Kidney stones
- Thread starter KC2IXE
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Brotherscrim
Enlightened
The missus had some monster kidney stones (a pair of 'em, almost a cm each!) about a year ago.
She was taking night classes at the community college at the time, and in her cultural differences class (she wants to be an interperator) they had a potluck. So she ate a little of everything, and the next morning her stomach hurt and she was vomiting. I told her it was prolly food poisoning, and had her stay home.
I went to work, and when I called her to see if she was okay at about noon, she was still vomiting. Well, this was obviously serious, so I took off work and we went to the emergency room. Turns out it was kidney stones, and the vomiting was from pain. The poor thing was throwing up from pain for hours /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon15.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon15.gif!!
3 surguries, a few complications, lots of vicodin, and 2 months later, she's all better. Now the only pain comes from the monster ER bill that medicaid won't cover (we're not actually married, and therefore she's not covered by my insurance - wish she was).
Watching her like that was god-awful, let me tell you. That said, she was a real trooper - I would have been absolutely unbearable to be around if I went through what she did.
The moral of this story? Drink water people, lots and lots of it. As I understand it from everyone I've talked to, kidney stones are about the most painful experience a person can have.
She was taking night classes at the community college at the time, and in her cultural differences class (she wants to be an interperator) they had a potluck. So she ate a little of everything, and the next morning her stomach hurt and she was vomiting. I told her it was prolly food poisoning, and had her stay home.
I went to work, and when I called her to see if she was okay at about noon, she was still vomiting. Well, this was obviously serious, so I took off work and we went to the emergency room. Turns out it was kidney stones, and the vomiting was from pain. The poor thing was throwing up from pain for hours /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon15.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon15.gif!!
3 surguries, a few complications, lots of vicodin, and 2 months later, she's all better. Now the only pain comes from the monster ER bill that medicaid won't cover (we're not actually married, and therefore she's not covered by my insurance - wish she was).
Watching her like that was god-awful, let me tell you. That said, she was a real trooper - I would have been absolutely unbearable to be around if I went through what she did.
The moral of this story? Drink water people, lots and lots of it. As I understand it from everyone I've talked to, kidney stones are about the most painful experience a person can have.
thanks for the account brotherscrim...i was wincing again /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
i've had people tell me that drinking too much mineral water will cause kidney stones though. and even tap water does have certain mineral impurities /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon3.gif
i've had people tell me that drinking too much mineral water will cause kidney stones though. and even tap water does have certain mineral impurities /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon3.gif
Brotherscrim
Enlightened
[ QUOTE ]
chamenos said:
thanks for the account brotherscrim...i was wincing again /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
i've had people tell me that drinking too much mineral water will cause kidney stones though. and even tap water does have certain mineral impurities /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon3.gif
[/ QUOTE ]
Yeah, I wouldn't advise drinking lots of mineral water - an overabundance of minerals may very well be what causes stones in the first place (actually, it's pretty much a given). And some folks' municipal water may be just as bad or worse. But, I'll bet a great many stones are caused by dehydration. I've heard that most people nowadays are dehydrated most of the time. that means they aren't urinating as often as they prolly should.
A good indicator that you should be drinking more is when your urine is dark. If it's like that alot, you can bet that your kidneys aren't passing impurities and surplus minerals fast enough. And that could mean stones.
chamenos said:
thanks for the account brotherscrim...i was wincing again /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
i've had people tell me that drinking too much mineral water will cause kidney stones though. and even tap water does have certain mineral impurities /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon3.gif
[/ QUOTE ]
Yeah, I wouldn't advise drinking lots of mineral water - an overabundance of minerals may very well be what causes stones in the first place (actually, it's pretty much a given). And some folks' municipal water may be just as bad or worse. But, I'll bet a great many stones are caused by dehydration. I've heard that most people nowadays are dehydrated most of the time. that means they aren't urinating as often as they prolly should.
A good indicator that you should be drinking more is when your urine is dark. If it's like that alot, you can bet that your kidneys aren't passing impurities and surplus minerals fast enough. And that could mean stones.
[ QUOTE ]
... kidney stones are about the most painful experience a person can have.
[/ QUOTE ]
Hate to sound like a broken record (do the young'uns even know what that means? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon3.gif ) but I'd say that as bad as it is, it doesn't compare to childbirth. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon6.gif
... kidney stones are about the most painful experience a person can have.
