OT: Kidney Stones

[G-Dawg]

At 51 had my first confirmed case of stones, just had a CT scan that shows I have a 2mm stone on one side and a 1mm stone on the other. Felt like I was being stabbed with a machete so my wife insisted I go to the ER. First time in my life I ever threw up from pain.

PACK: How many of you have had one and how long did it take to make it's way out? I'm scared and wincing everytime I go to the bathroom wondering if this is going to be the time. When did you know it was on its way out?

 

[mcdawg22]

I’ve never had one. Good Luck man, hopefully it passes quickly.

 

[Ddawg69]

At 51 had my first confirmed case of stones, just had a CT scan that shows I have a 2mm stone on one side and a 1mm stone on the other. Felt like I was being stabbed with a machete so my wife insisted I go to the ER. First time in my life I ever threw up from pain.

PACK: How many of you have had one and how long did it take to make it's way out? I'm scared and wincing everytime I go to the bathroom wondering if this is going to be the time. When did you know it was on its way out?

Those are pretty small and should be favorable to pass. Drink lots of water. Sometimes they give a medicine called flomax that can help facilitate it.

 

[Hugh's Burner Phone]

I've had my share. Biggest being 16mm. Remember, they only cause pain when they're moving. Drink water like your wife's life depends on it and walk. Anything to bounce those little 17ers on down and out. For pain hydrocodone never touched it for me. My last trip to the ER they gave me torodol and it was great. They have a pill version that has a different name and they worked, too. Best of all it's not a narcotic. Doc should be willing to give it to you. After toy shoot them out get them tested to see what they are made of so you'll know what to avoid. However, the biggest thing is drink lots of water. Good luck.

 

[Hugh's Burner Phone]

One last thing and this is so important. If you ever have another one that is larger and requires it to be crushed...if you even think you hear the doctor say he may have to put in a stent, punch him as hard as you can in the balls and run like hell. Don't hesitate. Don't think about it. I thought kidney stone pain was bad but then I had a 18" bent tube pulled out the end of my member. I have nightmares to this day about it.

 

[MSUDAWGFAN]

It isnt peeing it out that hurts. Its moving through the ureter. The ureter in a man is about 2mm in diameter if I remember correctly. When its made it to your bladder, you are good to go. The key is to know what kind it is so it can be treated.

I had one about 4 years ago. It was 14mm in diameter. Had to have ultrasound surgery to break it up. The worst part of that was having the stent. That ducked. Mine was uric acid, so I will take allopurinol for the rest of my life.

Yes the pain of passing it sucked. I threw up too. Never had that happen before or since.

Good luck. Drink lots of water.

 

[LTblows]

I stopped counting at 25 stones and at least have had 40. Longest one to pass took 56 days. I’ve passed a 6mm one. That all said, I’m a seasoned veteran in this area. The stone coming out is comparatively less painful than the path it takes to get there. Here’s my biggest tips: constantly pound water. Take two Advil every two hours when in pain. When it does come out, get it and have it tested. Discuss with your urologist as to how to stop your body from producing more.

 

[Dawgbite]

One last thing and this is so important. If you ever have another one that is larger and requires it to be crushed...if you even think you hear the doctor say he may have to put in a stent, punch him as hard as you can in the balls and run like hell. Don't hesitate. Don't think about it. I thought kidney stone pain was bad but then I had a 18" bent tube pulled out the end of my member. I have nightmares to this day about it.

