Gallbladder removal - recovery after surgery?

[alba37]

Hi all

Has anyone any personal stories/experiences of recovery after having the gallbladder removed? I'd be interested in hearing anything, good or bad!

TIA

[JCR]

My mother had her gall bladder removed last month. She had the key hole surgery and only stayed in one night. She was then visited by a nurse on a weekly basis in order to look at the wound. However, she did have the operation in France. Her recovery seemed to be fairly quick though as within the week she was playing boules!!!

I haven't heard any horror stories, so if you, or someone you know is having this procedure, don't worry, I'm sure it will be fine.

[samuela66]

Hi all

Has anyone any personal stories/experiences of recovery after having the gallbladder removed? I'd be interested in hearing anything, good or bad!

TIA

Hiya,

I had my gallbladder out about 13 years ago now, they did it via keyhole although until they operated they didnt know how they where going to remove it. I had a huge stone they gave me after the op, the lady in the next bed had tons of little ones, so they vary. The op was no probs though I was terrified in case I never woke up:o . I was so ill before though and virtually lived on bananas everything else killed me, funnily I was only ever ill of a night time.
I lost about a stone when I was recovering on the couch, didnt get up for about a week, had feet like a babys bum:p , so they where the pluses...........
it'll be fine any more QQQQs feel free to ask

Samx

[juls272]

hi

i had my gall bladder removed jan this year after a year of pain and no sleep , the surgery was fine just 4 holes size inch each .. i was in and out the same day and i have only suffered a few pains since but other than that i would totaly recmmed this op

hope all goes well recovery time i was up and about within a week but found i could not drive for about 3 -4 weeks


good luck

[alba37]

Thanks so much for the replies, I'm relieved to read they are all pretty positive.

I was at the hospital yesterday and told they recommend I get my gallbladder removed. (within 2-3 weeks) I got the fright of my life, tbh. (me, needles, hospitals, cuts etc don't mix well!) The doctor said it would be min. 2 nights in hosp. 2 nights isn't easy for me, (with my circumstances at home) but he said the best he could do is 1 night, as long as there are no complications (which I do understand, they can't guarantee anything!) This is on the NHS. Juls, was your op on the NHS?

I was diagnosed with gallstones around 4 years ago. I've only had half a dozen or so severe attacks, (also at night!) but have grumbling pain and a yucky feeling daily. My stomach's been checked (endoscopy) and they don't think the pain is from there. A scan showed the gallstones had got bigger. I went on the internet to read about surgery and the forum I found had few positive comments on recovery, so thought I'd ask here. I'm so glad I did and I really appreciate the replies.

I'm in 2 minds whither to go ahead with it, but if I don't I'll never know if it would help how I feel. Losing a stone, sounds great to me!! But I guess it'll be internet shopping during recovery... I can live with that! Thanks again!

[Reluctant_spender]

My wife had her gall bladder removed via keyhole - she said she felt almost instantly better. After feeling crap for so long she was surprised by the almost instant feeling of well being.

[Penny Watcher]

I had my gallbladder out via keyhole surgery 11 years ago. I was in for 2 nights and i don't remember it being particularly painful, more uncomfortable than anything.

I had a toddler at the time, so I had no choice than for my recovery to be almost instantaneous :D.

I have 4 small white scars, one in my belly button, one just below my breastbone, one just under my right ribcage and one in between the last two.

I don't know if they still warn you that some gallbaldders may not be able to be removed by keyhole surgery and it needs to be a proper "unzip job" (to use the technical term :)). In that case the recovery is much longer.

[alba37]

I had my gallbladder out via keyhole surgery 11 years ago. I was in for 2 nights and i don't remember it being particularly painful, more uncomfortable than anything.

I had a toddler at the time, so I had no choice than for my recovery to be almost instantaneous :D.

I have 4 small white scars, one in my belly button, one just below my breastbone, one just under my right ribcage and one in between the last two.

