To ask you : How is life without gallbladder ?

Absolutely no problems at all
I can eat what I like, no pain at all - bliss

I had my gallbladder removed in September 2023 so just over a year. At first for the first 6 months I had to really careful what I ate as anything to fatty or rich I would get diarrhoea! Now I still watch what I eat a bit but it all seems okay. I felt so much healthier as soon as it was gone! The stones and the infections that were building up in my body for the last few years had really taken its toll. A few people told me I looked visibly healthier and smaller just a week after I had it out. I think I looked quite yellow and puffy as just felt so poorly all the time. I got some digestive enzymes from Holland and Barrett and I take one before a very rich meal (say a curry) and that really helps! Good luck I hope it all goes smoothly for you .

I was 21 and slim. I read that they could happen with extreme weight loss as well as being overweight with fatty diet. I had been on strict eating for a year and then had a few weeks of eating junk and had about 5 attacks.

I was 28 when I had the op but I developed gallstones in pregnancy so they blamed it on heartburn etc and it took a couple of years to get a diagnosis with it gradually getting worse over that time.

Definitely typical symptoms. I would be in agony and feel sick. Sometimes I would actually be sick which sometimes eased it a bit. Pretty much anything could trigger an attack, sometimes I would wake up with it when I hadn't eaten anything.

The pain felt as if it was radiating out of my shoulder at the back and the consultant said that was common. I hope she gets it sorted, it's rotten.

Can I ask how old you were? My 21 year old DD is waiting for more investigations and has been told unusual in this age group, particularly when slim.

She has regular periods of feeling sick, being sick and awful stomach pain. Are these typical symptoms? Possibly related to food which is higher in fat/ more processed but unclear? Ultrasound showed gall stones.

Thank you. I. went for something completely different and when the gastro doctor did a scan he found the gallstone. I live in France and they take a preventative approach and so a couple of weeks later it got whipped out.

I had mine out nearly 30 years ago (another person diagnosed in their early 20s - as was my sister, thanks genes).
Unfortunately it was the start of even more gastro problems and I am on lifelong medication because my body doesn't like not having a gallbladder. (I have bile salt malabsorption amongst other things but that is the one directly related to lack of gall bladder).
Sister had a much better experience though.
Wishing you well.

@AgeingDoc I was 26, doctors also didn't believe I could have them and advised drinking probiotics until I really pushed for a scan!

OP I hope you don't mind but my GP suspects gallbladder stones and I'm on a waiting list for an ultrasound despite the pain and misery, can I ask how long the diagnosis process took please?

I seem to have developed an egg intolerance, but this may be unrelated. Had mine out in 2007, I've been absolutely fine since, and it still remains the worst pain I've ever experienced despite 2 dc since! Good luck!

I really wouldn't like to say @CustardySergeant You need to discuss your individual risks with the staff looking after you who have all the relevant info.
Of course for me, the fact that I developed gallstones at such a young age was an important factor. (Nobody believed me for ages actually as I was not typical, it wasn't until I actually had an attack in theatre at work that anyone took me seriously!) But obviously the odds for me were that if I already had gallstones in my 20s things were only going to get worse and they were going to have a lot of opportunity to cause me big problems. And as a young, fit woman the risks of surgery were extremely low.
There are other considerations for some older patients of course and the risk/benefit balance may be a bit different, but that's going to depend on individual factors such as co-existing medical conditions so you really do need to talk to staff who know you. But I wouldn't assume that your age on it's own is a big risk if you're otherwise well. Lots of people your age and older have this type of surgery, and other, much more major operations very safely. If you did decide to have surgery you'd get an anaesthetic assessment beforehand and be advised of any particular risks for you, so don't be afraid of exploring your options.

Custody Sergeant,I was already on a fat free diet for years.... not low fat. I didn't have gallstones,my gallbladder was ulcerated.

