M.A.
Last yr. my 11 yr. old had hers out. The following yr. I had mine out. It is no Big deal. Pain a few days after.Get it done quick.My daughter and I almost waited too long.Vomitting, diahrea,excruciating pain.Enflamed.
Ever since I had my daughter back in May, I have had sharp upper abdominal/back pain that comes and goes. I finally went to the doctor last week and had some blood work done, and I have an ultrasound scheduled for tomorrow, but my doctor thinks that I might have gallstones. I've heard this can be common after pregnancy--has anyone else experienced anything like this?? Thanks.
thanks for all the advice and stories--it's great to know i'm not the only one! i am scheduled to have laproscopic surgery on the 12th and i'm glad to be dealing with it.
Last yr. my 11 yr. old had hers out. The following yr. I had mine out. It is no Big deal. Pain a few days after.Get it done quick.My daughter and I almost waited too long.Vomitting, diahrea,excruciating pain.Enflamed.
Same thing happened to me. I have been ok i.e. free from pain for a while, but if it ever comes back, my gallbladder will have to be removed. Don't know what exactly causes it, and don't really have any advice for you. Just wanted tolet you know you ar enot the only one with this problem
H., I have felt your pain! On and off since I was in high school until 1999 I had gallstone pain and had no idea what it was. I was pregnant with my daughter (first child) when the attacks became so frequent that the doctor told me that I had to take the risk and have the gallbladder removed during the pregnancy or I'd have to have a no fat/no dairy diet until the pregnancy was over and then I'd have to have it removed. I was so scared to have my diet so restricted because I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to provide my baby with the nutrients she needed for proper growth and I had been warned that i may end up in the hospital with an IV to insure that I was providing enough nutrients and calories for my daughter's fetal development. I chose to have my gallbladder out at 17 weeks, and it went quite well! I love it that I don't have to worry about having an attack ever again! Gallstones are extremely common (or so it seems) and I would recommend having your gallbladder removed if the stones are small - there's much more risk involved if you have small gallstones because they can end up blocking your pancreas and causing a life threatening episode of pancreatitis. Good luck, and hang in there!
I had this happen to me while I was pregnant with my daughter 5 years ago. It was extremely painful and the only thing that got rid of the pain was vomiting what I had eaten. I was finally put on a diet once it was diagnosed and it was removed 2 months after my daughter was born. It is very dangerous if not removed!!
yes, I was having sharp upper chest pain. The day it started was the day I was ready to leave the hospital with my daughter. I went to my doctor and she sent me to a gastroenterologist. They found that I had gall stones and I needed my gall bladder out asap. I was put on a completely fat free diet for a week prior to the surgery so that they could perform it laproscopically (the no fat diet shrinks your gallbladder so that you don't end up with major surgery and huge scar!) Good Luck...
Hi. Yes it is common and very dangerous, or atleast mine was. I had my son in June and was also having the pains(I have had the pains seince I was 12 but thought it was heart burn. Dr's dont check for gallstones at 12 so they did not know what was wrong with me, but my new Dr looked into it and said that yes that was the problem all along). The pains were really bad at the end of my 2nd pregnancy which we all just thought was because of him being so big(9lbs, 2 1/2 weeks early). Well about 6 weeks after I had him I could not stand the pains anymore, so I went and had it checked out. It turned out that if I had not gotten it fixed and kept on going the way I was and eating the way I was that I could have killed myself, because my gallblader had stones so big that they were blocking other organs. The sugery is not so bad (although I will take another c-section over it any day, my Dr. said the reason for that was that after the c-section I had a baby as a prize and after the surgery I was just missing an organ)) but I was able to take care of my baby and I only had to pump and dump for 2 days. I feel so much better now and I am so glad I had it done. My only reminder of it now is that I have 4 scars on my stomach and finaly after so long no more pain. Well I hope that helped and if you have any questions about it or need some moral support feel free to ask anytime
Hi H.,
Good for you to see your doctor right off!
I suffered with that pain since I was in my early teens. It was incorrectly diagnosed as several different things, including liver cancer! After my last child was born, I was in the ER 4 mornings in a row with unbeleivable PAIN!
By the time the doctor would see me, the stone would pass and I sounded like a lunatic. On the fourth morning, I had a different doctor and he ordered an ultra sound.
THANK GOD!
Diet can help control the attacks BUT if there are many stones or lots of 'gravel' they will probably want to take it out. If you're lucky, they can do it orthoscopically- just four little holes in your abdomin. They had to do mine the OLD WAY- BIG scar across my ribs, which hurt more than a C-section.
Good Luck to you! You're on the right track.
Hi H. - I had my gallbladder out in '99 after constant stomach aches for 5 years... i had not had any children yet. I had more stomach problems AFTER the surgery than before and so has my sister. My other sister has problems and doesn't have stones... my point is - I think dr's have a tendency to just say that must be the culprit if they find stones and just take it out. of course there are situations where the gallbladder is obviously diseased. So I would get a second opinion. seems like too easy a fix to me... but as far as the surgery goes, I was back on my feet within a week, it wasn't hard at all. My c-section took me 3.5 weeks to heal properly. Hope that helps!