I don't know if they still warn you that some gallbaldders may not be able to be removed by keyhole surgery and it needs to be a proper "unzip job" (to use the technical term :)). In that case the recovery is much longer.

He said keyhole surgery isn't possible on about 20% of the cases.... he didn't say if the size of my stones would make a difference, but did say they would attempt keyhole first. (sounded like he meant it generally, not just me) It was that way, I left... kind of in shock and thought of all the things I didn't know or ask at the time, later.

[Penny Watcher]

.... he didn't say if the size of my stones would make a difference

Just to say my gall stones were the size of large grapes :eek: and I was still able to have keyhole surgery.

[inkie]

All I would say is that I have worked as a theatre nurse and I would opt for the 'open' rather than the 'lap'.

[juls272]

my surgery was done one the nhs , i went in at 730am was discharged by 6pm i would advise keyhole surgery the scars a less visable , my pain was evrynight befre he op then after to op instantly no pains , my stone was the size of an oversize grape

believe me the pains after surgery from the holes is nothing as bad as a gall stone atack


hope all goes well


juls

[Reluctant_spender]

I forgot to say that the wife felt so well after the op that she started to plan our wedding - op to wedding four months.

If you having doubts don't. You will feel better after

[shykins]

i had mine out in june this year and can truly say i felt SO ill before i didnt care what they did.... mine was actually stuck to my liver but i still had keyhole.... mine went undiagnosed for over a year beforehand hence it getting do bad

i did come out the same day but i had to go back in again due to complications (bear in mind they cut my liver as well tho) .. there was a lot of pain in my shoulder as they pump u full of gas which seems to dissipate round the shoulder area and make it ache worse then where u have been cut

i now feel a load better and can eat again (shame cos now i am gaining back what i lost lol) and dont really have too many problems, the main thing i read was that some people suffer with diarrhoea if they eat too much fat but i havent got that problem in fact i am more likely to be the opposite (typical me lol)

what i would say if u are having attacks they get more and more frequent and more and more severe so go for it and u will feel so much better... good luck
x

[alba37]

Thanks again for the replies.

I am trying to keep in my mind that it will only get worse if I don't have the op! Can anyone tell me before getting the gallbladder removed how they felt day to day. (not the severe attacks) Did you feel yucky which felt like it was coming from your stomach? I'm hoping what feels like my stomach is actually from my galllbladder and this feeling gets better after recovery.

I found a thread about a diet for gallstones and have read again about the gallbladder flush. Think I'm a bit late for that now, did anyone try it? Cricky, I think I'd do anything to avoid an op.

The forum I read before asking here must have been purely people with post op complications... it wasn't good to read!

I'm wondering why inkie advises open to lap, but maybe I'm better off not knowing!! All I can think about is cuts and recovery, small ones and a easier recovery look like a better option to me.

[Reluctant_spender]

I forgot to say that the wife felt so well after the op that she started to plan our wedding - op to wedding four months.

If you having doubts don't. You will feel better after

The wife killed me as the time from the op to our wedding was less than four weeks not months. Boy am I in the doghouse:rolleyes:

[shykins]

i read about the gallbladder flush and it sounded horrible but also depending on what sort of stones u have it could be dangerous (well that was my understanding)

before the op i just felt sick all the time, i couldnt eat hardly anything and lost so much weight i looked awful, i was surviving on a small yoghurt a day and sometimes not even that... i had lots of pain in my sides and just laid around all day without the energy to even switch on the tv, read etc

after 6 weeks of that i didnt care what they did to me .. luckily i had a fab surgeon who was true to his word and i feel brilliant now..

good luck

[moo842]

I had my gall bladder removed as an emergency 3 weeks ago, i'd only found out that i had galls stones two weeks before, went to see the consultant on tuesday evening, was sent straight to the ward and went for surgery the next morning, they had told me i could go home by the evening but i had a large amount of gallstones and some of them had gone into the bile duct, so surgery had been more complicated. Three weeks later i couldn't feel better!

