Post: #1

There are 2 people in this world. Those who have had a kidney stone, and those who have not. It started early Thursday morning. I was visiting an old friend from college. I had some moderate pain in my right abdomen. I thought I had to shit. I bounced out of her place at 8:30am so I could get home to take a dump. The pain would come and go. I got home, took a dump, and went about my business. Everything felt fine. Went to the gym, had a good workout. Later that day another friend came to visit, looking for her birthday dick. I serviced her and sent her on her way. Then I stopped at the Chinese buffet but ate very little because I knew I had a weigh in with my trainer the following morning.

Thursday night I’m planning to go to bed around midnight. I’ve already showered and brushed teeth. I got in bed and that’s when the pain rolled in full force. It wasn’t crippling, agonizing pain. It was very high discomfort. I got up and walked around. I laid on the sofa because it offered different support than the bed. I repeatedly went to the toilet thinking I had to shit. I would have pegged the pain at 7/8. Mind you, I’ve had a third degree burn before. But what was unique about this pain is that it was constant. It didn’t throb. It didn’t spike up. No matter how I tried to change positions on the sofa, I got no relief.

The next thing I noticed was extreme sensitivity to hot and cold, plus a very mild nausea. Just sitting down on the sofa and putting my legs out on the cushions that were room temp enough to make me shiver. But once they’d warm up, it became unbearably hot. I sat up, my legs were freezing and sweat was dripping off my forehead. I started hyperventilating. When I noticed this I got scared. I sat down again, and stayed very still. The breathing slowed down. I laid down again and shut my eyes. The pain eventually subsided a lot to the point where I almost fell asleep. When I came to, it was about 3am. I decided to get in bed. I took a few sips of ginger ale, and climbed in. Within 3-4 minutes, the pain was back in full force.

The problem with pain like this is that it takes a mental toll on you. It wears you down. And eventually, what you thought was 7/8 becomes 9/10. I started thinking about possible causes for it. I had been dieting aggressively, with low carb. Several in my family have had gall bladders removed. I thought it was a gall bladder issue. I called my parents who were on vacation because my father is a physician. I asked for his suggestion. He told me to drive to the ER. I told him driving wasn’t an option. He said call the ambulance.

I sat for a few minutes to mentally pull myself together. Packed a shaving kit with essentials, got dressed, locked up the dogs, and called 911. All the movement upped the pain. I locked the house and went outside to wait in the driveway. They arrived 2-3 minutes after I went outside. I climbed in myself and sat on their stretcher thing.

At that point a started to tear up. I was exhausted, in severe pain, and I was finally in a place where I didn’t have to maintain such a rigid composure. They asked some questions and checked vitals. Then they gave me some fentanyl. The first shot helped, but it wasn’t until I got the second that it really took the edge off. This was the only time I felt any relief from the pain. And fentanyl only lasts about 15-20 minutes.

The best part about coming to the Er by ambulance is that you go to the front of the line. Within minutes of my arrival I had a room in the ER. They had me put on a hospital gown an get into their bed. As soon as I got in, they wheeled me up for a ct scan. Again, minutes later they had me back in the room. I was really hurting again and on the verge of tears.

Then we had a shift change and in comes nurse ratchet. I want morphine. Nurse ratchet wants me to answer questions. By the third one, I looked at her, said “use your best judgement, pick up the needle, and squirt that shit in.” She got kind of pissy with me. But eventually gave me the stuff. At some point, the attending nurse practitioner stopped by for about 10 seconds and said “it looks like you’ve got a kidney stone, what’s your pain level?” Here’s where I fucked up. I told her 7/8. The reason why is because I’ve seen enough medical shows on tv and only the junkies with non life threatening issues go to the Er claiming pain of 10. I thought If i said 10, they’d view me as a junkie, and not give me good shit. By saying 8 and having a small stone, they figured I didn’t need much. I don’t really know. All I do know is that with all of the opioid insanity today, we’re allowing politics and pop culture to impact the standard of care.

