What is life like after gallbladder removal?

Surgery is different for everyone but I think you'll be fine. It took me about ten days to recover fully and return to my daily chores. Don't pick up heavy objects and you will be fine....good luck!

I FINALLY found a GI doctor that knows his stuff!!!!! He ordered a MRA, not mri, and found that I had celiac artery compression syndrome. It is where the ligament tightens down on the artery cutting off the flow. In my case it was already partially closed off and when I ate it nearly completely closed off cutting off the blood supply to the digestive organs, therefore the pain whenever I ate or drank. I had an angiogram recently done to determine if I needed a stent put in, which I don't. The artery is perfectly healthy so the next step is having the surgery to cut the ligament which I'm hoping will be in 3-4 weeks giving me time to recover from the angiogram. This apparently is pretty rare and my GI dr. has only seen 5 cases in his 40 yr career. If you're having upper abdominal pain and they don't know what it is but advise to take your gall bladder out DON"T LET THEM! Have a MRA done with contrast to check your celiac artery. I certainly hope this helps.

I am here to report that, since my gallbladder surgery in September of 2002, I have had no digestive issues whatsoever.  I haven't had to restrict my diet or limit my life in any way.  I eat fatty foods whenever I like, with no issues.

It has been nearly 11 years since my surgery, and I have sailed free and clear.  So, don't be afraid.

Just wanted to report that as of my gallbladder surgery 2 days ago, I have experienced no bloating after meals (as I did the least year) and am feeling incredible. I seem to be digesting completely normally, which I haven't for very long and am extremely positive about my outlook. I will report back if anything changes to a negative, but for now I cannot recommend the procedure enough. 

Just had my gallbladder out 2days ago and feeling amazing. No more nausea, night sweats and acid. Eating normally and feeling so, so good. Felt great straight after op. No more pain on right side or sickness after meals. Anyone considering this procedure go ahead asap!! I read all sorts of things on the internet which scared me. Will never do that again.So don't take anything negative on 'Just do it!' Easy peasy!  

Oh MY GOSH....you just described everything that I am going through. Gall bladder out - 3 weeks ago....and also had - have pancreatitis. I just 'sighed' - not that I want others to go through this too but in all that you shared. I have stayed away from dairy - as it has never say well with me, I am going to try to find, goat milk cottage cheese - lowfat today. I know I need more protein, but have been in the ebb and flow as you have been - trying something, and then having to go back to clear liquids, get things settled down and give it another whirl - very slow going on introducing things back into my diet. But I too, can only eat a small amount. I have my alarm set to remind me to eat every couple of hours - small intake many times a day. It helps! Slowly, I am feeling better - - - - I am a person that is hard on myself.....I admit that for sure....so I have had to learn to just breathe into each day....and find my way back to really feeling rockin' and rollin' awesome. This journey started last summer August of 2012 - - it has been one crazy path to figure out what the blazes was going on. FINALLY - foreward! Blessings to you.....Please do continue to share ...your progress and insight.

I had my gallbladder removed a year ago. 

All was fine for the first 6 months after but then the problems started with diarrhea and digestive upset and having to use the bathroom at least 6 times a day, immediately, or else.  You cannot go on vacation unless you are within eyeball distance of a bathroom so long car trips or to out of the way rural places are out unless you stop suddenly alongside the road (trust me, this isn't fun).

I have also been diagnosed with autoimmune hypothyroidism which is responsible for cholesterol levels spiking among other things, which in turn obliterates the gall bladder.  At the point of having the gallbladder removed there was no going back or trying to cure it "herbally" as nothing will remove the fatty/colesterol stones (don't believe for a minute they will, it simply is snake oil treatments at best).  The pain was too much to bare so getting rid of the gallbladder is really your only course at that point.

But the recurring and excessive problems of the automatic "bile dump" everytime I eat is ruining my enjoyment of life.  

I feel like not ever eating anything again sometimes.

Hi! I'm 16 years old and had my gallbladder removed in March, and I don't miss a thing! I feel better. There are some things that I avoid, like greasy/fried/fatty foods and dairy. Everybody is different and people experience different reactions. The only reason you see terrible responses is because people who feel great aren't likely to complain. Yes, there are things out there to flush it, but a good portion of the time it's because of inflammation of the organ itself and it can't function properly because of that. That is what I had. For the first week or so I had mild pain because of the surgery and it hurt to sleep on my side. But after that first week I felt a lot better. I recommend that you eat smaller, more frequent meals, like snacks, and stay away from fried stuff. Hope this helps!

I just had my gall bladder removed 5 days ago and besides some discomfort around my incision sites, I haven't felt this good in a long time.  Still eating very light, however when I do eat its nothing compared to what I felt like before.  I no longer feel full, no more running to the bathroom after I eat. No heartburn:-).  I do eat smaller meals throughout the day however and that seems to help a lot.  In general, I feel fabulous. I do know though that that may change however.

 

Each person is different, however I would highly recommend this surgery if needed.  A couple of very bad gall bladder attacks was all it took for me.

 

Good Luck:-|

I don't want to be a bummer...but here is the truth.  Had my gallbladder out in 2008 (kept getting infected and was full of stones and making me sick).   So, the first 4 years or so were fine, could eat whatever I wanted, the occasional rush to the bathroom if I ate too much fat...but it was rare.

