I don't want surgery!

Nurses General Nursing

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Specializes in Acute Care Cardiac, Education, Prof Practice.

***DISCLAIMER: This is a vent, NOT a request for health information.***

So for the past few months I have been experiencing frequent and unreliable nausea, substernal pain blah blah blah.

Ok so my GI doc did an ultrasound and of course...I have a gallstone. 1.4mm.

"Well find a surgeon and have a chole, oh and see me in three months for a rerun on that lipase level"

Wait...what? ERCP? Lithotripsy? Voodoo gallbladder cleanses? Psychic readings? Something?!?!!?

Yeah, so here is the deal. I have a minor stone, with no inflammation, but I want to have a baby and there is a pretty high risk I might get in even more trouble once my hormones start to change.

But man, I just can't get MRSA, bile leaks, hemmorhage, sepsis, morphine PACU overdoses and a myriad of other things out of my head.

And I really don't like Ativan.

*sigh*

Sometimes knowing healthcare from the inside makes me REALLY never want to be in the hospital.

Bah. Tait

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Specializes in Cardiac, ER.

Uuummmm,..stop freaking,....I checked in at 0600 was home in my own bed by noon,..no sutures, no MRSA and no PCA or the dreaded OD,.......BTW mine was out 6 weeks post partum,..because I refused to have it taken out earlier...:)

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Specializes in respiratory.

I don't blame you, this is maybe why nurses usually make the worst patients.

If you have already discussed these other treatment options, what was your MD's rationale for not using them?

Best of luck to you

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Specializes in Cardiac Telemetry, ED.

Ugh, I don't blame you for freaking a bit. Maybe get a second opinion? Ask around about surgeons and find one of the good ones! Best of luck to you!

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Specializes in Acute Care Cardiac, Education, Prof Practice.
Ugh, I don't blame you for freaking a bit. Maybe get a second opinion? Ask around about surgeons and find one of the good ones! Best of luck to you!

I am off to see the best lap chole doc at our hospital in the morning (we are his home floor so he has been the top choice for three other

I think that is why I am having such a panic moment. I am hoping he can put this 1.4 into perspective for me and explain to me what kind of damn party it's having in there to make me feel so sick sometimes.

"BTW mine was out 6 weeks post partum,..because I refused to have it taken out earlier...:) "

Did you have a lot of difficulty with it during your pregnancy? (I know everyone is different, just curious)

Tait

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I was the 13th lap chole in vero bch fla in 1990, 6 weeks after my son was born. my pregnancy with my son was horrible, I barfed for the entire 9 months, I was totally incapacitated, I couldnt work, drive because it was constant, I lost 50 lbs in the pregnancy, there were concerns that I would lose my baby. I was yellow intermittantly during the pregnancy, but at that time it was only open chole and risk is too high and not an option (I refused any procedure that would potentially hurt my baby). If I knew I had gallstones before I got pregnant and knew what could happen I would have had a chole before I got pregnant. in july of 1990 I was 24 and I had a 6 lb son, luckily he was healthy, He is a JR in college now and doing great The most precious person in my life. I got it out 6wks after I had my son when I had a gb attack. Turned out my grandmother had the same thing and ignored for 30 years and by the time they did her chole she had gb cancer, she died shortly after. If you are a nurse you are mostly likely MRSA positive already, which means it is up to you to take hibiclens showers and put bactroban up your nose a week or so before the surgery. or just google mrsa decolonization. With me it was no question because I might have wanted another child and I didnt want to get gb cancer. You are lucky, you know you have an issue, I didnt, and it was in the days before tpn and zofran. Now it would be handled differently but why risk it if you know you have a problem and you know pregnancy could make it worse.

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Specializes in Acute Care Cardiac, Education, Prof Practice.
I was the 13th lap chole in vero bch fla in 1990, 6 weeks after my son was born. my pregnancy with my son was horrible, I barfed for the entire 9 months, I was totally incapacitated, I couldnt work, drive because it was constant, I lost 50 lbs in the pregnancy, there were concerns that I would lose my baby. I was yellow intermittantly during the pregnancy, but at that time it was only open chole and risk is too high and not an option (I refused any procedure that would potentially hurt my baby). If I knew I had gallstones before I got pregnant and knew what could happen I would have had a chole before I got pregnant. in july of 1990 I was 24 and I had a 6 lb son, luckily he was healthy, He is a JR in college now and doing great The most precious person in my life. I got it out 6wks after I had my son when I had a gb attack. Turned out my grandmother had the same thing and ignored for 30 years and by the time they did her chole she had gb cancer, she died shortly after. If you are a nurse you are mostly likely MRSA positive already, which means it is up to you to take hibiclens showers and put bactroban up your nose a week or so before the surgery. or just google mrsa decolonization. With me it was no question because I might have wanted another child and I didnt want to get gb cancer. You are lucky, you know you have an issue, I didnt, and it was in the days before tpn and zofran. Now it would be handled differently but why risk it if you know you have a problem and you know pregnancy could make it worse.

Thanks for the info. I totally laughed at my friend when she told me she hibiclensed up her nose before her lap chole but maybe she was totally on the right track!!

Tait

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Specializes in Med Surg, LTC, Home Health.

Check out Actigall.

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Specializes in Cardiac, ER.

I did have a lot of n/v/d and pain durring my pregnancy,..no stones just a sick galbladder (EF 3% per HIDA scan). I knew it was sick before my pregnancy but had fairly good results with just watching my diet,...not so much when I was pregnant. Best of luck to you,.it really wasn't a bad surgery.

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Specializes in Acute Care Cardiac, Education, Prof Practice.
Check out Actigall.

I have read up on some of the dissolving medications, however at age 30 my husband and I are ready for children and not willing to take the 1-2 years it can sometimes take for these medications can take for full results.

But thanks for the recommendation!

Tait

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the nose is where MRSA colonizes

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Specializes in pedi, pedi psych,dd, school ,home health.

if you want relief from symptioms temporarily; then you can do some of the "home remedies" while you think. But i know several people like Patty who didnt know they had a problem unitl the gb flared while pg. they were miserable!!!!

we had a child with mrsa and she did do the hibiclens and bactroban...only it has to be done 2 weeks a month for a year to totally decolonize according to her id specialist.

good luck!!

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