with the residual pain for a few days and finally went to the doc. They ran some blood work (which was great), and then sent me in for an ultrasound.....my gallbladder looked like a damn gravel pit!

The doctor called and wants to go ahead and remove it. My question is, Has anyone ever controlled theirs through diet? (My last attack was 4 years ago).....or done a liver/gallbladder flush effectively?

I'm a 40 yo male in excellent condition and prefer the non-surgical route if I can get away with it.

 

[ctr10]

Try Meds first before thinking about Surgery, do some research, there are foods you can eat(artichokes) that help your condition also.

 

[dogsoldier]

Naw, get it popped out if you can afford it. They don't need to gut you like a fish anymore, it is done lapiscopically. You will be on your feet in no time. I had mine pulled out and it was probably one of the better choices made in my life. You can control it to some degree with diet. Avoiding fatty foods helps, pork chops would put me on the floor. But if you are loaded up with stones diet may help for a little while, then it will reach around and nail you. My opinion is get it done now before you have a real bad attack and possibly rupture the bladder. If that happens you will be in a world of shit.

 

[Dale Mabry]

Many live without gall bladders but need to take enzymes if they have higher fat meals. I would recommend eliminating all processed foods and eating a whole foods diet for a while and seeing how that goes. I have heard of lots of people improving that way. Were you eating a low fat diet? I've heard that a low fat diet can exacerbate this problem because bile sticks around in the gall bladder and crystalizes. Then, when you gorge on fatty foods, you get an attack as the crystal gets stuck in the bile duct. If you're eating fat you are constantly secreting bile and it is therefore less likely to crystalize. However, this doesn't mean that all gall bladder attacks are from eating low fat, only that it can potentially lead to a problem.

Here is an article by Dr. Eades. HE is a low carb guy and I'm not. I'm more of a natural foods guy bit it is a pretty good article.

Michael R. Eades, M.D.: Carbohydrates and gallstones

 

[Muscle_Girl]

I had a huge issue with this throughout this past year ending with me in the hospital with pancreatitis. They want to take my gallbladder out too, but Im determined to not be cut open. I went looking for solutions online and I came across a site with great advice and logical understanding of issues and solutions. Holistically and Naturally Treating Gallstones, Gallbladder Attacks, and What You Can Do About Them Without Getting Butchered by a Surgeon

This site suggests an Apple Cider Vinegar + Apple Juice mixture, which I generally have at least a glass a day of. I am still testing the water, as I had the hospital visit only about a month ago. It took several weeks for my gallbladder and pancreas to recover, felt achy every day and really had to hold the fat on my food. The past couple weeks Ive tested with increasing fat, I still keep it generally healthy fats, but if I overdo it (the other day I had some deviled eggs, tacos with cheese, low fat sour cream, 80-20 ground beef) and don't have the Vinegar/Juice mixture, I can have an attack - that night it came on pretty strong about an hour after I had the tacos, I think the last time I drank some of the juice was the previous day. I also find if I get it so bad that its the pain in the middle of my chest, its hard to fend it off, and often ends with me in bed exhausted from the pain and finally pass out from it, when I wake Im usually pain-free.

One thing while I was in the hospital, they had no suggestion for fending off a gallbladder attack, the nutritionist simply said to drink clear fluids and avoid fats in the first place. My whole system tanked, liver, pancreas, gallbladder; I went through a lot of testing, daily blood tests, ultrasound, MRI. The diagnosis ended up being that my gallbladder had sludge, but no stones, the sludge is the stuff that eventually results in the crystals, that turn into larger stones.

Anyway, that site has options for the cleansing of your gallbladder (I haven't tried as I have no stones). I will be keeping to my apple cider vinegar and juice.

 

[jason_mazzy]

Is it not possible to empty the stones and allow your gallbladder to keep producing gall?

 

[Muscle_Girl]

The cleanse for stones is on the same page I linked. I didn't have stones, so I have not done it, but it does sound like it may take a good amount of time and may make you feel ill. So doing it on a night when you don't have obligations is the best thing.