So I thought I would be fine in a couple of days, however, 5 days later, I'm still not fine. The percocet is taking away the pain but it also wipes me out and makes me pretty useless. So I went to my doctor who renewed my percocet prescription and referred me to an expert.
So I went to see the expert. He explained to me how kidney stones work and had me get X-rayed and come back. So I got the X-ray and came back and they scheduled me to get the stone zapped the next week.
By this time I was having good and bad days. It seems that while the kidney stone is moving, it causes immense pain. However, when it stops moving, the pain goes away. So I had a few days where I felt almost normal. By almost, I mean I felt normal except that I was toting around my percocet just in case the pain came back. I felt like a drug addict or something. The other thing was that I was afraid to go to work still. If the pain came back, I would have to take the percocet and if I did that I wouldn't be able to drive. So I stayed home up until the day before my procedure. By then I had two good days in a row and I felt up to risking it. The day went fine and I still felt fine (and hopeful that the stone was gone) when I went in for the procedure.
Well, once checked into the hospital, they took an X-ray and the doctor told me he found it. Unfortunately it was too low for lithotripsy (where they shoot it with sound waves, it shatters into tiny pieces, and passes normally) and they would have to go in with a scope and a laser and zap it that way. Fortunately, I was unconscious for the whole procedure.
I woke up sore but kidney stone free. However, the doctor had inserted a stent (tube) from my kidney to my bladder that would have to be removed later. They said I could go back to work the next day but, due to some of the side effects of the procedure, I decided it would be best to work from home for the rest of the week (I'm lucky to have a job where that's an option).
About a week later, I went in to the doctor's office and he pulled the tube out. Basically, he stuck a scope up into my bladder, found the tube, and pulled it out. Not a very comfortable procedure (on many levels). However, within a half hour or so, I felt almost fine.
So now life is almost back to normal. I have to go in for a couple of tests to try to determine what caused the kidney stone so I can avoid getting them in the future (I'm very supportive of this), but other than that, I'm all done.
Once again, do NOT get a kidney stone. It's a cloud with no silver lining.
So I went to see the expert. He explained to me how kidney stones work and had me get X-rayed and come back. So I got the X-ray and came back and they scheduled me to get the stone zapped the next week.
By this time I was having good and bad days. It seems that while the kidney stone is moving, it causes immense pain. However, when it stops moving, the pain goes away. So I had a few days where I felt almost normal. By almost, I mean I felt normal except that I was toting around my percocet just in case the pain came back. I felt like a drug addict or something. The other thing was that I was afraid to go to work still. If the pain came back, I would have to take the percocet and if I did that I wouldn't be able to drive. So I stayed home up until the day before my procedure. By then I had two good days in a row and I felt up to risking it. The day went fine and I still felt fine (and hopeful that the stone was gone) when I went in for the procedure.
Well, once checked into the hospital, they took an X-ray and the doctor told me he found it. Unfortunately it was too low for lithotripsy (where they shoot it with sound waves, it shatters into tiny pieces, and passes normally) and they would have to go in with a scope and a laser and zap it that way. Fortunately, I was unconscious for the whole procedure.
I woke up sore but kidney stone free. However, the doctor had inserted a stent (tube) from my kidney to my bladder that would have to be removed later. They said I could go back to work the next day but, due to some of the side effects of the procedure, I decided it would be best to work from home for the rest of the week (I'm lucky to have a job where that's an option).
About a week later, I went in to the doctor's office and he pulled the tube out. Basically, he stuck a scope up into my bladder, found the tube, and pulled it out. Not a very comfortable procedure (on many levels). However, within a half hour or so, I felt almost fine.
So now life is almost back to normal. I have to go in for a couple of tests to try to determine what caused the kidney stone so I can avoid getting them in the future (I'm very supportive of this), but other than that, I'm all done.
Once again, do NOT get a kidney stone. It's a cloud with no silver lining.
Comments
Glad it's long over for you.
I'll keep you updated as more information becomes available.