Do you guys know anything about kidney stones?

[Cassius]

I've been sick for the past three weeks. At about three o'clock yesterday I thought I was dying so I went to the ER. I found out I have two kidney stones, one in each kidney. I'm going to a urologist (sp?) next week, but in the mean time I'd like to know what I'm in for.

Pain wise, yesterday the doctor barely pressed on my stomach and back and I started crying. I've felt like I've had stomach flu for the past three weeks. Sometimes it gets so bad I have to walk hunched forward. Yesterday I couldn't sit up in my chair without a shot of pain killers in the ass. I've got a bottle of Vicodin, and about a couple of hours ago I took half of one (I'm not that big, so I thought that one whole one would be too much). That kinda helps. I still want to puke my friggin guts up, but I can't even vomit.

So, anything you guys can give me, experience wise, would be greatly, and I stress greatly, appreciated. Please?

 

[Kilt Uncle]

My step-dad had that last year and the pain you describe isn't exaggerated, i know that. They gave him some medication that breaks down the size of the stones so they get smaller and pass naturally.

He's in bed now but i'll speak to him tomorrow and find out what medication it was that they gave him to help?

Sorry i can't offer more.

 

[Cassius]

My step-dad had that last year and the pain you describe isn't exaggerated, i know that. They gave him some medication that breaks down the size of the stones so they get smaller and pass naturally.

He's in bed now but i'll speak to him tomorrow and find out what medication it was that they gave him to help?

Sorry i can't offer more.

No, no, that's actually very helpful. Thank you.

 

[Corrissey]

Cassius, sorry for your pain. I hope it passes (literally, sorry) soon. I don't know anything about them other than it's super painful. Take the other half Vicodin? Hang in there, hun -hope you get some relief soon.

 

[slum mum 1974]

Hiya Cassie, my sister-ish in law had them last year and the pain they cause are not to be trifled with. It is way up there with labour pain. She was on Morphine and i think it didn't even take the edge off.

I wish you well with your appointment and my fingers and toes are crossed for you that the pain goes away real soon.

 

[Renia]

My mom had one, and yea apparently she was in a lot of pain. D:

at first they couldn't even figure out what it was! they had done like, 3 cat-scans.

they gave her some drugs and stuff for the pain and then she just passed it. she said it wasn't really painful when it came out or anything though and she barely even noticed at first.

 

[troubleluvsme]

They are soooo painful....worse than anything I've known.

I was in and out of the hospital for a week.

I was on IV's...they may have given me something to help them dissolve, but I cannot remember...It took about two weeks to get over them.
I really thought I was going to die....

Hang in there. Go back to the hospital if you need to.
Did they put you on an IV?

 

[bysshe]

Both my dad and my husband have had them. My dad likens the pain to labor pains. I've never seen him agonize over them. He tends to be the stoic type. My husband, on the other hand, was positively crippled by the pain. He would just fall to the floor and curl up in a fetal position and then stretch every which way in a vain attempt to find a comfortable position. The pain was so bad that it made him vomit.

I would recommend drinking as much water and cranberry juice as you can. And don't get the mixed cranberry juice. If you can get 100% unsweetened cranberry juice, that would be the best. Be warned - it is extremely tart. Try to stay away from caffeinated beverages and dairy products, at least until you see the urologist. Some kidney stones are calcium based.

Did you get the cone when you went to the doctor? If you did and you can, save the stones if you pass them. That way, the urologist may be able to tell you what it's mostly made of and make a diet recommendation to help prevent the formation of new ones.

There are many different types of kidney stones. You may find this link interesting (or just downright scary): http://www.herringlab.com/photos/2/index.html

I hope you're feeling better soon. I know it's not a fun thing to go through. Keep us updated on how things are going!

I'm not a doctor. I just play one on TV.

 

[Cassius]

I appreciate everything, guys.

They are soooo painful....worse than anything I've known.

I was in and out of the hospital for a week.

I was on IV's...they may have given me something to help them dissolve, but I cannot remember...It took about two weeks to get over them.
I really thought I was going to die....

Hang in there. Go back to the hospital if you need to.
Did they put you on an IV?

I didn't get an IV, but honestly, it was the worst hospital I've ever been to. They tried to tell me I had a UTI. My mother practically forced them to give me a cat-scan. I remember the doctor said, "Yeah, I thought she might have had them, but I wasn't sure..."

Needless to say, after all of this is over I am reporting them.

How long did it take you to pass yours? How big were your stones? Mine are a millimeter, so I think they are small and I can pass them myself. I just hope I'm almost done, because this has been a long, long process. It feels like every UTI I've ever had rolled into one.

 

[Corrissey]

I appreciate everything, guys.



I didn't get an IV, but honestly, it was the worst hospital I've ever been to. They tried to tell me I had a UTI. My mother practically forced them to give me a cat-scan. I remember the doctor said, "Yeah, I thought she might have had them, but I wasn't sure..."

Needless to say, after all of this is over I am reporting them.

How long did it take you to pass yours? How big were your stones? Mine are a millimeter, so I think they are small and I can pass them myself. I just hope I'm almost done, because this has been a long, long process. It feels like every UTI I've ever had rolled into one.

I can't believe they didn't do a cat scan right away. Esp with the doc thinking that! When I once went to the ER, they thought it was stones or an ovarian cyst (it was neither-it was 'nothing'), and they did a cat scan, an ultrasound and a dye test. You should definitely file a report. I wish I done so a long time ago...I'm pretty sure I could have successfully sued Northwestern.

 

[Dave]

I know nothing except that it is painful. I'm glad it was diagnosed. Good luck.

Whatever happened with your boyfriend's virus or whatever that was? (Necrosis?)

 

[troubleluvsme]

I appreciate everything, guys.