The gave me morphine twice, but not enough to produce any noticeable relief in pain. At 9:30am they gave me some toradol which is a non narcotic NSAID. That shit worked surprisingly well. Within minutes, I felt almost instant relief, and I fell asleep. I woke around 10:45 with no pain. Called in the nurse, who sent the aid. They unhooked me from some stuff so I could piss. Within 20 minutes I was outside on the curb waiting for uber.

Since Friday I’ve mostly had soreness on and off in that area. The gave me a strainer to piss through to try and catch the stone for analysis. But I haven’t caught one, and have given up trying. Toradol is very effective at reducing the inflammation in that area, but it does cause upset stomach and bloating. I haven’t taken any today.

I’m sure the low carb diet played a role in this. The problem with this dieting is that it’s very easy to become dehydrated for prolonged periods. I’ll have to figure out a better approach to this because I’m honestly at a point where I find high carb foods to be a turn off. I can’t stand that bloated feeling.

I’m sure some of you have had kidney stones before, and can chime in with your own experiences. Some of will have one eventually. And some of you will never experience this.

They say passing a stone is as bad or worse than child birth. It wasn’t the level of the pain that had me at the point of tears many times that day. It was the constant, unrelenting, and inconsolable nature of the pain. It exhausts you mentally and physically.

Post: #2

Hope you get to feeling better soon.

A friend of mine had it. If I recall his story correctly, he had an onset of sudden pain, so intense that he collapsed in the train on which he was commuting to work. Went to the ER and got diagnosed with kidney stones. He attributed it to his excessive coffee drinking. After that he went off coffee for good and was constantly drinking huge amounts of water.

Did the doctor give you any dietary or lifestyle advice to prevent recurrence?

Post: #3

^^
Man I need to cut down on my coffee! It's such a necessary evil since it gives that immediate energy boost.

Sorry OP, hope you feel better!

I drink about 5-7 pounds worth of citrus fruits per week. Kidney stones is supposedly the male equivalent of giving birth to a child.

Post: #4

Wonder why they didn't give you an ultrasound first?

CT scan is a pretty big blast of radiation and probably a lot more expensive than an ultrasound.

But I'm guessing it would catch a larger array of potential issues..

Post: #5

This is one of my greatest fears in life. Thanks for sharing your experience.

Post: #6

Dang dude. I thought kidney stones were bad but this sounds way worse than what I imagined.

Hoping I never get one. I always drink plenty of water, way more than the minimum per day. Though I'm always thirsty so it's not exactly difficult to do. Being dehydrated is never a good thing, much less for extended periods of time. Even if you're fasting I doubt there's anything wrong with drinking plenty of water.

Post: #7

I went and got a bottle of water after reading this.

Post: #8

The experience keeps getting better. I had something to do yesterday. I kept the pain in check with the Toradol they gave me. The only problem is this causes upset stomach. So I was feeling shitty last night. Today I opted to not take any because it calmed the inflammation but at a high price. I just took a run to Arby’s and had a regular roast beef sandwich. Between the driving, and eating the sandwich, my pain is back up to a solid 8. It’s not quite the same though. The stone pain felt more like pressure, this is more inflammation. I just took 2 OxyContins about 15-20 minutes ago, so the edge is starting to come off. Will report back later this evening.

Post: #9

Man... I know this might not be something people believe in, especially with the popularity of Keto & High Protein... but hey it might help you... so I'll go ahead and write it. If you were doing low carb... then I strongly assume you were doing either a kitogenic or High Protein diet... which involves lots & lots of Meat... and Yeah that's an issue! Let me state that I'm not a Vegan or Vegetarian, and absolutely admit firsthand that they look like emancipated mofos... but when they stay away from modified cheat foods... they rarely have any internal issues & all... and are lean as fuck! Way too lean for my taste, but still lean. I've recently switched from eating Chicken Breast every day to 2x / week, and I've never felt better!

