Re: adhesions/gallbladder

From: Karen Steward (kann@charter.net)
Mon Jun 9 08:16:52 2003


Hi Rick, Welcome to a place to find support and a pat on the back! Everyone here, in on way or another, can relate to the pain, misery, and loss you feel. I hope many others will welcome you~ Your story is very interesting to me since my daughter was first diagnosed with Crohn's disease at the age of 13. .....she was horribly ill with severe diarrhea, nausea, horrendous stomach pain, back pain, etc., however, as I began to study Crohn's disease I learned that granulomas must be present in the biopsies taken for a positive diagnosis of Crohn's. On the next visit to the pediatric gastroenterolgist I asked if the granulomas had indeed been present...........after asking me what I had been reading, he replied "No, but I am 99.9% sure she has Crohn's"...........~thus began a long, weary, search for a sure answer to what was wrong with my daughter. Many gastroenterologist's began disagreeing with her diagnosis..........after years of repeated tests by each one we went to, it seemed she was lumped in that IBS group......you know, the one they label you with nothing else seems to FIT? Melissa began realizing they didn't really know what was wrong and we both decided IBS stood for I BE SICK..........., granted, Melissa did not have a ruptured appendix, such as your experience, but looking back, she did have a huge cyst on her right ovary that ruptured; and this was ignored~ I am of the opinion (now) ~hindsight~ that this is what started the adhesions that soon were taking over her intestines, pelvis, liver,diaphragm, etc..... I hope you have read the interviews by Dr. Kruschinski of Germany concerning CO2 and adhesion formation. Melissa had surgery with Dr. Kruschinski in April, this year, and is doing very well........the pain from adhesions is gone. Her vomiting, nausea, diarrhea/constipation, chronic headaches, bloating, pain, back pain, pelvic pain, etc. and other symptoms are gone. She is able to walk uprightlyafter years of moving through the house in a doubled over position holding her stomach. She is on no medications and in fact is walking 4 miles a day, weight training, cooking, cleaning, etc....... She had previously no life............ Please do a lot of research before submitting to more surgery where CO2 is involved...........CO2 is a known co-factor in adhesion formation. Dr. Kruschinski is the only doctor I have heard of that uses the AbdoLift system instead of CO2......many people, just like Melissa, are having great success by choosing this talented, gifted man for surgery. There is a young man currently in Germany that has had surgery and has recently had his second look......he has been ill for years on end. We have a report that he is now adhesion free. Here's wishing you much hope in your struggle with your illness........let me tell you, your story brought me to tears, as it will others. Please continue to reach out, as you will find friends here........there is also http://www.bombobeach.com , another "hugging ground" where many people share their stories. Don't feel bad because most of the people here are women......I happen to like the scent of a man in the room! WELCOME! Karen -------Original Message------- From: adhesions@adhesions.org Date: Monday, June 09, 2003 05:00:06 AM To: Multiple recipients of list ADHESIONS Subject: Re: adhesions/gallbladder I was very bothered and saddened to read about your adhesion problems. Mine first started in 1977 (I was 22). I was having a lot of stomach pain that the Doctor's said, "Was all in my head". After a year of suffering, I was operated on where it was learned that I had Crohn's Disease of the appendics. Everytime, my appendics would flare up and rupture, the Crohns - being a sticky disease would keep my infection low keyed and localized. I had tons of pain and nausea, but no fever. When I had my first surgery, I was already full of dense adhesions. Six months later, I was re-opened to clean out more adhesions and from then on a lifetime of painful bowel problems. In June of 1998, I started having severe pain in my upper right side just under th rib cage. That was all in my head too, I was told. After 18 months of intense pain, I was operated on. The adhesions had spread up to the liver and gallbladder. My liver was stapled to my diaphragm and my gallbladder was 80 percent dead. They were going to send me home without the operation and give me fibercon and an anti-depressant, but one Doctor faught hard for me and the surgery was perfomered. After the surgery, all the pain was gone, but I had four months of severe disarrhea. I developed a bowel obstruction in Feb 2000 and the intense upper right pain returned. I had to repeat all my tests again, was assigned to the same gastroenterologist who said, I was a head case" and, once again, prescribed fibercon and more anti-depressants. The extra fiber brought on another bowel obstruction. From 2000 - 2002 I searched for Doctors to give me relief from pain. One Doctor said surgery was too risky because of the scar tussue, another was scared off by the complicated symptoms, a third Doctor did not believe adhesions caused pain in men - but operated anyway. My entire pelvic cavity is a spider web of adhesions, He cut away as much as possible, but since the surgery (May 2002) I have been in worse pain and suffering severe diarrhea every day. In Sept. 2002 I had a complete bowel obstruction, worse pain in my life. I was checked my a Surgeon and told, "You are just having a simple bowel spasm". My white count showed infection, other blood work was abnormal, x-rays showed complete obstruction, but I was told "simple bowel spasm". The pain is much worse now, sometimes it is a tearing, ripping pain, other times it feels like someone rammed me with a spear. The pain goes from the upper right front of my stomach into the back and then it travels up deep inside my rib cage and down into my hips. I am taking Vicoden in moderate amountsd, but I can not get out of this pain. It hurts to eat, use the bathroom, walk, even breathing hurts. I feel so alone in all this. My friends, who were initially supportive, are slowly drifting away. They are finding it hard to believe in my when all my x-rays are normal - the pain must be my fault - they reason to themselves. I am getting very little moral support. On Wednesday, June 11 I will be getting a colonscopy and an Upper GI endoscopy all on the same day. Problem is, they are looking inside the intestines - not outside - looking into the abdominal cavity to view how the adhesions are growing back and where they may be causing problems. I do not push to hard for laporascopic exam, I just wait and see if they will suggest it, but after 5 operations, the chances are slim unless I present myself as a surgical emergency - and even then - they want to watch and wait. The Doctors clear up the little medical storms in my life, but do not know what to do about the cause. I hope you do not view this as a "whining session", it's just that I do not have much contact with people sharing the same affliction. I am primarliy homebound.Reading some of these messages is quite said and, though difficult to read at times, brings comfort anf I am no longer so alone. Please keep me posted on your progress.
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