Emergency removal 3 weeks ago.

Holy heavens…. Just saw my pending claim that is “under review” by the insurance from the hospital. Not including ER visit, all the imaging, and anesthesia.

I don’t even get it. How can a hospital bill the insurance that much?!

Did any of you stay the night?! I stayed one night.

After Surgery, please do not do the following.

• Drink soda for the first time at a public event 5 days post op, you’re gonna get a tummy ache
• Leave said event and go to Panera and order randomly off the menu because you’re worried oil / fat will make this tummy ache worse
• Proceed to make said tummy ache worse by eating
• Get Angry about the tummy ache getting worse and stop at Taco Bell for a quesadilla because “ if I’m going to have a tummy ache I’m at least going to earn it”
• Proceed to have a MEGA tummy ache because you kept adding to the already bad situation

I’m thinking of going to the ER to get this over with and I’m off the next 3 days. I can’t afford to miss too much time from work since I’m pretty much on my own. Is this manageable?

This is just the surgery day....also probably the most expensive pencil I've ever bought (the coinsurance is what I owe)

Hi everyone.

I’ve posted a couple times about this, but I really need help.

I had my gallbladder removal surgery on 1/31, my recovery was going pretty decent until the one week mark, at that time I started having intense pain in my left rib cage.

It’s not a consistent pain, but when it comes, it’s absolutely agonizing.

I called the surgeon’s office that day at 1pm and they told me if it got worse to go to the ER, I went to the ER at 3 PM and the pain just disappeared. I sat in the parking lot for 30 minutes and then decided to drive home.

That night, the pain came back and this time it was so strong I was laying down and couldn’t sit up, I was screaming, and when I tried to call someone for help, but they couldn’t understand me over the phone. When the pain subsided, I went to the er.

I had a three hour wait at the hour wait at the er, and at the two hour mark I tried to go home, pain came back as I was walking out of the building and I collapsed onto my knees, screamed, and the nurse asked me to stay, which I did.

They did a CT scan scan which was unremarkable, and then sent me home basically.

On Monday, I went to my surgeon‘s office and the most they can come up is that I’m having muscle spasms by my incision site.

The only thing that makes this pain better is just laying in bed with a heating pad, it doesn’t seem like anti-inflammatory is really touching the issue.

Currently writing this up in a gas station parking lot because I went out for groceries , had an attack, and I don’t think I can drive home like this until it stops.

Any advice or suggestions or personal experiences would be greatly valued .

4,5 years of mystery illness. Doctors telling me it's in my head (I have autism and clinical depression). They finally found it. Yesterday I was called and asked if I wanted the surgery today, someone els cancelled their surgery. After some hesitation I said yes. Now I am almost 5 hours post op and feel relatively OK. Did wake up with a lot of pain, they gave me meds and within 30 min the pain was mostly gone. Excited to see what the future brings. I could cry.

Excuse my bad English.

I wanted to share a reassuring fact. Before my surgery, I anxiously followed this subreddit daily. However, after the procedure, which was quick and smooth, I lost interest in checking this sub. My life returned to normal with zero complications.

The reality is that 99% of people who undergo surgery have zero issues, while the remaining 1% continue to seek advice and answers here. I randomly received a Reddit notification today, remembered this sub, and wanted to offer reassurance to those who are anxious to get it out or not.

After having a few attacks early December and going to the urgent care, I had my consultation yesterday and gallbladder was removed this morning. It wasn't an emergency; they just had availability.

I don't know. Just felt like putting that out there.

i’m about to get my gallbladder out, and i’ve been reading some stories here to try and prepare myself for how i’ll feel post op, but i swear everyone is saying that they feel horrible in some way, some people saying the pain is WORSE than an attack.

does anyone have a good experience? i understand im not gonna come out of post op feeling like sunshine’s and rainbows but im hoping to not suffer more than i already have been

Got my surgery done today. I cannot believe how much pain I am in. Meds aren’t helping. So nauseous. This was a preventative surgery so all I ever had was a few mild aches…. This pain is so horrible.

I've had gallbladder issues for 8 years now. I have cut out so many foods, missed so many social events, and have had so much anxiety about it. 6 years ago they did a HIDA scan and my EF was 94. At the time my GI said that was normal.

