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3rd Trimester
WWYD? (re: gall bladder issues)
I know there have been a couple of women on these boards that have had their gall bladders removed, but I know it was while they were still pregnant and in the 2nd trimester (when my OB says surgeons usually prefer to do the surgery because it's safest for mom and baby).
My situation is slightly different. I've had many, many, many GI issues in my life (starting since the age of 4) and didn't really expect to get by without any issues during my pregnancy. However, I had my first attack --which was actually full on pancreatitis caused by a gall stone -- when I was 11 or 13 weeks pregnant, and we were sent home after 4 days with pain meds and a "keep your fingers crossed she doesn't have another attack" plan for the future.
Unfortunately, last Thursday I had another attack. I'm out of the 2nd trimester (obviously) when surgeons would do the surgery and leave Frankie where she is. The doctors this last time were talking about giving Frankie steroids and possibly taking her out sometime this week if the "issue didn't resolve itself." Well...of course DH and I freaked out. No way we want Frankie as an "outside baby" at 29 weeks old! We want her at the earliest at 37 weeks! Full term, please!
However...it's been a few days and my gut still aches. Granted, it's not a full on gall bladder attack, but I get a belly ache after nearly ever time I eat. It worries me, and I want to ignore it...but how long should I ignore it? I know if I ignore it too long, the bladder could rupture and we'd all be worse off than if I'd just gone along with their plan. My entire life I've been one of those patients that listens to my doctors when they give me their recommendations...now their recommendations scare the he!! outta me and I don't want to listen.
I'm going to talk to my DH and see how long he's comfortable with me having this belly ache before we talk to any more doctors. Then I suppose I'll call my GI doctor and get his opinion, then talk to my OB...then lastly call a surgeon to get their recommendation (either the one my GI Dr recommends, or the one that was on call at our hospital). I'm just wondering what y'all would do if you were in a similar situation -- I guess I just want to either be told I'm an idiot...or put at ease with the feeling that maybe I should listen to my "mature" instinct that says these doctors might know what they're talking about instead of the instinct that's freaking out.
Any help? 
This discussion has been closed.
Re: WWYD? (re: gall bladder issues)
I would stick with the advise your doctors give you. I had my GB removed years ago and the attacks, besides being horribly painful, can cause another bout of pancreatitis, which is VERY dangerous. If they have ultrasounds of your stones and there are large ones that could block the pancrease I would suggest following their orders and having the surgeries. Pancrease problems would not be beneficial to you or Frankie.
If they can hold you off until after 32 weeks I can say from experience all 3 of my nieces and nephews were born at 32 weeks, and despite 4-6 weeks in the NICU they are perfectly fine and are now 3-9 years old and right on target with everyone.
I have had my gall bladder out and I have felt the pain of an attack. They suck.
Is there any way you can control this with diet??? No dairy, no fats etc???
I would go with the dr's recommendation. You can either do this in a controlled manner i.e. have the surgery in a non-emergency situation after the baby is born OR you can have this dealt with in an emergency situation.
If your bile duct gets blocked completely or bursts you and the baby would be in danger. The bile is acid. You don't want it to be leaking into your abdominal cavity at any time much less when there is a baby in there.
Let's hope you can resolve the issue with diet. You may have to go to an extremely bland diet but it would help your baby cook a bit longer. Good Luck and Hugs.
The problem is...I think at this point, I'm stuck with a gall bladder that can't get itself back to normal. I had the attack last Thursday and my belly is still achy. I know some residual pain is normal (from the other 2 attacks I've had) but I don't know when to say "okay...it's obviously not resolving itself and we need to do something about this before it becomes a real emergency." KWIM?
I had horrible gall stones (the surgeon said it was really bad when they removed it)
and I lived for almost a year with it before my surgery-with only 2 attacks during that time.
I ate a fat free diet. It worked...I swear. Fat is what triggers the attacks. I ate skim milk, certain cereals, bagels (1 gram of fat), fruit, veggies, No yolks pasta, boneless skinless chicken breast, etc. I found lots of fat free recipes that were good.
Maybe try that and see if you can get it under control until baby is more developed?
The baby could also be starting to squish against it and not letting it get back in place so the stones can move away from the bile duct opening.....hmm. Have you tried laying exclusively on you left side? Does that give any relief?
If you aren't having continuous attacks and are just experiencing some soreness I would try and suck it up for a couple of weeks. You really should just let the Dr's help you decide. I know people are all suspicious of Drs but they want the best outcome for you and your baby. I don't think they would advise you to deliver and deal with the issue unless you absolutely have to.
I would absolutely refuse to have my child delivered at 29 weeks to have my gallbladder removed. I would get a second opinion. I had mine out at 23 weeks and my surgeon said that if I wanted to wait, he would just do it after I delivered. It would have meant taking the risk of more gallbladder attacks...but honestly, I'd rather take my chances with another attack than delivering so early.
FWIW I lived in constant pain during the three weeks between when I had my first attack and was diagnose until they removed it. It sucks, but as long as you watch your diet, you can help the situation.
Good luck.
Unfortunately, it's not just "another attack" that worries me. I can handle pain. It's not the pain that's the reason I want her out at 29 weeks. Actually...I don't want her out at 29 weeks. I just worry that if I try to be a trooper to keep her in as long as possible, I could end up with a ruptured gall bladder and have sepsis which would be a lot worse for both of us than if I'd not tried to "tough it out" and just let the doctors deliver her early.
I'm definitely not one of "those" people that doesn't trust doctors. For sure. I wouldn't even be alive today if it wasn't for a lot of doctors and their experimental surgeries my parents trusted them to do. Like I said in the OP (or at least I meant to, if I didn't
) I trust that these doctors know what they're talking about, but my first instinct is screaming that "no way in he!! do I want my baby to be delivered at 29 weeks." The logical side of me though, knows that I can tough out a lot of pain. When I consider going to the ER, I'm usually way past the normal threshold of pain when I arrive. I've been through the ringer since age 4. I have to remember that sometimes ignoring the pain is not the best thing...and at this point, I have to put my scared feeling aside and ask myself how much pain would be too much to suffer through?
Basically...if the doctors could say: "when you are in this much pain...you're risking a ruptured gall bladder and sepsis." I'd be set. I'd suck it up as long as I could and hold off from that pain as long as possible. Unfortunately, there's no way to measure pre-rupture pain...so I'd never know when I'm close. I can't predict the future.
I guess I'm just saying that I don't wanna be in this situation. It sucks. But I don't think diet is going to control it at this point...maybe this should have just been a vent? Who knows. I talked to DH and he said if the pain isn't gone completely by Thursday then we'll start making calls for other opinions.
Very tough call. I do not envy you. I can tell you, however, my gall bladder was gangrene and ruptured when I was 19 years old. I'm 29 now and recovered fully, but what a mess. My surgeon asked how long I'd lived with the gall bladder pain before "doing something about it" and I told him maybe a year and a half. He told me I would have died had I waited another week to have the surgery.
My son was also a preemie, too, so I know how tough the NICU is. I can see both sides of this, but you're right. The sepsis will be worse than the preemie. If it's your last option, I'd vote for delivery.