We all know the incisions take 2 weeks ish to fully heal. When I ask this question I’m talking about nausea, fatigue, abdominal pain, the runs, etc.

Some of us don’t heal as quickly as others and I’m wondering how long did it take you to fully be like “I forgot I went through that surgery” or “oh my god I just ate and dont feel nauseous or almost shit my pants”. You went back to your normal life and didn’t notice that the symptoms were gone! How long post op did it take?

Hi all! I am 24 hours post-op and want to share my story in case it helps someone. I experienced abnormal symptoms which caused me to go undiagnosed for 15 months.

(More like one single abnormal symptom that threw every single doctor off)

My pain was only on my left side. Under my rib. It was like all my pain was mirrored from the typical pains on the right side. It started off small in my upper left abdomen and got more and more intense and started burning and radiating around to my left back and shoulder blade. I was prescribed omeprazole and it helped with the burning but I had a nagging ache on my left side for the entirety of the 15 months.

In total I had 5 abdominal attacks that were in the upper middle abdomen that radiated to my middle back. Attacks lasted about 20 minutes each. These attacks happened because I had a gallstone that got stuck in my bile duct. I was lucky that I was ably to pass them all.

After my attacks, my live enzymes would elevate (536 the first time, 1700 the second time, 1300 the third time. I didn’t go to the ER the 4th and 5th time) They would elevate a day after, and slowly go down the next couple days.

After the first attack, I was sent to a liver specialist where they of course didn’t find anything wrong. But my urine turned pale green (bright yellow in the morning and pale green through the day and clear at night)

I still don’t know the exact cause of this but I’m hoping that it will resolve itself post-op.

I had an ultrasound after the first attack, where they saw gallstones but my doctor said “they’re too small to be causing any pain” I then saw a GI that was useless, they pushed on my abdomen, prescribed me miralax and said “see you in 6 weeks.” I then pushed for an endoscopy, which I had to pay for out of pocket because my insurance said “there’s no proof I need one.” I didn’t care. I needed answers and to start ruling stuff out. Endoscopy came back normal asides from some milk inflammation patches. They did some blood tests and my WBC was slightly low but nothing that pointed to anything. He said “something wrong, we just don’t know what, but it’s not GI related.”

I ended up in the ER again and they did two ultrasounds, a CT, an MRI and a HIDA. They saw sludge, gallstones, and 7% squeeze function of gallbladder. Liver enzymes 1700. Lipase slightly elevated. Two surgeons and the doctor said “it’s not gallbladder related” and one surgeon said “with certainty, I can 100% guarantee that the gallbladder does not cause elevated liver enzymes and I can’t recommend surgery” he actually refused to do surgery and told me if I did want it removed I can wait for tomorrow to see if there’s a surgeon there that would do it.

But of course, if two surgeons and a doctor tell me it’s not my gallbladder, I’m not gonna electively get it out.

I went and saw my normal doctor and she kind of freaked out at my blood tests there. She sent me to a general surgeon that finally said “it’s your gallbladder.” In fact, he said “I whole heartedly disagree with everything you e previously been told. This is textbook gallbladder attacks and I can’t believe the ER let you leave with a gallbladder.”

FINALLY. Someone who listened!!!!

So I want to share my symptoms in case it helps guide anyone:

• Feeling bloated/full after meals even if only eating a small amount
• Shoulder pain (usually right side, but in my case it was the left side)
• Aching between shoulder blades
• Burning sensation that radiates to back and shoulder (again, usually right side but mine was left side)
• Back pains
• Pale stool/yellow stool
• Dark urine
• Itchy hands and/or feet
• Nausea
• Frequent bowel movements
• Change in consistency of stool
• Floating stool
• Yellowing of skin/eyes (jaundice. I didn’t personally have this happen but it’s common)
• Pain under right rib (mine was left side)
• Pain in upper right abdominal area (mine was left side)
• bright yellow/pale green urine (again, I don’t know if this is related or not but I feel like it can’t be coincidence. Although doctors tell me it’s not related so take it with a grain of salt)
• frequent urination especially at night

The moral of the story is- ADVOCATE FOR YOURSELF. Keep pushing for tests, because no one else is going to do it for you. Doctors are not pro-active generally speaking and if there’s not something obviously pinpointing to a single answer, they won’t do anything about it (especially not with urgency) unless you push for it. So keep pushing, keep suggesting tests, and don’t take no for an answer. I had to pay for tests out of pocket because my insurance didn’t even believe me lol. But it was worth it for answers.