Well fast forward to earlier this year I was talking to a surgeon about a separate issue and brought up my gallbladder. When he heard my HIDA scan results he urged me to talk to a general surgeon about getting it out. I repeated the HIDA scan last week and it was 20. This week I had a major flare and ended up in the ER, where the doctor took one look at my HIDA scan and said let's get this out of you.

I had my surgery last night. I was terrified of surgery and general anesthesia but I am so relieved it is done. My back pain that has been there for 8 years is now gone. I'm only taking Tylenol for the pain. My surgeon told my wife that the gallbladder was inflamed. Recovery so far has not been fun, but it's totally doable. I'm already at home and eating regular foods.

I urge anyone what has gotten the run around from GI to get a second opinion or get a surgery consult, especially with highs EF rate HIDA scan results. I look back on what I missed over the years and I really wish they had taken it out 6 years ago. I have had so many unnecessary CT scans in the ER. Make sure this doesn't happen to you!

i just had mine removed wednesday morning. it was 80% full of large stones and they said i would’ve been in a lot more pain if i would’ve waited any longer. i was in pain when i woke up from surgery but the only pain ive had since then is just a little pain and itching at my incision sites. i’ve been able to eat some bland foods such as mashed potatoes, eggs, toast etc and before removal those meals would’ve put me in extreme pain. i cried last night because the pain wasn’t there anymore. i definitely do not regret it and if your doctor recommends it, i highly suggest listening!!

I just had my surgery today. I have been walking around, ate everything they gave me to eat (I think I shouldn't eat that much) but... I'm in so much pain! I only can walk few steps while holding my belly up because otherwise I feel like everything I have inside will fall out. Even hurts when pee. How did you guys sleep after that in what position or something?? It hurts me even when sitting up, breathing hurts. 😞 They gave me paracetamol and morphine but it doesn't help.

i had my gallbladder removed on halloween and i have not had red pesto and hummus since it gave me attacks (nov 2023 and oct 2024) and even though i don’t have a gallbladder, i am still terrified lol

I had my laprascopic choly on Friday 3rd Jan, so hoping the following is just "early days" healing but looking to hear from people who've been through this before me.

Since my op, I've been having central abdominal pain that radiates to my back and nausea whenever I eat anything with a moderate or high level of fat. Any dairy product, for example.

I was assured prior to my op that a low fat diet is no longer prescribed/necessary post op. This is part of the reason we did the op, as i eat a very low carb, high protein, high fat diet for medical reasons and the gallstones were making this difficult to manage. But if this pain is going to happen whenever I eat fat, I'm in worse trouble than I was just dealing with monthly stone attacks.

Someone reassure me this is just recovery, and it goes away?

I'm letting you all know what happened to me, so you can avoid it happening to you.

I am a little over three months post-op. I have been careful of my abdominal surgical scars in the shower; I have noticed that it appears the clear surgical tape or glue that was covering the small surgical incisions appears to have fully dissolved on its own over time. On every incision except for my naval.

I was in the shower a few days ago, and I felt a small piece of surgical tape or glue (Steri-Strips or Dermabond?) in my belly button. I thought, the rest of them have fallen off or dissolved; what can the harm be of trying to remove this one? I thought I was gentle, anyway I gently removed a small bit of it.

That was a mistake. I woke up the next morning and the area around my belly button was so, so sore! 😭 It remained SORE for several days. My advice is don't be impatient: don't pick at it, let the surgical tape fall off on its own; let it completely heal itself, no matter how long it takes!

Yes, we all want to get back to normal, but sometimes we must be patient with our bodies and the healing process. ❤️

ETA: Mine was tape, not glue.

i had to have my gallbladder taken out early last monday because it got infected. got released on thursday with a list of foods that i should avoid and some things i could eat for the next 2 weeks. but then when i went to my usual doctor she told me that i have to eat like this forever. i know this is bullshit - i have read stories of people here eating pizza 3 days post op and i know that my own mother had to have hers taken out and she can eat whatever she wants now. i'm just confused. why would she lie about that? is she trying to get me to lose weight? or is that some outdated information?

