Successful gallbladder surgery.....why did I wait?

Please remember that he is a surgeon not a radiologist. He also doesn't have $100K worth of equipment in his office to get the best image. The surgeon will only be looking at a CD copy on a computer screen. He doesnt need to see the scan pictures unless he has doubts about the radiologists readings. There are only so many surgeons and so many radiologist in each city. It doesnt take long for the surgeon to know who to trust and who to check behind.

Would love to hear more stories like this - I'm fearful of having mine taken out as well and have a ton of people telling me not to do it .... but only because they have heard of some friend or friend of a friend who had issues after theirs was taken out....it does seem to be a theme of the internet that the only people that choose to post are those that have bad experiences and so we get a messed up percentile because the ones that have good results have nothing to complain about...

i'm pretty scared about my surgery tomorrow and am VERY glad to have found these positive stories! my long time GP recommended a surgeon, as did the surgeon father of my sister-in-law, so i'm quite comfortable with the surgeon. it's all the post-op horror stories that got me!

i have had one major acute attack, but now that i know what that feels like, along with the other symptoms, i've been having trouble with my gallbladder for about three years! a hitascan showed numerous stones and everyone wants it to come out.

i have many friends, family members, and coworkers who have had their gallbladder a removed, and all say it was the best decision. no one complains about strange or horrible digestion issues after. so i'm still scared, but nowhere near a scared as i was before.

Got my GB taken out 6 days ago and it could not of been any sooner - had the upper gut pain right below the breast bone and it was so intense I could not breathe.  I sat in the tub for 8 hours hoping that would mellow out the pain as it did before, but this time it was not stopping and only getting more intense.  at 5am I drive to the ER explained my symptoms and started the waiting game a hour later it was time for an ultra sound (after the shot of pain killer) and once I returned and it was viewed, I was told they were going to admit me as I needed surgery due to inflamed/infected/stone clogged gallbladder.  I was prepped and went under at like 2pm and remember going into my room for 1 night of post op care.   Came home after 1 day in the hospital and body cleansed itself (non-stop runs for a good slid day) and now I am eating the soft diet still (jello, soup, bread, apple/grape juice) and have not had to rush to the bathroom at all today.  I have been told to wait 1 month after surgery to let your body adjust to having no gallbladder and I am game to that - I can wait - then I will start introducing the 6 good meat a day plan (3 meals 3 snacks) and avoid high fat, fried, and/or creamy products and see what happens.  But so far I feel great (no more stomach issues)

thought i'd come back and share my story. i'm now about two months post-op and doing well. i took the painkillers every 4 hours for the first day, mainly to sleep and let my body start to heal. i ate light that day - some crackers, a bit of cheese. the next day, i still took a few painkillers because i was sore. it wasn't very painful unless i tried to get up or move around too much. i tried to nap but couldn't really fall asleep - just spent the day lounging in my couch nest and watching cartoons. the next day was thanksgiving. i took a couple of painkillers and ate almost normally. i even had some thanksgiving dinner brought home by my sister in law.

friday, three days post op, i was still pretty sore but my appetite was back. i was only taking the painkillers at night to ensure i didn't wake up in pain. saturday we went out to panera for lunch and i learned that onions no longer like me that much. we stopped at the supermarket and that tired me out a bit, so we spent the rest of the day home napping. the next day a family member died and we ended up spending most of the day with family. i was eating basically normal for me, just trying to watch the fat - i still try not to eat too much fat in one meal.

i went back to work six days post-op. my biggest complaint was how TIRED i was! for about 8 days after being under anesthesia, i was just tired all the time. i didn't get stitches - the doctor used steri strips. they were itchy. getting up and down, like off a chair or the toilet, was a bit achy and 'ow', but not horrible.

so now, two months post op, i'm having no issues related to my gallbladder (although my uterus apparently feels left out and has been the focus of medical attention over the last two weeks). i went out for fondue last week - started with a cheese fondue, ate meat cooked in broth, and ended with chocolate fondue (the rice krispie treats are my favorite to dip in chocolate) and i felt fine afterwards. i haven't had heartburn/acid reflux nearly as often as i used to. i don't get crazy painful gas like i used to, and my abdomen just feels more 'normal'. i'm so glad i decided to listen to everyone and have my gallbladder out! now i just have to pay all the bills off... >.

