What is life like after gallbladder removal?

Hi everybody!
thank you to everyone for sharing your story.

i am a 38 yo female who had been having what turned out to be gallbladder attacks for about 10 years. Since the attacks usually happened at night, i guess i would forget the agony in the morning....

The HydaScans that they ran on my gallbladder came back "marginally normal" with an ejection fraction about 41%....My surgeon told me to go out and get a cheesbeburger and fries to see how i reacted (NOT GOOD).....so when my surgeon finally took out the gallbladder, i was very relieved to hear that it was, in fact - 'bad' and needed to come out since they couldnt give me a straight answer at first. They pulled the thing out 9/25/09. I felt instantly better after the surgery; that part was amazing. I had suffered VERY BAD back pain for years and had NO idea it was my GB until they pulled the thing out....

anyway i'm suffering pretty intently from Gas these days. more so then ever in my life before. I'm surprised to read that it might still be operational gas, after all this is November 19th....can it still be surgical gas?

All i know is that i'm pretty sure i'm keeping the fine people at GasX in business these days :-)

Is anyone else having these issues?

Hello all!

I had my gallbladder removed January 14th, 2010 just under a week ago. Before having the removal I read tons and tons of blogs searching for answers to my questions, others going through a similar situation and just some reassurance. At the time of my surgery I was 21weeks pregnant with my 2nd child. I had been experiencing gallbladder attacks for over a year but had just written them off as hearburn or indigestion. Once I became pregnant this time around, the attacks came on more frequently and became more painful. My last attack occured on January 9th and sent me to the ER.

Throughout this pregnancy I've tried to maintain a healthy lifestyle by eating low fat foods, taking my vitamins and exercising. All of which are things I didn't do with my first as I was young and just didn't know the importance of staying fit during pregnancy. That night we splurged on pizza and watched a movie with some family. Around 11 the attack came on out of nowhere and with full force. After wandering around for about an hr the pain wasn't letting up at all.. I was actually so out of it that I couldn't focus, I started becoming nauseated and sweating. A little after midnight I told my husband that we had to go to the hospital. For anyone who has ever had gallbladder pain and given birth, I think would agree the pain is just as terrible if not worse! At least with labor pains you get a break between contractions! Upon our arrival to the ER I vomited several times. Because the pregnanct y was immediately seen. I was hooked up to an iv for fluids, and a fetal moniter to make sure our baby boy was ok. They admitted me for the night. Early the next morning I was taken down for an ultrasound of my gallbladder and surrounding organs. The attending nurse mentioned my gallbladder as soon as I had been admitted. I thought I don't even know what that does, but if that is it, it sure is painful! I was released later that day.

My OB called monday the 11th with my results. I had many gallstones just as we suspected. He immediately referred me to a general surgeon to see it would be possible to have it removed. By this time I had done my homework and read up on the in's and out's of the operation, the risks during pregnancy and pretty much any opinions I could find online. I knew it was preferred to wait until after delivery of possible but that if it was to be done during, the 2nd trimester was a "safe window". Of course we all know any operation has it's risks, even if it's outpatient and seamingly simple! However I knew the risks for keeping a sick gallbladder for 20 more weeks of pregnancy... My dr warned that I would most likely end up in the ER several more times.. the attacks would become more frequent and more painful.. with the risk of affecting my pancreas. With the support of my family and my Dr's judgement I decided to have the removal that week.

I didn't sleep a wink the night before the operation.. I kept wondering if this was the right decision.. maybe if I ate like a bird I could avoid another attack.. I worried about my baby. I worried about the attacks becoming debilitating.. I am a full time student and have a 4yr to care for.. That morning we arrived at the hospital and things moved along quickly. Within an hour or so of checking in I was in the OR. And about 30 minutes later I was waking up in recovery. A little nauseated from the anethesia and some mild pain in my upper abodmen were the first things I noticed. Once all my signs were checked and the fetal tones were oked, I was moved to another recovery room where my family was waiting. I left the hospital by lunchtime.

As the day went on the anethesia wore off and the pain started to settle in. It wasn't terrible though. I just felt a little sore. What was worse was the discomfort from the trapped air in my right shoulder. I knew this was to be expected and should wear off by the next day. I had 4 tiny incisions, 1 right below my breat bone, 1 just below my belly button and two close together on the upper right side of my abdomen. While in the OR the surgeon even took a photo of my uterus for us and wrote Landon on it. Everyone was very warm and comforting during my time in pre-op and post. As for recovery I would say friday was the most uncomfortable day. I felt like I had done some crazy killer ab workout. I never did fill my percocet the Dr prescribed. I figured poor Landon had been through enough with the anethesia and if I absolutely needed some relief tylenol should do. My appetite was a little off for the first couple days after the removal. I ate small meals and didn't go crazy with the bad stuff. I have had some itching at the incision sites as well. Of course with a growing belly this is to be expected. So far I will say I am glad we decided to go ahead and take out my gallbladder. I won't have to worry about any more painful attacks. Baby Landon tolerated the surgery well and wasn't under any stress. Only time will tell of course if we deliver a healthy baby. But I am confident that everything will be just fine. Coming from someone who has experienced labor pain, recovery from a c-section and now a gallbladder removal and I can say that this was cake compared to the others! I hope my story helps anyone who may be in a similar situation looking for guidance on what to do. :-)

I had my gall bladder removed last week.