Meat + Carb = Bloatiness straight simple, but if you take away one, it does not. However if you remove the carbs, then of course you load on meat, and that's internally very taxing on the metabolism & body, which I suspect might have caused your issue. If you do the opposite, and mostly remove the meat, and bring in quality carb, ideally organic, it is my premise that you, or anybody would feel better! If you do decide to go ahead, you'll have to go slow at the beginning since a sudden increase in carbs will bring you weight up. Then 1x or 2x / week, you can have some quality meats in there to get the best of both world, and not have the emancipated "Vegan Look".

I'm talking from experience! Chicken Breast used the be the staple of my diet... and it was an arduous fight for me to let it go daily... but it was the best decision I've ever taken for my health! Without the anabolic effect of daily meat, it will let your metabolism relax a little. Of course in the past when I heard a bunch of Vegan spew the shit I just wrote about... I was like GTFO with that shit... but after accidentally having to stay away from chicken breast for a bit... that's when it hit me that they were/are right! Absolutely Obnoxious pricks... but still right about this Nutrition Game! A little animal protein for density & muscle fiber... and you get the best of both world!

If you do decide to view meat in the same token as a Steroid to be used sparingly... I believe your metabolism will thank you. You know the old saying: If you keep on doing what you've been doing, you'll get the same results you've always gotten... and that's the definition of insanity!

Post: #10

Also I do not have any medical certification... but if I was in your position, instead of popping oxys & morphine... words I hear my favorite trap rapper Young Buck utter every 2-3 songs, I would seriously consider a Liver/Gallblader Flush to naturally try to solve this issue.

Some docs are saying that it's quack, and that you can't flush your liver... but a bunch of Youtuber claim the exact opposite, including Montreal Healthy Girl who's got a really good reputation in this sphere of health. I strongly believe it Wouldn't hurt you more than the pain you're already in! Check it out!

Post: #11

Is it a size where it can pass without being broken up first?

During an ultrasound for something completely unrelated a while ago, my doctor saw - and showed me - a kidney stone. He said it may move some day, or stay lodged there in the kidney for a lifetime. I believe he said it was 7 or 8 mm in size, which I think means it has to be broken up before it can pass if that ever happens.

Post: #12

Yeah, my first one was around age 26. I knew immediately what it was - I'm a nurse (psych, but still a nurse) - and went to my hospital's ED. Gave me some meds and a strainer to catch the thing with, sent me home.

I've had one or two a year ever since, and I'm now 50 years old. It's actually been a while since I had a sizable one. Most of them come down the ureter (from kidney to bladder) without too much pain. The part that kills me is that most of them get stuck in the sphincter where the prostate is. The pain is referred down to the tip of my junk (glans, for you medical terminology dudes), where it feels like I'm being poked with a needle. This part can last for a week.

I've learned to drink tons of beer, at least on my days off, whenever I get one that's stuck in my bladder. Over-hydrating, holding it in as long as possible, maybe jumping up and down too, whatever. I gotta get the bastard out. The alcohol helps moderate the pain, as well.

Oh, and 50% of the time, it gets stuck right at the end, with a sharp point poking into me. Then I have to get in the bathtub and swish it out.

Ugh.

Post: #13

(09-30-2018 03:05 PM)Solitaire Wrote:  Yeah, my first one was around age 26. I knew immediately what it was - I'm a nurse (psych, but still a nurse) - and went to my hospital's ED. Gave me some meds and a strainer to catch the thing with, sent me home.

I've had one or two a year ever since, and I'm now 50 years old. It's actually been a while since I had a sizable one. Most of them come down the ureter (from kidney to bladder) without too much pain. The part that kills me is that most of them get stuck in the sphincter where the prostate is. The pain is referred down to the tip of my junk (glans, for you medical terminology dudes), where it feels like I'm being poked with a needle. This part can last for a week.

I've learned to drink tons of beer, at least on my days off, whenever I get one that's stuck in my bladder. Over-hydrating, holding it in as long as possible, maybe jumping up and down too, whatever. I gotta get the bastard out. The alcohol helps moderate the pain, as well.

Oh, and 50% of the time, it gets stuck right at the end, with a sharp point poking into me. Then I have to get in the bathtub and swish it out.

Ugh.

Do you get medical help for some of them, or are they small enough and you used enough to dealing with them, that that's not necessary?

