Gallbladder removal.

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Hi,

I was diagnosed with gallstones in Aug 2014 after a couple of nasty attacks. Finally had it removed in Mar this year. I had terrible symptoms, pain, nausea, couldn't eat and lost a stone and a half in weight. When I was pushed through for surgery as an emergency, I felt like all my Christmases had come at once. I expected to be sore after wards and to continue with a low fat diet, but didn't expect to feel how I do. I have imense tiredness, very little or no energy and still experiencing pain and nausea, especially after eating. I am at my wits end and it has affected me mentally now as I already suffered with a sickness phobia so have been living my worst nightmare. It has become so extreme that I avoid leaving the house now. Please someone tell me these feelings will subside and I will start to feel normal again sad

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  • Posted

    Hi Natasha I'm so sorry your going through this. Your not on your own. Unfortunately we are not told about these terrible side effects post op. I had mine removed in December. Had diarrhea for 6 weeks then the nausea started and then the vomiting. Was in hospital twice and they eventually admitted it was a side effect of the surgery. Thankfully I haven't vomited in 8 weeks and the nausea has improved an awful lot over the last few weeks. Having heartburn and indigestion now but I have a great gp who told me she had seen this before and that it can take 6-12 months to settle down. Out of desperation I went to acupuncture and would highly recommend it for the nausea. Mine settled after 2 sessions. I was told in the hospital this was a rare side effect but my gp has told she has seen a lot of this happen. Also spoke to a lot of people who went through similar and all settled within 6-9 months so it's not rare at all. Your not alone. I know what your going through. The psychological effect this has on you is absolutely horrendous. You will get through this. Hopefully it will settle for you soon. Take care xxx
    • Posted

      Ace, glad to hear you are still nausea free. Good wishes for continued recovery...phil
    • Posted

      Thank you Acejohnston. I am really glad that your symptoms seem to be subsiding. I would love to try some alternative therapies/supplements to try and help so any advice would be greatly appreciated. I have gotten to the point where I am prepared to try anything. I am already taking Metoclopramide and Phenergan for the nausea, but they have a tendency to make me drowsy, which isn't ideal when looking after two children xxx
    • Posted

      Hi Natasha I too was on lots of anti sickness meds and they made me very drowsy too. I stopped taking them all about 8 weeks ago as my gp said they weren't helping and she was right. Ginger is great for the nausea. You can buy ginger root in any supermarket and just put a couple of slices into A teapot and leave to stew for about 10 minutes. I have a 4 year old so can understand were your coming from. Have you the nausea all day long or is it just bad in the mornings and gets better as the day goes on? Unfortunately it's a very gradual process and will take time to go away as your body adjusts. What are your doctors saying to you about your symptoms? Are you waking up with the nausea? It used to wake me up any time from 4am onwards and I would either vomit or have dry wretching. To be honest the only thing that really helped was acupuncture. It's great for nausea and well worth trying. You will get better it's just going to take a bit of time. Unfortunately not many people on here have had it but I can tell you it is fairly common. I spoke to 20 people who've had their gallbladder removed and only 1 didn't have side effects after the operation. Everyone else had some worse than others. Some settled within 6 weeks some took longer. Unfortunately it's different for everyone. All recovered but most can't eat or drink certain things since the operation. Hope this helps xx
    • Posted

      It all depends. I tend to find I get it later in the day. I take a Metoclopramide at bed time as it helps move food through the system a lot quicker, but after eating certain things I have found will trigger it. I can no longer drink tea or coffee or eat any full fat dairy. So everything I am eating is low fat, but I am getting to the point where I am too scared to eat anything just in case. It causes terrible anxiety which I am now under the Dr for. I use two GPs at my surgery as their opinions differ so much. My usual GP couldn't understand it, whereas my designated GP said it's not unusual. My gallbladder had been left and I was being treated with regular courses of antibiotics, so he said when I finally had the op my gallbladder was very infected and it had to be hacked out as I had attached itself onto something else. He told me about 6 months until I start to feel better. I was recommended something to help bind the fatty acids which the functioning gallbladder would normally help with called Ultra Enzyme Plus sold on Amazon. I am also taking Acidophilus from Holland and Barrett. How did you got about finding about local acupuncture? Xxx
    • Posted