[/ QUOTE ]
Hate to sound like a broken record (do the young'uns even know what that means? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon3.gif ) but I'd say that as bad as it is, it doesn't compare to childbirth. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon6.gif
Roy
Farewell our Curmudgeon Administrator
As I understand it, there are two types of kidney stones, uric acid (chrystalized urine) and calcium stones (Common limestone rocks). Uric acid stones are common at the start of summer and are caused by sweating alot and not drinking enough water. Calcium stones are caused by calcium in the diet. A Dr. once told me that he could not tell the difference between a calcium kidney stone and a piece of gravel. The last time I had a stone, the Dr. said that they still didn't know why some get kidney stones and others don't.
Sasha,
I have no doubt your are right but at least with child birth, you likely have a clue as to what the pain is about and some idea of what to expect. Not to mention that the item once delivered has some real potential in some cases. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
A kidney stone on the other hand comes as a bit of a surprise; at least for the first experience and the uncertainty as to WTF added to the pain likely does some different things to the mental processing of the situation.
I think I got off real easy in my one case but I certainly wasn't "showing" and had no idea why I woke up in the middle of the night bent over, sweating like a sauna participant, feeling like I needed to evacuate by body somehow via a non existant orifice and basically blind sighted by the pain.
- Don
I have no doubt your are right but at least with child birth, you likely have a clue as to what the pain is about and some idea of what to expect. Not to mention that the item once delivered has some real potential in some cases. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
A kidney stone on the other hand comes as a bit of a surprise; at least for the first experience and the uncertainty as to WTF added to the pain likely does some different things to the mental processing of the situation.
I think I got off real easy in my one case but I certainly wasn't "showing" and had no idea why I woke up in the middle of the night bent over, sweating like a sauna participant, feeling like I needed to evacuate by body somehow via a non existant orifice and basically blind sighted by the pain.
- Don
brotherscrim: that's good to know....i've always had the habit of drinking lots of water so at least i can rule that out as a possible hazard /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
i don't know about childbirth (and never will) but according to my mum its usually the first delivery that hurts the most because the expecting mother is usually inexperienced, and any subsequent births are usually over pretty fast and relatively painlessly.
sasha, you had kidney stones before? did the doctor say what caused it? i think i'm getting rather paranoid /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/crazy.gif
i don't know about childbirth (and never will) but according to my mum its usually the first delivery that hurts the most because the expecting mother is usually inexperienced, and any subsequent births are usually over pretty fast and relatively painlessly.
sasha, you had kidney stones before? did the doctor say what caused it? i think i'm getting rather paranoid /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/crazy.gif
Joe Talmadge
Flashlight Enthusiast
The bad news is, there's plenty of reasons stones can form. You can drink all you want, if your body is pre-disposed to creating a lot of uric acid, you can develop stones. On the other hand, drinking a lot of water helps a lot, at least for uric acid stones. Also, there's a medicine you take daily, allopurinol, that can help people who can't get their uric acid down on their own. It's usually given to people who have already had a uric acid stone. That's the same medicine for gout, which is also caused by uric acid (in the case of gout, uric acid crystals form in the joints, causing particularly painful arthritis).
BTW, my stone was almost completely asymptomatic. I went to see the urologist because I was getting up to urinate at night, and I'm too young to be doing that. Otherwise, I had no pain, and no blood visible in my urine. Doc found minute traces of blood in my urine under the microscope (I guess). Then used ultrasound to find a stone stuck in the pipes, apparently also pressing against my bladder, causing the problem. It was big so he went in and got it. The surgery was the only pain I had!
Joe.
BTW, my stone was almost completely asymptomatic. I went to see the urologist because I was getting up to urinate at night, and I'm too young to be doing that. Otherwise, I had no pain, and no blood visible in my urine. Doc found minute traces of blood in my urine under the microscope (I guess). Then used ultrasound to find a stone stuck in the pipes, apparently also pressing against my bladder, causing the problem. It was big so he went in and got it. The surgery was the only pain I had!
Joe.
ZENGHOST
Enlightened
Man, I have always been paranoid about kidney stones since my dad had it and a couple of my friends have had it. I'm only 28 right now and two of my friends have had it a couple of years ago. Reading this thread has made me even more paranoid since it seems to be rather abundant. The fact that I started taking calcium pills a couple of days ago increases my paranoia. My father was just diagnosed with osteoperosis so my mom's got me on calcium pills. So now I'm thinking if I take the pills I can get kidney stones, but if I don't take the pills I can get osteoperosis. Great. I also am in the habit of skipping meals and not drinking anything for most of the day.
Brock
Flashaholic
I have had three so far, but none in the last 4 years. I started drinking one extra glass of water every day, so far so good.
