Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Unexpected Outcome :(

I know I said I'd be back after my show in the next couple of weeks, but I thought I'd let you guys know the outcome of my doctor's visit today. It was quite unexpected. As I said in my last post last night, I was walking in there thinking I had an ulcer, and that "no big deal" it can be healed by cutting out all acidic and spicy foods and taking medication. WRONG! I walked out of there with the news that I will have to go through surgery to have my gall bladder removed! For those of you who know me at all, you know that I'm a huge wimp when it comes to any phrase that includes the words "blood", "surgery", "needles", etc. Needless to say I'm pretty nervous about the whole thing. Anyone had their gall bladder removed?!?! Please let me know I have nothing to be worried about! :( Apparently I have a gall stone and a polyp (xtra tissue in the gall bladder) as well as an over-production of acid and bile (lovely eh?). The acid reflux is what was causing the extreme pain in my abdomen and causing me to be sick to my stomach. Hopefully the ultrasound on my heart will find out the separate issue that perhaps caused me to faint and the dizziness. Lastly, my blood pressure is a little closer to normal today. It was 170/102 last week, this week it's 142/82. I go back to my family physician in one month's time to check that out again.

Sheesh... I guess I can't complain now. At least I know what's wrong with me and as nervous as I am about the surgery (I guess I just don't like the thought of being cut open) I know that my pain will stop once I'm all better! :)

Wish me luck. Now it's just waiting for the surgeon to call me. Goodbye tomato pasta sauce. Goodbye orange juice. Goodbye yummy buffet dinners.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi,
A diet high in fat definitely aggravates gall bladder problems. My Mom had an attack the had her in the hospital a couple years ago, with a high fever, dehydration, she was so weak she couldn't get out of bed. They decided not to remove her gallbladder due to her age and the fact that if she is able to control the problem with diet. She notices as soon as she's eaten too much fat in her diet - even too many Christmas cookies can cause the pain. She also has a hiatus hernia. Watching her diet and not eating for several hours before bed makes all the difference for her. I'm told that gallbladder surgery is not a huge invasive deal the way it used to be.
Good luck! I hope all goes well for you. In the mean time lower your total fat intake - it might give you some relief.

Erin Maloney said...

Thanks Melissa! I have found the same to be true, especially not eating a few hours before going to bed. Also, flushing my system with lots of water seems to help as well. I'll keep you all posted. :)