ask: how do women pass gallstones ? Is there anything that helps the pain ?

Dear Anon

Thank you for your question and welcome!

Empowher's Her Writer Irene Taniegra wrote a wonderful article entitled Gall Stones : Why Women Get Them and What They Can Do About Them, which I have copied here. She says it so much better than I can!

"The normal function of the gallbladder is to store bile produced by the liver, and to aid in the digestion and absorption of fats in the duodenum (the first portion of the small intestine).

Gallstones compose a solid formation of cholesterol and bile salts and 80-90% of this condition are cholesterol gallstones. It can be as small as a grain of sand, or as large as a golf ball (though smaller gallstones are more common).

This is one of the most common and costly digestive diseases, and women are more likely to develop it than men due to multiple pregnancies, obesity and rapid weight loss. It is even seen in increasingly younger patients, perhaps due to the large amounts of fast foods being consumed.

Risk factors which can lead to increased incidence of gallstones are the four “Fs” :

Fat – Overweight and obese people are most likely to develop gallstones. What needs to be done is to find out what the body mass index (BMI) is, and begin a diet and exercise program to get the BMI into an acceptable range.

Forty- We have to realize that our bodies don’t work the way it used to. When in our forties, we should eat not like in our twenties. Since gallstones are normally caused by poor diet, eating properly is important as we get older.

Female – Because women tend to have higher body fat percentages and live less active lives than males, they are at greater risk for gallstones.

Fertile – Gallstones tend to form in women during pregnancy because of increased hormone levels.

People who develop gallstones generally don’t experience any symptoms for years, and many never develop any symptoms at all. These people are called asymptomatic and they have “silent stones” that do not interfere in gallbladder, liver or pancreas function and don’t require treatment.

When the symptoms of gallstones occur, they are often called an “attack” because they occur suddenly. One may experience steady, severe pain in the upper abdomen that increases rapidly and lasts from 30 minutes to several hours, pain in the back between the shoulder blades, pain under the right shoulder and nausea or vomiting. Attacks may recur very frequently ( weeks or months ) or even years apart.

Although very painful, the attacks are usually not life threatening as long as the gallstones remain in the gallbladder and not migrate to other areas of the body. If they do migrate, a person may suffer from inflammation of the gallbladder or the pancreas. If there’s sweating, chills, low-grade fever, yellowish color of the skin or whites of the eyes and clay colored stools, a person should seek medical attention. If these complications develop, and are left untreated, they can be fatal.

Most sufferers do not require surgery to live gallstone-free. There are a lot of gallstone remedies like gallbladder and liver cleansing using natural ingredients like lemons, grapefruit or olive oil or clean food cleanse which is by eating fruits and vegetables in their natural state , and staying away from processed, or packaged foods . These simple cleanses can save thousands of dollars and allow us to keep our bladder.

In order to reduce risk of gallbladder disease it is best to drink 10-12 glasses of water a day because it flushes the body and keeps cholesterol flushed, avoid high fats and cholesterol and eat fiber rich foods. Consider also having Vitamin C supplement because it converts cholesterol to bile. Regular, vigorous exercise may likewise decrease the risk of gallstones.

People who are having abdominal bloating, recurring intolerance of fatty foods, colic, belching, gas and indigestion, should be on the look out because they might be developing gallstones already.

As women, we all run the risk of developing gallstones, but by living healthy lifestyles, we may be able to pass our stones if there are, and prevent future stones from returning. (Women’s Journal, April 2006)"

Anon, please let me know if Irene's article if helpful to you. And please check out our Gall Stones Page here, for even more information: http://www.empowher.com/media/reference/gallstones

Does this help you? Are you suffering from gall stones at the moment?

One of my younger sisters recently had her gall bladder removed. There's such a thing as "eating well" (meaning a diet of rich foods) without actually eating healthfully; it's all about food choices and lifestyle. Stones may or may not be of a size that can be passed; regardless, it's painful.

As the article suggested, maintaining a regimen of fresh foods that include citrus and good fats, and drinking plenty of fresh water daily, and staying active can help keep your system healthy.

Dear Anon, thank you for the question and as a former sufferer of stones on the gall bladder, I feel your pain and understand your worries about passing them. I had 15 stones altogether when the doctor removed the gallbladder. I never passed any stone that I am aware of but there were a few attempts when my body tried. This is the time when you feel the horrible sharp pain across your belly and through the back and it feels like you are having a heart attack. If you have passed a stone you may notice in your urine or bowel a floating yellowish oily substance (bile) but after hours of pain!

One of my stones was so large that in a way it helped block the smaller ones from leaving the bile duct. It caused pressure and pain when they attempted to pass but like I say, the large one blocked the passage. Eventually the pain attacks were so severe that the gallbladder was removed and the doctor counted all the stones (15) including the larger one. Ironically, a little one was left behind (managed to lodge in the bile duct) after the surgery and several years later, it was dejavu all over again. The stone had grown to the point that blocked the bile duct causing the same pain as if I had the gallbladder.

A test called ERCP confirmed the presence of the stone which by the way passed on its own after a few days at the hospital with acute pancreatitis caused by a back up of bile in the bile duct.

The pain will be treated with IV pain killers at the hospital but if you are at home, depending on the severity of the pain and other symptoms (jaundice, short of breath, etc) I would make sure to call your doctor and have pain medicine with codeine available. If the pain is minor and more like an indigestion, I would live it alone and just try a calming tea like chamomille. Drink plenty of water too.

I have gallstone size 1.5cm
1.how I can dissolve it naturally with out risk and pain?
2. after I dissolve How can i flushout by natural method with out any risk?

i have gallstones and have been told nothing apart from not to eat fatty foods or dairy ive not to have them removed but not getting any help to pass them and it is really painful i get the pain alot now but still no help there basically saying deal with the pain and keep taking pain killers which i dont want to do and also have a six month old child who still gets up at night and trying to deal with the pain and feed my daughter is hard as am always running to the toilet to be sick can anyone help on what i might be able to get that will help pass them

Anon - You said you've not been given information about gallstones except to not eat fatty foods or dairy. You can find more information about what causes them, the treatments, and other things you can do to help with this from our Gallstones section at http://www.empowher.com/condition/gallstones

If you are not a candidate for surgery then you may also want to seek support from a healthcare professional who treats patients with natural alternatives.

Good luck!
Pat

Im 19, size uk 6 dress size, none smoker/ drinker and I was recently diagnosed with gallstones and pancreatits after having a HUGE attack and my partner took me to hospital back in September 2010 , I had such a rough time, I had never felt such a pain I literally thought I was going to DIE and I didn't get the help I needed, they said you''ll have an op in 6-8wks and if you don't you will die :/ I didn't hear back! I tried with the doctors to try and get hold ect... I gave up!! I was in so much pain, being sick, fainting and restlessness and just not feeling right in my self, Eventually I lived with it and cut out certain things such as pizza and ate more garlic and olive oil with foods as they 'purify' I even take Aloe Vera (YUUUCK!) and I feel so much better.... The other day though I had a poo and there was a little blood and I felt a moving lump in my lower left tummy and It hurt to touch but after a day it was gone and then there was no blood or pain and I assume I may have passed my gallstone?? Can any one shed some light please?? Dani x