Stomach, might be gallbladder?

[sallad]

A week ago I got a pain in the upper right side of my stomach. I have been so gassy since. I still go to work and have an appetite, but it moved from my side to my mid-stomach. Now the middle of my stomach is tender and bloated. The gas is constatnt and in my back as well. My stomach is round instead of flat. It is interfering with my life and of course with my anxiety I am scared.
I have darkish stool too, but take iron pills and lots of stomach acid pills. I am 44, (last week) and fairly thin. I walk daily, but am not in fantastic shape. I haven't changed my diet. Any ideas?
Thanks!:weep:

[bibliophilic]

I was diagnosed with gallstones and inflammation of the gallbladder. My symptoms are excruciating back pain with some milder upper abdominal pain. I am also very gassy and bloated all the time. (Doctors still aren't 100% sure if my gallbladder is causing the symptoms, though.)

How would you rate your pain, 1-10 with 10 being the most severe you've ever felt? Gallbladder dysfunction is usually associated with pale colored stools. Darker colored stools would be more indicative of GI-tract bleeding (like an ulcer)--BUT iron pills can also cause the dark stools, so I wouldn't be terribly concerned.

Finally, does anything in particular bother you? Fatty or greasy foods, dairy products, vegetables?

I'd recommend getting an ultrasound of the gallbladder and some bloodwork to check your liver and pancreatic functions. Since I'm assuming you're not jaundiced, I'm guessing they'll be okay. The ultrasound can show gallstones, polyps, inflammation, sludge, and any other abnormalities. If that comes back normal, please insist on a HIDA with CCK scan. This test will check the actual function of your gallbladder as many people have gallbladder dysfunction which causes the same symptoms. The treatment for all of the above is surgical removal, which is one of the most common surgical procedures in the western world. (I read that 500,000+ people in the US alone get it done per year!)

If you get the pain really badly, here's what kind of helps for me. I take like 4 Tums which I think helps with the bloating and burping. (I don't know about you but this makes me burp a LOT!) I take a sock and put rice in it, and tie the sock up. I heat the sock for about 2 minutes or until it's hot. Then I use it as a hot compress. Hot showers or baths may also help.

Finally, try not to worry. (Easier said than done I know!) If it isn't your gallbladder, it could be a variety of other things, generally easily treated. But the most important thing is to get that ultrasound and some bloodwork done to start off with. You'll be okay, I promise! I'm 25 and this has basically controlled my life since January, because I let it. I'm getting the surgery soon and hopefully it'll help me. If you need it, it's bound to help you because your symptoms are more typical.

Feel free to ask more questions if you have any, I'm an open book full of gallbladder information. :P

PS: you might be wondering what to look out for in case of emergency. If your eyes or skin turn yellow, if you develop a fever, if you start vomiting everything you eat, or if you have bad pain that doesn't let up within 2 hours, you'd want to head to the ER.

[Anxious_gal]

If it's your gallbladder you'll be in serious pain if you eat high fat food.

[Munchlet]

Sallad

I had to reply to your post I was actually just going to start my own post about a very similar thing!

About a week ago I started to get pain in the upper left quadrant of my stomach and I have felt sooooo gassy it's untrue. I have also had a very acidic stomach which I suffer from on occasion but this has been particularly strange this time.

The pain has gone off a lot but I just feel like I'm full of air.

It's horrible, I've actually gone to the chemist this afternoon and bought some IBS tablets as I haven't had it for years so ran out of tablets but that's what it feels like, now I just have an uncomfortable bloated gassy belly, maybe it's a bug?

[Natalie2389]

I had my gall bladder removed two years ago took the docters a while to find out what was wrong with me mind!! The pain was awful just below your rib cage upper abdomen I used to get what I called attacks, the pain was that bad every time I thought I was having a heart attack, I can only describe it as sharp pain all the way along my upper abdomen and I used to watch my stomach bloat up it got so bad it was really hard to breathe, what I found that relieved it was bending over , drinking water and taking deep breaths until it had past, also buscopan which is now available over the counter works wonders! Also an ultrasound will confirm whether you have gallstones go to your gp ASAP. Hope this helps

[sallad]

So, went to two docs today. The first one said it was just gas and gave me some muscle relaxers and said if it got worse go back. I went home and tried to tell myself it was all in my head. By dinner I couldn't sit up I was in so much pain. Went to a different doc who did some tests and said without a doubt I have a severe kidney infection. I am on anti-biotics for ten days.
I have been crying since I got home. I am so tired of being sick and scared of being sick. Now I am worried it is so bad the antibiotics may not work soon enough before my blood stream is infected. Life is hard. :(