[svmitche]

If they want to do it within the next 2 - 3 weeks, I'd listen to them and go ahead - understanding of course your nervousness - surgery is always daunting. I know quite a few people who have had their gallbladders removed and one who is currently waiting to have it done and I can say in all cases the chenge in these people when they are pain free has been remarkable! I've luckily not suffered through gallbladder problems, but given what some of my firends have gone through I'd go wholeheartedly for the surgery!

All surgeries carry risks, but this procedure does seem to be quite common and mostly successful.

Good luck!

[JCR]

My mother's attacks only came on in the evenings too, does anyone know the reason why this should be. She would be fine all day and then about 6pm onwards would start to have pain and feel sick, and was sick a few times.

[anewman]

Not read the other threads but I'm 27 and had this done a few months ago. I got recurrent pain in my abdomen. When I went to GP's they thought it was excess acid/indigestion/stomach ulcer and prescribed Omeprazole. The third GP I saw recognised something more serious was wrong and I was sent to hospital as an emergency. The pain was intense and persistent and pain killers did not help. I found that I only had the occasional attack (maybe only 5 in total), but that the next time, the duration was longer (a good few days in the last case, night and day). As I understand it the stones get bigger as they grow, so take more time to pass causing more pain.

Basically there's two ways it can be done. Laporoscopically (key hole) or open. Laporoscopically, you get a small handful of short thin scars (I have 4 in total, one at the belly button, one on my chest (those about 1 inch long) and then 2 about 1cm wide at the side of my belly. The scar at the belly button went a funny blue colour, which has now gone away, as far as I know this is usual.

They will explain that sometimes they'll find they can't do it laporoscopically and convert it to an open procedure, this means that you'll take longer to recover.

In my case, after the op I was laid down later and felt like I couldn't push myself up. I was helped up and there was a bit of pain. Apparently after the op (at least key hole) they like you to be moving rather than laid in bed. I am guessing the reason is that if you lay still you'll end up feeling like not moving, and recovery will take longer. I found I only needed pain killers perhaps for two days after the Op. If I remember right I was out two days after the Op and in some cases people go home the same day. I found I developed a chesty cough post op.

If it goes as planned you should be able to live your normal life about a week or two after I'd say, but don't be making holiday plans. I found I could drive a week after the OP. I think the advice is so long as you an do an emergency stop and not be in pain with the wounds, although I had to find this out on the internet as the doctors in hospital didn't bother to explain anything before I left (too busy).

All I can say is what's said above, it's a common procedure. Also I'm glad they figured out what's up and you didn't have to go through unnecessary pain due to misdiagnosis.

If it's causing you problems I would recommend the removal Op. If all goes to plan it's not all that bad + no more nasty pains.

[anewman]

My mother's attacks only came on in the evenings too, does anyone know the reason why this should be. She would be fine all day and then about 6pm onwards would start to have pain and feel sick, and was sick a few times.

Something I have read suggests certain foods, fatty foods, trigger the mechanism to release bile from the bile duct, which can cause a stone to become stuck. I have read something like bitter tastes and coffee can help alleviate the attack. I'm not a doctor though so if this info is critical please seek proper medical advice :)

[Horace]

I had my gall bladder removed in 1998 - I had been unwell for sometime, on a walking holiday in 1997 I was especially ill (not being able to eat properly and feeling weak). There were times when I looked as though I was 9 months pregnant and other days when my stomach looked like a washboard. I became sicker and sicker and eventually I collapsed at home after a particularly vile vomiting bout, I was rushed into hospital where they took some blood and apparently things grew on it (eww) and my stomach looked red and was very hot. I had to stay in hospital and the next day I was given an ultrasound that showed I had some gallstones but my gallbladder was massive. I had a major infection and had to stay in hospital for a week(March) and then I was released, I was scheduled to return in the May for the op.