Now that is what I want for myself in two months for sure - I gave the remaining pain pills to my Doc at my 1st appointment 6 days post op and just started sleeping in my own bed instead of a recliner as there is no pain - the bloating and gassiness and diarrhea is still a daily thing, but it may just be my body adjusting to no gallbladder as I am still on the soup, jello, crackers, toast and juice diet for my body to adjust - then I will try other foods. Gassy and bloated as hell for sure, but this to shall pass I am hoping. I am trying to get some info on coffee and beer ?? Is this a forever no-no from now on - and what about a good old Jaeger Bomb? Will this destroy me at the bar (no sharting at the bar)  LOL !!

I've been holding off on surgery, I only have an attack 3 or 4 times a year - I do wake up in the morning in a slight bit of pain (like someone hit me in the stomach, it's weird it is there immediately when I wake up but it doesn't actually wake me up - and usually goes away within 20-30 minutes of being awake - maybe because I'm vertical and not laying down?)

Thanks for any pre and post surgery info anyone can provide...

 

my only attack was horrible. i woke up in agony at 4am. couldn't sit, stand, lie down, anything. breathing hurt. i thought i had like somehow broken a rib and it punctured my lung! i couldn't imagine what was happening. after an hour in agony trying not to cry, i woke my husband up to bring me to the ER. the next two days, the pain in my abdomen in that area was moderate. for four days after that, it felt sore - like someone had punched me. so it sounds like the attacks you're having a few times a year are not very severe. maybe you should try keeping a food diary to see if you can discover what triggers a mild attack.

I recommend talking to your doc and finding out if you have stones and if they can be removed by a diet? If you can avoid having it taken out - go for it - for if it is taken out, your diet is going to extremely change. Now as for Pre and Post Op info: Pre was intense pain (as stated above) hard to breathe severe pain like the worst cramp in your upper mid gut ever and never lessening for like 8 hours. Post: I was kept in hospital for 1 day and released. I had the laposcopic procedure (4 little wounds) and pain killers to mask it away. I am at my 1 week post op and can walk and sleep in my own bed (little sore, but nothing extreme) - diet is safe for right now as my body adjusts to not having a gall bladder. But Doc says after 1 month I can start re-introducing foods (within the diet) and check for the reactions. Diet is Low-Fat w/no Red Meats, Fried Foods, Whole Milk Products, Coffee or Tea. So this is going to be the challenge.

diet doesn't change much for everyone - everyone heals differently. i eat all the same foods i did preop, just not the same way! the weekend before my attack, my family was celebrating many awesome things that had happened. i was eating steak, cupcakes with homemade buttercream frosting, lots of delicious fatty foods, and lots of alcohol. after two days of that, my gallstone attack occurred. i still eat steak, my cupcakes with homemade buttercream frosting, and all the fatty foods i love - just not all at once! i make sure to eat my favorite high fat foods in moderation. a week postop i was eating normally again. i haven't had problems with red meat, fried foods, any dairy products, or coffee. i can eat pizza without an issue (that used to be a trigger food for me). the only thing i've discovered that seems to give me a problem now is french onion soup - someone told me that they have had problems with onions after having their gallbladder removed, so i am careful with them.

and about having stones 'removed' by diet, this is impossible. gallstones are basically little stones made of cholesterol. the attacks are triggered by the stones moving around when the gallbladder contracts. if there are enough stones, the contractions themselves can cause pain. intense gallstone attacks - like mine - are caused when the stones move around and block the bile duct out of the gallbladder. you might have read about drinking olive oil and lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, whatever crazy thing on the internet - to 'dissolve' gallstones. it will not work. the stones are already formed inside your gallbladder, and nothing you eat or drink enters your gallbladder - it is merely a reservoir for bile that is manufactured by your liver. if you have few or small enough stones, it is possible to live happily with them. if they get too large, or you have too many, it will interfere with your gallbladder's functioning, which causes the pain.

i have done a lot of research on the matter because i was terrified to have it removed. i actually wrote a paper on whether gallstones could be treated or resolved by diet because i happened to have a research project in one of my college classes. i also spoke with one of my doctors (not my surgeon because he would be biased) about the home remedies to dissolve gallstones, and he said none of them were medically sound. i think it's imperative to do your own research - take any negative experiences online with a grain of salt because people are more likely to come back and complain about something that went 'wrong' then to come and let you know when it went 'right' (like we are here). for every 'my gallbladder removal went well' story, you'll find 15 'omfg my gallbladder removal ruined my life' stories online. find a surgeon you are comfortable with and ask for referrals from your gp, your friends and family, etc. and make sure you like the hospital the surgery will be done in - check their track record, about their surgical suite, etc.

and good luck! chances are having your gallbladder out will make a big improvement in your life if it's been causing you problems.

