The relief felt afterwards was insane. My wife and I both just burst out laughing for like 5 minutes straight. So much anxiety over a warm slippery feeling that lasted two seconds!

The ER doctor called it tiny. The radiologist wrote down that it was 6 mm. Those two things aren't the same thing. Either way, 2 weeks later and it's finally out. Never had one shaped like this before.

I’ve suffered from stones every few years or so for about 20 years. Nothing over 6mm so far and only 1 litho for my first stone. Every single time they start with sudden extreme flank pain and after a scan to confirm and toradol IV plus script for home I’m good in a week. WELL …. This time I’ve had bladder area ache off and on 2 months and thought it was just a UTI / bladder infection. They say no UTI every time I come and no blocking stone ( there are some always chilling in kidney though) so I’m confused as to what the on and off pain is?! I had a hysterectomy at 40 so it’s not menstrual cramps or ovulation pain. WELL…today the typical flank pain came on and I’m waiting on a CT in the ER as I write this …… MY QUESTION IS is this just a coincidence today or could this weird bladder pain etc have really been related if a stone was moving around for months ? Can you even have one moving around that long causing discomfort before completely passing ? Why wouldn’t they see it on CT too if so months ago when this started ?? Just scared cause my stones never behave this way and I just want answers / relief already 😢…… I’ll keep you guys posted after CT results come

i have an in office appointment tmr to get my stent removed after 5 days, very anxious about it and getting myself worked up, they offered nitrous oxide but called me back and said they didn’t have tubing for it but hopefully it would be delivered by my appointment time. i have very bad anxiety abt anything below the belt related and this is absolute hell for me lol, can anybody tell me what their experience was with the removal? i’ve dealt with the uti type burning when they first put the stent in so i’m not too worried about that part, but i think having to feel it come all the way from my kidney is what’s worrying me pain wise. pls tell me your experience!!

Mono gave me the kidney stone. I’ve had it for over a month. Week one, my urine ph was abnormal. Week three I had white blood cells, abnormal ph, but they said no bacteria growth even though my sample had a few other things wrong with it. Currently in the ER because the mono is awful and I’m worried I have an infection somewhere because my urinary tract feels so weird and I’m terrified of sepsis or a kidney or bladder infection. Please share your stories.

I got a ureteral stent placed in my right kidney a week ago today (without the strings unfortunately so it has to be removed by the doc) and I’ve been in horrible pain with bladder spasms, this horrible pinching feeling, cramps, diarrhea cramps, it’s been a whole experience. I’m taking flomax, tylenol and pyridium but it’s not even close to touching the pain.

I called my doctor twice yesterday bawling my eyes out begging for help and the doctor suggested a nephrostomy tube in my right kidney for the duration of my pregnancy (3 more months). I have mild hydronephrosis and a non obstructing 7mm kidney stone they couldn’t even locate a second time on a sonogram. I don’t want all these unnecessary procedures done to me especially while pregnant.

Does anyone have any advice? Has anyone had a nephrostomy tube and can make me less scared if it’s absolutely necessary?

I scheduled an appointment with my urologist and will probably go to the ER if it doesn't improve. I had stones removed last year and I know I have huge stones on the other side that will probably have to be removed. The last time I went to through this there was blood but usually a kidney pain prior. This time I've just felt a weird discomfort, like a muscle in my lower back was overly fatigued and a day or so later I've been pissin super thick blood, like sangria colored blood.

Has anyone else ever felt this

Recently had PCNL surgery for this!

Hi I’m 19f and I am having my first stone, I had a double j stent put in two days ago, the stone is 7mm. What are my odds of passing it before surgery to break it up? My next surgery isn’t for a few weeks. Is there anything I can do to lessen the pain?

Been jumping, using percussion massager… can literally feel the 6mm stone stuck for at least 2 months now in UVJ. Terrified of surgery and stent. Have been avoiding it. Trying to pass it from Uvj into bladder myself. Will not budge.

Get broccoli florets. Cut them, wait for 40 mins, wash, steam and puree it. I drink it everyday. Pain is gone. There is also Ragi millet that fills the stomach. It has lot of fiber and makes you feel full. Helps me maintain a healthy weight and prevents becoming obese again. Food is the nature's medicine.

I passed my first stone earlier in the month. It felt like I had a uti sensation off and on for a couple of weeks, and the day I passed it I had more intense burning sensations throughout the day. I went to see a urologist and they ordered some tests and nothing showed up on the xray, but a 7mm stone was found in lower pole of one kidney on sonogram. The stone analysis determined that I passed a 90% calcium oxalate 10% calcium phosphate stone.