Oh, I got a stent horror story for you. Had a 7mm Stone a couple of years ago, puking from pain, the works. Go to urologist and he gives me a choice, try to break it up or go get it. I was hurting so I chose to get it out. This was about 3pm and he said he would do the procedure that night after he left the office. I go in outpatient expecting to wake up in recovery and go home that night but I wake up in a room. When he went to grab the stone with his grabber, it fell back into the kidney and he couldn’t reach it. I was no longer in pain because the kidney has no nerves but he said that the next option was to try a break it the next day. I was sent home after the procedure with a stent in hopes of passing the pieces. After a week, nothing. I go back for another CT scan only to find that the stone had split into two pieces, neither of which was small enough to pass. So I’m scheduled for him to go back up in their to pull the two pieces out in a couple of days. I have the procedure successfully but due to all the trauma from **** going where it’s not supposed to I have a lot of swelling so I go home with another stent for another week. This carries me into week three with a stent. Removal day finally arrives and I go in to get the stent removed. This is where it gets good. I’m laying on the table and he starts up with the camera and grabber to pull the stent out, the camera goes black. He pulls it out and sends the nurse after another light bulb. She put a new bulb in the machine and he starts back in the out door. Out goes the camera light again. Out it comes again. He wiggles the umbilical coming from the machine to the camera end and determined that the cord has a short in it. He proceeds to tell me that it’s the only machine they have and we will have to reschedule. I say nope, roll the machine over to me, he does and I start bending, pulling and twisting the umbilical until I find the short and can control it with pressure on the cord. At this point I have a better view of the screen than he does where before I couldn’t see the screen. I tell him to get that thing out of me so he starts in. I’m watching it all in living color, eventually I see this light blue pig tail. He stops the camera and I see three prongs emerge into the screen, it looks just like my shop pickup tool. The three prongs grab the blue pig tail and he jerks like he is cranking a weed eater. I jump about a foot off the table and I think I even **** a little too. I went from stark terror to immense relief in a matter of seconds. I left the office and stopped at the first store I came to. Bought a 32 oz Miller High Life for the ride home. Had to stop twice and piss before I got home and haven’t stopped pissing since.

 

[Crazy Cotton]

Go to Dollywood every year and ride a few roller coasters. I'm completely serious. I had my first one at 47. Didn't know what was going on, I was walking through the mall and just started throwing up. That was a pain response, wasn't feeling the pain yet. I was not fun.

https://www.webmd.com/kidney-stones/news/20160928/kidney-stone-roller-coaster

 

[Herbert Nenninger]

1. Agree with the flomax; or rapaflo.
2. Drink lemon juice or lemonade with the pulp, along with regular water. I’ve seen as high as about 128 oz of fluids a day recommended during a stone.
3. Don’t drink milk or eat dairy late in the evening. And urinate just before going to bed.
4. Usually below 5mm will pass. But is not a guarantee.
5. Toradol is good option for pain. And a good nausea med. and a narcotic may be necessary.
6. A good Urology clinic should have a doc each morning designated to see patients with acute stones. And then operate in the afternoon if necessary.
7. Get a strainer so it can hopefully be kept and analyzed to see what kind of stone it is.
8. If a doc asks how much you’re hurting on a scale of 1-10, say 8. 10 is reserved for femur fractures; and 9 is for childbirth. But a solid 8 will get u what u need.

 

[57stratdawg]

Jesus. Good story.

Sorry, I fat fingered a dv on accident.

 

[tenureplan]

Idk, my worst pain came when mine was in the taint. Finally being able to pee after I heard the "ching" in the urinal was a slice of heaven though.

 

[thatsbaseball]

When kidney stones migrate to the bladder they can become larger and become "bladder stones". On rare occasions they can cause more pain in the "urethra" than they did in the "ureter".

 

[AlSwearengen]

My Dr. told me to drink something that was acidic to help keep stones from forming and hopefully to break down the six small ones (3 in each kidney) that were hanging around. I did mostly diet sprite and some OJ and lemonade. Lemonade is probably best but I don’t like it so I didn’t do much of that.

At about six months after having my first stone removed that was stuck in my ureter, I passed a second stone. At that point, I had another X-ray and the Dr. couldn’t find any of the other small ones so the sprite and OJ may have worked.

I quit drinking tons of caffiene and drink water and have not had another one in 10 years or so.

 

[Tall Dawg]

My Dr. told me to drink something that was acidic to help keep stones from forming and hopefully to break down the six small ones (3 in each kidney) that were hanging around. I did mostly diet sprite and some OJ and lemonade. Lemonade is probably best but I don’t like it so I didn’t do much of that.

At about six months after having my first stone removed that was stuck in my ureter, I passed a second stone. At that point, I had another X-ray and the Dr. couldn’t find any of the other small ones so the sprite and OJ may have worked.