I think the first time I came across the description of the potential pain from passing kidney stones was in a sci-fi novel of all places. The big bad hero fighting killer robots and gunshots was knocked off his save-the-worlds mission for a couple of weeks by a tiny stone.
I just experienced 8-9/10 pain myself a couple of months ago when a surgeon cut into an abscess without anesthesia (supposedly barely works in a heavily infected and inflamed area - which was also my experience years ago in another infection and surgery case - he didn't even bother trying). There are different types of pain, but days or weeks of intense pain sounds like something that would be very difficult to get used to.

Post: #14

(09-30-2018 02:32 PM)Captain Gh Wrote:  Also I do not have any medical certification... but if I was in your position, instead of popping oxys & morphine... words I hear my favorite trap rapper Young Buck utter every 2-3 songs, I would seriously consider a Liver/Gallblader Flush to naturally try to solve this issue.

I’m not really interested in popping narcotics. But try to understand the level of pain we’re talking about here. It was like an 8 initially. But it grinds you down mentally because nothing you do can alleviate it. Then you get chills with shivering. My legs were shivering and I had sweat dripping off my forehead. Then throw in a little nausea. Finally top it off with rapid breathing as you become a bit panicked because you’ve got no idea what’s happening to you. All of this shit drives the pain the level up to a solid 10. I was on the verge of crying because it was so bad. I’m 41. I don’t cry.

I’ve had a third degree burn across the palm of my hand and was never given a narcotic. I’ve got a fairly high tolerance for pain. But this was over the top. I was with some friends yesterday and one was busting my balls saying “I’d never let them shoot me with heroin.” I said “motherfucker, wait until you have one.” They could have told me “we’re out of morphine so we’re gonna shoot you up with some street shit from the drug dealer at the corner.” And the only complaint I would have had is they wasted their time telling me that, when they could have bought it and squirted it in already.

Liver flushing and whatnot is fine when you’re not at legit level 10 pain. Go snort shrimp testicles and fish oil to your heart’s content when all is well.

Surprise is a key element of this ordeal. No one expects a kidney stone. You don’t realize that something the size of a grain of rice can bring you to your knees in tears until it happens to you. The biggest preventative measure is to drink more water, and I’m quite guilty of not doing that.

Post: #15

(09-30-2018 05:21 PM)porscheguy Wrote:  

(09-30-2018 02:32 PM)Captain Gh Wrote:  Also I do not have any medical certification... but if I was in your position, instead of popping oxys & morphine... words I hear my favorite trap rapper Young Buck utter every 2-3 songs, I would seriously consider a Liver/Gallblader Flush to naturally try to solve this issue.

I’m not really interested in popping narcotics. But try to understand the level of pain we’re talking about here. It was like an 8 initially. But it grinds you down mentally because nothing you do can alleviate it. Then you get chills with shivering. My legs were shivering and I had sweat dripping off my forehead. Then throw in a little nausea. Finally top it off with rapid breathing as you become a bit panicked because you’ve got no idea what’s happening to you. All of this shit drives the pain the level up to a solid 10. I was on the verge of crying because it was so bad. I’m 41. I don’t cry.

I’ve had a third degree burn across the palm of my hand and was never given a narcotic. I’ve got a fairly high tolerance for pain. But this was over the top. I was with some friends yesterday and one was busting my balls saying “I’d never let them shoot me with heroin.” I said “motherfucker, wait until you have one.” They could have told me “we’re out of morphine so we’re gonna shoot you up with some street shit from the drug dealer at the corner.” And the only complaint I would have had is they wasted their time telling me that, when they could have bought it and squirted it in already.

Liver flushing and whatnot is fine when you’re not at legit level 10 pain. Go snort shrimp testicles and fish oil to your heart’s content when all is well.

Surprise is a key element of this ordeal. No one expects a kidney stone. You don’t realize that something the size of a grain of rice can bring you to your knees in tears until it happens to you. The biggest preventative measure is to drink more water, and I’m quite guilty of not doing that.

