Day 7 - Another 0.6 lbs. lost

Ok, so I kind of panicked this morning.  I had read in Dr. Simeons' Pounds & Inches book that those with past gallbladder problems might find themselves experiencing some problems.

Small stones in the gall bladder may in patients who have recently had typical colics cause more frequent colics under treatment with HCG. This may be due to the almost complete absence of fat from the diet, which prevents the normal emptying of the gall bladder. Before undertaking treatment we explain to such patients that there is a risk of more frequent and possibly severe symptoms and that it may become necessary to operate. If they are prepared to take this risk and provided they agree to undergo an operation if we consider this imperative, we proceed with treatment, as after weight reduction with HCG the operative risk is considerably reduced in an obese patient. In such cases we always give a drug which stimulates the flow of bile, and in the majority of cases nothing untoward happens. On the other hand, we have looked for and not found any evidence to suggest that the HCG treatment leads to the formation of gallstones as pregnancy sometimes does.

I've had one gallbladder attack in my life soon after my emergency C-section with my last son, and let me tell you, I thought I. was. going. to. die.  Pain like that is very similar to hard labor except there's no rest period!  Though I was told I should probably have surgery to take it out, I wanted to make sure it was the right decision because once out, I could never get it back.  After visiting with my naturopath who thought the recent trauma to my body had thrown it into a tailspin and that I simply needed to take some steps to take care of it and get healthy again, I decided against the surgery.  I look back on it now and think it was a smart decision as I've never had another attack since.  However it gave me concern reading about gall stones and the HCG diet because I knew, no matter what, I never wanted to go through that pain again.  If I had another attack on this diet, it would not only stop my diet in its tracks but it may end up with a visit to the surgical doctor - not an option I'd choose if at all possible! So back to the panicking...  I felt some twinges of pain in that area this morning which at first gave me pause and then started me praying.  This was not something I wanted to deal with so I popped my krill oil and vitamins this morning (after having decided yesterday to not take anymore!).  I'm not sure what good I think it will do, but I simply didn't want to have to face the issue of that kind of pain again.  I may need to research preventative measures such as certain supplements or alternative therapies to help my liver and gallbladder remain healthy throughout this diet.

On a good note, I have not been very hungry since Monday and feel much better about this 500 calorie part of the diet.  Tomorrow is one week since starting Stage 2 (the 500 calorie days), and I look forward to seeing how many pounds and inches lost in my one week.  Will report back tomorrow...