I quit drinking tons of caffiene and drink water and have not had another one in 10 years or so.

I’ve had K Stone attacks twice. 1st one was around 20 yrs ago. I didn’t feel sick to my stomach at all but the pain in my right lower back was so bad i couldn’t get off the floor of my office. My wife came and took me to ER as i didn’t know what in the hell was going on!
I passed it in 5-6 days later.

Then, about 6-7 yrs later, I gave birth to twins and I couldn’t stop throwing up! I was dry heaving after my stomach emptied out!

A friend told me after I had the first stone if i ever Had another to go buy a 5th of blackberry wine. Said to drink lots of water during the day and two 8-10oz glasses of “the juice” before bedtime. Said his grandfather swore by it back in the 70’s and everyone in his family has used it for K stones ever since.

I gave birth to my twins exactly 3 days after them showing up...and after me having drank “the juice”...for 2 nights.

Those are the most painful SOB’s u will ever have enter ur body!!

I had 2 docs from my Rotary Club tell me to drink couple beers at least once a week to help flush ur kidneys and prevent K stones.
That was an easy prescription to follow..

 

[BlueRidgeMtns]

Never had them but dated a girl who had them. For her, it was very apparent any time they moved.

Also, I had a coach who passed a kidney stone in the trashcan in the dugout during a high school ball game.

 

[CochiseCowbell]

I had 2 docs from my Rotary Club tell me to drink couple beers at least once a week to help flush ur kidneys and prevent K stones.
That was an easy prescription to follow..

I've never had them, but I've heard this a lot from doctors and non-medical folks for years. I drink a lot of Coke Zero during the day, so I'm counting my blessings with rented beer every night.

 

[HumpDawgy]

I have been lucky so far not to have any, but I only drink zima.

 

[johnson86-1]

I don't know why I read through this thread, but I'm a little sick to my stomach now.

This makes the political threads seem a lot more enticing.

 

[msudawg12]

They run in my family.

I've had one. Freshman year of college. Walking down the hall in Hathorn and it his me and I fell to my knee. They suck.

My grandmother has them and also had four children. She swears she would rather give birth...

On your questions. There is no rhyme or reason to how long they take. And they may not. You could have to have lithotripsy to bust them up if they're too big.
The worst is the basket treatment. My uncle had that. They literally go up your urethra with a tool and grab the damn thing.

Wouldnt wish kidney stones on anyone

 

[goodknight]

2 time winner here. First I’m going to tell drink water often and if not sure drink more. Cut out the sweet tea too. First time 1 stone 4.5 mm and took too freaking long to pass, 14 months. Pain lasted 5-7 days and stopped doctor thought it broke up but evidently hung around in the bladder. Let’s just say when it exited it wasn’t pain free. 2nd time around 2-3mm stone and took 6 days to pass after it finally dropped into bladder very little pain from then on.

I stayed off the pain killers as long as I possibly could and put up with more pain until it got unbearable. Doctors dispensed them like candy. 8 hour intervals as needed and enough for 10 days. I can easily see how folks get addicted to opioids.

As my doctor told me all things pass with time! Good luck

PS, My pharmacist didn’t recommend one thing when I picked up my pain meds. He unofficially said if like like beer, duh, have at it because it may help the stones move and pass quicker!

 

[SirBarksalot]

I’ve had my share..passed one that you’d have to have seen to believe.

Also had one too big. The PA was really pushing me to do the perc surgery, but I declined. Ended up doing lithotripsy. That wasn’t great. Ended up pissing out blood and a bunch of stones.

i still get pains that feel like,kidney stones, but when I’ve gone to get X-rays/CT it shows no stones..wondering if litho damaged kidney.

good luck

 

[Hugh's Burner Phone]

The worst is the basket treatment. My uncle had that. They literally go up your urethra with a tool and grab the damn thing.

I had the basket treatment after the lithotripsy on my 16mm stone. I was asleep so aside from my hips being extremely sore for a few days I was ok. Although I have wondered just what kind of position they had me in to hurt that bad and then decided I'd rather not know. But as I mentioned earlier...the stent...

