July 13, 2011

Just a little stone

A few posts ago I miss wrote that I was entering menopause....however the nausea and the indigestion which has been making me uncomfortable is actually a 1.3 cm gall stone. At some angles in the ultrasound pictures it measures 1.9 cm because it is sort of peanut shaped. I was fortunate to be able to figure this out as I learned later because many people can go on and on for months or years never learning why some food just doesn't seem to settle well. Funny how finding out you have something is a real relief, it answers many questions and points you in the right direction.
Some how my gall bladder developed a stone which has been inhibiting the bile flow which in turn inhibits my ability to eat much of anything. I am curious what went wrong...why and how my cholesterol is more than the bile salts. I want to learn about how that system works so I can put the balance back. Has my love affair with butter out weighed my love for exercise? Has my love for creating things at my computer kept me from creating the things my body needs (exercise) to remain balanced and in tune. Though I have been eating a diet based upon whole foods and traditional wisdom from tradition peoples around the world did I miss their traditional lifestyle as well. One that was less sedentary, a life centered more on work and activity than rest and relaxation.


I know many who have had gall stones simply make an appointment with a surgeon and have the entire gall bladder removed. It is a simple, often only a day or two set back from a busy schedule and there seems to be no dietary restriction or side effects to you bile reservoir missing. I am not sure why I mistrust this information but I am not yet ready to cut. I must be an opportunist and often I am optimistic that there are natural ways to reverse what has become out of balance.
I have been enjoying the time I have had to learn more about this little organ, the gall bladder and what it actually does in our bodies. Why did God put it in there? Though it is not all that important and its function seems so insignificant to the body as a whole the liver is probably very pleased to have someone there to pick up the slack. Someone to store up all it has made and lighten its load. The liver unlike the gall bladder is crucial to many other organs such as the spleen. So the gall bladder is playing second fiddle but it has an important job, it supports the liver, it takes the pressure off of its functioning and provides extra bile when it is needed for digestion. It reminds me that second fiddle may not be glamorous and often others may even see you are so ineffective they want to remove you altogether, but God has a purpose for all of us playing second fiddle. He wants us to pick up slack, make someone else’s job a bit lighter, he wants us to store up goodness and kindness and other good things and release them at the proper time so His truth can be digested by those who are hearing it. No part of the body is expendable.