help me

[osmama]

hi i had my gallbladder out in may of this year.  felt like a new woman for about six days.  i then began to have the pain,  nausea, vomiting just like before.  i have severe attacks about every two weeks.  i am so sick. my gi doc told me he does not believe i have anything medically wrong.  he thinks it is a psychiatric problem.  i really feel that all of my symptoms sure do sound like sod. he has not done any further testing and has basically written the idea of it being medical and chalked it up to my head.  i know that there is something wrong with me.  i have lost my job due to the sudden attacks and not being able to work. my 8 year old daughter has asked me if i was going to die. i feel like i am going crazy but know that i am not making any of this transpire on my own.  i feel horrible, no energy, nausea in a.m. daily, pain in my upper abdomen with horrible vomiting, pain, in bed attacks about every two weeks or so. what do you all think?  so frustrated. please help

[Grammyof4]

Hey I had my gall bladder out last Nov via emergency. Felt good for about 2 months, then in Feb started hurting so bad, RUQ. Same as you. Started seeing family Dr, then GI specialist and just last week had ERCP with Sphincterotomy. (SOD) I am feeling alot better. No back pain at all. Normal to hurt in same area they said for about 6 weeks til completely healed from the surgery. Had temp stents put in bile and pancreactic ducts for 3 days while in the hospital then removed. I never even heard of SOD until the GI specialist talked to me about it. 80 % success rate so will see. Hope you feel better, Grammyof4

[CalGal]

Here's the best link I know of concerning SOD: http://www.hopkins-gi.org/GDL_Disease.aspx?SS=&CurrentUDV=31&GDL_DC_ID=320F4EDD-0021-4952-83D7-8B0C67B47BFF&GDL_Disease_ID=7AB086B0-AB01-446E-B011-2E67CAFEF96D

The typical pattern in SOD, if one can say that, is there is no pattern, unfortunately.

Check with the SOD group at yahoo - good people, good information. You need to be working iwth a SOD specialist to find out IF you have it, and if so, what type. In the meantime, have you discussed using either high doses of anti-spasm meds, or calcium channel blockers or even nitroglycerin to see if it will help? Do you also know that narcotic-based meds can make things worse?

It isn't that the bile backs up, per se, but if the bile duct or the sphincter spasms shut, it does back up and it 'attacks' the liver and the pancreas causing more problems.  

[osmama]

hi there again.  i am actually on an iv for my nutrition. i got down to 88 pounds with my last attack (in hospital for 8 days).  i am only eating popsicles and a little fruit by mouth.  i have read quite a bit about sod and do indeed feel that it is a high possibility.  thank you so much for acknowledging that it is not in my head!   i do have an appt. with a gi specialist in s.f. in october who is going to run some tests over a three day period.  i am so exhausted by all of this. it is maddening.  i never thought i would want to be diagnosed with sod, never even heard of it, but right now i would just like to be diagnosed with something tangible.  i never know when an attack is going to strike ( although there is a pattern of about 2 to 3 week intervals). is this normal for sod, a pattern of sorts.  does the bile build up and leak after a certain period?  thank you for whatever info. you can give me.  i really appreciate it.

[CalGal]

Osmama, if you are currently eating a regular diet try switching to a low fat one. Many people have problems digesting fats after GB surgery and it can cause pain, diarrhea, nausea and a variety of symptoms. If that doesn't help, find a doc who specialized in the biliary system, and have them run an MRCP to check and see if there have been any change within the bile duct, or if there's the possibility of any sludge or stones in that duct.

Many people have problems that crop up after this form of surgery. It's not in your head. But in order to get things to straighten out, you're going to have to be somewhat pushy and if you're own doc won't help, you're going to have to push to get help elsewhere. There is a condition, called SOD - sphincter of Oddi dysfunction - that can occur after surgery but it takes a very specialized doc to get to the bottom of things if that's what's happening. But you need to take it step-by-step. Cut out the fats first and see if that's of help.

[cringuet]

This could be from nerve damage caused by gallbladder removal. I have suffered 16 months with this, countless tests, useless medications, chopped apart by surgeries, etc. I also was told it was in my head! The pain had reduced me to laying on couch or throwing up. I seen specialist 2 weeks ago in Houston and was prescribed Nuerontin (epileptic seizure medication) that also works on nerves. Within 24 hrs i had relief.