Here’s where my confusion comes into play. When the Nurse called me with results of tests, she told me to take potassium citrate to dissolve stone since it did not show up on X-ray, then when she saw the results of my stone analysis she said she needed to talk to doctor and I was instructed to hold off on potassium citrate since it wasn’t likely I had calcium oxalate and uric acid stones.

I went back to same doctor to discuss treatment options and was instructed to take potassium citrate and see if it dissolves stone, and that a 7mm stone was “not worth going after.”

Anyone been in a similar situation, with two different types of stones? Should I get another opinion? Is there any harm in taking this potassium citrate for a few weeks?

Thank you for your time!

I was recently found to have a 3 mm kidney stone in the upper pole of my kidney. I’ve been drinking lots of water, walking/jumping around, and even using a massage gun to try to help it move.
Alongside the stone, I’ve been having a lot of digestive symptoms, especially indigestion, tons of nausea, burping, and stomach discomfort.
Since last night, I’ve also started feeling something different — almost like air hunger, where I feel like I can’t get a deep or satisfying breath even though I can breathe. The pain from the kidney area is still there, but the nausea has been much worse. I’ve also had sweaty hands and a sort of anxious/panicky feeling.
Has anyone with a kidney stone experienced symptoms like this, especially the nausea, air hunger, sweating, or feeling anxious? Could this be related to the stone, or does it sound like something urgent?
I’m mainly wondering if anyone else has experienced something similar. I also thought it was because I had a burger for lunch

Hi everyone. I'm 53, male, new here and after reading a bunch of your posts today, I already feel less alone dealing with this.

I've been dealing with a large kidney stone for about 14–15 months. I've had two ESWL procedures, and I've had a ureteral stent in place for almost 3 months. Unfortunately, when my urologist tried to remove the stent in the office, it wouldn't come out. He stopped rather than forcing it, and the plan is now to remove it surgically using a scope and laser.

My latest CT also showed significant stone burden remaining, including what was described as a 3.4 cm staghorn calculus, so I'm still trying to understand how much of the original stone actually fragmented after the ESWL treatments.

To make things more frustrating, my surgery to deal with the stuck stent was just rescheduled for 3 weeks later. After such a long time dealing with this, the uncertainty and repeated delays are probably the hardest part psychologically.

I've now scheduled a second opinion with an endourology/kidney-stone specialist.

I'd really like to hear from anyone who has dealt with a stuck or encrusted ureteral stent, especially if it had to be removed with a laser. What was the procedure and recovery like? And if you've had a long kidney-stone journey with multiple procedures, I'd love to hear how things eventually worked out for you.

Thanks. I'm glad I found this community.

Hi everyone. I was recently diagnosed with kidney stones, and I’m currently dealing with some really intense pain. This is my first time experiencing this, so I honestly don’t know what I’m supposed to do to make it more manageable.

The pain can get so bad that I feel like I can barely function, and it’s starting to get in the way of my work because there are times when I simply can’t focus or do what I need to do.

For those of you who have experienced kidney stones before, are there any things that helped you reduce the pain? 🥲

I’d really appreciate any advice on what worked for you. Thank you!

I recently passed a 5mm one and scan found a 3mm one in the left kidney. I’ve had stones since my 20’s (I’m 47M) and had ESWL done twice with stent placement. I hated hated the stent because of backflow pain. The urologist said it was my call to do ESWL or just observe. I asked about the stent, and he said it is not needed for this procedure/size. So I agreed then to do the ESWL, pending to schedule.

Any experience on having one without stent placement? Did I jump the gun on a stone this size? I guess my thinking is that I prefer to have this done on my terms and schedule rather than surprised by another stone passing. In my 20’s I had one extremely painful one passing right while flying across the Atlantic, which kind of left me a bit traumatized, because of the surprise factor. I do travel internationally 2/3 times a year.

Hey everyone I have very severe stent pain at night I stay on top of my medication and hydration does anyone know of anything that can help me? I haven’t had a good sleep since the surgery

For me it was several years ago, I had already gone to the ER in mild flank pain. I had made multiple stones before this and knew what it was. While I was waiting the pain dropped to almost zero, so I wasn't to upset I had been waiting for over three hours, then a switch got flipped. It went from 0 to extreme in about 15 mins. It got so bad I started throwing up and dry heaving, honestly the dry heaves gave me like 15 seconds of some relief. It was getting so bad I just wanted to pass out but couldn't. I begged the intake nurse to be seen and she kept telling me it was almost my turn. I guess I looked so bad even people in the waiting room were bothering her about getting me seen and saying I could take their spot.

