Gallstones

msanc095 wrote: »

So today I found out that I have gallstones and most likely will have to remove my gallbladder. What worries me the most is having to stick to such a strict diet. I won't be able to eat high fat food, ice cream (which I loveeee), cheese, spicy food, whole milk, red meat, etc. Can anyone who has had this done advise me on how this have affected them? And what advise can you give me? Thanks

I'm not really sure this is a topic for the debate board. Everyone I've ever spoken to about gallbladder surgery tells a different tale and it really just depends on you and how your body handles it.

My own story is that I had my gallbladder out laporascopically after a bad weekend where my gallbladder tried to kill me. I'd been having infrequent attacks before that, but always assumed flu or food poisoning and never got it checked out. But the time we caught it, there was really no choice but to have it out. So I didn't go on any special diet before I had mine out.

For about a year after having my gallbladder out, if I ate at my parents house I would have trouble in the bathroom (loose stools) because of the amount of butter and oil they use in their foods. But my own home cooking didn't give me any problems and it doesn't seem to be a problem much anymore. I still eat ice cream, cheese, spicy food, and red meat regularly (many times a week) and don't have any problems without my gallbladder. But some people will. Until you've had the surgery there's no way to tell what will and won't affect you.

I had my gallbladder out last year (July 4th), due to the bad infection they had to cut me open to get mine out. Only the first 2-3 months I had to watch what I ate, but now I can eat everything including Ice Cream. In the meantime, I have changed from what I was eating before to more healthy choices. That's only because I decided to go the Healthy way and hopefully repair any other damage I might have had in my body due to my bad eating choices.

I had my gallbladder taken out about 3 years ago, and i now have IBS, and almost everyone i know that doesnt have a gallbladder has ibs symptoms. I also get hung over super easy now. I still eat icecream or red meat....some things are just worth a little discomfort haha

I had mine removed in 2013. I also had the laproscopy surgery, but my doc said that if I had waiting any longer, they would have had to cut me open, it was that bad!


The first year after (and after eating bland food for about 3 months) I was in heaven! No more stomach pains, no more attacks, no more back aches, I felt like I could eat anything! And I did. And then I noticed that I was gaining. A lot. of weight. I gained 50 lbs. since I had it taken out. Since your gallbladder was helping your liver break down fats, its a lot harder to lose weight and a lot easier to gain.

What your doctor doesn't tell you is that yes, your body doesn't necessarily NEED your gallbladder, but it was doing a lot of work. Now there is more pressure on your other organs to pick up what the gall bladder did.

I have been taking a supplement called Essential Enzymes, and it is basically the vegan version of the Ox bile pill that a lot of folks says helps break down what your gall bladder used to do. I have been taking it, and it has been helping a little bit, but it is a lot harder to lose weight.

My suggestion is to study up on the gall bladder, see what it actually does, how it works with your other organs, etc.
This is where I found out about supplements.... (I went to a health food store looking for the Ox bile pills, and they were the ones that turned me on to the enzymes.)

http://www.drdavidwilliams.com/bad-gallbladder-defined/

Good luck, and I was happy to see your post. I was going to start a thread for gall bladder post op, just to see how others are coping and how it affected their weight loss.

I had my gallbladder out about 15 years ago and I eat all the food you listed as foods you think you won't be able to eat. If anything, it will get better because those foods won't trigger an attack.

msanc095 wrote: »

So today I found out that I have gallstones and most likely will have to remove my gallbladder. What worries me the most is having to stick to such a strict diet. I won't be able to eat high fat food, ice cream (which I loveeee), cheese, spicy food, whole milk, red meat, etc. Can anyone who has had this done advise me on how this have affected them? And what advise can you give me? Thanks

I haven't had gallstones but my husband did.

I highly recommend listening to the Dr doing exactly what you are told and having it taken out ASAP if Dr says it needs to come out. My husband died of pancreatitis in 1999, It was caused by ignoring and putting of gallstone problems. It was a long three months in the hospital and not a nice way to go.

I had mine out about 6 years ago, I never had any issues (at least that I knew of) prior to the trip to the emergency room when it felt like someone was stabbing me. Had it taken out laproscopically the next day. Was out of work for about a week and haven't had any problems since. I eat ice cream, red meat and spicy food all the time. I remember reading that they may cause problems, but I haven't had any issues.

Some people are OK with fat after and some people are not. I feel queasy if I eat too much fat, like something fried, but I can eat about 10-12 grams per meal, and I understand that will improve over time. I eat lowfat cheese and lowfat ice cream, but I did that even before the surgery. I'm about ten weeks post-surgery. The Dreyer's/Edy's slow-churn ice cream is pretty decent and I have no problems tolerating it.

I had IBS symptoms post-surgery, and I see some other posters here did too, but that can be managed. It is often caused by bile salt malabsorption (normally bile is stored in the gallbladder and used when you need it -- after surgery, it's a constant drip and can cause irritation to your intestines). A bile acid sequestrant will help with that. The generic name for the medication I am on is cholestyramine (there are others). It passes through the intestine and binds cholesterol (and bile, which is cholesterol-based) so that it is excreted. Since using it, I've had no IBS issues at all. The only lingering issue I have is some transient surgical pain where the gallbladder used to be that should go away once I am fully healed. Other than that, I feel better than I have in years.

So for those of you with IBS after gallbladder surgery, ask about a bile sequestrant, if you haven't. It was life-changing for me. I had IBS even before surgery and now I am symptom-free.

I had mine out in 2007 - I have no special diet, I can eat whatever without problem.

Everyone is different though, so take your doctors advise right after and add the foods you are worried about slowly.

I'm betting you don't have problems though, I know at least a dozen people (family, friends and coworkers) who have no gall bladder and have no food issues

pspenny36 wrote: »

its a lot harder to lose weight and a lot easier to gain.

Nope.

itsalifestylenotadiet wrote: »

The bad thing is because of the size of the stones I am unable to try and naturally remove them.

Nope - no such thing as natural removal. Very small stones are also the kind that get into ducts and cause serious problems.


I had my gallbladder out about 90 pounds ago. I had no issues with any foods before removal. I had one major attack that came on after eating a very low fat salad several hours beforehand, and a couple of minor ones that also had no rhyme or reason to them. I ate high fat meals with no attacks. I actually purposefully tried to trigger one. Didn't work. After removal, I was starving. I had soup the day of surgery and McDonald's the day after surgery. No issues whatsoever.

I do wonder if I have IBS-C or something similar, but that issue started with my weight loss and was going on before I had any gallbladder symptoms. The timing is interesting, but I don't know if the two are related. I just use Miralax regularly. Safest and easiest way to take care of it. My doctor mentioned enzymes, but they are very expensive, and I am not convinced it's a gallbladder thing. She said maybe my body just got used to processing a larger volume of food for the majority of my life and is still adjusting.

I do know people who now have to run to the bathroom after meals, though, so it's not that I think that doesn't happen. It just hasn't happened to me. The people I know who have that issue still happily eat whatever - they just make sure they're within range of a restroom afterwards.