For a few years, I would have short periods of extreme pain in the abdomen area. The pain was so severe I had a hard time know the exact location of the pain. I golf regularly and always seemed to think I had pulled a muscle in my stomach area causing the severe pain. I never went to a doctor. Finally after this having happened several times I broke down and went to the doctor. When I described the pain to the doctor, he immediately thought I might be experiencing a gallbladder attack. Needless to say, he was correct and I am now pain free after my gallbladder was removed. If you were like me, you are probably interested in the common symptoms of a gallbladder attack.
Here are 5 common symptoms of a gallbladder attack
Symptom #1 Severe pain
If you are experiencing a gallbladder attack, you will likely first know by the pain you are in. The pain is a steady, intense pain in the upper right abdomen area under the rib cage. The pain can radiate around the side to the upper right back area. Pain medicine will not help the pain to ease. The pain will generally last intense for a number of hours and then start to fade. The pain can stay with you for several days at a less intense level. A gallbladder attack is called biliary colic and is mostly identified by the type of pain you are experiencing.
Symptom #2 Brought on after a meal
A typical gallbladder attack will occur within a few hours of a meal. The meal might have been unusually large or just full of fatty foods. The attack will often occur during the night after a large dinner and will carry enough gallbladder pain with it that it will wake you up. The gallbladder is used to store excess fat and gallbladder stones can cause this excess fat to not store properly and in turn lead to a gallbladder attack. Be conscience of what types of food you eat before a gallbladder attack flares up. This gallbladder attack symptom can be useful in helping your doctor to diagnose the problem.
One surprising gallbladder attack symptom is the distance between attacks or episodes of pain. A typical gallbladder attack with flare up with severe pain for one to several hours. The pain will eventually level off and you will not have an attack again for a period of time. When I had my problems I had about 2 attacks a year for a few years before the problem was identified. This is not an uncommon situation. A gallbladder problem can be tough to diagnose because many patients do not get it checked on due to the lapse of time between gallbladder attacks. If you have persistent gallbladder pain that will not stop, you have problem let this go on for a long time and you need to get in right away to get your gallbladder looked at and possibly taken out.
Symptom #4 Fever, Chills, Nausea or Vomiting
There are several gallbladder attack symptoms that you may or may not have with a gallbladder attack. Fever, chills, nausea, or vomiting are all possible symptoms. You may be experiencing several of these or none at all. I for one had some nausea and chills with my pain. The severity of the pain can be the cause of these other symptoms as the body realizes something is wrong.
One of the main gallbladder attack symptoms I had when I experienced my attacks was that nothing would relieve the pain. If passing of gas, changing your position, or over the counter pain medicine help to relieve the pain, then you are likely not having a gallbladder attack. There is really nothing you can do during a gallbladder attack to stop the pain but allow time to pass. If this gallbladder pain symptom is something you are experiencing, then you better get to a doctor to get it checked out.
A gallbladder attack can be one of the most painful experiences a person has. If you have not yet scene a doctor but several of these symptoms fit what you are experiencing, then it is time to get to the doctor. I hope my experience and these symptoms will help someone to identify there problems.
