Question about recovery from gallbladder surgery?

[lakoda]

I wanted to mention that gall bladder surgery can be different for everyone. The biggest factors affecting recovery are likely to be your age and health status (being overweight might make recovery longer - the incisions go through more layers). I took longer to recover - the incisions healed quickly but the soreness and the fatigue took longer to resolve.

To the OP - I think getting it done quicker is the safest route! It will also leave you less time to worry about it! I was so relieved when it was over. Good luck and have a wonderful vacation.

 

[PanandCindy'smom]

Congrats on getting the surgery moved up! I had my gallbladder out almost exactly one year ago. I had miserable pain everyday before it came out and feel so much better after! I hope you have success.

As for the recovery, I was told by so many people that it was such an easy surgery and that I would be fine the next day. Not the case. (I am pretty tolerant to pain as I had horribly painful attacks for almost a year. They were so bad, I would end up in the ER, doubled over, puking, dehydrated and in pain and got pretty heavy duty drugs to feel better. So not a pain sissy here. I also have had 2 c-sections.) I would have another c-section instead of having the gallbladder removed after my experience. Not trying to scare you, I was not in horrible, awful pain, but I was led to believe that I would be feeling fantastic the next day and ready for a marathon or something. I needed to take pain pills for about 3 days. I took nothing but Tylenol after my babies. I was back to doing things around the house after about 2 days and went on a preschool field trip 5 days post op so it was not horrible. I really am not trying to scare or worry you, I just want to warn others that it is not always as easy as they say.

I'm not sure why I had such a tough recovery. I was very underweight when I went in, had a 2 year old and a 1 year old at home, so maybe it was everything catching up with me. (Oh how I loved that drug induced sleep without kids waking me up!!!) I have gained weight since, but I really needed to. I had to watch what I ate for the first few months because I wasn't sure how my digestive track was going to respond. All is good now!

Enjoy your trip and just think of how much fun it will be to eat things without fear of an attack! Life is good!

 

[o2bacelt]

My dad (who just turn 63 today) had his gall bladder out ten days ago. He was cleared to lift things on Friday. He's a little tired still but doing fine, he's been chomping at the bit to get some stuff done, my mom has had to ride him to make sure he was not lifting things.

Good luck on Wednesday and have a great trip!

 

[Tinker'n'Fun]

You can never tell. For me recovery was slow... Pain and fatigue was at least three weeks. The ability to digest food and eat normal - 8 months... Everyone is different. Hope that your recovery is quick and easy... I would be careful with fried foods for a bit though!

 

[NJMomma]

I had my gallbladder out due to multiple stones and chronic inflammation about 2 1/2 weeks ago. It was done laproscopically. I was at the surgical center on a Wednesday at 6am and home by 11:30 am. I have two small incisions on the right side, one small to med. sized incision dead center and the belly button incision. It was painful for the first few days, and believe me I took those percocets every 4 hours on the dot for about 3 days. However, by the following Monday I felt much better. I was pretty much back to normal after a week, and by 2 weeks I'd say I was functioning at about 95%. I am lucky to have had no problems with digestive issues afterwards. The doc stays to stay with lo-fat foods to avoid problems, but I confess to eating McDonald's with no adverse effects last night. After the surgery, you have to stick to foods that are easy to digest. Now, I have reintroduced almost all foods except pizza (pizza made my stones unhappy, it's really just a mental block now), beans and other gas producers (cabbage, broccoli). I can have anything really. My tips: lots of soup the first few days, take extra Vit C and a good mulitvitamin, use use a heating pad after day 1 (use ice on day 1). Now, my stitches are irritating me a tiny, tiny bit, but that's it. Everyone is different and some people bounce back faster than others. I still have weight restrictions about what I can lift, and I can't walk the dog yet (he's a big boy). Please PM me if you have any questions. Good luck

 

[DisneyBrat]

I had my gallbladder out last year.. Just don't do what I did. I felt GREAT the day I got out of the hospital(they kept me overnight) I went to the pharmacy to get my meds with my mom then later that night went to Target looking around while ridding an electric wheel chair. I was like WOW this is a piece of cake until I woke up the next morning in so much pain and felt like a ton of bricks had hit me. I took about a month to get to where I felt good. I can't even imagine trying to go to Disney after a few short weeks. My whole body's system changed. Be prepared that after you eat you WILL need a bathroom and there had better be one near by!!!! Good Luck! Just wanted to tell you a flip side of this surgery... I had read where this was a easy peasy thing well unfortunatly it wasn't my experience....