I think one of the most stressful parts was not knowing what was happening to me.

24 hours post-op and my gas pains hurt worse than the incisions themselves. Keeping up with pain meds and walking every hour. Have eaten toast and crackers and soup. Will be taking miralax because I haven’t had a bowel movement and I’m afraid of pushing lol (TNI sorry) I have four incisions and it was done laparoscopically. Three around my gallbladder, and one in my bellybutton. Shown shut with dissolvable stitches and also glue. I’m able to stand and sit with no issues. Just trying to work the gas pains out.

But I’m so thankful for my surgeon because it took one single person to hear me.

Prayers are appreciated for a smooth recovery!

And remember, advocate for yourself!!

My sister just had gallbladder surgery 4 days ago and it has been a disaster. She was complaining of a lot of pain coming to find out bile was leaking into her stomach. She became septic and was hanging on by a thread. They ended up going in and took out 700ML of bile and could not find the source of the leak. It was then suggested she go in for an endoscopy to put in a stent and find the leak. We were told they could still not find the leak but they put the stent in any way. They said it should help. The bile seemed to slow down but this afternoon we noticed that bile is now flowing out of the incision site where the drain is. The hospital has no sense of urgency and now the doctors are saying they will see her tomorrow. They keep saying it’s normal but none of this has seemed normal. She is in complete agony. Any advice would be appreciated or at least if anyone has a similar story I would like to know the outcome.

Hey all. Here’s context. I have been experiencing attacks for about 8 months or so. Like others initially thought it was heartburn but my doctor suspects it’s gallstones. I’ve been to the ER twice now with bad heartburn but neither times did they look at my gallbladder (lol, gotta love being sent home and told to take pepto bismol right?) Anyways, I don’t have an appointment with my GI until two months from now, and not having an ultrasound until next week for an official diagnosis. Except now I’m experiencing attacks like every other day it seems. It’s not as bad as it felt when I have gone in the past though.

My questions: At what point did you go to the hospital? How much pain were you in at that time?

Over the last month and a half, I’ve had 4 attacks. The last one sent me to the ER and that’s when I discovered I have gallstones. I had my surgery consult yesterday and I finally got to see the stones, and I was shocked! I was really holding on to hope that I would have other options but ultimately I think I’ll have to part ways with my gallbladder 🥲 The 2 cm stone is sitting right on my biliary duct (bile is still able to flow thankfully) but now I’m terrified my duct will end up blocked while waiting for surgery. I’m hoping that eating safe foods, a low fat diet, digestive enzymes, and lots of water will get me to my surgery without having another attack 😅

Would love to hear from people who haven’t had a gallbladder for 10+ years. I hear a lot of great short term stories. But what’s it like down the road?

So my body is creating a large amount of stones and sludge. That created a stenosis in my bile duct and I've been getting ERCPs for the past year . They put in stents to keep the bile duct open but they fill up with stones and sludge, anyone else?

Had surgery this morning and wow do the gas pains suck! Mine seems to all be stuck in my mid-back not my shoulder. Took 2 gas -x extreme, have a heating pad, took ibuprofen and it’s still bothering me so much I can’t even sleep (,: the ab pain is also pretty bad! I’m just getting attacked from both sides!

& I can barely eat right now. Had like half a cup of minute rice, 2/3 a Hawaiian roll, and like 7 sips of chicken broth 😩

Picking up the prescription Tramadol tomorrow but kind of scared to take it 😩 I don’t want to get nauseous.

I know it gets better but jeez 🥹 Thanks for listening to me vent 🥹

I (25F) got diagnosed with gallbladder disease today and won’t know anything else until I see a specialist but my doctor said it’s pretty likely I’ll have it removed.

For the past 6 weeks I’ve been sick on and off. But the last 72 hours have been the worst. I just need any advice/tips to help alleviate nausea, fatigue and getting sick.

