Bye-bye gallbladder, bye-bye salad?!

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Ok, so this is kind of gross, but here goes. I had my gallbladder removed a little less than a year ago. My doctor told me that it would take my stomach about a year to adjust, so I might have some "issues" for a while, especially if I eat fatty foods. Totally true, if I eat too much fat, I find myself in the restroom pretty soon thereafter.

The problem is that now my stomach is starting to calm down, (and I have learned to stay away from the fatty foods anyway) but now I am having problems with other foods, like salad! Lettuce, leafy greens, things like that. WTH?!

For all you others on here who have had your gallbladders removed...first, does this get better as time goes on? Second, what do you eat in place of leafy greens? I rely pretty heavily on salads for filler...but pay for it later. Am I doomed to carry a bottle of Kaopectate in my purse forever?
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Replies

  • mirandag26
    mirandag26 Posts: 10 Member
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    i've had my gallbladder out for almost 6 years and lettuce still makes me run for the restroom i'd love to say yes it gets better but no it dosn't but then again everyone is different...
  • Niibin
    Niibin Posts: 3 Member
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    I'm 21, I had my gallbladder removed last summer, and I can agree that it does affect people differently. I say this because I eat salad with the clear dressings and I don't have any problems with it, such as needing the restroom afterwards. I hope it does get better for you :-)
  • HulaCoop
    HulaCoop Posts: 12 Member
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    Hey I had my gallbladder removed when i was 16! And i still eat salad! I love it, what i found was if i ate something FIRST like bread or pasta or soemthing filling and THEN ate the salad it didnt trouble me as much! It took me a while to figure out how to eat again after losnig the gall bladder but now i eat SO freaking healthy people make fun of me but, i am SO thankful for it now because i have never felt better! :)

    Let me know if you have any more questions i would love to share my expierience with you so you can avoid having to go through a lot of discomfort!
  • lulabellewoowoo
    lulabellewoowoo Posts: 3,125 Member
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    My problem was the opposite. I couldn't go to the bathroom. I had to cut out all processed foods and actually eat alot of salads and high fiber things to get that problem cleared up. But sometimes if lettuce is just about to turn bad, it can have that effect on you. Take everything in the salad, and through the next couple of weeks, try each item one by one. Maybe it's not the whole salad, but just one item in particular. By the way, if it is lettuce, you can make really yummy salads with peppers, tomatoes, olive oil, and maybe a little vinegar, seasoning, and other vegetables that are really yummy. Feel better soon.
  • catherine1979
    catherine1979 Posts: 704 Member
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    It will get better with time, yes. I do find that for me, more than a year later, I fare much better with greens that have been steamed than fresh.
  • shannonbear03
    shannonbear03 Posts: 5 Member
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    its been 7 years since my gallbladder surgery and I still cannot eat lettuce without rushing to the restroom. I can now tolerate a small amount (like removing most from a homemade taco pizza), but still cannot eat a salad... and now spinach is my enemy as well..... I use shredded broccoli slaw for a salad instead... works well!
  • AlexisJ330
    AlexisJ330 Posts: 97 Member
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    Had mine out in 2008. I have no problems with food now. I guess it just depends on the individual.
  • RunHardBeStrong
    RunHardBeStrong Posts: 33,069 Member
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    I had mine out a little over a year ago and have had no issues with lettuce. My friend had hers out 4 years ago and still has issues with lettuce. IDK if it'll get better for you or not, hopefully it does but everyone reacts differently.
  • AleciaG724
    AleciaG724 Posts: 705 Member
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    I guess everyone is quite different! I had mine removed 11 years ago & the only thing I've noticed is softer & more frequent BM's. My Dr. warned me to reduce my cholesterol and fatty foods do have the same affect as you mentioned. I've had no problem with leafy greens in fact I'm vegetarian for over 3 years now & eat salads almost every day. I'm sorry you're having trouble. I'd talk to your Dr or a dietician or nutritionist.
  • alasin1derland
    alasin1derland Posts: 575 Member
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    I had mine out many years ago. Nobody told me to expect any issues with food. Leafy greens have been a staple for me forever, spinach, lettuce, most recently kale, all the veggies that go in the salad. What I have trouble with is refined sugar and deep fried foods but that was not new with the gall bladder issues, I had issues with both my whole life.
  • tlbrown3171
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    My daughter had her gallbladder taken out November 21, 2012, and here lately she has been having a lot of issues with dry-heaving and sometimes she throws up and sometimes she doesn't. Today she calls and said she was nauseous. I asked her what she ate and she responded salad. She claims that is not what is making her sick but I distinctly remember the doctor saying the body cannot process salad very easily. My question is I read all of the below and the issues seems to be loose bm's for everyone - does anyone have the dry heaving my daughter is having?
  • mreeves261
    mreeves261 Posts: 728 Member
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    Your doc should have told you it could take 5 years for your body to adjust and there may be somethings you NEVER adjust to. I had mine out in 2009 and for the first 3 years had issues no matter what I ate. It wasn't until the last couple years where I feel comfortable eating what I want with little to no issues.