For about 4 months I have had abdominal pain, but as I suffer from IBS I just figured it was a worsening. Then for three nights straight I couldn't sleep. No matter how I lay I couldn't get comfortable as it hurt so badly. On the final night I started to vomit and begged my partner to take me to the ER at 5 in the morning.

I was taken in fairly quickly but they refused to let my partner in with me. I was alone for about 2 hours before she was allowed in. Pumped full of drugs I had no idea what was going on. I vaguely remember going to be given an ultrasound. As soon as the doctor ran the device over my ribs I went through the roof and couldn't control my screaming. She was looking at the screen at this black area that was full of white dots. Best image I can give is looking through a telescope at a star constellation or two.

She went all quiet and told me the doctor would explain everything in the ER. I was in the ER for another two hours before a nurse came and told me I had gall stones and they would admit me until they had passed. Within 20 minutes a surgeon was there telling me that I was having surgery in an hour and they needed to get me ready. A bit of a shock as no one had mentioned surgery before and now I was being rushed to it.

Once again my girlfriend was shuttled away, freaking me out. I had to beg and cry to make them let her in the post op room just before they wheeled me off.

I woke up 12 hours later. I had 5 holes in my belly and the surgery had taken 2 hours. My girlfriend wasn't allowed in to see me until I was in my room. No one would tell her anything.

I didn't have a doctor check me over after and it was the nurse that discharged me. I didn't have time to ask any questions, or read up on any of this. Part of me is glad for that as I would have been terrified even more after reading some of these stories.

I am still in the recovery phase of the procedure. My medistrips still havent fallen off. But my appetite is next to nothing. I have a craving for Jello, but other than that I don't really want food. All of last week I lay on the sofa, in too much pain to move. It hurts to yawn, burp or sneeze. Man when any of those things happen it feels like my side is splitting open.

But this week things are better. I am moving around no problem, aside from speed bumps or pot-holes. Food is a problem right now though. I don't really want it. And when I do eat, I can time between 10 and 15 minutes before I need the bathroom. Even then its just loose and acidy. I am used to it from the IBS so its not causing me too much trouble. Just wish I was hungry. I see foods that I used to love and I am now like "Meh."

I am glad I had it, at the moment. The bathroom runs I am used to. The pain I had before, I wasn't. So in my case I have good and bad parts to this whole thing.

Does anyone else find that they are burping all the time though?

After reading all of the posts I feel like I must be one of the lucky ones because I had my gall bladder removed on the 3rd of june 2008 as it was infected and had 2 growths in it.I had been in terrible pain 3 months earlier and when I was admitted they put me on "nil by mouth" for 9 days to clear the infection and then sent me home for the 3 months to loose weight and exercise telling me that the healthier I was,the quicker I would recover after the surgery.
I went back in for the surgery and was out on the 3rd day.I have to say that I felt no pain at all from the moment I woke up and would have gone home that day if they let me but the surgeon said no.I had the operation with the 4 holes as opposed to the old fashioned one and at the time the surgeon told me that he wouldn,t know until he went in whether I would have to be opened up or not.
Initially I was very carefull about what I ate but after a few months I was back to my old self eating pizzas and chocolate.I am 45 years old,Male and I weigh 17 stone and I eat anything I want,I have never had the pain of cramping or diorria of any of the symptoms you all seem to have ,in fact if it wasn't for the 4 scars I wouldn,t even know I had it out.The 2 growths ended up being benign which is good news but I can,t be the only one out there that has this story.I went on holidays to disney world in florida 3 weeks after the surgery and went on all the rides and went swimming every day.I went back to the gym 6 weeks after the operation and never felt a twinge and I fought in a karate tournement 10 weeks after the op and again it was hard to remember that i had my gall bladder taken out...Brian

I had my gallbladder out 2 yrs this coming August! I've had some really bad problems ever since. Burning stomach, throwing up, timing my eating so I'm close to a toilet.. Finally, after enough of all of the misery I went to a gastro dr. come to find out my liver makes an abundance of bile salts, and not having anywhere to store it, it ends up in my gut burning a whole in my stomach lining causing ulcer, and over growth of bacteria... I'm constantly on antibiotics, and pretty much live on carafate liquid.. I was told there is no cure for this condition it's only manageable..

Had my gallbladder removed 11 August 2011. The gallstones were identified some two weeks earlier and I was placed on a waiting list to see the specialist. However, on the evening of 8 August I was rushed into hospital with the worst pains that I have ever experienced. No pain relief was effective - gas and air or morphene didn't touch it. The pains eventually subsided and I was admitted to the ward and told to be ready for surgery.

Try taking Ginger Root (Nature's Bounty) a few times a day.  I've taken as much as 6-8 Capsules...stops the pain, the bloating, the nausea, and gas like a miracle! Its fabulous.  Watch out for foods that are very acidic.