Sasha, I know two women who have had both children and stones and they said the stones were actually more painful. But they both said it might be because in one case they got gravel, and in the other they got a beautiful child /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
Sasha, I know two women who have had both children and stones and they said the stones were actually more painful. But they both said it might be because in one case they got gravel, and in the other they got a beautiful child /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
KC2IXE
Flashaholic*
[ QUOTE ]
chamenos said:
is it due to men's habits or is there a biological reason for it that makes men more prone to it?
[/ QUOTE ]
If it's habbit, it's LONG standing, as they have found evidence of kidney stones in mummies
chamenos said:
is it due to men's habits or is there a biological reason for it that makes men more prone to it?
[/ QUOTE ]
If it's habbit, it's LONG standing, as they have found evidence of kidney stones in mummies
KC2IXE
Flashaholic*
[ QUOTE ]
Sasha said:
[ QUOTE ]
... kidney stones are about the most painful experience a person can have.
[/ QUOTE ]
Hate to sound like a broken record (do the young'uns even know what that means? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon3.gif ) but I'd say that as bad as it is, it doesn't compare to childbirth. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon6.gif
[/ QUOTE ]
Sasha,
Obviously I don't know how bad childbirth is, but I can compare kidney stones to gall stones, which I have had. MY kidney stones were not QUITE as bad as my gall stones. Say a 9 instead of a 10.
Now, when I had my gall stones, one of my wife's co-workers 1)Gave birth, and 2)Had a gall stone attack within 7 days of each other. She said that Gall stones are WORSE than giving birth, and to top it off, when your done, you don't have a baby
Sasha said:
[ QUOTE ]
... kidney stones are about the most painful experience a person can have.
[/ QUOTE ]
Hate to sound like a broken record (do the young'uns even know what that means? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon3.gif ) but I'd say that as bad as it is, it doesn't compare to childbirth. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon6.gif
[/ QUOTE ]
Sasha,
Obviously I don't know how bad childbirth is, but I can compare kidney stones to gall stones, which I have had. MY kidney stones were not QUITE as bad as my gall stones. Say a 9 instead of a 10.
Now, when I had my gall stones, one of my wife's co-workers 1)Gave birth, and 2)Had a gall stone attack within 7 days of each other. She said that Gall stones are WORSE than giving birth, and to top it off, when your done, you don't have a baby
Joe Talmadge
Flashlight Enthusiast
Well, if you think you're at risk for uric acid based stones, either because of genetics or because your uric acid level shows up on the high side on blood tests or because you have gout or whatever, there are things you can do. Drink more water and cut down on anything that dehydrates you, like alcohol or caffeine. Second, these uric acid diseases used to be considered diseases of royalty, because you raise your risk factor with eating more meats. You should especially cut down on any food high in purines, which include broths and organ meats (do a web search on low-purine diet for more). And, there's also allopurinol, if you've previously had a stone.
Best idea is to get a physical and blood test, and talk to your doctor to assess your risk and what you should do about it.
Best idea is to get a physical and blood test, and talk to your doctor to assess your risk and what you should do about it.
I lived with gall stones for a year. When I finally got around to having my gall bladder removed, it was a four hour surgery as they had to carefully carve my gall bladder out of my liver because it was embedded. I have the stones in a little plastic bag. One of them is the size of a Robin's egg. Compared to giving birth? Well, like I said... it took me a year before I finally went in and had surgery.
MichiganMan
Enlightened
[ QUOTE ]
ZENGHOST said:
Man, I have always been paranoid about kidney stones since my dad had it and a couple of my friends have had it. I'm only 28 right now and two of my friends have had it a couple of years ago. Reading this thread has made me even more paranoid since it seems to be rather abundant. The fact that I started taking calcium pills a couple of days ago increases my paranoia. My father was just diagnosed with osteoperosis so my mom's got me on calcium pills. So now I'm thinking if I take the pills I can get kidney stones, but if I don't take the pills I can get osteoperosis. Great. I also am in the habit of skipping
[/ QUOTE ]
They say that men generally don't need calcium supplementation and hence, due to some uncertainty about the origin of kidney stones, shouldn't take any. However your father getting it may indicate a genetic predisposition (way out of my area here) If so then I would gladly risk stones before I risked osteoporosis.