    As far as salad goes specifically, it was an issue before. My dad called it the "salad shooter," anyone old enough will get the reference.
  • KnitOrMiss
    KnitOrMiss Posts: 10,104 Member
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    I know this thread is old, but with raw greens, I have what i call "auto-dumping." Within 30 minutes of salad, I feel like I have food poisoning, except I don't throw up.

    I have however learned that I must use digestive enzymes containing bile salts with each meal.

    I had my gallbladder out in December of 2000.

    I went low carb per Endocrinologist in 2015.

    In 2016, I developed a severe reaction to raw greens. Oh, and the "healthier" the greens, the worst the reaction. Spring mix, I'm toast. Romaine/spinach are tossing the dice. Iceberg, I stand a chance, etc.

    Within a few months, I started supplements, and it was life changing.


    I'm now beginning to wonder, though, if even the gallbladderless can improve digestion. I've started having the auto-eject level of forceful diarrhea again, and research suggests that it might be too much digestive enzymes. With is crazy, because I already had to stop taking apple cider vinegar, as it began triggering an esophogeal reflux reaction that resembled an anxiety/asthma attack.

    I'm so frustrated. People treat me like I'm crazy, and the only foods that mitigate it at all are ones that make me have blood sugar/energy issues and weight gain...

    Ready to give up. Again. The only thing that ever helped might now be the enemy? How do y'all survive the stress? And the burned backsides???
  • TWRUNNER32
    TWRUNNER32 Posts: 62 Member
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    I had mine out at 19, and I’m about to turn 36. I remember before i had it removed, i had about a ten min window between eating greasy food and needing to find a bathroom.

    It probably continued that way for a few years, but now, unless i make a seriously bad food choice, i eat pretty normally. I personally don’t have any problems with specific foods but i know that I’m lucky in this respect.

    However, i do think that some people just have trouble with salad. I don’t know if it’s Bc our bodies have problems breaking down cellulose or simply Bc they go from fast food to pure roughage and aren’t used to the amount of fiber they’re now ingesting.
  • TWRUNNER32
    TWRUNNER32 Posts: 62 Member
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    mreeves261 wrote: »
    As far as salad goes specifically, it was an issue before. My dad called it the "salad shooter," anyone old enough will get the reference.

    Oh god, i didn’t even realize this was an old thread when i answered above, but i read this and laughed my *kitten* off.
  • breezyb26
    breezyb26 Posts: 7 Member
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    I was in rough shape for a few years after I had my gallbladder out and finally got to the point where I need to take a prescription every day which I probably will do for the rest of my life. But now for the most part I can eat anything!
  • jefamer2017
    jefamer2017 Posts: 416 Member
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    Mine has been out for 12 years. I can't eat spicy food anymore. :'( I have never had a problem with salads though. They actually make me feel better. I read about ox bile a few weeks ago. Maybe talk to your doctor about that. It is supposed to help aid in digestion for those of us without gallbladders.
  • dicrag
    dicrag Posts: 1 Member
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    Hi all , I had my gall bladder out when I had a liver recection 6 weeks ago ! I’m fine eating anything so im happy after reading all the posts ! I wasn’t given any info or guidance on foods to have / avoid x
  • JMcGee2018
    JMcGee2018 Posts: 275 Member
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    My mom had her gallbladder removed 20 years ago and can eat anything. Fats, sweets, leafy greens, none of it adversely affects her. It might have when she first got it out (no idea, I was very young), but it definitely doesn't now so for her at least it got better.
  • stevekirby1
    stevekirby1 Posts: 1 Member
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    I had my Gullbladder out about 2 months ago, the attack I had was the worse pain I have ever had. I know someone I work with who let me know everything that he can no longer eat, I also went on You Tube and watched videos of people talking about what they cannot eat. I decided to try everything that these people say they can no longer eat, I have had no problems with salad, no problems with meat, no problems with creamy gravies, no problems with spicy food, I love Mexican food and I can still eat all of it, with everything on the dish, like Pico, Sour Cream, Guac, the whole 9 yards no problem, I love a good Italian Beef loaded with Cheese, Hot and Sweet Peppers and Au Jus, I had a few of those, no problem. I thought I was in the clear, it was like I still had my Gullbladder until I ate my third Italian Beef, the next morning at work I had an attack like the one I had when I had to rush to the hospital and have the bladder removed, the pain was just as bad but it would come and go and it lasted about 8 hours, the pain came and went about 10 times until it made me spill my cookies, I did not have to rush to the bathroom like some people are saying. As I said no rushing to the restroom for me, just that episode of pain like I still had my bladder, people are saying they have to rush to the restroom but I have not read where people are saying if they are having severe pain, after that episode, I'm scared now to eat another Italian Beef, even when I had 2 before the attack that did nothing to me, but the third one did me in and it makes me wonder will it happen again, it is the only food so far that has made me hurt.