A year ago I started having bouts of pancreatitis.  That ended, but I got an endoscopy and a CAT scan as was worried about it.   Found out I have a hiatal hernia, I also have GERD.    Was making it on cal/mag fluid without meds for a while, but now I must take Priolsec.  If I don't can't eat without coughing.   Can't eat more than a few hours before bedtime.

Life is not what it used to be at all, there is no getting back to where I was before all this happened.

Sorry, but have to be honest, that said, there are worse things you can have.

I had my Gallbladder removed 8/28/2013 and it was the best decision that I've ever made!! I trolled the internet for days and hours looking for answers and reasons not to have the surgery and possible natural remedies to try and it was a waste of time. As it turns out my gallbladder was the size of an orange and I had over 50 gallstones that were the size of a marble and larger, my gb could have burst at anytime. I did not find this out until after my surgery. I have had no issues with any foods. I havent had any of the bathroom issues like people were suggesting. I feel so much better than I did before and I also have less migraines (1 or less) a month now. As people mentioned the worst part of the whole thing for me was the gas pains after the surgery, they can travel from your foot up to your shoulder, these lasted me a good 4-5 days. I also got sick from the pain meds so I stopped taking them on day 2 and took two motrin instead for any pain. I was out of work for 3 days and was working from home the following Monday for the week.

Hey everyone!

Just want to ease some fears for anyone out there who is searching the internet while feeling all kinds of right sided pain/nausea/vomiting and who have been told they need to get their gallbladder out. I was you just a few days ago! Here is my story:

In Oct of 2014 I had extreme back pain. Nothing relieved the pain (OTC meds, heating pads, yoga) tried it all. The pain lasted a month. I went to the nearest urgent care center and they diagnosed it as a "muscle spasm." Then in December the pain started radiating under my right breast accompanied by tenderness like my body was wrapped in a tight body corset. A week later the nausea came. I woke up with the nausea..then it would subside...then again. This was every day. I lost a total of 15lbs because I was scared to eat anything. I couldn't take it anymore. I went back to urgent care and finally a different doctor palpated by abdomen, and when she got by the right breast bone I screamed in agony!. An ultrasound was ordered and it revealed I had gallbladder sludge and a small polyp. Next, I was referred to a surgeon to get my gallbladder removed. I was so scared! Never had surgery before and didn't want to take out an organ (FYI im 24 yrs old, female, fit, healthy eater). So I started googling anything and everything I could find. I convinced myself at one point to keep the gallbladder in because of all the horror stories i read online!....But..I thought I can either leave the GB in and live with pain and nausea every day and be miserable or take my chances to living a normal life again. I went with the surgery. I cried everyday until they put me under anesthesia. Then I woke up. Yes, the pain from surgery is rough. But I am now day 2 post op. I have already eaten more these past two days then I have all of December!...Besides the incision pain i have no stomach problems. I already had a normal bowel movement. I am taking it slow just in case. So far to eat I've had toast with butter, jello, yogurt, apples, chicken soup, mashed potatos, chicken cutlet, pasta with marinara sauce, juice, tea, water ( I am in heaven compared to the crackers/water/nausea medicine diet I was on for two months!). SO please don't be scared! I will say this however, make sure you research your surgeon and make sure he/she is the best! This will make a big difference in your recovery. God bless and best of luck. Things will get better!

I had my gallbladder removed 11 days ago. I am a 45 year old male. I honestly didn't realize I was having gallbladder problems until I suffered a very painful blocked bile duct. Once I learned what was causing that pain, I realized I had 4 or 5 such attacks over the last couple of years. I still was hesitant to have my gallbladder removed.

But now just 11 days out, I think it was the best thing that ever happened to me. First, I've not had any diet issues. I eat everything I want and have had zero problems since just after the first few days from surgery. I've even eaten fried fatty foods without incident. In fact, my entire digestive process seems to be working so much better. Prior to surgery, I sometimes suffered from diarrhea or other abnormal bowel movement, which I thought was just a fact of life caused either by something I ate or stress. But since the surgery, I've had nothing of the same.

Honestly, I feel better too. I had read the horror stories online from people who had gallbladder problems after removal, but I've had none of those problems. In fact, I think this is the best thing that ever happened to me. I guess things could change as its only been 11 days- but so far, this seems like the best thing that has happened to me in quite some time.

I had my gallbladder remove Sept 2014 and have never been free from dihorrea stomach cramps and nausea ever since. I know my trigger foods now and I cannot eat veg only carrots and peas no fruit or juices only banana and tea and coffee absolutely not. The only thing I can drink is sparkling water or Pepsi I know this isn't good but haven't found anything else that stops it. I am on Omoperazole and loperamide which I have to tweak the doseage and also Pepto bismuth is great. I am fed up with it ruining my life and personally if I knew it was going to be this bad I wouldn't have had it out. Caz x

Thank you for your info. It is important to follow some outline of food out of surgery.
Your info is so right on. If anyone has questions on how to feel or eat after gallbladder surgery, please read this article. It has alot and the right info for you!