Lew

 

[luvpoohbear]

I had my gallbladder removed in 2002. Unfortunately I had let my situation go too far and I ended up with Pancreatitis. (One of the stones had got into my bile duct.) I was in the hospital for a couple of days before the surgery.

I walked doubled over for the first 2 weeks after the surgery. When I went for a follow-up with the surgeon I told him I didn't understand why I was still so sore. He laughed and said "well let's put it this way, think of it like we drove 4 tent stakes into your abdomen!" Not a pretty thought, but don't be surprised when you are still really sore a few weeks afterward. I also agree with a previous post about having a restroom near by when you start eating "normal" again.

I think having the surgery earlier is definitely a great idea! No worries though, you will do awesome!!!!

Welcome to the GallbladderLess Club!!!

 

[audrey444]

Add me as another for two weeks to get back to functional. After that, I needed to be near a bathroom after every meal. I knew were all the bathrooms were at my favorite public places, and even found a few private ones (single stalls) as well. That went on for about seven years until I got pregnant. Then my system seemed to slow down and not care so much about what I ate. If I were you, I'd just be careful not to eat too much fried foods or highly fatty foods. You'll learn pretty quickly what sets you off. You might want to take a box of saltines and a jar of peanut butter until you figure out what is safe.

 

[lntsmom]

I don't have the "easy recovery" story. I wasn't diagnosed with gallbladder problems until the day before mine was taken out. During the surgery it disolved...exploded, basically. I started with the laproscopic version of the surgery and then they switched to an "open".

I spend 9 days in the hospital NPO. After that, I was at home for another 6 weeks.

Complications....

 

[EnchantedPrincess]

I guess I am now part of the gallbladderless club! I had my surgery on Wednesday at 9:30am, and they let me go home at 12:15am. I am still in quite a bit of pain especially when I sit up, but overall, I am doing pretty good and feel pretty ok. My doctor has put me on a restricted diet for for now and I go back for my follow-up on Friday.

Jenny

 

[Avonlady1001]

I guess I am now part of the gallbladderless club! I had my surgery on Wednesday at 9:30am, and they let me go home at 12:15am. I am still in quite a bit of pain especially when I sit up, but overall, I am doing pretty good and feel pretty ok. My doctor has put me on a restricted diet for for now and I go back for my follow-up on Friday.

Jenny

Glad it went well! Take it easy and remember, every day is a little better! Feel better soon!!

 

[edit1]

I guess I am now part of the gallbladderless club! I had my surgery on Wednesday at 9:30am, and they let me go home at 12:15am. I am still in quite a bit of pain especially when I sit up, but overall, I am doing pretty good and feel pretty ok. My doctor has put me on a restricted diet for for now and I go back for my follow-up on Friday.

Jenny

I'm glad you're doing well. Wishing you a speedy recovery!

 

[Disneymom2kiddos]

Very easy recovery! I had mine out 2 mos after giving birth on a Friday, and was back to work on Monday. I was a little tired, but it's hard to attribute that to the surgery with a newborn! Just be careful not to lift anything too heavy (I think my doctor said no more than 10 lbs) for a couple of days. Really it was no big deal. Good Luck!

