Real Life after gallbladder removal .

I was also 53 when I had my gall bladder removed - I work out every day and eat healthy too.   I have not gained weight, but I am very careful about what I eat and I have increased the amount of cardio that I do every day to keep my weight down.    At 53, there are a lot of hormonal changes that also can cause weight gain (it's not the greatest time in life to have gall bladder issues).   If you do have some weight issues, keep in mind, they may not be from the gall bladder removal- almost all the women I know have had to battle weight gain during menopause.

If you had laparoscopic surgery,  then you are supposed to wait a week before resuming normal activities (but you should double check with your doctor).   If you had open surgery, you will need to check with your Dr because the recovery time is much longer  (I had open surgery and it was 2 weeks before I could walk on a treadmill, 4 weeks before I could run,  2 months before I could lift weights and 6 months before I could do abdominal work, other than planks)

As far as eating habits go,  I had to completely modify how I eat after the surgery.   I don't eat a lot at one time (I need to have smaller portions).   I had to increase my fiber intake to 40 to 60 grams a day (that helps prevent runny stools).  I take probiotics and I also take digestive enzymes if my stomach is bothering me  (they really help with digestion).    I had really bad acid reflux after the surgery, and the probiotics and digestive enzymes took care of the problem (I didn't have to go on medication).   

When you cook, you should use coconut oil - it doesn't require bile to break down because  it is a medium chain fat.    If  I eat too much fat, my stomach bloats and my stools get soft and runny (even with all the fiber I am eating).  So, I make my own low fat versions of food I like.   I have figured out how to make low fat cream sauce that tastes good and I make low fat pizza (family members don't know they are low fat).  When I go out to eat, I stick with grilled food.  As far as weight gain goes, many people do gain weight -  if you watch what you eat and you work out, you should be fine.  Make sure you check with your doctor before you start exercising again!   You should also talk to them if you have any issues or problems   

i don’t think you should be doing squats or dumbbell weights at all !!

theirs a lady on here named lynda.

who repeatedly says you only get one chance to heal so do not mess it up !

and personally I am ten weeks post opp and taking her advice !!

i have gained over a stone 16 lbs so far but I wanted to gain so much as I lost like 67lb 

throughout my illness prior to surgery.

i really do think you should give yr body a chance at healing but just my opinion.

and if that pic is of you their with the sunglasses on ?

i see no weight issue whatsoever..

pic is fab .

you look fab.

enjoy trip to Walmart.

nd pls slow down

Hi, here is my experience and what is currently happening to me.  I am 49 years old, had my gall bladder removed last June.  I had stones and leaking.  After having it removed for I would say about a month and a half I had the usual symptoms that everyone describes post surgery, some diarrhea when eating certain things, a little pain if I ate anything I shouldn't.  For a while I could not tolerate lettuce.  But then everything got better and was normal, I could pretty much eat whatever I wanted with no ill effects.  Or so I thought!  Looking back I can see that things were happening that I didn't notice.  For instance, prior to having my gall bladder removed I ate terrible, lots of junk food, fast food, sweets, greasy, spicy, etc., huge meals.  Then once I had my worst GB attack and ended up on morphine I shaped up and began eating a low fat diet, cutting out all the junk and fried foods, etc.  I ate very small meals, several times a day.  I lost 40 lbs in about 2 months!!!  (I had to wait about a month to have my surgery so I ate like this during all that time) I stayed on this "diet" (about 1,000 calories a day) for a couple months after my surgery.  Oh and I should also mention I had problems with eczema, rashes, also diagnosed with very bad anemia for which I now receive iron infusions.  I was hopeful I would stay on the diet for the rest of my life but unfortunately what happened was that my appetite came back and so did the cravings for junk.  And because I was assuming I could just eat whatever I went back to eating fried, greasy, etc stuff.

So now, 1 year later, I have regained all my lost weight and then some.  I am having twice yearly at least, iron infusions because I am so anemic.  I have eczema on my hands so bad I want to cry.  I now have a new rash on either side of my neck that wasn't there before.  My skin and hair are dry and brittle and look terrible.  I have nearly constant watery diarrhea every single day, horrible heartburn and indigestion and pain where my gall bladder was.  Plus I am very fatigued and depressed and have lots of anxiety.  It took a while for the symptoms of eating badly to come back but come back they did.  I wish someone had warned me that even if it seems you can eat however you like after you have your gb out it just isn't true.  Sooner or later it catches up with you.

I am actually wondering if I have some sort of gluten intolerance but have never been tested. I am going back to eating how I did before, cutting out all the crap except on rare special occasions, then I guess I will just have to decide what events are worth suffering for!  I am going to try to eat organic and possibly gluten free, at least partially and see if that helps.  I guess the fact is that we may not need our gb's but we are less one major organ and it's bound to change our lives in some way.  At least I know if I eat better I will improve my overall health.  

Hope that helps a little with your own case, I too am very interested in hearing how others are faring without a gall bladder!