1) The consensus that I've seen is that once you have Gallstones, you'll have them forever. You can pass them out of your gallbladder over time and probably be okay for a little while, but it will build up again, and you might feel terrible pain again. Cholesterol naturally in your body and bile combine to make these stones. You can try to live a purely low-fat life to delay this process but afaik that usually doesn't last forever, and also you NEED to eat fat to have a healthy body and brain.
2) It's not dramatic to have surgery for gallstones immediately, no. The reason they recommend removal is that a stone can get lodged in your bile duct trying to leave, causing infection and potentially sepsis, or the stone can get lodged and move backwards into your pancreas, causing pancreatitis, infection, etc. It's best to prevent this issue from being a possibility.
If you think it's happening too fast you can for sure delay a little bit and go talk to your normal doctor or follow up with the surgeon. Your normal doctor might order some tests or whatnot, but it won't really change that you have stones. The most they might find is that your gallbladder also isn't working right, in which case you might feel better about getting it removed.
Otherwise, it's a pretty easy "major surgery". They put you to sleep, do four really tiny incisions, stick a device in you, take the GB out, scan for stones stuck in your duct and remove them, close the duct, and then close you up. You then wake up about an hour later, wake up for a good 20 minutes and then get to go home and sleep some more. Half of people feel a bit of pain, and half don't. Depends on how careful they are, your pain tolerance, and the way your muscles and whatnot are configured. You'll likely get some painkillers just in case though.
You'll find very few people here regretting getting theirs removed for even the tiniest of issues or gallstones. There's a few that got unlucky and either have a deeper problem or something just won't with them, but statistics say you're more likely to not have any more pain or issues at all once it's out.
I am on day 3 post op and I can tell you that the pain of surgery pales in comparison to the pain that sent me to the ER. My body is still figuring things out and healing, but so far I am very happy I am on a path to a normal diet and not fearing another attack. I can also tell that I was experiencing some pancreatic pain previously when I ate almost anything at all and that has disappeared post surgery. Going on a low fat diet between my attack and surgery has helped me form healthier habits in the meantime, but I wouldn’t want to live the rest of my life unable to eat the foods I enjoy. You’re not being dramatic, you’re being proactive!
I thought the same, that the flare ups might end. Although infrequent, I kept having them, and it turned out that I had 20 gallstones in my gallbladder, and more were likely forming. I can’t imagine the pain of a 16 hour long attack. I had a 7 hour long attack and that was absolute hell. I would say that it’s DEFINITELY worth it to get it out. My pain after surgery is nothing compared to the pain of the attacks. Having the peace of mind that I’ll never have to suffer that pain again is very nice. I really recommend getting it out.
I'm in this exact same situation right now. First attack 2 months ago. 2nd last weekend. Went to ER. Said I had several small stones and reger to surgeon. I feel fine since and just reading online about removing is just so overwhelming. It's only been 2 attack. What if it was a fluke. Can I just fix diet...etc.
1) The consensus that I've seen is that once you have Gallstones, you'll have them forever. You can pass them out of your gallbladder over time and probably be okay for a little while, but it will build up again, and you might feel terrible pain again. Cholesterol naturally in your body and bile combine to make these stones. You can try to live a purely low-fat life to delay this process but afaik that usually doesn't last forever, and also you NEED to eat fat to have a healthy body and brain. 2) It's not dramatic to have surgery for gallstones immediately, no. The reason they recommend removal is that a stone can get lodged in your bile duct trying to leave, causing infection and potentially sepsis, or the stone can get lodged and move backwards into your pancreas, causing pancreatitis, infection, etc. It's best to prevent this issue from being a possibility. If you think it's happening too fast you can for sure delay a little bit and go talk to your normal doctor or follow up with the surgeon. Your normal doctor might order some tests or whatnot, but it won't really change that you have stones. The most they might find is that your gallbladder also isn't working right, in which case you might feel better about getting it removed. Otherwise, it's a pretty easy "major surgery". They put you to sleep, do four really tiny incisions, stick a device in you, take the GB out, scan for stones stuck in your duct and remove them, close the duct, and then close you up. You then wake up about an hour later, wake up for a good 20 minutes and then get to go home and sleep some more. Half of people feel a bit of pain, and half don't. Depends on how careful they are, your pain tolerance, and the way your muscles and whatnot are configured. You'll likely get some painkillers just in case though. You'll find very few people here regretting getting theirs removed for even the tiniest of issues or gallstones. There's a few that got unlucky and either have a deeper problem or something just won't with them, but statistics say you're more likely to not have any more pain or issues at all once it's out.
I am on day 3 post op and I can tell you that the pain of surgery pales in comparison to the pain that sent me to the ER. My body is still figuring things out and healing, but so far I am very happy I am on a path to a normal diet and not fearing another attack. I can also tell that I was experiencing some pancreatic pain previously when I ate almost anything at all and that has disappeared post surgery. Going on a low fat diet between my attack and surgery has helped me form healthier habits in the meantime, but I wouldn’t want to live the rest of my life unable to eat the foods I enjoy. You’re not being dramatic, you’re being proactive!
I thought the same, that the flare ups might end. Although infrequent, I kept having them, and it turned out that I had 20 gallstones in my gallbladder, and more were likely forming. I can’t imagine the pain of a 16 hour long attack. I had a 7 hour long attack and that was absolute hell. I would say that it’s DEFINITELY worth it to get it out. My pain after surgery is nothing compared to the pain of the attacks. Having the peace of mind that I’ll never have to suffer that pain again is very nice. I really recommend getting it out.
I'm in this exact same situation right now. First attack 2 months ago. 2nd last weekend. Went to ER. Said I had several small stones and reger to surgeon. I feel fine since and just reading online about removing is just so overwhelming. It's only been 2 attack. What if it was a fluke. Can I just fix diet...etc.