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Ongoing Complications (1000+)
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I have been “recovering” from my lap chol for 10 weeks now. My pain is similar to what everyone is saying the upper right abd and rib area. It limits me from doing anything including working as it is illegal for me to take narcotics at work. I have been working with my surgeon and we have decided to run yet more tests… This time looking for a developed “tumor like mass” that may have developed from a cut nerve ending. This is removable with another surgery. I cant answer whether this is the cause for sure or if the removal of the mass and cauterizing of the nerve ending means pain relief. I do know that my “easy 4-6 week recovery” has kept me from working for 10 weeks. In my experience if your doctor is unwilling to help you find and fix the problem then get another doctor! Some surgeons will try not to take on patients that have had surgery from another surgeon epically those who work together in the hospital setting. You must know that it is your RIGHT to change doctors and get medical treatment. No one should have to live with chronic pain post operatively, this is crazy! Everyone deserves to have their quality of life back (minus the fatty foods) after such a “simple” surgery. In the medical setting those who get things done are the ones who respectfully demand the problem be solved. Good luck to all.
I have the exact same thing, pain on my right side, bra wire hurting my side and needing to lay on my side. I was given a medication called nortryptiline for nerve damage, try it, it helps. Good luck
“I WISH YOU LUCK, I HAD MY GALL BLADDER REMOVED 6 YRS AGO, I STILL
SUFFER FROM UNCONTROLLABLE DIARRHEA, I HAVE BEEN ON EVERY MED ON THE MARKET. RECENTLY I FOUND A XRAY REPORT IN MY CHART AND IT SHOWS THE CHOLECYSTECTOMY CLIPS ARE STILL PRESENT ALONG WITH A
RING LIKE METALLIC DENSITY OVER MY RIGHT ABDOMEN. THE OPERATION REPORT STATES THESE CLIPS WERE REMOVED??CAN YOU FIND OUT IF THEY REMOVED THESE CLIPS NORMALLY???? I WONDER WHY NOONE QUESTIONED THE METALLIC DENSITY ALSO. IS IT CUZ DRS DONT WANT TO QUESTION ANOTHER DRS WORK.”I had the same problems after my gallbladder was removed last December. It started about 3-4 weeks after it was taken out. I would have to race to the bathroom every time I ate anything at all and my BM’s would be yellow diarrhea or just straight up water. It wouldn’t be one trip either, I would have to go 4 or 5 times in an hour or two. I would be afraid to eat anything in the mornings for fear of having to go while driving on the way to class. It got almost debilitating. There were times I had to pull over to stores and stay at the bathroom until my stomach calmed down. One time I had to stay at a Rite-Aid for an hour because of this, I bought Imodium just to be able to go home and I seriously considered buying Depends for the car ride. I never wanted to leave the house.I dealt with this for about 2 months and then I saw a GI Doctor and was diagnosed with bile salt diarrhea as an after effect of loosing the gallbladder. He said 5-10% of people get it after having the gallbladder removed and most peoples’ bodies adjust themselves after a year or two, although some don’t adjust. He gave me a cholesterol medicine, Cholesthyramine, in powder form to control my stomach, since it would bind up bile salts. I later switched to a pill form called Cholestipol. They work really well for me and I have only had one case of diarrhea in about 4 months. I do have to look out for constipation, but I consider that a lot better than the alternative.
“Get tested for food allergies. It may not be the cause of your pain but you never know. I’m thankful an ER doc suggested I do that!
Long story, but I had my gallbladder out and was still having horrible stomach pains which felt like gallbladder attacks frequently. I also had stomach cramps more often than not.
I found out I have severe allergies to beef and pork and moderate to mild allergies to other foods. When I eat beef or pork I have horrific abdominal pain which feels exaclty like a gallbladder attack.
I had been suffering through that for the last 10 yrs…I cut out all beef and pork over the summer and I have not had a stomach pain, twinge, cramp…etc. since then unless I’ve inadvertently eaten it (cross contamination).
It is so freeing to not deal with the discomfort and pain. I feel like a new person.”Reading your post made me feel a little better–my symptoms match yours almost exactly. I had my gallbladder out in in 1993, was diagnosed with IBS 2 years later, and I still had no idea the 2 events were related until I read this forum. I’ve been pretty lucky the last 11 years–not much has been going on. But suddenly I feel like I swallowed a wolverine and it’s turning around and around in there chewing on everything in sight: gut, mid-back, side back, right side, left side, etc. etc. I’m going in for an endoscopy tomorrow and I hope the GI specialist is helpful. Anyway, I hope someone gives you a good answer. I think I will also try the calcium–I didn’t know about that, either. Good luck!
Well, I had my gallbladder removed in 1994, and had pains for years after it was removed. Had a test done at Duke in 2005 to check the pancreas because of a study I am on,, and was told pancreas fine, but, a huge stone had been left in the bile duct. So, needless to say, had to have that removed. Hence the pain. No more! Amen!
