What After Laparoscopic Gallbladder Surgery

I had mine removed about 6 months ago and only about 2 months ago started feeling human again. Every time I ate it was a rush to the bathroom...I didn't even feel comfortable leaving the house. I guess only about 40% experience this side effect and it does disspate, but while living it, it is very rough. Otherwise I recovered nicely...hope you will as well.

i had mine removed. Just make sure that you avoid high fat foods and make sure you get the 35g of fiber daily to help move things along.

I had mine out the same way about a month after my son was born. Check with you dr but mine said as long as I started slow and was not doing sit up or crunch type movements that I was good to go. He wanted me to wait about 2 months until I started that.

I woke up one morning and hit the floor with pain due to stones. They did not even count the number of stones they jsut put numerous stones on the report.

I have found that the only thing I have to be cautious about is eating too much fat. It causes things to be loose later. Over all though nothing feels different. I do watch my fat intake but now and then I still go for a greasy hamburger and fries. I drink low fat milk. I hae not seen in lactose intollerance or any thing else. Just three little scars that I can see in the mirror. (the forth is in my bellybutton)

I did notice I had a know under my top scar (the big one) for a while. Then one day it just seemed to go away.

I am happy I had it done.

Dear A.,
Everyone I know who has had this procedure feels 1000 times better. Just give yourself time to heal up and you will be on your way!
Best of wishes to you!

Hi A.,
I had my gallbladder taken out when I was 18...it was the wrong shape, I had the same symptoms as you described. Anyhow, it took me a very long time to be comfortable eating normal things again, simply because I was scared that if I ate something fatty or with a lot of protein that the pain would return. I am now 26 and eat whatever I want to with no side effects from not having a gall. The one minor thing is if I do eat something fatty I usaully need to use the bathroom a little bit after (sorry if TMI). Goodluck!

I had mine removed in 2002. The surgen said it was so full of stones, they were cubed and the corners were breaking off and passing through - I had NO idea. My only complaint was that I was having what I could only discribe as "morning sickness". It was a strange BM at the same time every day - didn't seem to matter what I ate.
After the surgery, I had one missfortunate episode after eating a hotdog otherwise I've NEVER had any issues with eating fatty foods since then (of course I haven't had a hotdog since then either.)
The reason I'm replying though is that since the surgery I can no long eat Citris fruit - or at least I can only have it in very small doses (like 1/2 an orange). I had never heard of this before and only once since - someone else I know had the surgery and his wife told me she saw something about citris being an issue for a small persentage of people. But she couldn't remember where she read it. So, if you find yourself cramping an running to the bathroom an hour or two after the next time you drink a nice tall glass of OJ, don't be surprised. Just be prepared to minimize your citris intake from now on. This never did subside for me and is still an "issue" 6 years later.
Happy healing...

Hi A.,
I may not be much of a help, but wanted to commiserate with you a bit. I had my gall bladder taken out the same day you did! Mine was infectious and had 24 stones. The incisions are healing, but most of the pain is from the excess skin glue peeling off. That stuff hurts!

Since the surgery, I've been able to eat pretty much anything. I took it easy during the holiday, but after that started to "test" out how things were working. The only problem I had was when we went out to eat at Chevy's. I felt ill after, no excrutiating pain but some cramping. Can't say if the Mexican food was to blame or not because I had had home-cooked Mexican food before then with no problems. Even pizza, which used to give me awful pains before the surgery, didn't give me any problems.

My sister had the same surgery done 8 years ago and, since then, she simply eats healthy. She may indulge occasionally, but nothing seems to bother her.

Hope that helped a bit and good luck on your recovery!

Dear A.;

I had the same procedure you did about six years ago. I had also experienced pain and the ultrasound indicated a lot of gallstones, but there had been no rupture. I made a quick recovery (used Kaiser's Prepare for Surgery relaxation tapes) and was told to start walking a couple of days after the procedure. I am not a person who exercises a lot so I increased my walking to one mile after a few days. I was happy with the weight loss at first and the fact that I could eat normally. I am a lot older than you (I have grandchildren the age of your children) and the doctor said it was a long procedure because my gallbladder was full of stones for a long time maybe t 10 or more years so there were a lot of adhesions..like a nest built up around that area to protect it and the surrounding organs in case of a rupture. Amazing how the body adapts. I have not experienced much difference in life style and though the 10 pounds I lost did gradually creep up so I have to lose some of them again, I have no pain and have very normal digestion. A good decision all around. You still should avoid the same fats you would avoid for good health and maybe even a bit more because you do not have the help of your gall bladder to help process them. And exercise is always good. Sounds like your life is at an interesting place with your three children. Enjoy!! N.

Mine was removed 11 years ago after the birth of my baby. I always had some what loose bowels after foods that had high dairy content. After the surgery I experienced immediate and intense diarrhea with a lot of foods. Hi fat with dairy at the same time is a killer for me. But also watch out for spice. A highly spiced pepper steak , hot and sour soup, freshly prepared garlic (like in guacamole or a salad) would rip me up. I spent many nights having to force myself to throw up because the meal would just sit in my gut in a ball and hurt so bad. I couldn't digest it, at all. For the last few years I notice I can now tolerate some things better, I now use cajun spice liberally when I cook, I can have a small bowl of hot and sour soup, etc.

A year ago I took some antifungal internally for my nails and it stopped all my diahrrea,( no matter what I ate), for at least 6 months. Go figure. So there might be a fungal factor going on for some people who have the bowel problems.

Lactobaccilus is suppose to help with diahrrea. I started taking it added to yogurt about 3 days ago. I have noticed a slight improvement but not what I had hoped. Maybe it will take a while to get the better bacteria built up.

One thing about the bile that comes from the gall bladder- it helps you absorb your vitamins in your food. You might want to take some enzymes to help with that. (amylase/lipase?)

Hi A.. I had the procedure to remove my gallbladder out too. It was the best thing for me. I immediately was able to eat again. The only problems i have is that i am now lactose intollerant (they have milk for that & generic is just fine)& have to becareful with not to eat certain greasy foods cause i have to run to the bathroom with loose bowels. Ha! Ha! Common sense & talk to your doctor about exercise. Just take it slow. Congrats on the right surgery for you. I am so happy i had it done years ago.
Blessings,
A. m

I had mine out on December 15 and felt sick and vomited off and on until the day after Xmas. It was awful. It definitely was dependant on my fat intake - if I ate a high fatty meal, I would feel sick and sometimes even vomit. So I cut out most fat and haven't felt sick since. Nothing else seems to bother me. I've gradually started eating a little more fat (we all need some)and have not had any issues since. I feel great now.

I had my follow up on December 28 at which point the doc gave me the ok to exercise again. I worked out for the first time this past Saturday with no issues. I skipped doing any sit-ups though. I will wait on those for another month since I still have some slight pain.

Hope this helps.

Hi A.,

I too, had mine removed and my side pains disappeared. Whew! I have had no complications except an occasional mild side ache and back pain, but the back thing is something different. I had like 2 mini-stones and the doc laughed when he told me but the kept getting stuck passing through that little tube thing. I have sciatica too, but that's another story.

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T.

I too would like to read answers to this question as I am facing the same surgery as a complication to HELLPS syndrome from delivery of my daughter 2 months ago.

I had mine removed a week ago exactly and was in so much pain!!! However, I did start feeling better after a few days and have been walking 2 miles each day since. I never had a high fat diet, have always been vegetarian, and exercised prior, but I think the exercising is what is helping my body heal. Truly. I am just curious about sit ups at this point. Hope all is well with you now!! Best of luck.