Gallbladder Surgery

meglynne1987

Hi there - I am having my gallbladder removed in about one week ... I just wanted some tips from others who have had their's removed.... what did you eat afterwards? Pain? Restricted activities? etc..... Thanks!

Marilyn0924

Had mine out in 2006. Was sore for a few days, ate very light right after, mostly because I wasn't hungry with the pain meds. The pain wasn't bad after the first day, and the most discomfort was the pull from the staples. Once they were removed 1 week after surgery, I was back to normal and feeling great. You might need to take it easy for an extra week and just do light cardio until the incisions heal fully, but otherwise it's usually a quick recovery. So much better than the attacks pre-surgery for sure! Good luck next week!

Julieboolieaz

After was a million times better than before! Follow the Drs orders and you'll be healed in no time. Just don't overdo it too fast. They'll tell you what to eat for a while, low fat I believe until the bile duct takes over. It will go fine

meglynne1987

Thank you! It can't be much worse than my current diet which has been soup, soup, and more soup. LOL I am super nervous - But I am sure I will feel loads better afterwards!

b_magill

I would suggest you do as much "preplanning" as possible. Pre cook lots of meals for you and anyone else you cook for. Make sure you stock up on ice packs (I've had lots of people swear by them for those itchy or sore stitches) and any pain meds you'll need.

And take it easy when you're done. The big issue I see is people worthing waaaaay too hard only a few days after surgery.

RunHardBeStrong

All of the above is great advice. The pain only lasted a few days afterwards but still take it easy for about a week following surgery. I had surgery on Thursday and went back to work on Monday, huge mistake. As for food, I ate lots of bland soup and jello the first few days then slowly added in stuff as tolerated. Stay close to a bathroom when you try new things as you don't know how your body will tolerate them. I hope it all goes smoothly and I promise you will feel so much better after it is done.

BrownieKitty12345

I had mine out two years ago laparoscopic. I was never in any pain it just felt like a cut which is what it was. You know the feeling you get when you cut your finger and then your finger gets stiff a little where the cut is? That is what I felt and I knew when to stop moving a certain wait. PLEASE take it easy after!! I didn't and now I have scar tissue on one of the incisions. I had four incisions. One at the belly button, and three across my stomach area under the breasts.

Before the surgery my gallbladder was only working 19% and I was literally lucky to eat boiled chicken. Everything made me sick. I lost 30lbs in 3 weeks because of this.

After the surgery, I was eating normal foods on day 3 but was noticing I wasn't as hungry. Don't force yourself to eat if you aren't hungry.

Over time you will get to know what you can an cant eat. I can no longer eat beef pot roast, dark meat chicken, grilled pork chops (I can eat them if they are baked), and sadly birthday cake that is buttercream.

Other than those four things I can eat everything else without a problem. I suggest if you aren't sure if you can handle a food take a bite and wait. If you cant you will be running to the bathroom in about 30 mins.

Good luck! You will be fine.

puffbrat

I had mine out in 2005. They also removed my appendix at the same time. The recovery from that wasn't bad, but I got a major post-op infection which required a drain tube for a week. That was horrible! So my recovery was atypical.

Ever since surgery, my stomach is much more sensitive to my mood. It will get "upset" if I am really stressed or anxious. Also, some foods, mostly high fat/greasy fast food, will similarly upset my stomach. The first year was the worst but it still happens, so I have to be more careful about what I eat in certain situations and always be aware of where the bathroom is.

I also had nerve pain from either the surgery or drain tube for several years after surgery. It would be really sharp for a couple minutes and then disappear for a while. A surgeon who was not the one to do my surgery told me that is a typical side effect, and several people I know who had this surgery have similar pain.

All of this is easily dealt with/managed.

I am sure you will do great!

JenniferLynWhatx

My gallbladder removal came with life-long complications... If I fast for long periods of time or eat certain foods I end up in a lot of pain. Switching to a low fat diet may help with some of the initial symptoms after surgery. Just take it easy til you've recovered.

azulvioleta6

HappyCampr1 wrote: »

I had mine removed about 8 years ago. I'd never had issues beforehand. Just one day, I couldn't stop throwing up. Went to the emergency room and they kept me and scheduled me for surgery the next morning because they said it was about to explode. Mine was done laparoscopically, so recovery was minimal. I've not had any issues without my gallbladder. I understand that some people have to space out their fat intake, or cut back on it, but I haven't even noticed to be honest. If I didn't know I'd had it done, I'd assume I still had it.