ZENGHOST said:
Man, I have always been paranoid about kidney stones since my dad had it and a couple of my friends have had it. I'm only 28 right now and two of my friends have had it a couple of years ago. Reading this thread has made me even more paranoid since it seems to be rather abundant. The fact that I started taking calcium pills a couple of days ago increases my paranoia. My father was just diagnosed with osteoperosis so my mom's got me on calcium pills. So now I'm thinking if I take the pills I can get kidney stones, but if I don't take the pills I can get osteoperosis. Great. I also am in the habit of skipping
[/ QUOTE ]
They say that men generally don't need calcium supplementation and hence, due to some uncertainty about the origin of kidney stones, shouldn't take any. However your father getting it may indicate a genetic predisposition (way out of my area here) If so then I would gladly risk stones before I risked osteoporosis.
CNC Dan
Enlightened
I had one get stuck on the way to my bladder.
The pain started when I went to bed at 9pm. I thought I just had a stomach ache. It got worse and worse. When I started to vomit I knew something was up. At 1am I figured a trip to the ER was in order. I drove myself, but I was worried I might pass out. I was ready to put the parking brake on and pull over if I started to feel woosey. When I got to the ER, I stumbled in and fell on the floor. They figured it out quickly and gave me morphine. That helped a lot, but I could still feel 'something' but it wasn't pain.
They did the thing where they give you an injection, and take an X-ray every hour or so. I showed that one of my uerters was completly cloged. They had me on a saline IV to dilute my blood and try to push the stone out. But my other kidney was able to keep up so no more pressure was bulilding up.
After a while I stopped needing pain meds, and they sent me home. My doc. said to wait and see it it would come out on it's own.
A week later I went back to the ER again.
Then I went to have it removed.
Hurt to pee for a few days, but not too bad. The worst part is peeing out little bloody chunks. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif
Oh and one more thing. They may want to leave a tube up there to keep the urter from swelling shut from the iratation. They remove the tube by pulling on the string that is atached to it.
The pain started when I went to bed at 9pm. I thought I just had a stomach ache. It got worse and worse. When I started to vomit I knew something was up. At 1am I figured a trip to the ER was in order. I drove myself, but I was worried I might pass out. I was ready to put the parking brake on and pull over if I started to feel woosey. When I got to the ER, I stumbled in and fell on the floor. They figured it out quickly and gave me morphine. That helped a lot, but I could still feel 'something' but it wasn't pain.
They did the thing where they give you an injection, and take an X-ray every hour or so. I showed that one of my uerters was completly cloged. They had me on a saline IV to dilute my blood and try to push the stone out. But my other kidney was able to keep up so no more pressure was bulilding up.
After a while I stopped needing pain meds, and they sent me home. My doc. said to wait and see it it would come out on it's own.
A week later I went back to the ER again.
Then I went to have it removed.
Hurt to pee for a few days, but not too bad. The worst part is peeing out little bloody chunks. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif
Oh and one more thing. They may want to leave a tube up there to keep the urter from swelling shut from the iratation. They remove the tube by pulling on the string that is atached to it.
AlphaTea
Enlightened
I was at the grand opening of a local Super-Wally World last year and went down with a 2mm stone on the right side. Passed out right there by the front door.
I gotta tell you, I have had:
a broken leg (skiing accident)
a broken arm (fell down hill while on crutches with broken leg)
a broken finger (playing tether ball with broken arm cast)
2 broken toes (one from kicking crutch one from kicking coke can)
appendecitus (sp?)
impacted wisdom tooth
a bee sting in the eye
athletes foot (yea who hasnt had it)
There is no doubt the the kidney stone was the worst by a wide margin. Cought it in a funnel Looked like a BB with spikes.
I gotta tell you, I have had:
a broken leg (skiing accident)
a broken arm (fell down hill while on crutches with broken leg)
a broken finger (playing tether ball with broken arm cast)
2 broken toes (one from kicking crutch one from kicking coke can)
appendecitus (sp?)
impacted wisdom tooth
a bee sting in the eye
athletes foot (yea who hasnt had it)
There is no doubt the the kidney stone was the worst by a wide margin. Cought it in a funnel Looked like a BB with spikes.
KC2IXE
Flashaholic*
Dan,
Your description scares me. Mine is also stuck in the tube. The big problem is that it's too low for lithotripsy (sp?) and at this point, a bit too high for them to go in with the cath! They want to see if it moves a bit. Hurts tonight. One pill worth
Back to work
Your description scares me. Mine is also stuck in the tube. The big problem is that it's too low for lithotripsy (sp?) and at this point, a bit too high for them to go in with the cath! They want to see if it moves a bit. Hurts tonight. One pill worth
Back to work