Imagine having this mother17er pulled out of you wide awake. And yes, those curved ends are how it comes out.

 

[Dawgbite]

I had the basket treatment after the lithotripsy on my 16mm stone. I was asleep so aside from my hips being extremely sore for a few days I was ok. Although I have wondered just what kind of position they had me in to hurt that bad and then decided I'd rather not know. But as I mentioned earlier...the stent...

Imagine having this mother17er pulled out of you wide awake. And yes, those curved ends are how it comes out.

yep, that's it. Same color and everything. When he grabs one end with his little grabber it bends double on that end. That's when he cranks that weedeater.

 

[EurekaDog]

I have only had one ... around 50yo.

It took 3 weeks to pass.
I know now why the Driver's License book tells you why you shouldn't drive when you're in severe pain.
When mine passed, it was only 3mm. However, it was shaped like a Klingon bat'leth sword ... with more spikes on each side.

 

[G-Dawg]

Thanks for the info! I had one pass this weekend and it didn't hurt at all. Guess like someone said, once it reaches the bladder, it's smooth sailing. I'm going to keep drinking beer though, because I still have one more to go.

 

[Wegdawg]

When the stone starts to impinge on the bladder muscle at the very end on the ureter you will start to have some burning with urination and the sensation that you can’t go or empty. That is when you know it is getting ready to pass into the bladder. Once it passes into the bladder you are home free. Urinating the stone out the bladder through the urethra is generally not painful.

The pain is from the back pressure from the urine buildup because it is blocked by the stone and the kidney keeps forcing more out and the pressure keeps building. The small one can hurt just as bad as the big one. The size only matters on the probability that it will pass and more quickly. Stones less than 4 mm usually pass and larger than 10 mm rarely pass.

70% of all stones are calcium oxalate so if you don’t collect it just assume that is what kind it was. The most important thing is a 24 hour urine test to see what you are spilling in the urine to cause the stone. Treatment regimens can vary drastically from person to person depending on the results. Some times you might even get placed on calcium to prevent calcium stones.

Drinking a beer a week will absolutely not prevent kidney stones and may even increase your risk. Drinking lemonade and or acidic things will not dissolve kidney stones. Once a stone starts to pass all you can do is drink plenty of water and take flomax. Toradol works well but if your kidney has a high degree of blockage and you continue to take it round the clock it can really damage the kidney.

Believe it or not some people live long term with stents in place and just get them changed out every 6 months or so

Nothing is more effective at preventing stones as keeping the urine dilute by increasing fluid intake. You need to make at least 2 liters of urine daily. Second most important is low oxalate diet. But this is where the 24 hour urine test comes in. Low oxalate.info is good site that lists all foods and their oxalate content. Low sodium diet is third. After that dietary citrate comes in and this is where you hear about the lemonade but it is only for prevention not passage or dissolving.

 

[InTheIttaBenaHotSun]

In Atlanta with work in '06. Group of us go to PF Chang's for dinner...I wake up about 2 am in pain and throwing up thinking I have food poisoning. Get a co-working to take me to the ER....go in and tell the Dr. what's going on and he tells me I have kidney stones. He gives me Percocet and says give it 15 minutes and I'll feel better.....30 minutes later, I'm in more pain than when I arrived. Doc says hold on, I've got something else....all I remember was seeing him with a syringe and my pain is taken immediately away and I feel nothing then my eyes slowly shut.....it was Dilaudid. Only time I've had anything close to that strong and it's scary that there are drugs way more powerful than that. I woke up a few hours later and got someone to drive me back to BHM.....4 days later I had lithotripsy and was in bed for a week passing them. Was given a prescription of Percocet after surgery and it helped more than at the ER but not much....

It's been a while but I've felt a sharp/quick pain a few times over the years - similar to a straight pin in my lower back. But thank goodness nothing has ever come of it.

 

[Reunion Dog]

Was it Bull Sullivan? Cause that's a strong man....

 

[Reunion Dog]

Was it Sullivan? Cause that's a strong man....