I didn't get an IV, but honestly, it was the worst hospital I've ever been to. They tried to tell me I had a UTI. My mother practically forced them to give me a cat-scan. I remember the doctor said, "Yeah, I thought she might have had them, but I wasn't sure..."

Needless to say, after all of this is over I am reporting them.

How long did it take you to pass yours? How big were your stones? Mine are a millimeter, so I think they are small and I can pass them myself. I just hope I'm almost done, because this has been a long, long process. It feels like every UTI I've ever had rolled into one.

I think they ended up giving me some kind of medicine to help dissolve them...I can't remember how big they were...

The hospital gave me morphine or something....When it was wearing off, and I could actually think straight, I noticed that my IV (for the extra fluids) wasn't even connected to the IV bag....It was like that for an entire nurses shift.....Jeez....Makes you wonder how many serious mistakes occur everyday.

 

[bogdana]

oh my god, isnt this weird? ive got an ovarian cyst that made ME cry in an ER! how about that? we had pain in our backs together!

 

[HandHoldingWinsRaces!]

I had one a few years ago. It was absolutely the single most (physically) painful experience of my life.
It was the night before my 21st birthday, and I, too, thought I was just dehydrated/UTI-ish.
After a couple hours of writhing-on-the-floor pain, I finally convinced my roommate to take me to the ER. After I got there, I don't remember much. I'm not sure if I passed out from the pain, or was given painkillers immediately. All I know is I woke up, and my mom was there. No doctors would give me answers, everyone was being vague and evasive.
Turns out that in addition to stones, I had (unrelated, they said) Polycystic Kidney Disease! My kidneys looked like Swiss cheese and I had only 50% function in each one... two diagnoses for the price of one!
I underwent Lithotrypsy (laser-blasting!) for the stones and had a stent put in to restore function to a blocked ureter. I was home from the hospital a few hours after the procedure.
What followed was an seemingly endless parade of X rays (to locate the stone/fragments) scans (with disgusting barium contrast liquid to drink), and, embarassingly, screening your pee. I passed the stone(s) after a couple of weeks. As for the stent... I couldn't wear pants with buttons or zippers for months because it was so painful.
I think I've overshared....
My advice is to take whatever painkillers they are giving you and stay ahead of the pain. Take them if you are the least bit uncomfortable, as much as they allow you to function. Drink all the water in sight. I stopped going to my urologist after the stent was removed (I was sick of being the only girl in the office. I hated sitting in the waiting room with 80-year-old men seeking Viagra/prostate advice and 45 year-old men seeking vasectomies so they could cheat on their wives)...I got a nephrologist (kidney specialist) and he has been awesome. I check in with him periodically now, just to maintain kidney health.
Sorry if this is scaring you.... I know your case is different and, I pray, less harrowing.
Good luck, hang in there!

 

[I am a Ghost]

I had them a couple of years ago.
Had scans, a camera up me bell-end (horrendous, obviously).
They got rid of them by using a sort of laser-pulse machine thingy aiming from outside at the kidneys to blast the stones into little pieces, which were small enough to be passed. It was ok at the start, but as the procedure approached it's end, it got a bit uncomfortable.
No recurrence since, mercifully.
Good luck with getting rid of yours!

 

[*EqualOpportunityHater*]

EOH got really ill last year and the dumbass docs thought I had stones in my kidneys, they did ultrasounds on me, and found nothing...

EOH's aunt had stones and she was in major pain, took all kinds of natural remedies, but nothing did, she finally got them removed medically and is now healthy and living.. currently traveling actually.

You'll be fine Cassie, EOH has lost faith in God for himself, but he will pray for you. xx

PS: If you need to talk, you know where to reach EOH

 

[still I cling]

I appreciate everything, guys.



I didn't get an IV, but honestly, it was the worst hospital I've ever been to. They tried to tell me I had a UTI. My mother practically forced them to give me a cat-scan. I remember the doctor said, "Yeah, I thought she might have had them, but I wasn't sure..."

Needless to say, after all of this is over I am reporting them.

How long did it take you to pass yours? How big were your stones? Mine are a millimeter, so I think they are small and I can pass them myself. I just hope I'm almost done, because this has been a long, long process. It feels like every UTI I've ever had rolled into one.

I always hate to hear when people have those things--I know how excrutiatingly painful they are. I have had them twice, and the first time I was told I had a UTI by the idiot ER doc. I went back a few hours later, then they did x-rays (no CAT scan) and found I had a stone. The urologist I saw installed a shunt to open the tube where the stone would pass, to ease 'discomfort,' I suppose, until I was scheduled to get the sucker removed....Oddly enough, the morning I was to have the procedure, it passed on its own. The second one also passed on its own after a few days. The ER doc in that time got it right the first time. Both were on the small side, and neither of my episodes lasted more than a week. I can't remember what drugs I was given.

I don't know if this has helped any, but I'm sending well wishes your way!

 

[Buzzetta]

I know they hurt like a bitch.

Lots of water and cranberry juice as mentioned above is the best (supposedly) to assist the passing...

 

[Cassius]

Thanks for the tips, everyone. I took your advice and have been drinking cranberry juice and water. I also took a Vicodin and now I don't feel anything.I was anxious about taking pain medication, but I'm soooooo glad I did.

I know nothing except that it is painful. I'm glad it was diagnosed. Good luck.

Whatever happened with your boyfriend's virus or whatever that was? (Necrosis?)

Thanks for asking, Dave. It came and went. Nobody knows what it was, but it hasn't come back, thankfully, and he's fine.

BTW, I didn't know what necrosis was, so stupid me looked it up under Wikipedia. From the very, very quick glance I took of the image, I can tell he didn't have that.

 

[Corrissey]

Glad you are feeling a bit better today, Cassius . Glad your BF is ok, too