Osteosclerosis??

That's what I was kinda afraid of.........but where does the hyperparathyroidism come in? How do you get it, and what's more important, how do you get RID of it??

Funny how I've acquired this wealth of knowledge about health-related issues over the years, and then when it's ME, I suddenly contract a bad case of the stupids. Sheesh.

Thanks, Sara........very informative! I'll have to follow up on this, as it sure sounds a lot like what I'm dealing with.

Kidney stones.. yikes! That's fall to the ground and bury your face in the mud to muffle the screams kinda pain.

FWIW I really feel for you!

Thank you........Ironically, this time around the stones haven't bothered me very much, because they're too damned big to pass. One measures 15 by 9mm, another is 12 by 9mm, and several others are around 7mm. I did have a couple of episodes of flank and pelvic pain in recent months that resolved when I passed little bits of gravel, but nothing like what I experienced several years ago when I had my first go-round. And I'd thought labor was painful.........this was a 15 on the 0-10 pain scale!! I hurt so bad that I actually cried, and when I went to the bathroom I screamed. Finally one stone did pass, but I had to have the other one blasted out, and then there was the torment of having the double-J stents in......I get to experience that dubious pleasure again with this procedure. It feels like twin blowtorches are running up my back every time I have to pee.

At least this time I'm prepared........I KNOW how bad it's gonna hurt, and I'll insist on Percocet rather than Vicodin because as opiate-naive as I am, the Vicodin never even touched the pain and cramping last time. All I did was sleep, pee, and feel miserable when I WAS awake.

Now the question is: Does anyone know how to PREVENT these damned things?? I know I probably need to give up my sodas---I have a terrible Diet Coke habit---but my urologist is still not sure what is causing me to form stones. (The last ones were calcium oxalate, the most common type.) I've noticed that both episodes have followed high-protein, low-carb diets, however...........I was on Atkins for about 8 months last year, and I remember having been on a similar diet for about 4 months back in 2001, after which I had my first bout.

Now, I know too much protein is hard on the kidneys, but at the time I wasn't worried about it because I was still relatively young and my blood work showed normal renal function. Now I'm not so sure, even though my BUN and creatinine are still OK.......at any rate, I'm not doing Atkins ever again. Last week I put myself on a loosely-structured diet of mostly vegetables, fruit and whole grains with some lean protein and even the occasional 'treat' (this weekend it was ONE piece of angel food cake with fresh strawberries and Cool Whip :) ), and I'm already feeling better physically than I have in months.

I'm under no illusions about losing massive amounts of weight, at least not very quickly (and that's best), but at this point it's not about getting thin, it's about feeding my body what it needs, not necessarily what it WANTS, and being healthier. I've been sick on and off since late January, and I guess this is my body's way of telling me to pay attention to it before it's too late to help myself. I'm heavier than I've ever been---albeit by only four pounds---and I just can't stand it any longer. Even if I only get back to where I was last summer, when I was working out almost daily and had energy to burn, I'll have done myself a humongous favor........my BP was down, my triglycerides and liver enzymes were down, and my self-esteem was way up.

Well, I've rambled on too long and off-topic to boot........any ideas you all might have will be appreciated. :)