Gallbladder Surgery/Removal
- Thread starter Cfinnerty16
- Start date
Has not been an issue at all and it's been 3 years for me. Don't actually remember the last time I needed an antacid at all.
I follow emilyinyourphone on instagram (just flagging this is a largely a political account). She got super sick around Christmas, ended up in the ER with an infection, delayed diagnosis and eventually got her gallbladder removed. I don't know if they were able to do laproscopically but she's had a rougher time recovering. Granted the physical recovery is probably due to the emergent nature but the diet thing has been hard for her as well. Specifically dairy products among other things. It's definitely been a decent sized lifestyle change for her and lots of trial and error on foods.
I had it removed, but because it was 'folded'. Up til 42 I didn't even have a common cold, but then the cancer hit. Since that, I've had virtually everything imaginable happen. I attribute it to the enormous chemo I took to rid the cancer. Nothing more painful than the kidney stones. But, now, I'm feeling pre42 again. Life, hopefully, has now gone full circle ... back to healthy feeling. Fingers crossed something else doesn't sneak up. Good luck. One thing else I should mention, throughout all my ordeals, I just maintained a monotone logical approach to each one. BUT, I can't say that was the case for everyone else who knew me. They seemed to freak out at each one. So, now I've decided to take the silent approach.
Oh, forgot one key piece of info. They chose to remove it at the same time they fixed my herniated belly button. Just reached up in there and pulled it out the same hole. Modern marvel.
Oh, forgot one key piece of info. They chose to remove it at the same time they fixed my herniated belly button. Just reached up in there and pulled it out the same hole. Modern marvel.
Last edited:
My wife had gall bladder attacks but toughed it out until she couldn't get any relief. She had gangrene in hers when they removed it. She definitely felt better and healed quickly.
I had stones so I had mine out 10 years ago. Super easy. I did a lot of walking around the house after the surgery and I think it helped.
But they missed a stone and five years later had blockage of common duct. That required a hospital stay and procedure
A year ago I was having constant loose bowels. Reason given was too much bile. So now must take Cholestyramine.
It’s also a cholesterol drug. My cholesterol had been creeping up so I guess I’m solving too problems with one drug
But they missed a stone and five years later had blockage of common duct. That required a hospital stay and procedure
A year ago I was having constant loose bowels. Reason given was too much bile. So now must take Cholestyramine.
It’s also a cholesterol drug. My cholesterol had been creeping up so I guess I’m solving too problems with one drug
Last edited:
I am 58 and was having issues with something I didn't think was my gallbladder for 5 plus years, last year was horrendous...lots of pain - felt like I was 90 years old - tired all of the time - and so on. I am a high school/middle school wrestling official and it was pretty much not going to work with me getting up and down off of the mat...lots and lots of pain.
Was seen by numerous doctors/surgeon/specialists and finally after nothing was working, the surgeon told me that she was going to take that puppy out and did so on Feb 13 of this year. Three incisions on the stomach and one inside the belly button...no biggie. My wife got me vitamin E gel caps which we took apart and rubbed on the incisions and the scarring is pretty minimal.
Coming out of the surgery, the surgeon told me that my gallbladder was healthy, but she's glad she took it out because there was a vein that was actually choking it off, causing all of my pain/discomfort/headaches and even high-blood pressure. She told me that she had only seen this one other time, and that was in a medical journal. She took tons of pictures of my gallbladder and even shared them with me. I'm pretty squeamish but had to see what the issue was all about...nothing too gruesome to see.
A day after the surgery, my headaches were completely gone and with about two weeks of recovery I was back at work at about 65% capacity. The surgeon was also amazed at how short of a time it took for me to recover. I'd say I was at about 90% on my last visit with her in June.
I do get heartburn when I sleep/lie on my back, but Prilosec does wonders for this. Watching what I eat also helps. Back to eating pretty much whatever I wish, but still need to stay away from greasy foods (pork) and deep-fried foods. Alcohol intake also needed to be cut back. I can no longer hang with the big dogs...one beer, compared to 8 or more and only one/two glasses of wine or Irish Whiskey is about all my body allows...sucks on that point as well.
