how long do people wait for gallbladder operations in uk?

[Polly44]

I recently found out I have gallstones after i ended up in hospital for 2 weeks over the easter bank holiday in april . I was in agony and had many gallstones and 7 stones blocking my bile duct and i was totally yellow levels through the roof , I had op to unblock it and the surgeon said my gallbladder needs to come out asap. I have an appointment for next week at my local hospital to have a review with surgeons. I was hoping this was a pre op appointment, but i think going by my hospital discharge letter its seems its just a review to talk about possible surgery or not going forward. I have had at least 4 attacks since (but didnt go to hospital) . I had one attack when i was on a pre planned trip to vienna in may, literally the minute I got to my hotel there and I think bile duct blocked again (going by stools colour the following day sorry if tmi ) luckily i it unblocked itself time i got back to uk following day (they cut a slit in my bile duct during the op to unblock it) so think this must of helped. I have swapped white bread for whole meal, have tiniest amount of lowest fat butter, only have a dairylea trangle instead of cheese. have semi skimmed milk in tea only. having lean ham or chicken, salad etc weetabix with hot water for breakfast. am so scared to eat and so scared of the pain of attacks, literally burnt my back last weekend during an attack because i took hot-water bottle cover off as wasn't hot enough to help with the pain. i cant live like this feel like literally any social life i had is gone as i cant eat/drink anything f i go out. hence why my trip was ruined cos was impossible to find many places who could help. best i found one place that did grilled chicken and ended up eating most days from a jacket potato stall or shop brought plain wholemeal rolls and ham in hotel room. I want my life back. I was already healthy eating before this have lost 3 stone since January but nice to be able to go out even once in a while. so sorry for this stupidly long post. what i would like to know is how long am i going to have to wait till surgery (how long do most people in uk wait for the operation ? thanks for reading this and hopefully giving me some sort of time frame . Polly

[bantam12]

Depends on the hospital and waiting lists but if the surgeon considered it urgent they can fit you in. I had mine out during lockdown and it was great I had the ward to myself !

[Polly44 in reply to bantam12]

Hi They have marked it as urgent on my notes it says , but not sure if urgent still might mean another 6 months to a year (frightened that it will block bile duct again and will need another op til the actual op :-/. ahh result ward to yourself ha ha. My 2 weeks in was with 6 others why do they wake up you at 2 am for blood pressure then at 6 ha ha. can you eat normal ish now . thanks for the reply

[bantam12 in reply to Polly44]

I had mine out due to a polyp so I had no eating problems beforehand, but oh boy afterwards everything I ate gave me horrendous diarrhoea so I lost loads of weight which I didn’t have to lose so was very underweight ! My Gastro diagnosed bile acid malabsorption and I know have to take Colestyramine which has sorted the problem and I can eat most foods although I steer clear of fatty and spicy stuff.

[Polly44 in reply to bantam12]

I have seen so many different stories of life after gall bladder , praying i just have to limit cheese rather than no fatty food i love sausage and egg mc muffins ha ha, I don't eat spicy food much, but praying i can do fatty foods in moderation and ice cream still. I am dreaming for being able to eat both again one day ha ha😂

[Sammyjoe2 in reply to Polly44]

Hi Polly44,

I waited 11 weeks after my appointment with my consultant so I was really lucky! I to was an urgent case, Gallbladder was inflamed and grumbling away. I was also scared to eat in case it brought on one of the dreaded attacks! It was one of the best things I’ve ever done, a bit sore for a week or so after the op but now can eat pretty much anything and no problems whatsoever. Just not having that fear of an attack is absolutely brilliant. Hope you get your surgery soon. 🤞🤞

[Polly44 in reply to Sammyjoe2]

Ahh thats Brilliant Sammyjoe, really pleased for you its gone so well after (heard few scary stories so good to hear postive one. fingers crossed next Thursday i get an idea of how long and its not too long. thank you for your reply and the hope i get it done soon

[bantam12]

Good luck, hope you get it done soon 🤞

[Polly44 in reply to bantam12]

Thank you

[hells456]

I was in a similar state to you when I had my gallbladder out. My doctor said he had done hundreds and hundreds of gallbladder removals and the patients that had the best outcomes were those who went straight back to their original diet after surgery. He actually recommended I had cheese on toast and a packet of crisps as my first meal after. I happily followed his advice and can eat anything in any amount without the slightest problem.

Due to various problems I had to wait 5 months for my urgent op and I was down to only eating plain bread, plain chicken and plain potatoes before the op, not even a scraping of butter. I hope it goes well for you.

[Polly44 in reply to hells456]

oh wow i hope my surgeon says the same lol. glad you can eat normally now, thank you its good to hear the positive outcomes when other articles scare you with stories of still in pain a yr after the op (nerve damage and other things. thanks for you reply