Re: Gallstones?? (lengthy response!) :)

[Guest guest]

Hi Lynne

I'm glad you've posted your thoughts to us and I'm glad you're searching for

a way to keep your gallbladder. Many of us have heard the same routine from

a doctor - that the gallbladder allegedly is not needed for anything and

therefore expendable. Whether a person is 35 or 95 it makes total sense to

keep inside whatever was there to start with.

First of all, the gallbladder IS there for a purpose and that is to store the

bile that the liver produces and hold it until it's needed for emulsifying

fats. Without the gallbladder that bile is constantly dripping into the

duodenum and there isn't a store of it to be utilized. This, from what I

understand, is why a lot of people find that even after having GB surgery

they still can't eat fatty foods. (Of course it's not good to eat a lot of

that anyway, but it should be by choice and not a choice forced by pain!).

Second, the stones are, from what I understand, (at least some of them),

produced in the liver anyway. So having the gallbladder removed doesn't

eliminate the possibility of further stones. Several on this list can attest

to that fact because they've had the surgery and still have problems with

stones.

I'm definitely not a medical professional, but am sharing just from what I've

researched on my own. The fact that you had further attacks after the

antibiotics and steroids would seem to possibly indicate that the liver is

really struggling to eliminate those poisons from your body. A flush would

do your liver a world of good.

As for the concerns about surgery and being put under - they are totally

valid and I support you completely in your desire to avoid it. I'm not one

of those who will discredit the whole medical profession, as I believe there

are many good doctors out there, but I DO acknowledge the fact that doctors

are human and capable of human error, as are anesthesiologists. Accidents do

happen and sadly many of those can happen in the operating room.

Complications can arise and if the possibility of even entering the O.R. can

be avoided, then to me that's the smartest route to take. The only time

I've ever had surgery was after a very serious auto accident and that was

just to put my knee and face back together (I was in pretty bad shape, but

thankfully there were no internally injuries!). I, too, was told a few

months ago that the most sensible thing to do would be to have the GB

removed. I don't fault the doctor or the surgeon for their recommendation -

I believe they were both acting in the way they were trained to. They saw

the symptoms and gave me the textbook solution. It takes guts (no pun

intended) to turn away from that and look for another way and I commend you

for having that courage. I'm also glad that you found us, because if you

read through the archives (which I highly recommend that you do - at least

some of them) you will see testimony after testimony of people who have opted

to not have surgery and also of people who have had the surgery and regretted

it. To give a well-rounded picture, I must say, you will also see some

testimony of people who chose to have the surgery and felt that was right for

them. I think it's important to see this from as many points of view as

possible in order to make a solid decision.

Your reluctance to do the flush is very common, too, as is the concern that a

stone will be too large or will get stuck. All I can tell you about that is

that the ultrasound I had done a few months ago reported that my bile duct

measures 6 mm and I have measured stones at 1.5cm and have seen a few that I

thought were bigger than that (but I wasn't in a place where I could measure

them, so I don't know for sure). This means that the stones were more than

double the size of the bile duct. They didn't get stuck. The bile duct is

evidently flexible and will stretch to a point AND the cholesterol stones are

soft and will squish their way through as well.

I have never felt any pain during the 5 cleanses I've done so far. As for

preparation, there are several things that you can do. Apple juice is

awesome - I try to drink it every day and for a few days before a flush I

will do my best to drink a quart of it each day. The malic acid in the

apples helps to soften the stones.(Granny apples have a higher content

of malic acid than red apples.) Chamomile tea is allegedly also good for the

same thing, but you really need to drink a lot of it if that's the only thing

you're doing. I'd only use that as a sort of supplemental softening tool.

Lemon juice also softens or helps to dissolve stones.

There are different forms of the cleanse which you'll discover if you read

through the archives. (I know there are a zillion messages in the archives,

but even scanning through them would be very informative for you.) Many

people out here do the cleanse that uses Epsom Salts. I have done that one,

but personally prefer to go without them. (I do the cleanse described on <A

HREF= " www.relfe.com " >

www.relfe.com</A> and I increase my intake of apple juice). Either way is fine

and I would even say that you might want to try both to see which you prefer

for yourself. I've had very good results with both.

I do want to really encourage you to try a cleanse. When you see what

comes out....you will just be astounded. Everyone is when they do their

first cleanse! You'll be SO glad that it's out of you and getting flushed

down the drain instead. However, in the event that you decide you don't

want to do this type of cleanse, may I suggest another that is a little

different? You won't see the fast results like with the cleanse you read

about out here, but it will do your liver a lot of good. This one is

described at <A

HREF= " http://shepherds-rod.org/HEAL/crusade/foundprog4.htm " >http://shepherds-rod\

..org/HEAL/crusade/foundprog4.htm</A>. I'm doing

a portion of that 5 day cleanse now, but plan to do the " regular " cleanse

again very soon.

I know this has gotten really lengthy and I will blame that on the fact that

I've woken up in the middle of the night and am writing this at 3:00 in the

morning!

Good luck and good health,

4sewwhat@... writes:

> I am going to see a new Dr in the morning and I figure he will want

> to run a bunch of yucky tests only to tell me to get to the

> hospital. I don't want to have surgery if I can avoid it. I am only

> 35 and would like to have all my parts a little longer!! I have

> never had surgery or been put under for anything, which I am sure is

> part of the reason I am searching for alternatives.

>

> My attacks have been better with the nutritionals I have been taking,

> and I felt great for a while. Then I got a sinus infection and had

> to go on 2 courses of antibiotics and steroids to shake it. That's

> when this latest round of attacks started.

>

> Any information or coaxing to flush would be appreciated!! Thanks

> for letting me ramble on too!!

>

> Lynne

>