Nausea 12 weeks after gallbladder removal
Posted , 108 users are following.
Had my gallbladder removed 12 weeks ago due to pain from 1 large stone. Had the dreaded diarrhea for 8 weeks but has settled. Have the most horrendous nausea I have ever experienced. It's worse in the mornings and I can hardly get out of bed its that bad. Some days it goes by lunchtime and I feel ok and other days it lingers until the evening and then I feel ok. Was back in hospital last week and other than a little gastritis everything is ok. My surgeon said it will go in time. I am just wondering if this happened to anyone else and how long did it take to go. Its starting to depress me now!
7 likes, 598 replies
nancy76309 Acejohnston
Posted
I took your advice and am doing acupuncture. I have had one session and felt good the rest of the day. I will continue to go and hope for the best. I have also found that massage therapy helps for that day only.
This is 19 months now and that doesn't count the many months prior to surgery that were awful. All the many doctors I have seen say they see reflux and bile, but that's all. I am taking Welchol, Carafate, Nexium, asprin, anti-depressat and as of two days ago a very small dose of Amytriptline to relax my esophagus. Eight times a day
I take time sensitive and food sensitive meds. I am consumed with this. The worst
part is, I still feel awful; as Michelle wrote, it's like being "car sick".
Can you tell me how long you did acupuncture? Also, I would like to know if any one on this forum feels better in the late afternoon and evening. Has anyone gone 2 years before they could resume their normal life?
michelle99975 nancy76309
Posted
Hi Nancy! I do start to feel better in the afternoon and evening! I keep telling myself that each morning. I haven't tried acupuncture though - sounds interesting!
nancy76309 michelle99975
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I have only had one treatment. I'll let you how it went at the end of treatments.
Acejohnston nancy76309
Posted
Hi Nancy my symptoms were worse in the morning and got better as the day went on. It was like extreme morning sickness. I would wake at 4am every day feeling so sick. I did the acupuncture for over 9 months. Do you have any hormonal symptoms? I also had a large cyst on my ovary which I believe contributed to my symptoms and I found the acupuncture helped both. I know a number of people who had digestive issues for 2 years afterwards and then it settled down. I was also on bile binders for the diarrhea but they made me feel worse so I took psyllium husk fibre instead. I don't need it now and get constipated quite often now. I had nausea prior to my gallbladder removal too and I thought it was because of the gallstone but I now believe fluctuation of hormones was definitely causing my problems as I'm still dealing with hormone problems which worsened after the surgery. Try not to loose hope. They say two years for some people's body to adjust. Take care x
nancy76309 Acejohnston
Posted
I don't think I have hormonal symptoms, but I'm not sure what harmonal symptoms are. I will Google to find out.
Does psyllium husk fiber require that you not take any meds 4 to 6 hours before or after? This makes it really tough when you are taking so many other meds, and Welchol (binds) does have that requirement.
You mentioned that you did acupuncture for 9 months. How many times a week did you have it? I am traveling 6 hours for a treatment and would like to think I won't have to go too many times a week. Although, at this point, I will do anything.
Thank you again for all the information and for taking the time to respons.
Acejohnston
Posted
Sorry only replying to you all now. My husband was diagnosed with Lyme disease just before Christmas and is very unwell so I don't get to check my mails as often as I used too. Firstly I did acupuncture once a week for nine months. It definitely helped me. I also take probiotics and have done for years. I took psyllium husk for over a year for the bile diarrhea. I tried welchol and questran powder but they didn't help much and they also can deplete your body of many vitamins and mineral so anyone taking these meds needs to take a good multivitamin. I developed bad anxiety after my gallbladder surgery due to the vomiting and nausea and diarrhea and was prescribed Xanax and mirap which I stopped taking after a few weeks. I wanted to find out what was causing my symptoms and what caused my gallbladder problems. I had been on hormone meds prior to my surgery and also nexium. Both meds are commonly linked to increase risk of gallbladder problems. Anyone taking any form of hormone med is at increased risk of gallbladder issues. Most hormone meds increase estrogen and excess estrogen and low progesterone are the main cause of gallbladder issues. My surgeon told me this on the operating table. Women are at a high risk also during peri menopause due to fluctuation of estrogen and low progesterone levels which can be made worse by adding hormone meds into the mix. Most of us need more progesterone to counteract the estrogen. I had nausea prior to the surgery which I had assumed was due to the gallstone. However I now know that nausea is also a symptom of hormone imbalance and after having a series of saliva tests to check my hormone levels it was confirmed I am near menopause at 45. The liver is already under stress from the fluctuation of hormones and bile becomes thick causing gallstones and gallbladder inflammation. Removing the gallbladder in my case just made my hormone imbalance worse.i don't take any prescription meds only natural remedies as they only made me feel worse. For the Nausea I took ginger tea and had acupuncture and took probiotics and psyllium husk powder with digestive enzymes. Digestive enzymes are very important when you don't have a gallbladder as it helps break down the fats in our food. I can eat what I want now but I do get constipated a lot but I know it's connected to my hormones as it happens as certain times in my cycle. I am still suffering from hormone symptoms but take organic multivitamins and high strength b complex and b 6 which really help and I can function normally. I just wish doctors treated the cause of these issues and not the symptom. I also wore acupressure bands on my wrists which helped too. I avoid all dairy and wheat and sugar too which helped and ate only organic food were possible. Most people do recover from this surgery but it takes time and for some it takes longer then others. I do know some people who took two years to recover and I also know a small few who have had life long issues. Nancy I took the psyllium instead of the binders and the one I took had digestive enzymes in it too. It worked better for me than the binders. I think what's most important is to try and find the root cause of your issues whether that's taking hormone meds in my case or an underlying hormone problem. Seeing an alternative clinic who specialised in women's health was were I found my answers. There is a fantastic menopause group here and the number of women suffering from gallbladder issues or who've had their gallbladder removed is astonishing. Keep positive and remember your liver has to adjust to life without a gallbladder. This takes time and some help. X
Acejohnston
Posted
nancy76309 Acejohnston
Posted
Lyme disease! I imagine he does feel sick. I do hope he responds well to treatment.
