Starting after lunch yesterday I had some abdominal pain. I typically ignore pain and soldier on (like the tough *burly* woman that I am). So I went running with Meagan and ran through the discomfort. I truly believed I would sleep it off.
I did not sleep most of last night. Around 1am I took some Tylenol in the hopes of sleeping. I am not sure if the Tylenol worked or if I was just exhausted but I got a few hours before I was up again with pain. I had an appointment for my blood thinners at the hospital this morning, so I figured I would just ask them.
The pain was intense. Lilian (my favorite clinic worker!) insisted I go to the ER, so I did. Bloodwork indicated inflammation. They then gave me IV painkillers. It felt so good! :) I had an abdominal CT scan and the results were (drum roll please...): Acute Cholecystitis!!!! Known to us common folk as Gall Bladder Inflammation. And boy does it hurt!!!!
Amy came to visit me at the hospital and totally made my waiting time (and there was plenty of it!) more fun!!! She even offered to sneak me food since I couldn't eat anything in case of emergency surgery. I declined...but she's sweet. Afterward she took me to Panera. :) See, Amy? If you bail on running with me, I will go to EXTREME measures to see you anyways. ;)
The doctor said that gall bladder issues are common in people who have lost a significant amount of weight. Additionally, triggers can be large amounts of fats and proteins consumed. Enter my blaming Devon and his high protein diet for me!!! :) I told Devon that we need to rework my diet to have low fat (already is) and low protein and in its place it should be higher 'ruffage'. I had to ask what that was. It's raw fruits and vegetables.
In response, Devon sent me the following:
I'm not certain that I agree with your doctor's comments on your diet or your weight loss. Regarding diet, it is apparently fat and cholesterol that can be a cause of a gallbladder attack. Your diet doesn't contain very much of either. While animal protein can be a major source of dietary fat (particularly saturated) and cholesterol, again your meat choices don't contain much of either. In fact, from what I understand, a diet high in protein can protect the gallbladder. That being said, it may be prudent to look at animal protein sources that are naturally lower in fat as well as plant protein sources. Also, your diet is lacking in fiber. I recommend that you add Omega 3 Fish Oil to your daily regiment as it may block cholesterol formation in bile and it has anti-inflammatory properties (you really should be taking this regardless of gallbladder pain or not).
While you have come down a lot in weight, it was not excessively fast. It was surprisingly steady, but not fast. Apparently going up and down in weight can be a factor in gallbladder attacks. I don't know enough about the subject to say what effect your gaining weight and then losing it again had on your gallbladder health, but that seems more reasonable than saying it was because you lost weight.
You do seem to rank pretty high on the list of people particulary susceptible to gallbladder disorders. Contributing factors include sex (female), age (not a factor for you), diet (maybe), weight (maybe), fertility (maybe), and race (people of fair skin). There are other factors that can contribute include hypothyroidism. I'm not saying that you have hypothyroidism, but it wouldn't hurt to have your doctor check for this the next time you have your blood work done.
Isn't my trainer just the best???!?!?!? I tell him I was at the hospital and he researches it and gives me a well-thought out response within 90 minutes. Devon rocks!!!
I canceled my session with Devon today because of the ER drama. Next workout, cardio tomorrow--if I am feeling better.
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