Kidney Stone Horror: A Personal Story (a little gross)

[rm082e]

So I got a kidney stone about three weeks ago. It attacked me by surprise one night when I went to bed and with in a few hours, I was in the worst pain I've ever felt in my life. I had a 7mm stone that was trying to work it's way down into my urinary tract and it was too big for my body to pass, so it just got stuck on it's way out. I had to go to the hospital and they wound up putting me under to push it back up into my kidney. At that time, they installed one of these:



One end of the tubing was in my kidney and it ran down through the ureter into my bladder. The original stent they put in did not have a string attached to it, but it was just as uncomfortable. I had to wait two weeks and finally had surgery last Wednesday to remove the stone. Once they were done they put in the stent pictured above. The surgical string on the other end came out the end of my penis. I had to leave it in for a week and was finally allowed to pull it out this morning.

Overall, this was the most awful medical experience ever. I know full well the stone was caused by poor diet and I have to get my act together now. This has been a big lesson that the punishment for eating bad isn't some distant heart attack 20 years down the line. The effects are very real and could strike at any time.

[IceNine]

I feel for you, man... I have had kidney stones multiple times and have had to be hospitalized over them once. Kidney stones are the worst pain ever, especially the ones that get stuck. I pissed blood for a day or so over one particularly bad bout.

Kidney stones aren't necessarily related to your diet. The only advice the urologist had for me was "don't eat rutabagas." I don't even know what a fucking rutabaga looks like and I am pretty damned sure I have never eaten any.

Good luck... and I hope you never have another!

[rn101787]

Sorry to hear about your experience, but atleast your fixing your prloblem with a better diet. Ice, it was in my nursing books that excessive fatty foods can exacerbate already existing conditions. It doesn't necessarily cause it though.

[Splicer]

excessive fatty foods can exacerbate already existing conditions.

Examples please?

[rn101787]

I'm too lazy to look it up in my nursing books, but here ya go.

http://www.ehow.com/how-does_5333532...ey-stones.html

[james]

Originally Posted by rn101787

I'm too lazy to look it up in my nursing books, but here ya go.

http://www.ehow.com/how-does_5333532...ey-stones.html

These foods don't seem to support your original claim of a high fat diet, though.

1. 1. Foods that contain high levels of oxalate include the following:
      rhubarb
      nuts
      tea, specifically black tea
      spinach
      beets
      swiss chard
      wheat germ or bran
      soybean crackers
      peanuts
      okra
      chocolate
      sweet potatoes
   2. Foods with Elevated Oxalate Levels
   3. The following foods do not contain the highest oxalate levels, yet still may contain higher-than-average forms of oxalate:
      grapes
      celery
      strawberries
      organ meats, such as liver, kidneys, and brains
      marmalades
      green peppers
      consomme or broth
      red raspberries

Personally, I think genetic predisposition is by far the biggest factor. Some people's bodies may be inefficient in breaking down the foods properly, and consuming those particular types of foods exacerbate the problem.

[rn101787]

Yeah, high oxalate is the biggest factor when it comes to food, but I read before in my text book that food high in fat may be a predisposing contributing factor to renal canaliculi, which are stones.