Re: Nice post #28175

I did have fatigue, exhaustion, and Depression at the time of the surgery and for a while afterward. But I also had a new baby and had lost a job I had really loved for 12 years at the same time, so it's hard to separate causes! I had lost the job in early December (my boss died suddenly and the job went with him), and had the baby 1 week later. I felt OK but not great after the baby, which I attributed at the time entirely to job malaise. I began to feel gradually worse during the spring and summer, eventually having a lot of undefined generalized trunk-area pain, and severe back pain (attibuted to picking up a very big baby!) In retrospect this probably was liver pain.

My husband took me on a short vacation in October to cheer me up, and I found that the fast food we were eating on the trip made me extremely nauseated. The day after we returned, I had my first and only gallbladder attack: the pain was so severe I thought I was really dying. I had no idea what it was. My mother had had gallbladder disease for years, but her symptoms were so different from mine that I had no clue until an ultrasound was done at the hospital. I was extremely sick after the surgery and could not keep food down.

After recovery, I gradually began to try eating normally, and discovered what I detailed in my previous post. Now, 13 years later, I feel fine: lots of energy, no depression, physically fit. But, as I said before, I know what NOT to eat! I break the rules, and I have pain. Very simple. I ate a donut this morning-and I know better! Now I have a "spot" of pain under my rib cage on the right side. If I eat fast food on a business trip (some kinds of fast food are OK: I don't want to name names. Avoid hamburgers, anything battered or deep-fried.), I will pay with pain or diarrhea. My diet is basically a mediterranean diet, with a very minimal amount of processed foods (the darn donut...! Ouch.). I have never tried a liver flush, though it seems recommended by many on this forum. I do really love flax seed, too: I think it has a correcting action on many digestive problems. If I run out, I feel the difference within days.

Examine everything you eat: try an Elimination Diet to rule out lactose intolerance, problems with wheat, soy or other foods. They may be aggravating your digestive problems. It was a big surprise to me to find I couldn't eat soy! It's pushed so heavily in the media you would think it was a cure-all for everything. Good luck to all of you who are suffering. There is a light at the end of the tunnel... Tweet