Oh No! Gallbladder surgery yesterday!

[kyhardy]

We leave for WDW 9-6 and I just had Gallbladder surgery yesterday. I am home and feeling pretty good, mostly sore and a little weak. Just wondering if anyone else has found themselves in a similar situation and how you did with the walking and rides? Sadly since DH had to be away from work for several days DD surprise B-day trip is now off Thanks for your help and advice.

 

[Navywife508]

I had that surgery 2 years ago,4 weeks after having DS. I was fine the week after. If you just take your time and maybe not ride some of the rough rides you should be just fine.

 

[Pixiedust34]

When I had my GB removed we went to WDW about 3 weeks after that and I did all of the rides/walking just fine.

Two weeks is a pretty good recovery period. Just make sure you take care of yourself--no lifting, bending, etc. for 2 weeks. By the time your vacation rolls around, you should be in OK shape for the trip. Perhaps you can schedule an appt. with your doctor right before you go so you can touch base with him about your recovery and ask if there are any restrictions you should keep in mind.

You might want to maintain a lowfat diet while at WDW as your digestive system will still be getting used to the loss of the gall bladder.

I hope you have a great vacation! Get well soon!

 

[brandylouwho]

I know there are many variables (such as your age and how sick you were/how bad the gallbladder sitaution was) but here are my & my mom's experiences:

I was 27 and had a bad infection when they took my gallbladder out (required a few days in the hospital). I felt pretty darn good within about 1 week and great after 2 weeks.

My mom was in her mid 40s and only required outpatient surgery, she seemed back to normal within a week.

I think no heavy lifting was the main restriction (a good excuse to make someone else carry your luggage ). I would have/could have done WDW after 2 weeks.

and this may be TMI, but my body did respond differently to eating, greasy foods especially, after my surgery--and still does to some extent (need a potty break relatively soon afterwards).

Have fun !!!!

 

[Fantasmiss]

I think it's REALLY important that you ask your doctor about it unless you already have Hope you recover very quickly and that you'll have a fantasmic time in WDW!

We leave for WDW 9-6 and I just had Gallbladder surgery yesterday. I am home and feeling pretty good, mostly sore and a little weak. Just wondering if anyone else has found themselves in a similar situation and how you did with the walking and rides? Sadly since DH had to be away from work for several days DD surprise B-day trip is now off Thanks for your help and advice.

 

[Praying Colonel]

Hey, fellow Kentuckian!

I had mine out laproscopically in '97. I was back to work about 10 days later, but I didn't feel great and tired out easily. As you can tell from the responses you've had so far, different folks recover from this surgery at different rates. I'd check with my Doc and see what he has to say about it.

 

[IndyJammer]

I had mine out at the beginning of March in '04 - and went to WDW 3 weeks later. The hardest part for me was the ride down & back! Just sitting in one position for a long time & then moving to a different position was tough. But, I had NO problems in WDW itself - even still rode all the roller coasters with DS13!

Good luck & hope you heal quickly!

 

[algg]

How about renting a scooter, that way you don't have to walk and you can enjoy all the rides. Your daugher will love riding on it with you and if you are staying at one of the resorts you can rent for entire time you are down there, this is usually cheaper then renting by the day. Have fun and enjoy.

 

[jlynne01]

I didnt go to wdw after mine but I did have small children to take care of alone.
They sent me home the same night I had the surgery and that evening and the next day I was a sore but within the first few days I was feeling pretty close to normal and by the end of the first week I couldnt tell I had surgery at all except for the scars..
I woke up from the surgery in more pain then I did when I had c-section though...

You did have Laparoscopic surgery right?
They had to open my Mom up completely and her recovery time was much longer.

 

[Nee Nee and Biddy]

I had mine taken out when I was 18 on a Monday, and I was back at work on Friday! Granted, I was 18 and a crazy college kid. I had a summer job at Honey Baked Ham and I was back to normal in 4 days! I think you should be fine by 9-6. Have a great trip!

 

[joviroxx]

When I had mine taken out last year, I was home the same day. Scheduled it on a Friday and was back to work on Monday. Physically I was fine within about a week. The only thing that I did notice was that it took about 4-6 weeks to fully get back ALL my energy. I would tire easily but not enough that it would have stopped me at Disney!

 

[SueM in MN]

How about renting a scooter, that way you don't have to walk and you can enjoy all the rides. Your daugher will love riding on it with you and if you are staying at one of the resorts you can rent for entire time you are down there, this is usually cheaper then renting by the day. Have fun and enjoy.

Even though it seems like it might be fun, that is not a safe thing to have a child ride on the ECV with you.
The parks and most of the off-site rental places have as part of the rental agreement that no one under the age of 18 will drive the ECV and there will be no passengers. The instruction manuals for all power wheelchairs and ECVs also warn against having any riders.
Many people have seen accidents and near accidents caused by having a child riding. If the child gets excited and points, they can bump the driver's arm and the ECV veers off in another direction. I've seen more than one person have that happen to them.
Also, people walk in front of the ECV and you may need to stop without warning. That could be a problem with a child riding and possibly falling if you need to make a sudden stop. I also saw a near accident where the ECV was stopped and the child was getting off. The person driving it didn't realize and almost hit the child. So, ECVs are great if you need one, but not for kids.

If you want some information (including links to places ECVs can be rented), follow the link in my signature to the disABILITIES FAQs thread. The information is in post #2.

 

[ssawka]

If the operation was Laparoscopy, then you should be up and moving about in a few days. I had my operation on a Thursday and was back to work on Monday. I barely even used the pain meds they gave me. Anyway, the worst part of the recovery (again, if laparoscopy) is the pain in your right shoulder. This lasted about a week or so. It hurts like h@!! and there is nothing you can do for it. No pain meds helped me. Anyway, I think you should be back to normal by your trip on 9/6.

 

[Cheshire Figment]

Several years ago I had a kidney removed. My surgeon told me that "for the next six months if I went to a park and there was a sign warning people with bad backs, heart conditions, or pregnant not to ride that the sign applied to me also".

I notice you have two trips coming up, one in two weeks and the other in 3½ months. For the one in two weeks I would very strongly suggest renting an ECV, preferably from an offsite location, for the entire trip. Some of the resorts it is a long way from the bus stop to the room. For the second trip you should be pretty well recovered for walking.

And as another poster mentioned, if you use an ECV it is unsafe to have any passenger on it, as well as a violation of the rental agreement.