I had the same problem after my second baby. It actually started a little while I was pregnant but nothing to alarm me. It wasn't until I was in constant pain, and actually throwing up occasionally, for about 24 hours before I decided to actually see someone (I didn't have a PCP yet). After the surgery, which was nothing, I felt GREAT!!!! One of the nurses actually told me that even though there is no scientific proof of this, they had noticed that this is a common problem that seems to be associated with pregnancy and people on weight watchers!! Hope everything turns out OK!!
Hi, my husband had his gallbladder removed a few months ago, it started with abdominal pain in the middle of the night and they say that is the first tell tale sign of gall bladder disease. it took him 6 months before the right dx. his pcp kept saying that hey thought that it was and ulcer or heart burn. but I kept on insisting that it was either gallbladder or pancreas from where he keep saying where the pain was which is the right upper quadrant that sometimes radiats to the back and you sometimes willbe vomiting so. but anyway he had his taken out during day surgery and has had any problems since. they say it happens with weight gain/loss, fatty foods, and sometimes alcohol so it sounds like if it is gallbladder they will find out with the u/s. good luck. also its best to go to the er when the attacks are happening cuz then when they can pin point exactly whats happening. so good luck dont worry.
My best friend had this after the birth of her second child. She was greatly relieved after the surgery, since she was in great pain, as I suspect you probably are too! She has no major side effects since it. Good luck!
Hanna,
I had similar problems with gallstones and ultimately had my gallbladder removed, after some serious complications. Please if you are having any issues with your gallbladder have it removed before it gets worse. I ended up turning yellow and being hospitalized for several days because the gallstones left the gb and were blocking my liver and causing serious issues. I also had several ultrasounds during my 4 pregnancies and was told they didn't see anything. So follow your gut. A normal gallbladder removal is relatively uncomplicated. They remove it laproscopically (SP), three small incisions. Good Luck!
I have not.. but a close friend of mine has.. sorry to hear you are experiencing pain after such a wonderful experience giving birth.. (well kind of lol)
They are pretty painful.. but they can be treated pretty easily.
btw, I also had a baby in May.. a boy.
hope all is well. Take care
I had my gallbladder removed about 2 1/2 years ago. My surgeon told me that the problem started several years beforehand. I figure it started when I was pregnant with my older son. Do not ignore this. It will only get worse. Good luck!
I have had this happen to me. I had my son in 2002 then in 2004 I had my gall bladder removed. If they can do it laproscoptic ( not sure of my spelling) it is an in and out surgery. I was home just after lunch. I had a c section when I had my son and I thought it was tougher to stand after the gall bladder surgery since the incisions are right above and below your belly button but it was not bad as far as surgeries go. Hope this helps!!!
K.
I have gall bladder issues too. I don't have gallstones, but it does get inflammed every once in a while. Inflammation may not show up on ultrasound, but it doesn't mean that nothing is wrong. You may benefit by just avoiding the foods that trigger the pain. If that isn't helping, removing your gall bladder may be the way to go. Its a very routine procedure and is done outpatient. Good luck with your scan.
Hi H.,
I had the same as you, severe back pain and upper abdominal pain after my last child. The first time I went to the Dr. I was told it was muscular and given exercises to do. Didn't work, and after a couple more weeks, the pain was so intense that my husband took me to the emergency room. The Dr. there thought it was my gallbladder and ran some tests. I had my gallbladder removed the next day, and my surgeon told me that it was in the top 10 of the worst infected gallbladders that he had ever seen! I never had a problem before that, and since it's been out, I have been healthier for the most part, and had less pain!
I think it was weird that my Gallbladder responded to a pregnancy, but I was told the same as you, that it is common. I say, it's important to check it out and follow your doctor's advice on the testing, it could save your life. Gall infections if not treated can be fatal!
So funny... I went to the doctor's today and I have an ultra sound scheduled for Thursday for my gallbladder. I had horrible pains a couple years ago, but I cut peanut butter out of my diet and they stopped. Took some time to find the culprit, it did the trick (really miss PB & J's, but not the pain). The doctor wants to make sure there are no stones to be found, just in case. Forewarned is forearmed I guess.
Glad to read the surgery is easy, 'cause you never know what they'll find and say.
It is very common among woman who have just had children. I went through this after I had my second child. I required surgury. It was done laproscoply(sp?) and I had to spend one night in the hospital. But it also can be controled ( if the gallbladder is not inflamed) with a low/non fat diet. I wish you all the luck.
Hi H.,
My mom had gallstones through out her whole pregnancy for my sister...The day she had her they had to rush her to the O.R. and take the gallbladder out...I hope this has helped you... :)
Hey there,
I had to have my gallbladder out after the wee one. Had two excruciating attacks and they took it out. The relief was so worth it!