Gall BLADDER PAIN And Angst

Gall Bladder Symptoms: What to Do?

It’s hard to stay calm when your gall bladder aches and your stomach feels and looks like a beach ball. The belching and the wind, not to mention the pain that can radiate to your back and right shoulder. Chances are you recently ate something fatty like nuts or dairy and perhaps you weren’t very active, e.g., taking a walk or bouncing on a trampoline.

First of all, while lying down with knees bent, deep breathe in to the count of seven, purse your lips and breathe out to the count of eleven (7-11 breathing). Do this for a few minutes to calm your parasympathetic nervous system. It’s hard to do anything else if you’re in a panic and ready to scream.

A hot water bottle or heating pad will help and so will drinking water. Reach for the organic apple cider vinegar and sip. Before every meal, take two teaspoons of the vinegar in water (or better yet the vinegar in organic apple juice or apple cider). A glass of lemon water after you wake up in the morning will flush out toxins and increase bile.

Try to eat three meals a day with no snacks in between. During meals bile is released into the small intestine so food can be digested properly. If you eat many small meals during the day, there will be less bile produced at regular meals.

Avoid fat, oils. Forget nuts especially walnuts, despite what you read on the Web. And for those who love coconut oil, you are better off using it on your skin. There is so much good press out there about the benefits of coconut oil like being beneficial for weight loss, joint pain and the list goes on, but when your gall bladder is yelling at you, listen. In severe situations, the person may vomit yellow bile.

Kale in your shake is a good idea (if you don’t have thyroiditis or Hashimotos). Order bile salts and choline from Amazon. Google a list of homeopathic remedies that can help; see which best describes your symptoms. They are perfectly safe and available in health food stores and of course, Amazon.

And because the gall bladder in Chinese Medicine is considered a curious organ (it’s a hollow storage unit for bile that the liver sends over, often referred to as the liver’s handmaiden), feel free not to press under your right rib cage. Instead under your left rib cage close to the midline, if you feel around, you will notice a tender spot which is a trigger point you can massage to help alleviate gall bladder pain. And speaking of “massage,” when we walk, we are actually massaging our internal organs so a daily 10 or 15 minute walk at the start or end of your day may be something to consider.

It’s imperative that a medical doctor be consulted. He or she will most likely want you to get an ultrasound and if the ultrasound shows something that an MRI can better reveal, like a distended bile duct, then it’s time for exploration. But until if and when that occurs, the above tips can help you control what you can control. It’s probably not a good idea to read too much on the Web to avoid unnecessary worry.

Sometimes we have to say goodbye to your old way of eating. It’s best to grieve for three minutes, then move on. We all need to keep on our big girl or big boy pants. To further assist, I recommend hypnosis and/or acupuncture for physical and emotional support. It’s important to keep a positive outlook regardless of what we’re going through or will go through.

For a free 15-minute consult, call Alexis Rotella, Licensed Acupuncturist/Certified Hypnotist at 336 676 4555.