Gall Bladder

Well, it looks like I'll be having surgery next week to remove my gall bladder. Have a gall stone that is so large, it's keeping my gall bladder inflamed. Was wondering if anyone has had the surgery--my biggest worry is about recovery time...

[ellespirit]

Hi i've had the surgery when I was about 26, with laproscopy. I was in and out in 2 days. It's a simple routine procedure. You will probably be a little lactose intolerant for the rest of your life though. I can have milk in my coffee, but if I have a shake or a cheese cake, I can feel pretty sick in the stomach. Bananas too for some reason, on an empty stomach also make me feel off.

Just keep your pain meds up after you go home, don't wait for them to wear off, because there will still be some pain near the incisions while your scar tissue heals. Pain should be over within a week or so, but like anything, if you think about it you magnify it, so try and distract yourself if you can during recovery.

Other than that, drinks lots of water and all good. Good luck.

Elle

[Native spirit]

Hi yes ive had my gall bladder removed, they were going to do it with laproscopy but couldnt so i had to have it taken out by operation, they were doing a hernia at the same time, you will feel better when its gone, give it a couple of weeks you will feel a lot better than you do now.

Namaste

[ellespirit]

Got to say Celtic Goddess, when the gall stone pain hit me that first time, I was doubled over, I thought I was going to die it was that bad.

Thanks Ellespirit and Native Spirit! I'm definitely visualizing the procedure to be laproscopy instead of abdominal incision. I've had nightly pain for the last two months and am looking forward to being able to sleep peacefully the night through without pain medication. I completely understand what you mean about the pain, Ellespirit! My gall bladder started the year "trash talkin'" me and will end the year being set free...

Gall stones usually remain asymptomatic initially. They start developing symptoms once the stones reach a certain size (>8mm). A main symptom of gallstones is commonly referred to as a gallstone attack, also known as biliary colic, in which a person will experience intense pain in the upper abdominal region that steadily increases for approximately thirty minutes to several hours. A victim may also encounter pain in the back, ordinarily between the shoulder blades, or pain under the right shoulder. In some cases, the pain develops in the lower region of the abdomen, nearer to the pelvis, but this is less common. Nausea and vomiting may occur.

These attacks are intensely painful, similar to that of a kidney stone attack. One way to alleviate the abdominal pain is to drink a full glass of water at the start of an attack to regulate the bile in the gallbladder, but this does not work in all cases. Another way is to take magnesium followed by a bitter liquid such as coffee or swedish bitters an hour later. Bitter flavors stimulate bile flow. A study has found lower rates of gallstones in coffee drinkers.

Often, these attacks occur after a particularly fatty meal and almost always happen at night. Other symptoms include abdominal bloating, intolerance of fatty foods, belching, gas, and indigestion. If the above symptoms coincide with chills, lowgrade fever, yellowing of the skin or eyes, and/or clay-colored stool, a doctor should be consulted immediately

Celtic Goddess, hope you are well!
I had a very traumatic gallbladder surgery going on three years ago. All is well now, but reading your post made me think of my struggles post surgery. I hope and wish things are well for you but in any case you might want to begin to take good quality digestive enzymes to help your digestion. It can go out of whack after removing the gallbladder. It has helped me tremendously in my long healing journey afterwards. Like I said, I hope you don't experience any issues now that the pain and the gallbladder is gone but if you do, this will probably help a lot to feel better, and regain your complete health.
Blessings
Amaris

I had emergency Gall surgery and my Gall removed its painful just becareful after the next couple days. Becareful of what you eat also because you will be going potty alot. Bless you and Keep you safe dear.

[Silver]

Are the digestive enzymes the same as a probiotic?

Thanks everyone! All is well--am three weeks post surgery and it is SO wonderful not to have to take pain meds to get comfy enough to sleep! I was taking digestive enzymes and probiotics before surgery and was letting my system readjust to not having a gallbladder to see if I still need to take them. I suspect that you are right, Amaris de Luna, and I will need to start the enzymes again. I've also been experimenting with how my system reacts to foods I was unable to tolerate before surgery and like you mentioned, Occultist, I have discovered you do need to be careful. It's a "whole new world"...so to speak!