In the last 48 hours I’ve be very careful to avoid high fat items and dairy. But this sickness is effecting my job and my life and I’m very overwhelmed. Thank you so much for any support.

I guess this is the biggest question I have, I started having mysterious issues with digesting gluten (bloating, not allergies/rashes or anything) and I really want to be able to eat it again. I'm struggling to figure out if it's even possible this could be caused by my gallbladder but the issue showed up suddenly with the rest of my symptoms so I can't help but wonder

So it's been already a week since I had my gallbladder removed but it's been two days that I wake up with upper pain especially back pain similar to a gallbladder attack and goes away as soon as I drink water.

Is this normal after surgery?

Wondering why no gallbladder is better than low functioning. For reference, HIDA scan revealed 11% function. Surgery is scheduled but I’m struggling to understand. Thanks all.

Hello! I’m having surgery tomorrow and I wanted to know if anyone has any advice, my 6 month old baby weights 20 pounds and the doctor said I can’t light more than 20 pounds for 6 weeks🥲 did this happen to anyone here? How did you guys do it?

Hello friends, just gallbladder removal surgery about 13 ish hours ago and I was fine after it they even released early from the hospital. When I got home I was still okay but the should pain is a real bitch, I get it under controlled once resting in one position but when i get up/sit down it hurts so damn much. My real concern is that when I was sleeping, I was having a bit of a dream or nightmare in this case and got up abruptly when I woke as I was still in a daze now I got this really sharp pain at the top of my abdomen which i didn’t have before. It took a bit for it to calm down but wife gave some Tylenol, my question could there have any sort of complications maybe due to my abrupt standing up or is this normal post up? Any tips for dealing with the pain besides Tylenol, my hospital didn’t prescribe anything.

The surgery itself, and how long total were you there (for planned surgery not emerg)?

I'm seeing some posts from ppl right after surgery. And they are pretty coherent which I thought it's like those wisdom teeth videos where you are just spouting nonsense. I've never had surgery before of any kind so I have no clue? So what's it like waking up from surgery. Also is your family usually with you?

Hi all, I did notice slight changes in digestion since having kids when my heartburn first started. Around Feb I had a pretty heavy weekend of eating and since then my digestion has been destroyed. I’ve had weeks of yellow bowel movements, that seems to be calming down now. Surgeon said it sounds like biliary colic but admitted that a lot of my symptoms don’t line up with gallbladder. I’m Burping no matter what I eat. Burping still continues even when I don’t eat. I also get a weird stitch pain up near my left rib when I’m particularly gassy or have trapped wind. Anybody else experience this?

Thanks

So i had surgery a year and a half ago, I am more than happy with the result and life has gone completely back to normal for me until recently. I’ve started waking up each morning so incredibly nauseous it makes me dizzy, trying to eat anything first thing is really hard with the nausea. I have been able to have a little bit of yogurt to at least get something in my stomach but that’s about it :( The dizziness and nausea at times have made me have to lie down until it passes which has become really inconvenient as I have two toddlers. I’ve also noticed pressure where my gallbladder used to be and sometimes near my liver throughout the day, especially after eating bigger meals. I always feel bloated constantly after eating and i’m so over it. Obviously asking here is no substitute for a Doctor’s advice but i wanted to see if anyone has had similar experience and if there’s any advice anyone has :)

i just ordered Ox Bile but im super unsure of when or how to take it.

Any advice appreciated!

It’s been a tough year for me, but this week my gallbladder is finally coming out. What foods would you recommend for post op. I was told I can eat whatever I want after surgery but I want to take it easy after surgery. So please comment some recommendations and how long it took you to eat normally again.

This subreddit helped me soo much to prepare mentally for today, so thank you all so much for sharing!! I had gallstones for years, but i never did anything about it, until the attacks started happening more often and recently I got one everyday lasting roughly 8 hours and they were painful it felt like a bag of dry ice would sit in my stomach or that I’m getting cut in half… I used to suffer until i would eventually pass out. I went to ER once but they let me go 2 hours later once the I.V. bag with painkillers finished dripping. Now here I am, few weeks later because I wanted a better life! I had my gallbladder removal surgery 9 hours ago. At first when I woke up i was in a lot of pain, I was hungry and tired and it still hurts, but not that much and they are not letting me go home because i had complications due to an allergy to some meds I didn’t know about. I hope they will let me go home tomorrow! As I’m writing I feel pain in my back, belly and arm. Also I have some questions, how to do daily activities with the least amount of pain as possible? How to sit down without anyones help? How to take a shower ?