“I had my GB removed in december 2010. ive had slightly odd symptoms as everyone else here and its been progressing since. it wasnt until about a month afterward i started feeling odd.
I would get uncontrollable jittery feeling on my insides that lasted anywhere from 20 minutes to an entire day. it was all over my abdomen. it didnt interfere in much, but if it was bad, it would wake me up. my doc attributed it to post gall surgery and the weirdness some people go through after having an organ removed. he said to let it go and deal with it for a couple of months and see if it subsides, and well sure enough, it did. it ended up associating itself to only when my bowels would change or hormonal changes at the end of a female cycle. this month, it was gone and it hasnt returned since. (thank goodness!) i think my doc was right on about that.
ive had ‘funkiness’ under my ribcage. not so much in my sternum, but if i push deep there i will feel pain, other than that, no pain right there. it feels almost like sandpaper some days – not painful, just a ‘there’ feeling. i would have some days where i would get a pain, and shortly later i would have diarrhea that would be yellowish but sometimes normal color.
2 weeks ago i started having quick ouch pains that would subside to a dull funky ache from the top of my ribcage (basically where i felt my gall bladder was before it was removed) down to the bottom on my side. it would come with slight indigestion and a little runny bowel. i recently pulled a muscle (im pretty sure thats what it was) in my right side of my back on top of my rib cage. it hurt for a few days but some alieve and heating pad, that went away. 7 days later it was back and i had the front rib pain with it. i dont know if it was associated with eachother, maybe just weird timing, but i mentioned it to my sister who had her gall removed years ago. she said to go to the doc and look into the possiblility of fatty liver disease because having your gall out can sometimes lead to that. maybe, i dont really buy that theory, but im going for the test anyway since its my around my rib cage that im having discomfort, so be it, i will deal with blood work and a ultrasound.
when she had hers removed, she hasnt had a normal bowel since. same with my brother. they run to the bathroom minutes after eating a meal, sometimes are constipated, both have told me that i will never have a normal bowel again, even if it appears to get normal, it will never be normal completely again.
i decided to do a 3 day liver flush. i would suggest this to anyone who is looking for a ‘cleansed’ feeling in their abdomen. so far so good, but i have been pooping yellow for 3 days! i havent had this since right before my GB surgery and for the 2 weeks following. hopefully it toxins flushing, i read to expect this nonetheless.
im one of the lucky ones who can alternate alieve and motrin to get rid of the discomfort without any side effects of taking them.
i do get these ‘pains’ associated with diet. i cant eat any green veggies, beans, fatty red meats, or anything greasy without causing discomfort.i may have developed a lactose intolerance due to this. i can manage to absorb the extra bile in my intestines by eating a baked potato like every other day. it helps stop up a bit of the runny poop and make the ‘spots’ feel better.
pre surgery i had an u/s and a ct scan and everything showed normal so im not thinking fatty liver, but you never know. i definitly feel clearer in my head and my stomach area since starting this cleanse. its worth a shot. it also got rid of that bloated feeling that some get associated with an ‘attack’.
i know i have to exercise more and get my belly down to a normal size and my weight down to not obese… i had 2 kids back to back so thats where my weight now came from but i was a yoyo dieter before. im doing nutrisystem, which has been killing me with the gas on top of post GB gas! i drink occasionally, once a week with the hubby, casual 5 beers on a saturday night without any adverse reactions, wine makes me constipated sometimes and runny others. its our thing, and i asked my doc if it would be ok, and he said its ok and it doesnt put me in the ‘drinker’ category that they would worry about liver problems being caused by it.
im trying milk thistle to help with aiding liver function too and that has seemed to help as well, well, thats at least until it comes back (hopefully it wont!)
we have to think here…. if you have elevated liver enzymes, which most of us probably will, our intestines absorbes all the good stuff and bad stuff, why wouldnt it absorb liver bile enzymes causing those levels to elevate as a result? hopefully now my bowels will go back to ‘normal’ for me after this cleanse and i will update after i speak to my doc about having the liver tests done!
again, sorry so long!!!!!!”
“Hello,
I totally understand all of YOU! I had my gallblader removed 8 years ago and the sympstoms only get worse! I am currently taking PROBIOTIC supplements(good bacteria) and digestive ENZYMES to help breakdown of food into nutrients. These two together will work wonders!!! I don’t have to be scared of leaving the house for long periods of time!!! The only thing is that if I forget the dose one day, I go back to the same thing.
Good luck and blessings to you all.”
“Hi – I am so excited about finding this subject. I use to think I was crazy that for some unknown reason I was gaining weight, regardless of eating/exercise.
I am almost 36, had my gallbladder/appendix removed almost six years ago in the late summer of 2003, following my second daughter, (that seems to be the norm for some women in the forums). I had lost almost all of my pregnancy weight except maybe ten pounds, had my GB out and slowly gained back all that I had lost, but figured it was just because I lost it too fast and not exercising enough now that I was older (I was now thirty and it had been over twelve years since my first daughter was born – big adjustment).
