Gallbladder Surgery - After what to eat??

Hey! I had my gallbladder removed a year and a half ago. It took me about a week before I was able to sit up and dress myself and go back to work/school. I can't remember what the enzyme is that they recommend for post-surgery but I got it at the Health food store and it's supposed to be really good for helping your body to digest foods without the gallbladder. For the first week I was mostly on a liquid diet, soups, smoothies, juices.. although it wouldn't be impossible to eat whole foods you want to re-introduce foods slowly, especially fatty foods that need bile to be broken down.

Hope your surgery and recovery time go smoothly!

Hi there!
Looks like I will soon be losing an organ... my gallbladder has to go. What is the general recovery time and what do you guys and gals have suggestions on what to eat afterwards? Any suggestions on this are appreciated! Thanks yall!

I would go with what your doctor tells you to eat while you heal up. Then you can go back to whatever is normal for you.

I had mine done about 2 years ago. I was off work for 2 days.

didn't do any working out for 3-4 weeks.

Lay off the fats for awhile...

Will recommend pills that have bile extract if you have stomach problems. I got mine from whole foods, but any health store have them. My dr. was the one that told me about them. Basically you take them before you eat and it adds some extra bile to your system, they worked AMAZING.. if I didn't take them for about the first year after my surgery....

I'd be here for awhile:::

I had mine done about 2 years ago. I was off work for 2 days.

didn't do any working out for 3-4 weeks.

Lay off the fats for awhile...

Will recommend pills that have bile extract if you have stomach problems. I got mine from whole foods, but any health store have them. My dr. was the one that told me about them. Basically you take them before you eat and it adds some extra bile to your system, they worked AMAZING.. if I didn't take them for about the first year after my surgery....

I'd be here for awhile:::

Bahahahhahahaa!! Love it. Will check those out for sure! Thanks for the tip. 2 days - I can handle that
Thanks again for all the input yall

I work at a data center and sit at a Desk. If you have to move around a lot it might be a bit longer, otherwise pop a pill and get to work :-D

Hi, I had gall bladder surgery when I was 17 because of my unhealthy choices and bad eating habits. I used to eat a lot of junkfood and greesy fastfood. I was obese weighting almost 220 lbs. Started having horrible pains on my lower back and stomach to the point where I was literally lying on the floor crying. Finally get diagnosed with gallstones. After brief discusion with Doctor he said the best thing would be to remove the gall bladder to remove the `problem` so that I may never get any gall stones again. I was young and did not know much about health and trusted in the doctors advice. He said we didn`t really need the gallbladder and I will never get anymore pain. He also said I needed to change my diet and reduce my fat intake after surgery.

Well...after recovery which was so painful (I was bedridden for almost 2 weeks) everything seemed normal until I started eating normally again. Sure no more gallstone pain... but almost everything I ate gave me stomach aches and pain, even worse unpleasant bowel movements. It was not very pleasant to eat anymore. I could no longer eat my favorite dishes without having digestion problems afterwards. Over the years I learned more and more about healthy eating. Stopped eating unhealthy fast and junk food, lost weight. I am now 145lbs. I still suffer from small stomach discomfort after eating almost daily. Does not matter how healthy you eat.. All fats including Olive oil, cheeses, coconut oil, flax oil, any oil itself or fat in any food is always going to be hard for your stomach to digest so you will have temporary upset stomach and digestion problems. You have to change your diet completely. You have to eliminate unhealthy fats, junk food and fast greasy food from your diet. It`s hard. I know, but it`s doable. I am now a pescetarian and eat an all organic food diet with mostly veggies, fruits, grains, nuts and legumes. I try to eat as healthy as I can. Different foods give you different reactions.

I am telling you my story in order to help you and warn you of the consequences of having gall bladder surgery. I actually REGRET having the surgery. If I was more informed and knowledgeable about the body, health and healthy living I would have definitely chosen to give my body a CHANCE and tried to change my diet and lifestyle instead of removing an essential organ from my body. If I was informed of the side effects or symptoms I would suffer and how it would change my life I would have preferred to get HEALTHY, make the changes I needed to make and let my body heal itself. The reason we get ill is almost always your body warning you about the way you are not taking care of it properly. I made that happen by eating the way I was eating out of ignorance. The worse part is, you can still get gallstones without your gallbladder! That is why changing your diet is a must. Now I know better and eat healthy but it`s too late. I could never have my gallbladder back. God put it there for a purpose. Please consider the choice you have and research and get more information first. Be an informed patient. Here are some links that might help:

The Purpose of the Gallbladder
http://hgriggs.org/gall_purpose.html

Living without your gallbladder
http://livingwithoutagallbladder.net/having-your-gallbladder-removed-risks-benefits/

Foods to avoid
http://livingwithoutagallbladder.net/foods-to-avoid-when-you-don’t-have-a-gallbladder/

