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Kidney Stones and the Wrangler

8K views 90 replies 48 participants last post by  Other_Erik 
#1 ·
So last monday I had a kidney stone drop me to the fetal position moaning and crying like a little girl. After 3 shots of morphine and 2 shot of dilauded all I could do was pray for it to pass. The one thing over the past 5 days was to tell myself that the Jeep was waiting for me. Yesterday was finally the day that I passed that damn thing. The first thing I told my wife and kids was to get in the Wrangler because we are going for a drive. We wound up at 4 wheel parts (figured I had the sympathy card going for me) and I found myself a new bikini top. :)

It truly is a lifestyle. Happy fathers day to everyone.
 
#76 ·
Passed one a couple of years ago. Hit me in the middle of the night. Sat up all night thinking it was just something I ate. After about six hours of dealing with the incredible pain I finally went to the hospital. Took me a whole day to pass that son of a gun. Thank goodness for pain killers.
 
#77 ·
I am resurrecting this old thread just as advice to people in a similar situation. Christmas morning I woke up early to get my kids up and within half hour I was in the ER with the worst pain in my life. Literally, almost passed out and vomited the pain was so intense. Spent my entire Christmas day in the ER which brought me to tears. Not over the pain but that my two kids Christmas was effected, but that's a whole other side note.

The cause of my stones are pretty obvious. Lack of water. I work 14 hours a day pretty often in a high stress job, and at 44 have been neglecting my body for too long. (Like many of us I am sure). Do yourself a favor and DRINK WATER. I have been dealing with this since Christmas and just yesterday had to have a surgery to remove a stone that was lodged in my ureter. (Again, not fun).

My last point is really just me preaching, but here it goes. For the longest time I have been chasing "the buck." Working tons of OT, promoting as much as possible, taking the difficult assignments, so on and so on. My "epiphany through pain" was "Me first, work second." Retirement would be great with more money, but dying two years after I retire because of not taking care of myself would be........well you know. So more me and family time, and less chasing the dollar. Hope this helps someone. Hope to see you all on the trail when we are in our 80's !!!!
 
#78 ·
I am resurrecting this old thread just as advice to people in a similar situation. Christmas morning I woke up early to get my kids up and within half hour I was in the ER with the worst pain in my life. Literally, almost passed out and vomited the pain was so intense. Spent my entire Christmas day in the ER which brought me to tears. Not over the pain but that my two kids Christmas was effected, but that's a whole other side note.

The cause of my stones are pretty obvious. Lack of water. I work 14 hours a day pretty often in a high stress job, and at 44 have been neglecting my body for too long. (Like many of us I am sure). Do yourself a favor and DRINK WATER. I have been dealing with this since Christmas and just yesterday had to have a surgery to remove a stone that was lodged in my ureter. (Again, not fun).

My last point is really just me preaching, but here it goes. For the longest time I have been chasing "the buck." Working tons of OT, promoting as much as possible, taking the difficult assignments, so on and so on. My "epiphany through pain" was "Me first, work second." Retirement would be great with more money, but dying two years after I retire because of not taking care of myself would be........well you know. So more me and family time, and less chasing the dollar. Hope this helps someone. Hope to see you all on the trail when we are in our 80's !!!!
GOOD POINT!
Been there very recently and I think, no, I KNOW I don't want that experience again.
I hear I should be putting some lemon in the water too......
 
#80 ·
Perfectly timed thread.
I just bought our Jeep in November. Got my first kidney stone(s) in December. I'm pretty sure dehydration is to blame. I quit drinking coffee a couple of months earlier and never really replaced the fluids with anything. I enjoyed the fact I only had to go to the can twice a day. When I went to the ER (Dec20), the 3rd day of 2am pains (only lasted for 3 hours at a time), I was puking from the pain. Kidney function was at 60% and the doctor said I was dehydrated. Xrays back on December 23 showed small kidney stones. I just went for a CT scan yesterday, results pending. Aside from the last week or so with the feeling that I have to pee all the time, I've had no discomfort or pain. I've been told that I would know for sure when a stone comes down the pipe. It hasn't happened yet. Been drinking 2.5 liters of water a day, as prescribed. After reading all of the potential issues I may have, fingers crossed that things have magically remedied themselves. Hopefully the doctor phones with some good news.
 
#82 ·
I passed two stones then was told I had a 5 mm stone still in my kidney. CT scan found it. Went a few weeks later for a Xray and was told "its gone" by my general practitioner. I was stoked. Took the Xrays to my Urologist and he laughed and told me it was now stuck in my ureter. Hence the Lithtripsy I just had. I hope you get better news then I did.

My wife says Jeeping is a middle aged/old man hobby because its expensive. With that comes with middle aged/old man medical issues we can all share in !!!!!!!!!!!!
 
#83 ·
I have been dealing with kidney stones for years. I try to drink plenty but, hey, sometimes I forget. Stones are not an issue as long as they stay put in the kidney. The problem comes when they break loose and begin their journey south. That is when it becomes painful. Last time they checked, I had 7 on one side and 5 on the other. I've had more trips to the ER than I care to recall. I now recognize the early signs/discomfort and take action. I down lots of water and check to be sure the percocet is handy. My doc gave me a script and told me to travel with it, for those flare-ups that extra fluids can't resolve. If you find yourself suffering from recurring attacks, check with your regular doc or urologist and get a script for your favorite happy pills and keep them handy. It may help you avoid those unpleasant ER visits.