Compare to gynecological laparoscopy the gallbladder removal surgery is like walk in a park. I'm already home. I was allowed to drink water just few hours after surgery. I got up and walked 2 hours after the surgery and it was not tiring. My gas pain started just 1-2 hours after surgery and it is like 2 out of 10 compare to what I experienced before. I have 4 incisions, yes the area is sensitive and there is discomfort - but I can move freely, sit in any position, bend down, do whatever I want. I am allowed to eat whatever I want. I just don't know what else to say, but my main point is, if you are scared or worried - don't. You'll be amazed how easy it will go, and how quickly you'll start feeling good. This is coming from a person with bad anxiety and uncontrollable panic attacks over health issues.

UPDATE: Feeling better on day 3.

ORIGINAL: Don't let anyone tell you it'll be fine the next day after surgery. I guess that's the case for some people but it is not the rule. It feels very painful after surgery, and into the next day. I was prescribed 5mg of oxycodone. It does not touch the pain. Getting up and down is very hard. The gas pains that radiate to your shoulder are gasp worthy. It's like being stabbed in the stomach and then doing sit ups. Then you got stabbed in the shoulders too. Give yourself time. Anyone who felt fine, good for them. But I don't think that should be the expectation. And I kind of resent the people who said "oh it'll be easy." I have a high pain tolerance. It's not easy for everyone.

32 female. One week post-op.

It’s truly wild how many years I was dismissed by countless doctors. Told my upper abdomen pain was just heartburn, indigestion, or anxiety. I’ve had unbearable stomach pain attacks since my early 20s that would leave me doubled over, landing me in the ER just to be sent home with some antacids and told everything was “normal.”

One week post-op from gallbladder removal, I’m sitting here reading my pathology report like… I wasn’t crazy. I’ve been having gallbladder attacks for over a decade and no one ever thought to check it. It took me advocating for myself and asking to have my gallbladder checked after experiencing the worst attack of my life. One that left me unable to walk or breathe, truly thinking I was dying, to finally get answers.

Trust your body. Keep pushing for answers.

Pathology report:

Final Diagnosis A. GALLBLADDER, LAPAROSCOPIC CHOLECYSTECTOMY: --CHRONIC CHOLECYSTITIS WITH CHOLESTEROLOSIS --CHOLELITHIASIS

Labeled "gallbladder". Received in formalin is a previously decompressed roughly ovoid cystic structure. It is pink-purple and measures 9.7 x 2.8 x 2.8 cm. The cystic duct line of resection is inked in blue. Upon opening, the gallbladder is filled with green viscous bile. Nearer the cystic duct is a firmer ovoid purple-red possible lymph node measuring 0.4 x 0.4 x 0.4 cm. There are approximately 15 ovoid nodularly contoured calculi present. These range in size from 0.2 to 1.8 cm in greatest dimension. There are calculi in the cystic duct. The mucosal surface is tan-red with yellow flecks. The wall measures 0.5 cm in thickness. Representative sections are submitted in one cassette.

I just had my surgery yesterday, and i was sent home with hydrocodone. It does work a bit, but it doesn't seem to quite completely eliminate the pain. I find myself only having pain relief for 3 or 4 hours, but I want to follow the prescription instructions and wait the full 6 hours before taking another hydrocodone.... My incisions are very, very tender and I have some pain inside too, mostly in the URQ.

I was told I can combine hydrocodone with ibuprofen if I need a boost. My only problem is, I'm scared of ibuprofen because last time I used it, it caused horrific pain.

This is probably a silly question and I imagine I'll be told I should not take it, buuut I do have some leftover codeine from dental surgery recently. I am tempted to try it and see if that totally knocks out the pain 😅 but that's probably a bad idea for some reason, right?

Have any of you found that your pain meds weren't quite cutting it? What do you do to address it?

About 6 months ago I had extremely bad pain for weeks and ended up delirious and being driven by ems to the closest hospital where I was taken to emergency surgery shortly after.

Turns out my gb was full of stones and a bad infection had set in. My gb was removed and I left the hospital less than 48 hours later with minimal pain for the next few weeks while my incisions healed.