I had mine out in 1972,age 21! You were meant to be FAIR,FAT AND FORTY. I had gut problems as a child,was on a fat free diet.. no key hole surgery in those days,an enormous scar,my appendicitis was inflamed as well,so scar from breast bone to public bone.. older people told me I wouldn't be able to eat XYZ, afterwards.. there was never any problems or anything I couldn't eat.. patients used to say to me "it's alright for you,you don't know what it feels like", I used to unzip my uniform and show them my scar (very professional 🤣)

Oh no. That's terrible. If you had no pain or symptoms why did you seek medical treatment leading to the discovery of the gallstone? Would you please update after you have the results of the scan on Tuesday? I hope you are OK and will soon be pain free.

Am I odd. I had my gall bladder out early December as I had a single stone that took up the whole gallbladder so it never moved and therefore I never had any pain or noticeable symptoms. Since it has been removed I have to be far more careful about what I eat or I have D&V. I still have pain from the operation which is like a constant stitch and I have completely gone of wine. I have felt unwell since the operation and now I have to have a catscan on Tuesday to ensure everything is ok.

This is what I did, I straight away started eating very healthily and they disappeared, I kept that up for a few months to make sure. But after that I went back to eating takeaways sometimes and other high fat things and haven't had an attack since in decades. Maybe it was just a spate of trapped stones.
Mine were so bad I couldn't get off the bed one day and turned bright yellow. Worst pain ever, no relief..
But think some gallbladders are too far gone and inflamed and it's just best they come out. Having a few digestive niggles is better than that horrific pain.

Would you still have the operation if you were my age (nearly 71)? Are the risks greater? When I was in hospital last August with cholecystitis I thought they were going to remove my gallbladder then, but they said not while it's inflamed/infected. I saw the consultant at the end of last October and agreed to just follow a low-fat diet and see how I got on. It's so confusing to know what to do for the best.
There are supposed to be so many people who have gallstones with no symptoms and as I said, my first bout of biliary colic in February 2022 after which the gallstones were discovered, was only because I had eaten a Keto bar (high fat/low carbs), otherwise I would have been among those people who have no idea they have gallstones. Also the doctor said "This might never happen again" which doesn't sound like she thought radical action i.e. surgery, was necessary. Of course, I did go on to have cholecystitis August 2024, but OK otherwise.
I'm a terrible pessimist, so while I don't want cholecystitis again I also don't want complications from surgery, including from the general anaesthetic and also sphincter of Oddi disfunction afterwards. The article I read about the latter said that 20% of patients who have their gallbladder removed will get that which aren't negligible odds, but the consultant surgeon said it wasn't that high.

@CustardySergeant I used to have spate of a year or more with no symptoms, then get a flurry of attacks, the nothing for months and months, then repeat.

The last spate of attacks I had that sent me to A&E in the end, and got me on the list to have surgery, were a once every couple of weeks, then twice a week, then progressed to every day including when I'd eaten nothing at all for fear of setting it off.

I don't think the low fat diet actually had any effect on whether I had an attack or not. I'm fact think I read a study where they found it can make it worse, as the gall bladder doesn't empty regularly it just lets stones grow and grow rather than be flushed out when they're small enough not to notice.

I can't wait to get mine out. Absolutely anything can trigger them for me. What was safe one time isn't another and what triggered them before doesn't do it again. I hadn't had any attacks for a couple of years and then had one on Tuesday night that had me rolling on the floor in pain. I had a consultation in 2022 after they were first picked up but nothing since. Thankfully only a few attacks in that time but it's the most painful thing since I had kidney stones. Apparently my body loves making stones of different kinds

The only thing I noticed is that I get heartburn now and I never used to. It used to be a lot but is rarely now so maybe it's settled down. Apart from that fine

I had it out 16 years ago and noticed no different

I had mine out when I was 28 - over 30 years ago. No problems living without a gall bladder in that time.
@CustardySergeant it's not just pain that's the issue with gallstones. Cholecystitis can cause sepsis, and stones blocking the common bile duct can cause obstructive jaundice and/or pancreatis.As an ICU doctor I'd seen my fair share of serious complications of gallstones and I felt a lot happier waving goodbye to my gallbladder once I knew I had stones.

It's believed that a great many people have gallstones and are unaware I read this morning that only 20% of pe0ple with gallstones have any symptoms.

Three incisions! Lucky guy! I had 7