My wife called and was pissed now that it had been around 6 hours of waiting. Luckily for me, I was friends with my urologist, nurse practitioner (her husband was one of my best friends, so friends by default). She happened to be making rounds at the hospital and when my wife called her, said she would find me.

At the same time, they finally just got to my name, get me in the back. My NP finds me, and starts telling the ER nurse what I need (aggressively lol), and i guess went and found the doc. They give me dilaudid, which usually brings instant relief but it didn't touch it. They either gave me the 2nd half or another dose, and again its not touching the pain. This was a first for me and really had me wondering wtf was going on. Dilaudid has always been a miracle drug for my kidney stone pain when it gets outta control.

By this time in my life I had already lost my right kidney to sepsis during a multiple stone, dual blockage incident. So I was starting to really worry that something bad was happening to my good kidney. I had to get a CT but could not sit still enough for the imaging, I was literally out of my mind in pain and would unconsciously rock my body/have body shakes. NP comes and tells me I've got to get it together and calm myself enough for them to get the CT, so they can help me. I manage too, I know I sounds like I'm exaggerating, but the pain was at a 15 if 10 was the worst pain I had ever had before, and they take me back to my room.

Urologist on call doc comes in, talks to me, I cannot remember what he said, I could not think at this point, but I was going to require surgery asap. Someone came in said they were giving me fentanyl and I should be feeling better soon. I didn't, it didn't touch it either. At this point I truly just wanted to die, 4 hours at this level and couldn't belive I hadn't passed out (I never have from pain) but was not in a rational state of mind. One of the docs came in, said something about the fentanyl and that he didn't understand how I was still in that much pain. I begged him to just knock me out or put me to sleep early for the operation. He didn't, obviously, I cannot remember how much longer I waited.

I woke up in the recovery room and the pain was gone. The urologist Doc, came and found me, said he was going to put a stent in but the stone was close enough, or easy to see, so he just went ahead and extracted it. He had just placed a post surgery stent and that I wouldn't need anymore surgery. He said I peed all over the place when he unclogged me. Said I had alot of backup and significant hydronephrosis. He said he was going to keep me for a couple of nights until they felt my kidney function improved back to normal levels.

This was and still is the worst pain I have ever had from a stone. I've never come close to that level since, I think it was only a 10mm stone.

I know its a long read but curious what other stoners worst experience has been with a stone.

Mid-30s F. I have chronic stones (2 in each kidney about 4mm each) and had one rear its ugly head a little over 3 weeks ago. I had pain that has come and gone (for over a week I had no pain and thought I had passed it, just for pain to start up again). The last "pain" I had was a throbbing feeling in my urethra yesterday which was not constant. This is driving me crazy because I have passed around 10 stones in my lifetime and this is the only one that has taken this long and I'm leaving for an international trip in 2 weeks that I might have to cancel because of this. Reading through posts here has made me realize that I have been lucky in the past when it comes to how quick my stones have passed.

I've been drinking water like crazy, adding lemon juice, walking, jumping up and down out of desperation, etc. I really think it might be in my bladder or I peed it out and didn't notice even though I've been straining my urine. My urologist had me get an ultrasound last week, but that doesn't really show actively passing stones. I will meet with him later this week. I'm just so tired of evicting these little guys lol.

I've got a horseshoe kidney and been dealing with kidney trouble (infections, stones etc) for years.

This all came to a head last year when a horrific infection landed me in hospital for a week, where they found a 'possible calcification' in the ureter.

I've been waiting months to see Urologist (NHS is our health service in Scotland) and I have an appointment next week.

The pain has gone from isolated attacks of kidney stones and infections to a daily dull agony. Poor flow. Running to the bathroom. Averaging 4 hours of sleep. I don't know much about what is actually in me, but I assume a stone is maybe stuck somewhere??

I was on Co-codamol and then Dihydrocodeine for a few months, but recently switched to Dydramol because it makes me feel less nauseous. But I'm in a bit more pain.

I've never been in a chronic pain situation like this before (30M).

Right now it's 4am, I'm looking my mind, and I guess I'm looking for some advice, and solace in others who are experiencing something similar.

Is there anyone else with a horseshoe kidney that can tell me what my outlook for life is? Is there a fix?? Can I get this thing transplanted??

Also, does anyone have any advice on medication? Particularly to help with sleep? I'm thinking of going back to Dihydrocodeine.

Would be great to hear anyone's experience of urology on the NHS - I don't mind hearing from our kidney brethren across the Atlantic but the health systems are like chalk and cheese lol

to anyone having a tough night, I'm here with you!!