Life without your gallbladder
http://www.stltoday.com/suburban-journals/metro/life/house-call-life-without-your-gallbladder/article_46f73843-d1fb-5a4b-80a5-e17a6ab439f6.html

Discussion on gall bladder surgery
http://www.steadyhealth.com/Gall_Bladder_Removal___Long_Term_Health_Issues_t79613.html


Again I am telling you this because I would have wished someone would have told me this before I went and had the surgery. It would have avoided the problems I have had because of it. Not everyone has the same reactions but most people have had these side effects. Hope you will make the right choice for you and that you may recover soon. :-)

Almost forgot about the gas part...they inflate you with gas so that they can move everything around inside of you and when you lay down it settles in your shoulders and is extremely painful. The only way to make it better is to toot it out...fairly embarrassing but you won't even care because it will make you feel better.

I had mine out laprascopicaly pretty much no healing time for me, I was a new mom and back on my feet doing the same old stuff after one day at my Mom's to recover. I also found the worst thing was the pain in my shoulders after, it was pretty uncomfortable. I found the the iceburg lettuce really bothered me too but the worst for me was the horrible diarrhea. Almost every time I ate, no matter what I ate I had to run for the bathroom shortly after....and I do mean run! It lasted a long time too( well over a year), but with time it got better, except when I eat fast food or other greasy fatty stuff, which I try to stay away from.

I had mine out two years ago almost to the day. I had it done laprascopicaly and was down for two days. While I haven't had any issues with food at all. (it had gotten to the point that if I even looked at food with any sort of grease in it I'd have pain before) I almost wish I did have discomfort eating food Key word almost mostly because I am an over eater and really enjoy eating and that is one of the reasons my weight loss journey has been so slow. I have also noticed I spend a lot more time in the bathroom and especially with fast food rather soon after I have consumed a fatty food I need to go pretty quick. I hope you have a safe surgery and great recovery.

I had mine out less than a year ago, and was in a lot of discomfort prior to removal. I'd also had laparoscopies before for endometriosis and can say the procedure's the same, just in a different place. I had been told I had a bunch of stones, but it was one large fat stone (pretty weird). I had planned to stay with my parents for a few days since it was out-patient and didn't know what to expect, but I could've gone home.

With food, I started out with say an egg or toast, something plain to eat when hungry. I'd started having digestive problems right before surgery and for the most part, I still have a little heartburn (Never had prior to having the "stone"), but that's it.

Same as with someone having a lap for another reason, I recommend taking a pillow to hold in your tummy on the car ride home. If you post your date, we can pray for you if you'd like! Best of luck.
Kat

I had mine out about 6 years ago and didn't have any major issues post surgery. i guess the worst was vomiting that night from the anesthesia. But i had it done on Monday and went to work on Friday with just mild soreness. I didn't do my regular workouts for at least 3 weeks though. The only dietary change I noticed was that after eating breakfast cereal with my usual skim milk, I had the "chump and dump" as others had referred to it as. No other dairy effects me like that, just from cereal milk. Oh, and I did have the gassiness until all of that anesthesia works its way out of the body. Good luck and i hope you heal quickly.

Everyone's recovery is different.

My mother had her gallbladder removed (laproscopically) at age 70. She took Tylenol for the pain, which she said was almost non-existent. She bounced back like a champ and was up doing dishes and laundry two days later. She did not have any digestive issues and can eat a fatty meal without the "bathroom issues".

My surgery was very different. In fact, it was a nightmare. I don't blame the surgery. I blame my surgeon -- and possibly his interns. My surgery was done at the local county (teaching) hospital that provides "indigent" healthcare (ie: emergency healthcare for people with no insurance and little to no money.) I'll leave out the nightmarish details because I'm sure they won't apply to you.

I did not get any instructions on how to eat post-surgery. I did not feel like eating, which was highly unusual for me. For the first two weeks, I lived mainly on chocolate milk (1% milk and Nestle Quik) and mandarin oranges. Though on day 4, my dad brought over a super greasy pepperoni pizza. I ate one slice and, thankfully, did not have any problems.

Once I was able to get out of bed on my own (two weeks!) I did a little research and learned that a low-fat diet is recommended because many people have issues with loose stools or diarrhea if they eat something high in fat, especially during the first couple of weeks.

"She was initially diagnosed with GERD and took pills for years until they did a full GERD workup (measuring device down the esophagus) to determine it was not GERD, but they still didn't have an answer for what was causing her painful flair ups. Just one particular ER visit they did an ultrasound and checked on her gall bladder and found it a mess (full of stones). Two days later it was out."

This was almost exactly my experience, except that after my last ER visit, which included an IV drip of dilaudid for the pain, I was told that my gallbladder needed to come out ASAP. Being unemployed, it took a bunch of paperwork and weeks of waiting to see a surgeon before I got the approval to have my gallbladder removed. I am thankful for the indigent care insurance, but after having decent medical insurance, this new experience with "indigent" care seemed like third-world medicine.