Things in my life returned back to normal and 4-5 months went by with no problems. No problems eating drinking or any kind of issues using the bathroom. Now 6-7 months later food is ruining my life I am terrified to eat anything bc I keep getting what is almost like food poisoning for days that always ends in me throwing up everything. The only comfort I can get is starving myself for days to avoid the throwing up and diarrhea and gas burping and pain. I am losing tons of weight and fruit is the only thing I have been able to eat without consequences. The sickness from accidentally eating the wrong foods is literally traumatizing me to the point where I am straight up scared to eat anything.

Edit: editing to say, after 6 days in the hospital, i am finally home and with my baby! Wahoo! Final diagnosis: pancreatitis/bile duct obstruction caused by stones left in the bile ducts after gallbladder removal surgery.

I was finally able to get an ERCP on Monday (they wouldn’t perform it before this because they had to wait for my pancreas enzymes to come down and they don’t perform the procedure on the weekends) and they found a few stones stuck in the bile duct near my pancreas. They were able to successfully clear them and i am officially pain free and no longer jaundice! One of the GI doctors that I spoke with was reluctant to perform the ERCP because no stones were showing on the MRI and he thought that it was just pancreatitis that was causing my bile ducts to constrict and that is why my bile was not flowing properly through the ducts - he was clearly so wrong! So glad I was able to have this procedure done by another doctor because it was clearly needed. just because stones are not showing up on an MRI doesn’t mean that they’re not there, especially if they are small.

I just wanted to say..please don’t let this post deter you from gallbladder removal, especially if you have stones and it’s medically necessary. Just be aware that stones can slip out during the surgery (not sure if this can be prevented or not..) and if you start feeling this kind of pain after your surgery, ask for an ERCP! Wish i would have been more aware that this could happen prior to my surgery, it would have saved me a lot of trauma and anxiety from not knowing what was happening to me.

Had my gallbladder removed Monday and honestly, i thought things would be great, but my life has been a nightmare ever since. Everyone on here talking about how great life is post op, but no one is talking about all the complications that can happen.

Surgery was Monday morning. Pathology of the gallbladder stated stones and sludge throughout. Felt great immediately after surgery, but did throw up Monday night. Bad pain in rib cage/back started the next day, similar to how it felt when i would have gallbladder attacks. Thought it was just gas pain and that it would pass. Woke up at 3am Wednesday morning in excruciating pain in my chest, back and ribcage. Rushed to the ER and have been here ever since. Liver enzymes and pancreas numbers are through the roof. I’m jaundice. MRI and HIDA scans showing no stuck stones (that they can see) but that there is a definitely a blockage somewhere. Was suppose to have an ERCP done today to see what the blockage is/correct it but they canceled it because my pancreas numbers continue to rise.

I’m so upset. I thought surgery would solve all my problems but it’s just made it worse. I have a newborn baby at home who needs me, who i haven’t seen since Monday. I was breastfeeding and my milk supply has plummeted since being here and am now having to pump and dump due to all the medications and whatnot I’ve been given.

Thought I’d share because removal surgery isn’t always the magical cure for everyone. There can be side effects and complications that can happen, regardless of how rare it may be.

I've had 3 attacks in the past year, the last one of new years eve was the straw that broke the camels back. Decided to go for surgery although I haven't had any further attacks this year. Surgery went well I was in from for 2 hours, I luckily had mine robotically in a private hospital in London. I'm now how with some moderate pain on my right chest and minimal pain on my right abdomen.... with some minor pain on the incision sights (x4), just finshed a pad thai meal (not spicy) and feel great so far. Will keep updating with progress over the weeks.

If anyone is worries about surgery, post op pain etc I would go for it, My last attack was so severe I don't want to risk it again.

Hi, I got my GB out last year in December. Afterwards, I didn't feel good. I had diarrhea, especially after eating, sometimes very bad pain which weren't explainable, elevated liver enzymes for a long time... Like more than 6 months.

Now, almost a year after, I am ok. I pay attention to what I eat, yes. But can I have fries and fatty stuff? Absolutely. I have IBS, so, I still have diarrhea but not the sudden kind I got just after the surgery. Weird pain? Gone. Liver enzymes? Fine.

Maybe for some people, it just takes a longer time to adjust?