Hello world!

Hello, I am Lucy and I would like to share my story with you. Last September 2023 i unexpectedly found out I was pregnant and on the 25th of May 2024 i welcomed my beautiful baby boy Noah. 

Life was amazing and very overwhelming in the most magical way! I was a new mum trying to navigate the newborn routine and sleep exhaustion! I found the newborn stage to be very difficult and challenging, but I was taking it one day at a time. Life suddenly became even more of a challenge 2 weeks after I had my son. It was my sister’s birthday and myself, my partner and Noah went to visit and we had a takeaway. That night I was settling down ready for bed and the most unbearable pain hit me in my abdomen, radiating to my upper back and right shoulder, I had never felt pain like it in my life! I felt nauseous and threw up with the pain. My mum drove me to the hospital and I was screaming in agony the whole journey there. I thought I might have an infection from my c-section scar, but I couldn’t understand what was causing the pain.

I was seen by a nurse and a doctor in the A&E department, they gave me some morphine through a drip and ran some blood tests. After waiting for a bit of time the doctor called me back in and explained that I had likely developed gallstones and requested that I returned to hospital the following day for an ultra sound. He said this was quite common with pregnant women. 

The following day it was confirmed that I had gallstones and that I would need a Cholecystectomy (removal of the gallbladder) however the waiting list for this would be 3 to 6 months. The doctor advised a healthy diet and to stick to foods with less than 3grams of fat in. I changed my diet and then 2 weeks later another flare up occurred. However I took some painkillers and let the pain pass. 

From then on my life was a real struggle. I would be waking up 2-3 times a week in the night with the excruciating pain, as well as waking up with my baby. At times I had to wake my partner up who was working the next day or call my mum to come and look after the baby as i physically couldn’t lift him when I had the attacks. I had really bad mum guilt with not being able to care for him. 

I went to hospital 5 times over a period of 2 months with 2 hospital stays. During these stays they would check my bloods to see if there were any infections and if not give me some antibiotics and painkillers to take home. I was extremely frustrated and worn out! The toll of caring for my newborn baby as well as experiencing regular flare ups was tiresome. I was always anxious not knowing when the attacks would flare up leaving me feeling very isolated and not wanting to leave the house. 

Eventually, I went for a consultation meeting with the consultant and signed the form approving my operation, however, was still on the waiting list. The consultant advised me to always visit A&E if I experienced a flare up as the stones can clog up your biliary tract, causing pain and serious complications, so always get checked out! He wrote to my GP explaining that if I experienced a flare up then to visit A&E where they should recommend an emergency operation to take out the gallbladder. 

I went to A&E in August with another flare up! At first I was hesitant to go to A&E with the long waiting times and I was frustrated with always being sent away with antibiotics. There had also been many occasions where I would just take painkillers and wait for the pain to subside. However, my mum encouraged me to go up to hospital this time with my letter from the consultant and she looked after Noah. To my surprise I was called straight to triage and the doctor explained that I had developed acute pancreatitis and they believed a stone could be lodged which is very serious. 

I stayed in hospital for week and they administered plenty of fluids as I was very dehydrated. This time away from Noah was torture and missed him everyday, especially being a new mum. Suddenly, there was light at the end of the tunnel and the surgeon explained I would need my gallbladder removing as soon as possible YAY!. I was beyond relieved. 

I am now enjoying my maternity with my baby boy and feeling better than ever. The recovery was very quick and I was back up and running within a couple of days. I am sharing my story as there will be other people out there experiencing what I have gone through and some unsure with what things work, and don’t work with having gallstones. 

See below my tips and tricks of what you can eat/drink to support living with gallstones