Same here--other than some twinges of pain in the month or two beforehand, I did not have any attacks or issues until mine was chock-full of stones.

I had some complications during/after surgery, so my experience was not typical. My anatomy did not work with the lapro tools (extremely long torso) and the doctors ended up breaking a rib trying to get my gallbladder out. They didn't TELL me that, and I had lots of pain and extensive follow-up to try to figure out what was going on. For most people though, it's a very small surgery with quick recovery.

Honestly, I can still eat anything I want with no problem, but I have never had a high-fat or junk/fast food diet, so YMMV. Just eat lightly after surgery and tread carefully for the first couple of weeks. Your discharge instructions will give you specific information about returning to exercise.

laurfaiers

I had mine out laparoscopically just over a month ago. I was terrified going in, but it's been such a relief to have it out because I was having attacks and ended up with pancreatitis due to a lodged stone.

The healing process in my experience wasn't too difficult, for the first few days I was sore and mostly stayed in bed but I was up and moving in less than a week. All the advice above is great, especially the ice packs, those really do come in handy with the itchy stitches. Also, definitely take it easy afterwards. Don't lift anything heavy (more than 10 lbs) after the surgery for a few weeks because your stitches could get incisional hernias. But I'm sure your doctor will go over all of that with you!!

Don't be scared about it going in, I'm sure it'll all go well! Good luck!!

RachaelWinston

I had mine out almost a year and a half ago and life is way better without the attacks that sent me to the hospital twice and almost didn't let me get on a plane to England! I will warn you that certain foods went right through me for a long time and still occasionally do. More recently though since I cut back on higher fat food since being on mfp I tend to have the opposite problem more. And my stomach does tend to get more upset easier like others have said but still I wouldn't take back the surgery for the world! Well worth it to not be inner constant pain with every meal and then stronger attacks leaving me in agony. Also very tiny scars, not a big deal at all and pain went away in a few days. Good luck!

Shrinking_Erin

I also had mine out.. 5 years ago. I felt pretty awful for the first week.. and still not great the second.. I think I lost 16 pounds in those two weeks. I also had trouble sleeping for about 2 months. I just felt sore and I tried to lay flat. Also, now when we eat fast food (we only do every 2-3 months).. I can feel the effects.

Amby6912

I had mine out in november. The worst pain wasn't the surgery incisions. It was the trapped gas that migrated to the shoulder strap area. It hurt so damn bad I couldn't stand walking. After 3 days it dissipated and I was back to my old self for the most part. Hell, day 4 I went to the mall and lunch! After the first day, I ate whatever I was in the mood for. I was too nauseous from the anesthesia the first day so I just had soup. My weight restriction was about 20 lbs but it depends on what your surgeon says.

Take it easy when returning to exercise. Start with walking, be sure to ask when you can resume abdominal exercise. For me it was 4 weeks post op. Do NOT resume abdominal exercise until you are cleared.

I wasn't sore except those first three days. And even that wasn't even my stomach, it was the damn shoulder where the trapped gas migrates. And I had an 11 month old who kept kicking my incisions. As long as you get the laproscopic surgery, recovery really isn't very long.

meglynne1987

Thank you everyone! Tomorrow is the big day - you all have given me lots of great tips. My gallbladder function is currently at 4% so I am sure having it out will be a huge improvement. Although I have no stones... I am hoping this provides a lot of relief!

defluff

I had mine out a few years back, it was functioning at 0%. Everything went well, aside from some aches and pain in the area for a year after. I did have the side effect of food and even just water going straight through me though, it was awful and I was depending on Immodium to leave the house, until I did some research and found that regular doses of calcium at each meal can help absorb a lot of the excess bile that is irritating the gut. I use caltrate without the magnesium. I also take probiotics, and avoid booze and coffee except for occasionally. Things are much much better now. I wanted to share just in case it helps.

marji1974

Hope all went well with your surgery.

Dolce_xxv

Just had mine removed last week, today I feel awesome but didn't go as routine for me like everyone says it seems to be but that was just my experience

montanamegs

I had mine out in 2008. It went pretty well. I had pain for awhile after and I have scars but it's better than the alternative. I have to watch greasy foods now though and I get sick when I have dairy