And remember, as my urologist told me, this too will pass!

:lmao:
 
#84 ·
So, other than drinking more are there any foods you are supposed to avoid? I have a 5mm and a 6mm stuck in the ureter now and one more still in the kidney. I drink more fluids the last few years but eat a lot of salt and soda which I have stopped recently. Dealing with these two stones for over 3 weeks. Urologist says once these are gone he will do some tests to help with what foods to avoid.
 
#86 ·
Surprised they aren't doing a Lithotripsy. Mine was 5mm and stuck in the Ureter and not moving. I was told that depending on the type of stone will depend on its causes, which is why they want you to catch them and have them tested. Some types make you avoid Spinach, Strawberry's Asparagus and other foods that for the most part are good for you. I was told absolutely no Soda or black tea. Black tea is apparently really bad for you if your prone to stones. I stick with water with lemon now. One cup of coffee and day (down from 3) and green tea. Green tea seems to be good for you in many different ways so making a habit out of drinking it is a good thing. Oh and red wine. I won't give up my red wine.
 
#85 ·
They tested mine and they were calcium based. However, they told me it was not from drinking milk, eating ice cream or any other dairy products. He said my metabolism and genetics played a role in their formation. I had a co-worker who was a vegetarian who had a similar problem and he was told his diet was not a factor. Basically, some of us are predisposed to forming stones. Their best advice, hydrate, hydrate and hydrate some more.
 
#87 ·
I have a followup appointment scheduled for March 1st but he assumes he will see me before that because I can't take the pain anymore or have the fever/vomiting and end up in the emergency room. My thing is I only have the severe pain, etc every few days. I have gone as long as 6 days between pain days. The last one felt like it was about to pass but I don't think it is in the bladder yet. Just a time bomb waiting. I think he is hoping the 5mm one will pass on its own. It is low enough they have to go in from below and the other is up higher so two different surgeries? Hoping they move! I hate the waiting game.
 
#89 ·
I have had kidney stones 8 or 9 times I get them every 4 years. Last time I fought pain for 7 days ten went to emergency room. They gave me pain meds and sent me home. I mixed 2 oz. olive oil with 2 oz. lemon juice and drank it (that went down pretty ruff) followed by 12 oz. water. Then every 30 min. mix 2 oz. lemon juice with 1 oz. Bragg apple cider vinegar with 12 oz. water and drink that every 30 minutes until stones pass. The next day passed stones.
 
#90 · (Edited)
Do you guys have your uric acid tested routinely? The normal range for me at my age is 4.2-8.0 mg/dL ... my last test result was ~9.4 mg/dL. The doctor wants me to go back on Uloric.

I had one 5mm stone many years ago - calcium origin, I passed it with minimal discomfort. My dad used to get them when I was a kid. He also had gout which runs in the family..

The one and only severe gout attack I've ever had was in my ankle 5 years ago. For various reasons, I found my uric acid had climbed from 6.0 to 11.0 mg/dL and the pain was intense - felt like someone stabbed me with a knife in my ankle. I was perscribed Uloric to reduce the uric acid in my blood.

My uric acid result history was always below the high end of the range - back then the normal range was 4.2-7.0. mg/dL.

The take away for me was to monitor my uric acid levels.. and when it starts to climb, reduce the amount of purines in my diet. When I'm on Uloric, my uric acid is ~4.0 mg/dL - the low end of the range.

.
 
#91 ·
Not going to give out free medical advice (it's only worth what you pay for it), but I can speak to the pain side of the equation...

My ex had what ended up being a natural childbirth (too late to the hospital to get drugs, damn near died giving birth, torn stem to stern) and thought it was the worst pain in her life - until she passed a 7mm kidney stone.

I hyper-extended my knee playing football and the pain was pretty bad once I actually saw what happened to it. A few years later I sheared the transverse process of my L4 vertebrae, which caused me to black out and fall ass-first to a concrete floor. That disintegrated my coccyx, but that wasn't discovered until years later when I finally got an MRI done. I thought it was the worst pain in my life - until I passed a 7mm kidney stone. I thought the 7mm kidney stone was a 10/10 on the pain scale, until I had an abscess form in the root of a tooth after a botched root canal - staying awake for 3 days and vomiting from pain. Then I thought that was the worst, until I ended up with a pilonidal abscess after the lower back surgery to correct a problem with the hardware put in for my L4. I do not recommend googling anything regarding pilonidal if you want to eat anytime in the next 48 hours. My final relief (no opioid painkillers for the last 5 years and counting!) was to have that pilonidal surgically removed, along with the amalgam of bone fragments that used to be my coccyx. I guess I'd rate them like this, based on what I've done in my life
1/10 - stubbing a toe, first degree burn (sunburn, scalding water, etc...)
2/10 - getting a tattoo
3/10 - broken cartilage (nose)
4/10 - ripping off a thumb- or toe-nail
5/10 - second degree burn, frostbite, post-laproscopic surgery pain
6/10 - knee sprain / hyperextension, post-surgical pain
7/10 - Any broken bone
8/10 - Kidney stones!
9/10 - Appendicitis
10/10 - Severe tooth root pain / abscess
17000/10 - Pilonidal pain

O_E
 
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