I'm still trying to figure out how someone could possibly think that "flushing your liver/gallbladder" of "stones" would have anything at all to do with a completely different system on the body, namely kidneys/ureter/bladder. Sounds like utter nonsense.


MikeS: The last time I went to the ED for one, about ten years ago now, the doc gave me 600mg of ibuprofen and sent me home. So yeah, I don't bother going anymore, just do the ibuprofen myself along with beer/etc as mentioned before.

One of the dangers lies in how efficient the kidneys are. I could have one ureter completely blocked, for example, effectively shutting down one kidney, and not even know it. I suppose one day I should have an ultrasound done, but would probably have to pay out of pocket for it.

Post: #16

I have a fear that I will get these because I use so many supplements/powders.

I think water fasting / chlorella and any supplements good for the liver like NAC would be good for this. Look into it.

Guys who know about prevention would be very interested too.

Post: #17

Sorry to hear about the situation....but....an Arby's and China Buffet diet? Can you refer me to your nutritionist??!!

Post: #18

(09-30-2018 06:02 PM)JohnKreese Wrote:  Sorry to hear about the situation....but....an Arby's and China Buffet diet? Can you refer me to your nutritionist??!!

Anything can be done in moderation. And the Chinese buffet was about one plate of food. Arby's? A small roast beef sandwich, no fries. And the buffet was after a few days of keeping my daily caloric intake down to about 1000.

Go have a stone. Tell me how much you feel like cooking especially if it's possible the thing hasn't moved through yet.

Post: #19

Really sorry to hear about it Porscheguy. Take care of yourself. Yes I understand that level of pain all too terribly well. When you are screaming in your sleep and clawing red stripes in your chest with your fingernails, that's pain. Best not to have firearms in the house.

Post: #20

I've had kidney stones twice. It sucks.

First time my mom drove me to the hospital and I hung out there for like 6 hours. I thought maybe I had some super intense stomach cramps or kidney stones. I had a big cup of water in my hand when I checked in and I told the lady at the front desk that my stomach and side hurt. She said I shouldn't be drinking water if that were the case. I thought she probably became an administrator by failing out of nursing school. After awhile they admitted me. Gave me a cat scan and prescription for percocet. Went home and lied in the fetal position. A week later I got a bill for 700 dollars and I had fucking health insurance.

Second time was 2 years later and I didn't even bother to go to the hospital because I didn't have health insurance. I just drank a lot of water and took a bunch of cold showers (praise be to almighty Cernovich). Unfortunately, it wrecked my immune system and I came down with the flu right after the stones passed.

If I hate to rate stones on my most painful experiences it would probably be number two lifetime. But still plenty of time left, though.

Post: #21

I have had two kidney stones in my life, so far.

My 1st stone was 2 years ago at 3.5mm and the sucker would not pass for two weeks. I had it taken out with surgery.

After this horrible episode, i learned about a product which helps get these things out, and I can tell you this works in most cases:

Kidney Stone Support Chanca Piedra
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07F2SV627


This one works too, but it is not as strong:
https://www.amazon.com/Herb-Pharm-Breake...B01AVJCBYM

Keep this stuff in your bathroom just in case, it lasts a couple of years.

Post: #22

^^^
Hmm, one post and pushing unheard of supplements.

Seems legit.

Post: #23

(10-02-2018 02:44 AM)VincentVinturi Wrote:  ^^^
Hmm, one post and pushing unheard of supplements.

Seems legit.

Maybe so... but the Blue Organix link has some decent reviews on Amazon.

Thanks Flamaest!

Post: #24

Any opiate is the COMPLETELY WRONG drug for kidney stone pain. Why your doctor chose to give you that ineffective crap is beyond me.

The correct drug is Ketorolac Tromethamine (Toradol). It's a non-narcotic pain reliever that is extremely effective for pain from kidney stones. One 30mg IV dose and 3 min later, there will be no pain.

Post: #25

They did shoot me with Toradol. And they sent me home with a prescription for it. I agree, it works well. But it appears to be a very potent NSAID, Toradol got me through Saturday when I had shit to do, but I was taking the max dose and was paying the price Saturday night with a severely upset stomach.