      Hi Natasha I am also taking probiotics and also psyllium husk powder with digestive enzymes in it as I had diarrhea the first 6 weeks. I'm afraid to stop the psyllium husk in case the diarrhea comes back. I was very disappointed with my surgeon who I've known the last 23 years as he told me side effects were rare and then when I ended up in hospital twice after the operation with the vomiting he kept saying it couldn't be from the gallbladder! I was left for a week in hospital getting injection after injection and test after test and then I just broke down as they weren't giving me any answers. They got a pyschiatrist to see me!! She was great and told me there was nothing wrong with my mind at all which I already knew and she said I was being treated terribly and getting no answers. She demanded the top gi doc here in Ireland see me and he then told me it was a side effect of the operation. They had me on zofran and stemetil injections and then xanax the anxiety drug to stop me getting sick. I was drugged out of it!! I was in for 3 weeks. Natasha I have spoken to so many people who were also put on anxiety drugs when this happened to them too. I've never had anxiety in my life and it was absolutely horrendous and I actually think the drugs made it worse. The turning point for me was when I met a woman in hospital who the very same thing happened to 4 years ago. She reassured me and said it would settle down but would take time and was a gradual process. She lived on liga and farleys rusk for 4-5 months after the op. She did eventually fully recover and can eat anything now. I had my operation 6 months ago next Tuesday. It's been the worst 6 months of my life. You could try googling acupunture in your area. A neighbour of mine told me about the acupuncturist I go too and she's so good and very genuine and really wants to help me. My gp had a patient who had vomiting and diarrhea for 8 months and it stopped and she's fine now. Poor woman had 3 small kids to look after. The most important thing is to try and be positive which I found very difficult. My gp has been a great support and keeps telling me I will recover. Thankfully I'm a lot better but not 100%. Just have heartburn now but she said that will settle too. Just keep telling yourself you will get better and remember your not on your own. Xx
    • Posted

      Thank you, I will look into all the info you've given me and for all your advice. It's good to know you don't suffer alone xxx
  • Posted

    Hi i just like you still suffer with all those symptoms that you are suffering with. I had mine out april 2014 since then in the last 12 months i have been admitted to hospital 11 times. I am also at my wits end and getting really depressed now. I feel i have no life every day is a struggle i am still suffering now and i pray yours will get better as i wouldnt wish it in anybody. I have now been referred to a different hospital to see a professor on 22nd june and im not leaving till someone does something because i cant cope anymore. When i finally fond out what is causing this i will let you know. The people in this forum are really nice and have given me lots of useful information on what could be causing my symptoms so i have wrote it all down and i am taking it to my appointment with me. I to just like you felt so relieved when i was going to theatre i thought finally this will all be over but i couldnt have been more wrong. If i knew what i know now back then i wouldnt have let them take mine out. I really hope you dont suffer like i have been doing for the last 13 months. Ive got to the point im scared of eating but then i think just try abit of something because i need something for energy to be able to look after my little boy but no sooner do i eat it all the symptoms start again its like a nightmare that im never going to wake from. I really hope and wish you get better soon
    • Posted

      How awful coral2786, I really feel for you. You expect it to be an end to the situation, nobody prepares you for the symptoms to persist after its removal. It seems really stage to experience pain where there is no organ!! Let me know how it goes, as I'm pushing to be re-scanned to make sure there isn't anything else going on. I can completely relate to the nightmare comment. I so hope you get some answers and start to recover xxx
    • Posted

      Exactly i thought once they removed it that was it nobody told me the side effects you can get afterwards. Its horrible i hope you get sorted to. I would definately push for another scan and blood tests. Yeah any info i find out from this professor i will post on the forun as someone may find it useful
  • Posted

    It too me almost two and a half months to be rid of most of the pain  and gas.  I am  still tired!  Good luck.  
    • Posted

      Hi phil97225, I was quite lucky to not be in too much pain after the surgery, but get pain where the gallbladder used to be! Strange as it no longer exists! I didn't really suffer from the gas they explained I would get, so in that respect I was quite lucky. How long ago did you have yours removed? Xxx
    • Posted

      March 13...That is really good.  The gas  caused me incredible pain.  Continued good luck!  

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