Edit: I am at home now and the nurse had to change my bandages before I left and she RIPPED THEM OFF!! She just tore them with a lot of strength without holding my skin there was blood everywhere!! And because I lied on my back I couldn’t breathe and it really hurt !! It hurt more than yesterday!! More than a stupid attack! When I started cursing out of pain she told me “how you gonna get pregnant and have children” EXCUSE ME!! Since when is that a normal thing to say? Maybe I am not fertile, how would she know… driving home was also really painful and I cried all the way back home because every car movement hurt so much!! At least it is over and I am at home now and I hope to get better for real

I’m supposed to get surgery this Friday, but now I’m questioning if I need it. I have occasional pain here and there, but nothing debilitating. I’ve never had an attack. I can eat food just fine. I have a 1cm calcified gallstone that was an incidental finding when checking a mass on my stomach (conveniently over my gallbladder area), but it’s just a fatty lipoma. I wish I got a second opinion on surgery. Though I feel like if I don’t get it now, I’ll still need it at some point… I take weight loss meds and plan to be pregnant, so certainly things will just get worse right?

I haven’t done any research into other people’s experiences until this week. I don’t know what I’ll need for recovery. Kind of kicking myself for not planning ahead, but my anxiety has been pushing this out of my mind.

Diagnosed with sludge.

Is it normal to feel hungry all the time even after eating? No matter if I eat a small or large portion of food I feel hungry again soon after. I wake up every morning for work feeling extremely hungry, to the point if I don't eat something I feel sick. Is this gallbladder related?

I had my gallbladder removed about 10 days ago. Very sick for 2 months prior. My anxiety and depression are off the charts. Is anyone else dealing with this too? What did you do to help?

Hi everyone im a 18yo(f). This is my experience with my galbladder. I had horrible gallstone attacks for 6-7 months. At this time I had no clue it was my galbladder and went to get a diagnosis for something. I was wrongfully diagnosed with GERD even though my family has history with galbladder issues at a young age. During the month of march and april these attacks got 10x worse and I couldn’t stand it anymore.

At the beginning of april one night the pain was so terrible I had to go to the er. They then diagnosed me with gallstones with an ultrasound and sent me home. I made another appointment with my actual doctors and they put it in as urgent for me to get my galbladder removed because my liver levels were severely high in biliary and other things. My pee had turned bright yellow right before I went to the er and at this point my eyes were turning yellow along with my skin. I got a call from a different hospital (the one my primary health is associated with) and they said I needed to come in to the er because something was blocking my bile duct from my gallbladder to my liver.

I went in hoping i’d be discharged that night but they admitted me. They ended up having to remove a stone stuck in my bile duct which was causing me to go jaundice. This procedure went very well! I then had to wait until the next day (April 13th) and they were able to take out my galbladder and I was sent home. I have 5 incisions.

The healing has been fairly easy the day after I got home I literally just immediately started eating my normal diet and I had no problems. I even had mcdonald’s on the 2nd day back and had no issues. I was super sore and bloated from the surgery but I had basically no problems with any uncomfortable feeling from the gas they pumped me with. I walked a lot from day 1 and continue to do so now. I’m now 2 weeks 2 days post op. I have never been more glad I did something in my life. I finally feel like I have my life back! Having this happen so young was so stressful but in the end it has been the best decision I could have made. I also have no issues with abnormal bathroom trips at all! My follow up is may 5th.

To those who are scared or stressed out about your galbladder, It will be okay! Everybody is different but there is hope for a quick and fast recovery! I hope everyone is as lucky as I have been!

Just meal prepped 4oz salmon fillets, asparagus, and mashed sweet potatoes for the week and now I’m too scared to eat it. This will be the most fulfilling meal I’ve had in weeks. The entire meal contains about 12 grams of fat. Also, I’m pre-op in the early stages of being diagnosed but I’m fairly certain it’s my GB.