I had normally been 125/130 lbs. 5′ 5″” prior to GB and did gain a lot during my pregnancy due to the fact that I get extremely sick and throw up 24/7 the first five months of preg. and if I don’t keep lots of carbs in would be visiting the bathroom and couldn’t do that at work, lol. I have always exercised regularly, lots of walking, gym, ate pretty healthy, maybe once in a while a piece or two of pizza, but nothing crazy like chips/choc on a reg basis.
Currently just shot up from 180 that I worked very hard to get to, up to 210, now at 205 again, (that sounds crazy to me, never thought I’d get out of my normal range of 130). I had a third daughter in 2005 and that really put me over the edge – no sleep, hardly having time to eat/exercise – no energy, etc. About a year and a half ago I went from 208 to the 180 (without trying, cause I had gave up, amazing), the only thing I was doing differently was that I had a new job and not able to eat at normal times, so I ate consistently every couple hours, seemed to back a huge difference and I lost about twenty five to thirty pounds. I try so hard to remember what I did differently – think it was that I ate every few hours, smaller meals, like a handful of nuts, protein, lots of water and stairs.
I have been reading since yesterday and plan on trying the bile salts/beta plus, liver cleanse – have already been on probiotics and that has helped a lot with the IBS symptoms. I also plan on trying to incorporate some ACV (apple cider vinegar and maybe some backing soda – the good old remedies that have been around for years and see what happens). I had almost given up on eating healthy and exercising since it had not made any difference. I am now ready to begin again and will try all that’s on the forum and some yoga and lots of water and see what happens – especially the eating every two hours and stick with it. Thanks to all that have posted here – I will definitely be checking in and will post my results monthly. I will not get on the scale again until next month, as to not discourage myself. It took time to put it on and will take time for my body to notice and heal with the supplements. I believe raw foods are the best to add and definitely juicing, which I will do when I can afford a good juicer, heard Breville is great. I like the Health Ranger – Mike Adams, naturalnews.com – the articles on general health are wonderful. Good luck to all of you on this forum, the best way to knock this out is to inform all that will listen, it only take one strong blog to have people take notice. I’m not a blogger, but I know they are powerful.
Danielle”
My husband has been having severe pain and vomiting since July. His pain starts in the center of his chest and moves back and forth to his right side and thru to his back. The doctor told him he had H-pylori, and treated him for that. Then they took out his gallbladder which was not functioning. He is still in contant pain and can not keep any food down. he has had (2) CT scans, bloodwork, ultrasound, hepatolite scan, gastric emptying, colonostamy, stomach scope, and (2) biopsies. His surgeon told us yesterday that there is nothing surgically wrong with him. His gastro doctor says he can’t find anything wrong. Has anyone else had the same problem, the doctors around here can’t find the problem.
“true i was told the same thing that its for elderly people and i happened to get gallstones when i was 14. i found out in december and got it removed in march.
i too gain weight out of no where and loose it,
one day ill weigh ten pounds more and another i’ll weight less.
its pretty weird.”“Hi – I am afraid I have bad news. I had my gall bladder out in 2002. I have been in constant pain since. I read an article that said up to %40 of all people who have their gall bladder removed have continuing pain. I am still looking to find any research on this. The pain is under the right ribs, some in my shoulders like described by others. One year the pain was so bad that I could not eat. I lived on fruit and vegetable juice. I lost 70lbs in one year. I have constant nausea. I hope that this turns out better for you – please avoid if you can a test called and ERCP. I ended up getting pancreatitis after this test (one of those “”rare”” occurances). Everytime I tell them I have pain under my ribs and tendness on the ribs I lose the doctors – I have been told that ribs don’t hurt, that maybe I had a broken rib, or that I should get breast reduction surgery. One ER doctor told me that if I went back to work that would solve my problem.
Thankfully the diarrhea is better. I take a medication called desipramine which has made all the difference for the diarrhea. It didn’t help the pain, but no more living on the toilet! I hope that you will find relief soon. I hope this will not be a continuing problem for you. Don’t let them tell you its stress or in your head. There are many many of us with the same problem and we are not all crazy.”
hi, i had my gallbladder removed on the 15th june and i suffer from watery yellow stools after eating i looked it up and apparently its called steatorrhoea look it up eating less fat and things can help 🙂
“I had my gb out when i was 21, i am now 30 and am struggling like mad to loose weight even though i try and manage a diet with a high protein and low fat diet and a decent exercise routine. (And for all anyone who says ‘muscle weighs more then fat’, correct but my body fat index does not shift)
I will tell you that after your surgery you will loose weight, i lost tons, thinnest ive ever been, then i gained allot more and ever since then my weight has been pretty steady but i struggle like crazy to loose any weight, it is possible but very hard work.
It does stand to reason that the gb helps with the fat digestion so by not having it it can be harder to loose weight. I like the earlier suggestion of digestive aids and i am going to try that, but is glad to know there is a reason im struggling so much to loose this weight.”
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