I had the op via keyhole surgery and I was quite ill on strong antibiotics (I am allergic to most of them anyway), I had to stay in hospital for another week - my gallbladder was badly infected and the stones had been caused by the infection, what made it worse was that the infection had spread to my liver so I was a tad yellow. Following my release from hospital I went to stay with my mum and dad to recuperate aand have my staples out - I was there for a week and then I went home, I was signed off work for 6 weeks.

I was still quite ill and kept getting severe stomach pains and so I had to go back to the hospital for an endoscopy - it clashed with my christmas shopping to I ensured that I only had a local anaesthetic before swallowing the wretched camera but they couldn't find anything wrong. I am now fully recovered but there are foods I cannot eat - I used to love Cheerios and now I cannot stomach them at all. I don't eat overly spicey food eithe nor fats.

If only I had gone to the doctors/hospital sooner when I first started to feel unwell.

Good luck with your op.

[Strapped]

I had my gallbladder removed 4 years ago by keyhole surgery. Unfortunately, I had lots of small stones and the surgeon pushed one into the bile duct when he cut off the gall bladder, although he didn't realise at the time. They warn you that you will have "gas" pains after the op, and to walk it off. I think that they thought I was just a wimp, as I was still in pain 3 days later despite MUCH pacing of the corridors! I did get discharged but I was back again 2 days later in serious agony, unable to stay still and a distinctly yellow colour. I nearly strangled the SHO when he initially wouldn't give me any painkillers until he located the consultant somewhere on the golf course. With hindsight, I should have insisted that they took my level of pain much more seriously after the op, because other people I've spoken to were up and about much sooner. Not trying to frighten you, as obviously this was a complication, but OMG was I ill. I had to have an MRI done, and might have needed more surgery but fortunately the stone worked its own way out (ouch) and now I am 100% better. I don't regret having the op done though, as I couldn't have lived with the gallstone pain for any longer. Give me childbirth any day. :eek:

[anewman]

I couldn't have lived with the gallstone pain for any longer. Give me childbirth any day. :eek:
Wow - have I officially suffered pain worse than child birth?! That's one to tell her when the day comes :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :T :T :T :T

[samuela66]

My mother's attacks only came on in the evenings too, does anyone know the reason why this should be. She would be fine all day and then about 6pm onwards would start to have pain and feel sick, and was sick a few times.

I have no idea why it was evenngs only for me too! I used to crawl around on all fours and quite often was sick, the pain was unbearable, I do remember going to the doctors and he kindly told me there was nothing wrong with me but my age.......................I was 29:D

[Strapped]

I was unfortunate enough to have my first attack in the early hours of Christmas Day. Initially I thought I was having a heart attack, and so did A&E. When they ruled that out, I asked whether it could be gallstones, and they said "Oh no, you'd know if it was gallstones, the pain is excrutiating". Yeah, I'm not in pain at all, that's why I'm sat here in A&E on Christmas morning - my son's first Christmas! - because I have mild indigestion :rolleyes:

And anewman? I would recommend dangling your bits into her hand just before you tell her that ;) :rotfl:

[Nenen]

Thanks again for the replies.

I am trying to keep in my mind that it will only get worse if I don't have the op! Can anyone tell me before getting the gallbladder removed how they felt day to day. (not the severe attacks) Did you feel yucky which felt like it was coming from your stomach? I'm hoping what feels like my stomach is actually from my galllbladder and this feeling gets better after recovery.