Have been taking this powder drink at night that helps with the excess bile - and will more than likely be taking that for the rest of me life.
Was seen by numerous doctors/surgeon/specialists and finally after nothing was working, the surgeon told me that she was going to take that puppy out and did so on Feb 13 of this year. Three incisions on the stomach and one inside the belly button...no biggie. My wife got me vitamin E gel caps which we took apart and rubbed on the incisions and the scarring is pretty minimal.
Coming out of the surgery, the surgeon told me that my gallbladder was healthy, but she's glad she took it out because there was a vein that was actually choking it off, causing all of my pain/discomfort/headaches and even high-blood pressure. She told me that she had only seen this one other time, and that was in a medical journal. She took tons of pictures of my gallbladder and even shared them with me. I'm pretty squeamish but had to see what the issue was all about...nothing too gruesome to see.
A day after the surgery, my headaches were completely gone and with about two weeks of recovery I was back at work at about 65% capacity. The surgeon was also amazed at how short of a time it took for me to recover. I'd say I was at about 90% on my last visit with her in June.
I do get heartburn when I sleep/lie on my back, but Prilosec does wonders for this. Watching what I eat also helps. Back to eating pretty much whatever I wish, but still need to stay away from greasy foods (pork) and deep-fried foods. Alcohol intake also needed to be cut back. I can no longer hang with the big dogs...one beer, compared to 8 or more and only one/two glasses of wine or Irish Whiskey is about all my body allows...sucks on that point as well.
Have been taking this powder drink at night that helps with the excess bile - and will more than likely be taking that for the rest of me life.
Last edited:
My coworker just had it done a few weeks ago. Had the surgery on a Thursday and was back to work on Monday. It's outpatient surgery and other than a few small incisions is a quick recovery for the most part. He says he feels a ton better, he had to stop eating any kind of foods that had fat in them as he would be in pain after eating and says he can pretty much eat anything now without issue.
10 years ago MIL wasn’t feeling well. Went in and had her gall bladder taken out and found out it was cancerous. She lost her battle in less than three months. Was told at the time that there was no way to tell if it was cancerous until they took it out.
My wife had hers removed a few years back. Do keep in mind that depending on what your diet consists of currently that it may have to change. My wife has always had a weak stomach to begin with, but since her gallbladder removal she can no longer eat a lot of fatty foods as a few hours later she will be puking up what she ate. Even chips and salsa can make her sick. Keep in mind that's one of the purposes of a gallbladder - to help your body digest fat. Then again, my wife had no choice in having hers removed as it was causing acute pancreatitis, which is an even bigger health risk.
Had mine removed under emergency conditions. I was lucky, they were able to remove mine Laparoscopically (really small little incisions). I couldn't lift anything heavier than a gallon of milk for about 3 weeks, but recovery was pretty quick and relatively pain-free. If you have to have yours removed via a large incision, I've heard that is a totally different ballgame--and not in a good way.
Also, I've had no lingering issues--no dietary problems at all. Can eat whatever I want.
Knew a guy from work that had it done. Not sure the specifics but he clearly wasn’t one to care much for post-surgical care. He went back to his “normal” diet and had to leave work early twice the following week because he sh*t his pants. If you met the guy, you would be like “yeah, that looks like a guy who would sh*t his pants at work”.
Had mine removed 12 years ago. I was really miserable for a few weeks before the surgery. I made two mistakes with the recovery: 1. I tried to lay down in bed the first night. Most painful thing I've ever experienced. 2. I didn't get off the pain meds earlier. Once I quit taking them I immediately felt so much better. You may discover afterward a few foods that don't work for you, but I bet you'll be happy you did it.
Wife had hers done out of necessity. Actually her sister and mother did too. The surgery when fine. You may need to make some adjustments to your diet depending on what it looks like now. Greasy foods will not sit well.
Any update from the wife?My wife removes them all the timeI'll ask her about it when she gets home tonight.
My nephew had his removed and it was a big help to his life. He lost a ton of weight as well and is all around healthier.