Your family has had more than its share of illness.
Can you give me the name of the Alternative Women's Clinic? I am on the east coast, but will travel any where for relief. I'll also look around here to see what I can find. I have found an acupuncturist much closer to home and will start there next week.
All of what you did sounds like something I would like to try. If the meds did any good in the beginning, I have plateaued for the last four or five months and need to go in another direction.
I know you have your hands full and it must be difficult for you to have the time to write, but please know how much I appreciate all your efforts.
casey34288 nancy76309
Posted
nancy76309 casey34288
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They really don't say much. All tests are good and only show reflux and bile. It is silent reflux so I don't throw up, just nausea and feel bad. I have been to 4 gastro doctors in major hospitals.
casey34288 nancy76309
Posted
I guess they haven't ever seen this before after gallbladder removal?
nancy76309 casey34288
Posted
Yes I think they have. I don't think your situation is so unusual although maybe not typical. It hasn't been that long since your gb came out and as you can see from this forum many others have the same. It's just going to take time for your body to adjust.
Many years ago I got nausated when I ate. Nothing showed up on tests and I lived on saltines and Lipton soup. I went from 120 to 103. The doctor told me that gastric problems were sometimes hard to diagnose and that it would go away. 4 months later it went away as mysteriously as it came.
Your body is adjusting and it will take some time but you will feel better.
casey34288 nancy76309
Posted
Thank you Nancy for your encouragement! I have had 3 Drs tell me it will go in time so I'm trying to believe that! Maybe getting back on dexilant would help you since they saw bile in your stomach! It seems to help me
nancy76309 casey34288
Posted
Acejohnston nancy76309
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Nancy so sorry am only getting back to you now. My husband isn't responding to treatment at all. He has never been sick in his life and began loosing his hair last September and then slowly over 6 weeks he lost his hair and started feeling very unwell and collapsed and was in hospital for a number of weeks. I am in Ireland and the hedktj system isn't great at all. We had to wait until the week before Christmas to get the results but he's not responding to the antibiotics so we sent bloods to Germany to have tested for further infections, we may have to travel to Germany or the Czech Republic to get treatment. We will know next week. Where are you living? The clinic I went too have clinics all over the place. The woman who owns the clinic is a world renowned expert on women's health. I wish I had gone to the clinic prior to the surgery as my hormone symptoms got dramatically worse after the surgery. It's well worth going and getting another opinion. Take care xxx
nancy76309 casey34288
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Did the Dexilant work?
casey34288 nancy76309
Posted
I've been taking it for a month, 4 days after I started I was nausea free for 2 weeks but the last 2 weeks it came back fiercely with vomiting and diarrhea so I have continued to take it per my Drs orders. She said that I have an over production of bile and that getting off dexilant may make it worse with the nausea
casey34288 nancy76309
Posted
It's been 13 weeks since Thur and I'm still as sick as ever. Waking up a 4 am with the nausea and throwing up or dry heaving. I keep ensure and bananas, sometimes a pbandj sandwich down. I'm getting really scared that this isn't going away, no meds work. Started back on the dexilant this am in hopes that it helps. Pray for me! I hope you have had some improvement, I'm fighting going to the hospital!
Acejohnston casey34288
Posted
Casey I'm so sorry to read this. It will go away but it's going to take time and won't happen overnight. No meds worked for me either and that's why I went down the natural road. Prop your pillows up in your bed so your sleeping with your head up. I would wake at 4am every night too. They call it the liver hour. Have you tried milk thistle or b6? You need something to help your liver and these can help. Has the diarrhea settled down? Big hugs to you. Try and stay positive. It's hard but it will pass. X
casey34288 Acejohnston
Posted
I have been taking milk thistle and ordered some b 6. I also take a prenatal vitamin. Thank you for all your support. It's life changing to have this nausea. No one understands u less they have had it