Gallbladder Gallstone Advice and Information

I had mine out 3 years ago and it's the best decision I ever made. I have no side effects from not having a gall bladder...I have never felt better!

Wow! That is a huge gallstone! I suffered from gallstone attacks for 10+ years before I had one lodge in my bile duct. It was taken out that weekend, and I've never regretted it. I have no idea how such a large gallstone would affect you, but you don't want to mess around with it. And I doubt there is any natural remedy that would deal with one that size. Sure, the small ones might get dissolved, but this is a 4-inch one.

If the doc recommends it, get that sucker taken out of there...

Hi E.,

Gall Bladders are necessary for good health. Please don't remove it. Stones can be disintegrated. I was going to tell you what I know but found this website that is the same info.
http://www.ehow.com/how_###-###-####_remove-gallstones-na...

Most issues in our bodies stem from either a misalignment of the spine or by an ineffective digestive system...or both. If you'd like more info on how to prevent them once they are gone, get back to me. I'd love to help!

M.

Yeah, I'm sure that gall bladders are very helpful for your body, if they are working properly, and if you don't have gallstones consistently blocking the duct causing excruciating pain that makes you feel like you want to die! I just checked out the website that "Mimi H" recommended and I'm sure that this is valuable information that may work, if you have the patience to wait however long it takes to actually get a gallstone, or many, to disolve, not to mention one that is 9.5cm! Also, the site recommends that you completely change the way you eat and drink "at least 16 glasses of water each day"! Now I don't know about you, but I have trouble downing the traditional 8 glasses that are recommended! I'm not trying to dis the information offered here, but I think realistically, it is unlikely that you will be able to dissolve a gallstone of this magnitude.

Another thing to consider is whether you have a genetic predisposition to developing gallstones. If this is the case, then you probably will be plagued with this over and over again, even if you are able, by some miracle to get your stone to dissolve. In my case, my grandmother, my mother and several other women in my family have had stones that developed at a young age and have had to have their gallbladders removed in their early 20's. Other than genetics, the other risk categories for developing gallstones are, as my doctor put it, are "fat, fertile, and 40+". My only risk factor was "fertile" as I was in my early 20's. Good luck in making your decision.

If it isn't causing you issues, I guess it is possible to wait and see, but if and when, and I would guess it is more a matter of when than if with a stone that size, it does block the duct, you will experience pain like you would not believe! It is awful!! I don't know about other people's experiences, but a) they have laparoscopic cholecystectomy, the fancy word for gallbladder surgery, now which consists of about a 1-2 inch incision in your belly button and like three or four 1/2 inch incisions in the abdomen. Recovery, if you are able to have this surgery, is a breeze. I had mine on a Monday, and probably could have gone back to work about 2-3 days later. Took the full week allowed because I could though! and b) the lack of mine hasn't affected me in the slightest. I have no problem eating any kind of food or drink and have had no side effects or issues at all since my surgery.

Hello,

Have the doctor given you any pamphlet with the information on the issue and the surgery?

I thought I would share my experience. I ended up in the ER because of excruciating chest pain that turned out to be caused by pancreatitis, which was in turn caused by a small gall stone blocking the bile duct. The stone passed on its own, but I was in IV not allowed to eat or drink anything for three days until my inflammation index (measured through blood work) went down enough to be able to have the surgery to have the gall bladder removed. Before the surgery they did ultrasound and cat scan and they showed a lot of small stones and some bigger stones and also my gall bladder had inflammation too.
To go back in history, I was suffering for 7 years with chest pain spells, off and on, that has gotten more frequent and more painful and more debilitating, until I ended up in ER and was diagnosed there.
A gall stone that is passing, depending on the size, may feel like a sever chest pain, you might think you are having a heart attack, it is painful to breathe, to talk, to swallow, to eat, to move, to sit, to lay, to stand. It lasts for hours and hours. I was not able to go to work for several days in a row. Painkillers don't help. Only ibuprofin helped - 3 pills every 3 hours, but I guess because it is anti-enflammatory. You will need stronger prescription pain-killer to be able to tolerate that pain.The aftermath of a gall stime passing can be up to 3 days - because it causes inflammation of gallbladder and other organs, so everything still hurts. You may have nausea and throwing up.
The bigger the stone is, the more painful it passes. The smaller the stone is, the less painful it passes but the risk with the small stones is that they can block the bile duct which is right next to pancreas and that will for sure cause pancreatitis, and that is a dangerous condition which requires hospitalization.
Additionally, the passage from the gall bladder is only 8 mm wide, and if you get a gall stone that is larger than that size it will not only be painful to pass but it might get stuck and/or might tear your internal tissues, in which case you will require a surgery to remove the stuck stone and in the case of torn tissues you will not be able to eat anything for at least a month if not too and be on IV and of course be hospitalized.
One more thing to add: stones is a malfunction of gallbladder, and once gallbladder start forming stones, new stones will appear, sooner or later.

I am so thankful to my surgeon for explaining the surgery to me and for doing the surgery. I was so miserable, I am so happy now to not be in pain anymore. Nothing like an emergency trip to ER and yelling at them to make it stop to make a gallbladder surgery an easy decision.

Please consider that information when making your decisions.

P.S. Some more information: a gall stone passing may have other symptoms like numbness/ache/pain in shoulders, numbness in wrists, pain in lowerback - muscles below shoulderblades.

Dude, have the surgery and you will feel so much better!!! Mine was a 22 and it would roll around and eventually block the duct then roll around and the duct would open. It was miserable. But I can drink OJ now, eat onions and other gassy type foods, and can lay down and not be in pain. I had mine out on Monday, went back to work on Wednesday, went home after only half a day, and was back 100% on Thursday and worked a full day that day and the rest.

i'm all for healthy eating and trying some natural remedies, but that sounds like an awfully big gallstome. at least keep your appointments and talk to the doctors about if it is safe to not have the surgery. you can live without your gall bladder, my mom had hers out almost 30 years ago and is fine, my best friend had hers out when she was 21, she is very healthy. please look into all options before deciding.

I am a chiropractor and have, first hand, used this remedy. It works, but isn't pleasant at the end.
For the first 5 days, drink a 1/2 gallon of apple cider each day, over the course of the day. This softens the gallstones.
On day six, drink one dose of epsom salts in the morning and then at supper. Just before you go to bed, drink 4 oz of olive oil...I suggest the extra virgin oil. The epsom salts will soften your stools so that you can pass the gallstones and see them in the toilet. The olive oil causes your gallbladder to contract and spit them out. It does not hurt at all, I just got a little sick from the olive oil.
I disagree with everyone that you should just get it taken out. Yes...you can live without a gallbladder, but God put it in your body for a purpose and that purpose if to produce bile which breaks down fats. I would try the conservative route first and surgery as a last resort. I know one man that passed a gallstone that was as big as a golf ball. Because they have softened up, it is not painful at all.

Have it removed. My sister asked a specialist the same question. He said you may be able to remove 1 or two tiny stones but you may have hundreds... Or worse yet, if you have one large stone you could get a blockage and become very sick or even die. My sister had her gall bladder removed and has never felt better.

I had a polyp in mine they said I would adventually have to have surgery. I googled natural cures for gall bladder and found a site and product called Gall Cleanse it is all natural and guaranteed to work and it did it got rid of my polyp. My son and my daughter both had the surgery they regret it my son still has constant pain and after eating they get the diarrhea. I questioned my Dr. when they sent me for a 4th ultra sound she said you will just have to have it removed I said well God gave me a gallbladder for a reason her response you can live without it. Anyway my most recent ultra sound showed no sign of it. www.gallcleanse.com Good Luck