Newby Gallbladder operation still waiting nearly a year on .

Nhs are stretched to the limit. I am lucky I have private medical insurance through work so from diagnosis to actual op was 3 weeks.

However a friend of mine her husband who we diagnosed just after me waited over 8 months on NHS he was hospitalised several times and ended up with pancreatitis twice and by the time if his op his gallbladder was so infected he had to have open surgery to remove it !

Hope you get yourself sorted soon .

Hi. I had my gallbladder surgery two weeks ago after only a 4 month wait. Still feel a bit sore on incision wounds but no pain at all and I can now eat pretty much anything. I think it's a postcode lottery and I must just be lucky to live where I do. Also for the past six months I have been taking peppermint capsules from Holland and Barrett which definitely helped with the bloating and wind. Hope you get sorted soon - Its such a relief not to be suffering.

Definitely think I got lucky as well. From diagnosis to op was 2.5 months. That was on second admission for cholecystitis. Think working for the nhs helped as the consultant asked if I’d been back at work in the 5-6 weeks since the previous admission and I hadn’t. He wanted me to get back to work as well. I had constant pretty severe pain and horrendous nausea so no way I could have worked feeling like that. There’s not enough staff to get people treated quickly enough. I really hope you get your gallbladder out soon!! xx

Hi Sarah, I feel your pain and it is a great forum, at least you know you are not going mad! It is extremely frustrating, it took me three months initially to get a scan which showed no stones. Long story but three years later I got it removed, I feel that unless you are an emergency these days you just roll around in the system, I don't like to run down the NHS but it is just so overloaded. Keep us up to speed with your progress

Regards

I had acute cholecystitis in early May of this year.  Scan showed multiple stones and thickened gallbladder.  Specialist recommended gall bladder removal and said it would be within 6 weeks.  Immediately went on to a very low fat diet.  Since then I have constant discomfort with periodic attacks of pain lasting up to an hour.  When chasing up after the 6 weeks had passed and no sign of operation, I was told it would be a minimum of another 3 months!  So still waiting for surgery appointment.  I am sure the diet helps but getting sick of chicken and white fish!  Also hate my life being on 'hold'.  Cannot plan ahead for anything as I do not know when surgery will be.  Heard today about someone who is still waiting after 12 months and is too ill to go to work,  which is worse than me.  Can't blame the doctors and nurses - this is all down to failures by successive governments.

Hi guys

Thanks your replys. After 3 months unable to work 2 stone and 800 calories a day I have my first day back in work . I need to have more carbs in my diet boulders my strength up . Had good day but I'm exhausted. Still I carry on washing ironing shopping bills list endless . The consequences are that I have burnt out . So I need to improve calories but obviously low fat and get strong .

As far as the nhs is concerned words fail me . My surgeon looks so exhausted I'm not even sure if want him to do my op .and I doughty very much if I have it this year . More scans given up what scan this one is . So I do have to take care of myself . If I am stronger and do my upmost on diet obviously I will need an op but I do having a feeling of dread that it is probably gona end bad .

I was seriously considering private and getting a bank loan but it could be upto 7 grand. I have ruled that out I don't trust them .

So tomorrow is me looking after my health then able to make better more control over decisions . Mind you I have to get up at 5 am a huge shock .

Anyway best wishes to you all . X

I was misdiagnosed for 2 years and treated for conditions I didn't have.

Short story version is finally after a consultant appointment where it was obvious he couldn't care less I became a very difficult patient.

I went back to my GP and got a referral to a different consultant at a different hospital where a non functioning gallbladder full of stones was found and removal was the only option.

At that point I used the NHS Choices website to research hospitals in my area and those within travelling distance, I looked at performance waiting lists etc.

Then I went back to my GP for a referral to the one with the shortest which happened to be a private hospital accepting NHS patients and waited 10 weeks which was the time it took the NHS to pay.

My operation was done by a consultant that also worked in one of my local NHS hospitals and also another private hospital. I guess he must have been pretty tired too

It's frustrating, annoying and at times exhausting to fight the system but you don't have to stick with one doctor, consultant or hospital.

Best Wishes