 

[crewriam816]

I had mine 2 years ago, almost 3 years ago. And I had over 75 gall stones (they stopped counting at that point). I was in so much pain from them that when I had the surgery, I can tell you, the only thing that hurt was my belly, and my back from being hunched over. I didnt really take it easy. I was walking around the next day. It was also in July, so i was on vacation, and I had quit work because of the pain i was in, and the affect it was also having on my back. I just couldnt sit and lay all day. I needed the pain killers once a day, and was back on my feet and not hunched over by the end of that week. I wish I took a few mroe days to myself, but hey, nothing can be done now. I'd say give yourself atleast 5 days of being pampered, and then for the next coupel days, get yourself up and start packing. You'll be relaxed, pain free, and if you need a couple more days of relaxation before your trip, you'll have them.
I learned the following year, when I had surgery (d&c) last august to take my time getting back on my feet. I took 2 weeks off. The first week was more of a grievance period for me though because we lost 2 babies that never miscarried, their hearts just stopped. So take it easy! Dont rush or you'll feel worse.

 

[jlcd]

Glad its over for you! Get some rest and have a great trip to Disney!!

 

[Mrs D]

Grats on a successful surgery!
I had mine out in 2005 while 5 months pregnant (they said that was the best time if you must do it during a pregnancy, baby was old enough for me to receive anesthesia and still small enough to get the gallbladder out). It probably better that you have more time to return to normal before your vacation. Just take it easy with foods; I too had a difficult time with lettuce and melons. I found that oatmeal helps things stick together while digesting (a good thing). My friend still can't do spicy foods after her surgery. Overall I don't have to limit any foods, but can still have times where a food while effect me, nothing too dramatic though.
Best wishes on your recovery and holiday!

 

[PrincessKsMom]

Had my gallbladder out a year ago, this past January. I was out of work for two weeks. At the end of two weeks I went back to work (commuting into New York City.) I will say I probably could have gone back to work a week earlier, but didn't want to push it. It took about another week after returning to work before I felt like I had all my energy back. I will say though, that I had MAJOR issues after surgery with diarrhea (?). Every time I drank or ate ANYTHING, I would be in the bathroom, which finally caused bleeding from hemmeroids (I KNOW -- WAY TOO MUCH INFORMATION! ), but my point in sharing this with you is, my doctor told me there wouldn't be any issues after surgery. When I finally called in a panic over the bleeding, he then told me that it's a common after surgery issue and gave me a prescription for Cholestyramine, which immediately worked. I'm still taking it most days of the week, but the alternative is not a place I'd like to go back to.

 

[Mandy_in_NC]

I am glad I read these posts as I am scheduled for gall bladder surgery later this month. My doctor recommends a very low fat diet for the first two months as the body adjusts. I just saw a dietican last week for ways on making my diet more low in fat. I am very nervous about the surgery and recovery and it's good to hear from so many of you that went through it.
Can I ask if anyone had the surgery due to a poorly functioning gall bladder and not gallstones?

I did. My just did not work and I had to pitch a fit to get my gallbladder function tested.

 

[cherbear]

I guess I am now part of the gallbladderless club! I had my surgery on Wednesday at 9:30am, and they let me go home at 12:15am. I am still in quite a bit of pain especially when I sit up, but overall, I am doing pretty good and feel pretty ok. My doctor has put me on a restricted diet for for now and I go back for my follow-up on Friday.

Jenny

Hi, I just found this thread. I've been going through problems for over a year now. When I had my most recent "attacks" I researched and realized what the problem must be--my gallbladder.

Ultrasound showed nothing, so I had a HIDA scan last Friday and I'm still awaiting results. I started a thread about my situation a few weeks ago and have been tracking the progress of this, and hearing from a lot of nice people about their experiences. So I sought out more threads on the subject, and low and behold I found you here.
If you're interested in reading, my thread is here:
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1823503

So, you haven't posted in a few weeks. How are you feeling? And how is the vacation planning going? I hope you are 100% better now!

 

[Jacob'sMom]

I am so glad I found this thread. My doctor has suggested having my gallbladder removed. I was under the impression that the recovery would be a day or two when it sounds like it will actually be a week or two.

I do not have stones. I had an ultrasound and the nuclear scan and found that my gallbladder is not functioning properly. I am not in a lot of pain. It is really just nagging pain. I was experiencing pain in my upper right side, almost shoulder but that pain has gone away.

It sounds like I better get this taken care of before it does get bad.