I'm really glad to see some positive posts about gallbladder surgery.  I have been in pain for a little over 7 months.  I don't have individual attacks, I have constant URQ pain that radiates to many places (shoulders, back, RLQ, muscle aches/soreness after high level pain episode), extreme belching, diarrhea, tiredness, and a feeling of being unwell.  I am a very healthy eater and was an avid psuedo-athlete before this started and haven't been able to exercise in over 4 months.  The pain is there whether I eat or not.  I want my life back.  All of my tests come back normal (Ultra, CT, HIDA, EGD, small bowel).   My GI says there are no guarantees, but he has a very strong experienced based hunch this is a poorly funtioning or mildly infected gallbladder, regardless of the HIDA results.   I was scheduled for a mid December surgery and came down with a yucky upper respiratory infection.  The anesthesologist did not want to do the surgery because of the congestion and asked that I wait.  For two weeks while on a Zpak and for the first time in 6 months, my URQ pain went away.  I felt great and figured somehow I was cured.  Nope!  The last couple of weeks have been like the 7 previous months.  I live with pain and have very few good days.  Too much crying and too much feeling sorry for myself.  Today was the day I decided I'd call and reschedule my surgery...until I got on the internet and read the horror stories again. I keep thinking if only there was some proof, a stone, low EF...something besides just symptoms, I wouldn't hesistate to have the surgery.  Because of these positive posts, I've decided to schedule the surgery and try to get my life back to normal, even though I'm afraid (1st surgery) and there is a chance my gallbladder isn't the problem. Thanks to all who have posted here.      

Here is my update Post Surgery +10 days: I can eat !!

I decided to try foods that I normally ate "avoiding of course the real fatty or fried foods" and may I say, I have had no ill effects. No belly aches, instant diarrhea or nothing. I have had rotisserie chicken (no skin), mashed potatoes (no butter) and green beans "no butter", rainbow sherbert and coffee with sugar and creamer for two days straight and no stomach aches.

I return to work this upcoming Monday and today I went for a walk in the mall and felt great.

I am truly looking forward to eating again and I truly do not miss those pains prior to the surgery !!

I couldn't agree more! I had a horrific two years struggling with severe gall bladder attacks that crippled me. I was too scared to have surgery and at each of the three visits I made to see a consultant at the Liverpool Broadgreen Hospital, I talked myself out of it. I tried to convince myself that I could alleviate the attacks with a low fat diet. The low fat diet helped me to lose two stone, but the attacks continued. In the end, I agreed to have the surgery. I had my gall bladder removed just before Christmas 2011 and I can honestly say that it is the best thing I have ever done for myself. The operation was absolutely straightforward and I couldn't believe it was over when I woke up feeling great, no discomfort and no nausea.

I had the operation at 2.30 p.m. and walked out of the hospital with my husband and daughter at 7.00 p.m. I have no looked back! Please go and have the operation if you are suffering - you will wonder why you left it so long. There is absolutely nothing to be afraid of.

I second that motion (had two eggs w/toast) for brunch and a cup of coffee and I am good-to-go - yahoo !!

Get that gallbladder removed and you will notice that all the replies to bad reactions to the surgery are all that you hear (except for those here that tell you the good news stories)

Well hi everyone.  Ok, it's been over a year since my surgery, but I wanted to tell all of you who still have it to " look forward to " that is was a piece of cake!!  I really minimal pain... not even pain as much as a little discomfort.  ( NOTHING compared with  the symptoms of gall bladder problems!)  Wow..... what a relief!  I was back to driving a school bus within days.  The nausea and miserable  things I had going on before are GONE, although I have had a few "stomach going both ways at the same time" episodes since then, but it could be my diet or something.Believe me... all these horror stories you read online  are ridiculous, and even my surgeon said so.  He said you usually don't hear good reports on the internet, because all those people have the surgery and go on with their lives.Get the surgery done and over with.  You will wonder why you waited so long.BTW, I had the laparascopic surgery, which is the normal procedure nowadays.