Am I understanding you correctly... are you wondering (or shoud I say desparately hoping) if you can do without the surgery? I can really understand your trepidation as I'm awful about hospitals and operations myself. However, in the case of gall stones I think the risks of complications if you don't have the op really outweigh the fear and anxiety about the operation! I didn't even know I had gall stones until I started to feel really ill and nearly collapsed in pain at work one day... MUCH worse than childbirth! :eek: By the time my colleague got me to A&E the pain was less severe and I (who have a testably high pain threshold) was left in a cubicle in A&E for about 3 hours while they waited for the test results. The juniour doc told me it couldn't possibly be gall stones as I wasn't in enough pain... she hadn't seen me three hours earlier and this was despite my dh telling her I had gone through three labours without pain relief etc!
This went on for a while... then suddenly I had a cubicle full of consultants, nurses, registrar and other doctors ... tests had shown I had passed a stone that had lodged in my pancreatic duct and I was in the early stages of pancreatitis. Pancreatitis can KILL! It can be very dangerous and, if it necessitates having the pancreas removed, then I was told you have to take around 60 :eek: tablets per day for the rest of your life! I was treated for the pancreatitis with high level antibiotics and then had my gall baldder removed once the infection had subsided (it would have been too dangerous to have removed the gall baldder while the infection was present).

I suppose this is a very long and convuluted way of telling you that you really should listen to your doctors... they wouldn't suggest an op if they didn't think it was really necessary.
I had my op keyhole... it was fine, although I felt groggy for a few days and had a couple of weeks off work. I'm a teacher which is physically demanding and I also didn't want to risk any of the children knocking into me before I had stitches out etc. I could manage work that allowed me to sit fairly easily though. I then went back to work but felt a bit tired and irritable for a few weeks (the effect a general anesthetic always has on me).

I'm sure you will be fine... I felt so much better once my gall bladder was removed... because I hadn't felt a lot of pain leading up to the attack, I really hadn't realised just how much it was affecting me.
Take care and good luck

[speranza]

I had my gallbladder removed three years ago when I was 20. I'd been having random excruciating pain on my right side/between my shoulder blades for a couple of years at that point, but the attacks would only happen once every few months. They were the scariest things, would last for hours and I honestly thought I was dying. My doctor said it was all in my head and that I should just "drink some milk and calm down" (the milk probably made things worse!)

Anyway, after one very bad attack I had to go to hospital and that's where they did an ultrasound and found the stones. They decided to leave them alone for a bit to see if they'd settle since just removing the stones would mean they'd probably have come back, but over the next few months the attacks got more frequent until I eventually got pancreatitis and had to have the gallbladder removed. I didn't realise how sick I'd been until after, but I recovered quite quickly.

I do now have a very sensitive stomach and can only eat plain food, so that's something to be aware of, but I don't regret having the op at all!

P.S. I took my own stiches out, which I always mention because it makes me sound really hardcore and actually I'm a big wuss. ;)

[alba37]

Thanks again to everyone for posting with your experiences.

I really don't want an op... any op! But who does? :rotfl: I know it's for the best, I know I need it done, but I'm such a wimp!!!

Anyway, news is, got the pre-op on Monday & the consultant's secretary phoned today... I have the date for the op, soon. :cry:

[Penny Watcher]

I really don't want an op... any op!

Anyway, news is, got the pre-op on Monday & the consultant's secretary phoned today



Hay - good for you! :T

I avoided the op for a couple of years. My 'excuse' was I was either pregnant or breast feeding, or I had a cold or a fictitious wedding to go to :o. Really very silly. :o :o

Look forward to life after the op. You'll feel soooooo much better. I haven't changed what I eat, but digesting anything fatty can take a while. As far as I understand the gallbladder is a reservoir for bile produced by your liver (nice :)). Bile breaks down fat during digestion. When you eat fat, a big shot of bile goes into your stomach from your GB and the fat is digested. If you have no GB then bile goes more slowly into your stomach as there isn't a waiting reservoir of it.

[alba37]

Thanks PW! I was wondering how it all worked after the gallbladder has gone!

My Laptop died the other night, (just when I I'll be needing it most!!) so won't be able to get on here much till I get round to getting a new one. Typical!!

Hopefully I'll get on next week, towards the end of it, gallbladder'less' :rotfl: to tell the tale. :eek: