I was in undergrad, probably twenty or so when I was first awakened in the middle of the night feeling like I was being stabbed through my right ribs and out my shoulder blade in the back. It was my gallbladder. I've lived with its antics for over a decade now. I limited many of the trigger foods (fatty, greasy, spicy, fried) and things got better. And then I went vegan, and things got waaayy better. I've become a bit complacent about my eating habits since going back to work full time and eliminating gluten from my diet. It's like whatever isn't the flesh of an animal or doesn't contain gluten goes.
And so went my gallbladder. It's been acting up in the last month. I was actually puzzled by it on Sunday. It didn't present as usual. I was short of breath and my whole chest/back/shoulders/neck hurt. It takes A LOT to get me to the doctor, and the pain I was having wasn't something I associate with my gallbladder. By the time I rolled up to the ER, and got out of and back into the car twice (I'm indecisive), I went in, quickly made my way through triage and was in a bed in the hall in no time. About 5 minutes after being in my new spot, the pain centralized, and I knew without a doubt Gally was acting up. Yes, I've dealt with my gallbladder so much that those who are close to me know that I lovingly refer to it as Gally.
If I would have known it was Gally from the get-go, I likely wouldn't have gone in. But now I'm kind of glad I did, just because now I know what I'm dealing with. And what I'm dealing with has me on the fence. They were pretty close to emergency surgery-ing on Sunday night, but I'd passed the stone I was passing, and ultrasound confirmed it wasn't stuck anymore, and the pain was subsiding (Thanks, Morphine!). Ultrasound also showed that there were more stones where that one came from. My liver enzymes were elevated, but the one they extra worry about was not elevated enough to warrant emergency surgery, so five hours later, I went home!
Now I have a choice to make. I visited with my PCP this afternoon and got a referral to a surgeon. I've lived with gallbladder attacks for a pretty substantial amount of time now. I know what living that life is like (except for the weird way the pain presented on Sunday - but now I know that too), what I don't know is how my body will react when I no longer have a gallbladder. For some people, the relief is heaven sent. For others, they essentially become chained to the toilet, or need to be in really close proximity to one after they eat. That sounds terrible. And if there's even a tiny chance that my life will look like that without a gallbladder, then....
My gallbladder wasn't enlarged, and I have no infection. All good things. That's not to say a stone might not get stuck someday and wreak havoc, more than the terrible pain of it passing through my ducts (my cystic duct was quite inflamed), but it hasn't done that yet.
Another thing that showed up on ultrasound: a kidney stone. Bleep. That's new.
My consultation with the surgeon is on January 3rd. I'm glad I have plenty of time to think about things and more time to read up on life without a gallbladder. If prolonging our time together in a non-painful way can be achieved by being more aware of what I'm putting into my body, I'm cool with that. If things flare up in a way that feels out of my control, the ER is always open 24/7, but I'd really love to keep all of my organs if possible.
PS: I really need Kimbra, Lana Del Rey, or Florence + The Machine to set some tour dates.
And so went my gallbladder. It's been acting up in the last month. I was actually puzzled by it on Sunday. It didn't present as usual. I was short of breath and my whole chest/back/shoulders/neck hurt. It takes A LOT to get me to the doctor, and the pain I was having wasn't something I associate with my gallbladder. By the time I rolled up to the ER, and got out of and back into the car twice (I'm indecisive), I went in, quickly made my way through triage and was in a bed in the hall in no time. About 5 minutes after being in my new spot, the pain centralized, and I knew without a doubt Gally was acting up. Yes, I've dealt with my gallbladder so much that those who are close to me know that I lovingly refer to it as Gally.
(Photo from AnOptimisticCynic on Etsy)
If I would have known it was Gally from the get-go, I likely wouldn't have gone in. But now I'm kind of glad I did, just because now I know what I'm dealing with. And what I'm dealing with has me on the fence. They were pretty close to emergency surgery-ing on Sunday night, but I'd passed the stone I was passing, and ultrasound confirmed it wasn't stuck anymore, and the pain was subsiding (Thanks, Morphine!). Ultrasound also showed that there were more stones where that one came from. My liver enzymes were elevated, but the one they extra worry about was not elevated enough to warrant emergency surgery, so five hours later, I went home!
Now I have a choice to make. I visited with my PCP this afternoon and got a referral to a surgeon. I've lived with gallbladder attacks for a pretty substantial amount of time now. I know what living that life is like (except for the weird way the pain presented on Sunday - but now I know that too), what I don't know is how my body will react when I no longer have a gallbladder. For some people, the relief is heaven sent. For others, they essentially become chained to the toilet, or need to be in really close proximity to one after they eat. That sounds terrible. And if there's even a tiny chance that my life will look like that without a gallbladder, then....
My gallbladder wasn't enlarged, and I have no infection. All good things. That's not to say a stone might not get stuck someday and wreak havoc, more than the terrible pain of it passing through my ducts (my cystic duct was quite inflamed), but it hasn't done that yet.
Another thing that showed up on ultrasound: a kidney stone. Bleep. That's new.
My consultation with the surgeon is on January 3rd. I'm glad I have plenty of time to think about things and more time to read up on life without a gallbladder. If prolonging our time together in a non-painful way can be achieved by being more aware of what I'm putting into my body, I'm cool with that. If things flare up in a way that feels out of my control, the ER is always open 24/7, but I'd really love to keep all of my organs if possible.
PS: I really need Kimbra, Lana Del Rey, or Florence + The Machine to set some tour dates.
