How's life after having gallbladder removed .

[Ang64]

Hi going to have my gallbladder out within 3 months and it's fair to say that I'm so scared I will still feel sick and in pain afterwards.

[Hidden]

Hi Ang64

My mum had hers removed 5 years back and she said she wished she had pushed for it earlier as she could have saved some of her suffering. After the operation it took a couple of months to get back to normal but she has never looked back. No more severe pain and being sick.

Take care x

[worriedcats]

My mrs has had her gallbladder out last year

You'll be fine once its out 👍

[bantam12]

I had it done 5 weeks ago because I had a polyp which they thought could be cancer, I had no symptoms at all beforehand.

Have to say its not necessarily the walk in the park some say !

The air they pump in can cause a lot of pain afterwards, I had trouble breathing for about a week, incisions were ok and didn't really cause any major problems. I had terrible diarreha from about day 4 due to the bile now constantly dripping into the bowel, I was keeping to zero fat diet and living on clear liquids but it took about a month to settle down. There are bile acid binders available which can help.

I advise you watch what you eat especially for the first few weeks, stick to low or no fat to give your gut a chance to get used to its new normal !

Good luck

[KB47 in reply to bantam12]

Hi Bantam .youre so right, having your Gallbladder out is certainly not a walk in the Park. If anyone is thinking about Gallbladder removal and also has Fibromyalgia, please think Twice. I'm not a Doctor ,I'm just talking about my own experience. I have Chronic Fibromyalgia and I had my Gallstones and Sludgy Gallbladder removed,my Bile Ducts sorted out and also had an Umbilical Hernia Repair at the same time 10 weeks ago. My pain is so much worse now than it was before my operation. My GP told me that part of it is to the fact of having Fibromyalgia. 🤔 I had my operation Friday morning and I went home the following morning. No diet sheet,no information on the care of my incision. No information at all .Ive just ate a piece of dry toast for my breakfast and I can feel my Tummy on the move already. I haven't heard of Bile Acid Binders before. Thanks for mentioning them.Ill give them a go and see if they can help. 🤔👍

[Puddl667]

I had mine out about 12 years ago now. I was off work for 6 weeks recovering and like a previous post put I had a couple if days of diarrhea but been absolutely fine ever since. If I have a few days of eating rich foods I feel a bit off but no problems at all really

[Palpman]

Had my inflamed gallbladder removed a few months ago. Slight pain for 3 days and then "forgot" about it. Ate whatever I wanted to and had normal bowel movements. No more bloating.

[bantam12 in reply to Palpman]

You were lucky !

[camelswin]

Had my Gallbladder out stick to a low fat diet for a few weeks then your body will tell you when you have eaten the wrong thing.

[hells456]

I had mine out 4 years ago. The operation took a while because it was stuck to my liver with scar tissue. I was in a lot of pain the first day but was kept in overnight and given good pain relief. I felt rough and didn't move around much for the first week but rapidly got better after that. The hospital sent me home with pain relief and even at its worst it was still not as bad as the pain from a gallstone attack.

My doctor advised me to dive straight into my normal diet afterwards so my body will adapt to the lack of a gallbladder quicker. As soon as I could eat I had butter and cheese dripping off everything (I had been fat free for a long time). I have been able to eat whatever I want in any quantity since with no digestive issues.

The only bad thing I had was a pain under my ribs occasionally. It was quite bad but went quickly if I ate something. Though now I know I have cirrhosis I don't know if it was from the gallbladder removal or my liver. I haven't had it at all in the last year or two.

I hope you have an easy op and a speedy recovery.

[Hidden]

Me too. I’m that ill am begging to have the op! I can’t even eat now. Almost constant pain and nausea

[Happy7]

Before you decide to have your gallbladder removed please give it a chance to heal naturally by changing your diet, read Dr. Izabella Wentz’s book Hashimoto’s Food Pharmacology. I don’t have Hashimoto’s but do have low thyroid function, she writes about gallbladder problems and how to improve your gallbladder by changing your diet and taking enzymes. Another good source of natural healing is Dr.mercola.com, once on his website search his website for “gallbladder” also Dr. Jockers.com. I have avoided gallbladder surgery and feel so much better after changing my diet. Hope this helps you, good luck.

[Julie8]

No it’s fine usually keyhole. Mine was a bit hungry and stuck to my liver but they got it out and I could eat almost anything. 20 years later though I have liver disease and do wander if it’s partly overworking the liver making bile cause there’s no storage of it. So try to carry on eating healthily afterwards, even though you can eat what you want without pain.