Gallstones while pregnant?

jacksoha · January 2014

So I posted in the symptom discussion board the other day that I've been having sharp pain under my right breast off and on over the past week. It would last for a little while and then go away. Originally I thought it was my ribs stretching but it got worse yesterday and wouldn't go away, so I called my OB and was able to be seen. They think it may be my gallbladder and are sending me for an ultrasound of my gallbladder at 9:00 am tomorrow morning.

Every time I eat I have pain in the same area and I only have pain after I eat for about an hour or so, which makes feel pretty sure that it is gallstones. I'm just a little freaked out right now. I'm scared of the idea of having surgery while pregnant, not even sure that would be an option. But on the other hand, the idea of living with this pain until June scares me too. Also the idea of completely changing my diet (even though it would be worth it) sounds utterly exhausting!

Has anyone had any experience with gallstones, pregnant or not? Thanks for all your support!

MrsCase1 · January 2014

My gallbladder was trashed during pregnancy. It is super common, as well as hereditary. When Lincoln was 3 weeks old I ended up in the e.r. and everyone there was like, "Pft, probably your gallbladder." Had mine out two weeks later.

kibean · January 2014

I have stones in my GB right now, but they rarely act up. I had a HIDA scan that showed less than 1 percent functioning and was sent to a consult with a surgeon about a year ago. The surgeon recommended waiting on surgery until over the summer (I work in a school) so that there would be more time to recover if they ended up going all the way in instead of doing the removal laproscopically.

Fast forward 6 months, I was going through a lot physically and emotionally that summer and didn't feel the need to get my GB out right then (no flare ups) and then school started, and then I was pregnant, sooo here I am! I have had no problems at all in almost a year.

One thing that always helped was lying on my right side (to keep the stone from trying to be dislodged) and stretching out my torso as far as I could. That said, if I was in that bad of pain more than a couple times a year, I think it might be worth it to have the surgery. My gallstones were unbelievably painful.

I can't imagine having to go through that pain pregnant, so I feel for you!

BrunoBabies · January 2014

I got them with DS and it's starting to act up again with DD. my only advice is to change your diet. Lots of water and dry foods, if you google you can find a list of what not to eat. Basically anything that taste good lol.

sumochik · January 2014

Ugh I had this with my last baby and I had my gallbladder taken out the week of Thanksgiving when DD was 8 months. I thought I was going to die the attacks were so bad. Gatorade and smoothies were all I ate for months. Needless to say Thanksgiving skipped me that year and I still have bathroom issues (sorry if that's TMI) to this day. There are certain foods I refuse to eat BC they make me feel gross, and I've developed a bit of lactose intolerance which I've heard is pretty common post surgery. The surgery was not bad at all, I was in and out the same day and the pain was pretty minimal, in fact I didn't take any pain meds. You'll feel much better afterwards, just watch what you eat now since you can't have the surgery right away. Yes changing your diet sucks, but for me those attacks were the worst pain I've ever had so it's worth it IMO. Hope you feel better soon!

LegalLadyBug · January 2014

I've been having bad pain on my right side. My OB ordered an abdominal ultrasound to check my liver, kidneys, pancreas, and gallbladder. For me all was fine. It's possible I have a diseased gallbladder but the only way to test for it involves radiation via CT scan and it's not safe while pregnant so I am stuck with this constant burning pain on my right side for the next 17 weeks. I have found that cheese and carbonated beverages make the pain worse. Hopefully they will find a reason for your pain.

sushiq83 · January 2014

Stopping over from the July bmb. I lurk over here because my due date is the very begining of july. I had gallstones with my last pregnancy and had my gallbladder removed at 17 weeks pregnant. Its not uncommon to have that surgery done during pregnacy. Although my pain landed me in the hospital so I think mine may have been more severe. The surgery was about a hour and my OB attended. From what I was told they can safely do the surgery in the second trimester. If you have any questions about it you can pm me.

jacksoha · January 2014

Thanks ladies! I ended up throwing up last night, out of the blue, but I'm feeling better today, though I still have mild pain in my right side. I had an ultrasound this morning and the results will be sent to my OB, so hopefully we will find something out! It's nice to know I'm not the only one who has dealt with/is dealing with this!

LegalLadyBug I read that cheese could make it worse which made me sad because that is definitely one of my addictions! But if it helps me feel better I'll make it work

I"m working on finding foods that make me feel better and don't hurt to much! It's seems like it is kind of trial and error. Thankfully I don't eat a lot of processed foods or junk food (just some recent pregnancy cravings I've given in to) so I'll be stopping all that!

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