TERRIFIED to eat!

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healthieramanda
healthieramanda Posts: 95 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Since I began my life transformation 10 weeks ago I have successfully lost 15kg (or 30-something pounds...YAY!). I'm finding that I have so much confidence compared to before, but one thing I'm struggling with recently is pain after eating.

Initially I thought it was something to do with eating pasta and bread, as it had only happened while eating those food items. Pain subsided after cutting the items out and things were okay, until about a week ago. Extreme pain started coming back, but this time no pasta/bread items. It occurred after every lunch and dinner meal for 4 days straight and lasts anywhere between 5-24 hours and is SO intolerable, which is unusual for me because my pain threshold is quite high. My gastro specialist is pretty sure it's gallstones (I'd had what they called sludge in my gallbladder on the last scan 4 years ago) I've got my ultrasound booked for a few days time.

So as a consequence I am absolutely terrified to eat. It's controlling my day and sucking the motivation right out of me. I'm finding myself planning my whole day around meals or just skipping a meal because I don't want to experience the pain. Luckily for the mean time, it has not returned for 3 days now but I'm still scared.

The strangest part is that this is the healthiest I have been in my entire life! I'm not eating fatty, crappy foods anymore. One thing I've found that sets my pain off is scrambled egg and also the other night minced beef with onion and another time plain cous cous with a bit of margarine - all the other times I really remember, I should probably try and keep a food diary. For the last few days I've just been sticking to boring safe meals like steamed vegetables, plain crackers etc.

Has anyone else had to deal with this? What worked for you? Do you ever find that one food will set you off one week, yet not the other?

Replies

  • Iammelting
    Iammelting Posts: 64 Member
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    I had something simular happen after I had lost about 40 pounds or so and had to have my gallbaldder out and ended up in the hospital with pancreatitis . Not sure why but Im thinking the weight loss triggered it ?
  • RunLiftEat
    RunLiftEat Posts: 213 Member
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    Congrats on your accomplishments so far. I am sorry to hear of your current situation. Has there been any other changes you have made besides to your diet? Have you added any supplements, vitamins, etc that you have started taking?
  • firewatergoddess
    firewatergoddess Posts: 16
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    I have had galbladder attacks before myself, I find that my triggers are high fat iteams and too much cheese. But triggers can be different for everyone. I also find that getting the daily recommened water amount helps me from getting attacks or if I feel one might start soon, it will eigther stop it or minamize it. But it is best if you talk to your doctor because you need to eat.
  • havalinaaa
    havalinaaa Posts: 333 Member
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    I've never had full on gall stones but I've had two bouts with sludge and they were none-to-pleasant. I had the same problem and it felt like it would never end :( Both times the issues lasted for around 3 weeks. It felt like after every bite I ate I would have immediate nearly unbearable stomach cramps and have to make a visit to the toilet. Oddly enough, both rounds also happened to me after switching from a poor diet to a healthier one, perhaps the body is clearing old things out and this is the consequence?

    I wish I had some tip on how to feel better, but not much seemed to help me. I ate a lot of broth and yogurt, and some rice cakes. Anything that seemed 'simple' to me. And I drank a lot of pedialyte to stay properly electro-balanced and hydrated. But I had to force every bite down the whole time I was having trouble, or sometimes I could feel fine for a few hours just to have it come back later. I hope this is a short lived problem for you!
  • annika27
    annika27 Posts: 56
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    rapid weight loss can cause gall stones. it happened to me a couple years ago. eating greasy foods is what triggered my pain. i had my gall bladder out and now im great!
    if you do have to get it out, dont let it discourage you. i lost 30 pounds before i got mine out, and after the surgery i just felt like crap and gained it all back!
  • jennyrider
    jennyrider Posts: 45
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    I did't realize u were talking about actual pain until I read on, I have experienced mental pain though. For that, I'm grateful. Thank you for my new perspective on things!
  • healthieramanda
    healthieramanda Posts: 95 Member
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    Iammelting - I've read a few sources that say that rapid weight loss and very low calorie diets can lead to an increased risk (30% more) of gallstones. This is because the liver secretes extra cholesterol and cholesterol stops the gallbladder from emptying, which in turn creates gallstones. Wow, pacreatitis is pretty serious! Did you have it out by emergency surgery?

    HeadUp - Not that I can think of at the moment, because I've got iron deficiency anemia and low vitamin D I've taken those supplements for some time.

    firewatergoddess - I'm definitely going to try the water thing! I hope it makes a difference!
  • healthieramanda
    healthieramanda Posts: 95 Member
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    rapid weight loss can cause gall stones. it happened to me a couple years ago. eating greasy foods is what triggered my pain. i had my gall bladder out and now im great!
    if you do have to get it out, dont let it discourage you. i lost 30 pounds before i got mine out, and after the surgery i just felt like crap and gained it all back!

    I'm trying to not let it discourage me, I just feel like my bodies falling apart! haha. Thanks for the advice, if I do have to get it removed I'll definitely stick to logging onto MFP daily, I'm due to have an ankle reconstruction shortly so I really don't want to put any of my weight back on!


    I did't realize u were talking about actual pain until I read on, I have experienced mental pain though. For that, I'm grateful. Thank you for my new perspective on things!

    I'd take mental pain any day! haha.
  • ahinescapron
    ahinescapron Posts: 351 Member
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    After my last pregnancy, I started having gallbladder problems. I had been horribly sick throughout my pregnancy as well. It turns out that I never had gallstones, but my gallbladder was only functioning at about 10 percent. I ended up having it out, and honestly, my system works so much better than it has in years and the recovery was pretty easy. So, it is not the end of the world if you have to have it out. They basically told me in the three weeks I had to wait for surgery, to avoid fat as much as possible. I basically ate really bland, fat free stuff.
  • Artemis_Acorn
    Artemis_Acorn Posts: 836 Member
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    I have had gall attacks twice, the latest about two years ago. In both cases I switched to sipping on organic apple juice for a couple days, avoided solid food altogether, and increased my water intake as well. It cleared the problem up for me. I don't know if my experience is typical.
  • Iammelting
    Iammelting Posts: 64 Member
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    interesting you mention iron and vitamin d . I was takign both because I had hair loss issues and they found out I had a very low iron ( ferritin) so I also was takign both. I had gone from a bad diet to eating very well and no dairy , no gluten At that point I had not gone completly vegan yet so was still eating some meat. ( gag)

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