I'm a 29 year old african american male that is 3 months post surgery.  I am happy to report no ongoing issues so far and things have been business as usual.

I just had my GB removed on 3/15/12 and although it was painful for the first day and a half... I know I made the right decision in having it! I know I will have to be careful as far as what I eat for the rest of my life, but the pain I had before my GB was removed is well worth the sacrifice. I have a little bit of healing to do still, but I take it day by day-and follow all of my post-op instructions to a T which is key if you want a speedy recovery. For myself... I found that avoiding red meat, spices, and limiting dairy helps the unavoidable trips to the bathroom as it will upset your stomach and cause painful diarreah and cramping.... So really just avoid that at all costs!!!

I had my gallbladder removed 2 weeks ago. I had "multiple stones" in my gallbladder and had had around 15 attacks in the past 9 months which had me bent over chairs and tables to try to relieve the pain in my stomach and back. Two weeks after surgery and I'm feeling great! I am eating everything I want which include corn beef and cabbage on St Patrick's day. I am now eating foods that I haven't been able to eat in years-ice cream, bagel with cream cheese, eggs. I still have a little pain where the gallbladder was but it has only been 2 weeks so that's to be expected. The only thing that's annoying me is that I can't lift anything heavier than 10 lbs for another two weeks. That is something that they don't tell you, but I guess it's to be expected since even though the incisions are small it is abdominal surgery. And an extra added bonus, I'm finding it easier to lose weight now, even though I haven't been eating "right." No sudden trips to the bathroom and NO MORE PAIN! I couldn't ask for a better result.

I had my gallbladder removed five days ago. I am sore and the percocet causes nausea. I have only vomited once and that was because I took Percocet on an empty stomach. I am eating normal foods and find I am hungry quite often. A bit gassy and bloated. That is all for right now. I will update if that changes. I can't say I regret it. The pain was beyond anything I have experienced and I have two children. I went to the ER and upon seeing the fever, the sweating and the intense pain they gave me morphine and took me back for an ultrasound. Within an hour I was admitted and awaiting surgery. I had many stones and a very large one that I was unable to pass. The staff at the hospital was wonderful. 1I was released before lunch the day after. For me it has been positive.

Thank you so much for posting this! I just had my surgery 3 days ago and after reading all of these posts, I became extremely worried about what life was going to be like from now on. I was SO discouraged and depressed until I read yours! Thanks for the hope:)

Hello: Had Laparoscopic gallbladder surgery 11 days ago.  Several things to mention that were different from what I had expected/heard/read:

1. I felt tired, sore and weak for almost 10 days.  I feel more like myself today but STILL not 100% 

Others say they went back to work in 3 days and seems that alot of folks were doing great in less than a week.

2. I was VERY constipated after the surgery for several days, I stopped taking pain medicine early to try to open things up.  I took GAS X but it didnt help with the gas. DONT TAKE CHARCOAL TABS...THEY DONT HELP WITH GAS AND WORSEN CONSTIPATION. I  forced myself to walk around the house even though I didnt feel like it to try to help with the gas.  I am very bloated still, my stomach is 6 inches wider than it was before the surgery.

3. I am 40 years old, female and in great shape physically.  I exercise 30-60 minutes every day and eat very healthy.  The only meat I eat is chicken breast, fish and some lean turkey.  I do not eat anything with mor than 3g of saturated fat per meal.  I eat alot of fruit and veggies and this has seemed to help with digestion.   Since I stopped the pain medicine, I am able to have good bowel movements.  Here and there, I may have a little bit of loose stool but it is usually after watermelon or cucumbers that contain alot of water.  I am drinking alot of water,  but I usually drink 1 gallon per day.

4.  I have felt discomfort when  bending over or trying to lie on my right side.   I feel that this is getting better each day.  It felt like something was "pulling" when I bent the first few days.

5.  I have not lost any weight at all.  I am eating as much as I want but have noticed I feel full sooner.

6. I am curious about the need for enzymes or bile salts.

I wrote this because I wanted to share my experience as my GB attacks were very painful and I didnt know what they were for about 2 years.  I read others posts and they helped me alot.  I think the best advice I can give is to rest, drink alot of water, eat bland for a few days, stay cool/no outdoor heat, no lifting, sleep in a recliner.  Walk around house to keep things moving and help with pain.  I hope this helps someone as others post certainly helped me.

 

Hello: I had Lapraroscopic gallblader surgery 2 years ago. I read all the blogs and articles on how it would be after the surgery. Some of the articles and blogs were terrifying!!  I suggest to all to not go looking for other peoples experiences, it is just to scary.  I can't say my surgery was a blast, or that it was easy, but what surgery is?  It took time for my system to adapt, after all you had a major organ removed.  But I feel great!! I have had no issues with diet, stomach discomfort etc. that you read about. I don't eat high fat foods and I exercise. Be smart with your body and take care of it and it will work for you. 

It has been 5 weeks since my surgery and my stomach is still very bloated. My waist was 29" before surgery and now ranges from 37-39". The doc says it will go down eventually.