Please tell me what to expect from Gallbladder removal surgery.

[Helini]

I have gallstones and have been referred for surgery to remove the gallbladder.
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Unfortunately, after a really abusive and traumatic hospital stay after giving birth a few years ago, I've been diagnosed with PTSD.

I'm absolutely terrified. I'm having CBT so hopefully by the time my surgery comes around, I'll have some coping strategies but in the meantime, I was hoping that anyone who's had the procedure could tell me, in very precise detail, exactly what happens.

I don't mean for the actual surgery itself, but the while before and after care. When can you get home?. Is there a chance I'll stay overnight? What kind of ward was it? Mixed sex? do you sit in a waiting room or do you have a bed? can you nap afterwards? Do they give you a meal? Can I have a private room?

I'm not worried at all about the actual procedure. It's just being inside a hospital that's terrifying me. The whole environment.

I'd really appreciate if you could describe the whole stay from the.moment you enter to the moment you leave. I'm being referred to MKUH if that helps, I've heard it's a long discharge wait at that hospital which is making me nervous.

I am also on a waiting list to have my gallbladder removed. And curious also about this as I suffer with severe anxiety.

I had my gallbladder removed over two years ago. It was day surgery. In at 7am, lots of waiting around. Nil by mouth. Operation took around an hour and half for me. Once I'd come round and had a drink and was a bit more with it, they let me home and I was allowed food once home. Had to be driven home so you'll need someone there to take you home. Can't remember if it was a mixed ward. Didn't really pay attention to who was around me because I was too nervous about the surgery. Went home with pain medication and antibiotics. Had to change my dressing one or two days later. For the first few days I was extremely tired and quite sore and had shoulder pain caused by gas (common after surgery). Took a week off work. Could have done with two but I couldn't take anymore time off. So happy I had it done though.

I had mine taken out last September, three weeks after my DD was born. I was having attacks of pancreatitis caused by gallstones so was admitted on the Saturday and operated on on the Wednesday when my blood results had stabilised. That's very unlikely for you if it is a planned admission.

I was in a surgical ward. Six beds in my bay , all women, with one shared loo and shower. I had the bed nearest the window which made it a little more pleasant. There was a men's bay next door but I hardly knew it was there. They had their own washing and toilet facilities, obviously. We didn't seem to share nursing staff, only the doctors.

Most cholecystectomy patients came in early on the day or their surgery, were taken down to the operating theatre during the day, back up to the ward a few hours later and then discharged that night or, if their surgery had been later in the day, the following morning. I had surgery at about 2pm and went home at 10am the following day.

You'll be nil by mouth before the surgery, and wearing a gown. I wear glasses and ask them to remove them once I'm under the anaesthetic and replace them before I wake up in recovery so I'm not disorientated.

I have four small scars, all about 1cm across. Imagine someone drawing the numeral 4 with your navel at the intersection of the crossroads and there's three along the diagonal line and one just inside your navel. They were covered with dressings when I came round and the nurse redressed them for me on the day I was discharged. She gave me extra dressings to change at home every 5 days. That sounds more complex than it was as really they were just large versions of plasters so I was just taking one off and sticking another over. The scars were very slightly uncomfortable for the first fortnight or so but it's nothing compared to gallbladder pain and in fact it was the sort of slight itching you get as skin is healing more than any proper pain, for me at least.

I was very careful with my diet for the first couple of months but am basically back to eating normally now.

I will go back now and check I've answered your questions. But good luck, OP, you'll feel much better afterwards.

Ok, mopping up the questions I didn't answer! Yes, I slept before and after. They fed me afterwards - I had a yoghurt and some rich tea biscuits and then cereal for breakfast the next day.

Let them know before you go that you have been having treatment for anxiety relating specifically to this and ask if you can be early on the surgical list to improve your chances of getting home that day. It's very common for people not to stay overnight. No idea re a private room but you can always ask.

I had mine removed mid November. They rang me asking if I could come in the next day, and I was on the afternoon list, so they asked me to arrive for 10 in the morning. I was taken to a private room and had the all doctors come and speak to me - anaesthetist, surgeon. They measured my calves for the sexy stockings, then they brought me the lovely clothes - paper underwear, gown and stockings. I was asked to be ready for 1pm but they didn’t come to get me until about 3 o’clock. Husband was with me up until they called me to theatre. I went in and they gave the sedation and I saw nothing until I woke up at about 7 or 8 o’clock in the evening - my surgery was a bit longer than normal because my gallbladder was four times the usual size as I had a massive stone blocking the tube or something like that!, but they were still able to do keyhole rather than open surgery. I woke up in a good mood, no nausea from the anaesthetic (I told the anaesthetist that I felt very sick on previous surgeries, so I suppose he gave me something to fix that), stayed in recovery until someone could take me back to the room. Got back to the room, asked if they had any toast and they brought me some bread and a cup of tea. They decided to keep me overnight as I woke up from surgery so late. I watched an episode of doctors on my phone, changed into my own pyjamas and went to sleep. Pain meds, I was just on paracetamol but was told they had prescribed stronger stuff if I needed it - I didn’t. Next morning when DH arrived I was sitting up doing sudoku puzzles. Got discharged with dressing pads/plasters but told no need to change unless they started coming off. Dissolving stitches, so no need to go back to remove those. Once I was home, I was tired but not too sore. I have a fairly high pain threshold though, so accept the painkillers if you think you need them!

It was a great experience, and I have to say I don’t miss my gallbladder at all!

I went in as an emergency. Arrived around 10:30am. Got put on a morphine drip in Emerg and then had an ultrasound. They were initially planning to give me IV antibiotics overnight but then the Consultant said it needed to come out. They could operate tonight and I’d be home tomorrow or I could wait until tomorrow, probably have to wait all day and then be in over the weekend.
I chose the first option. I was moved up to a double room with a woman in the other bed. At 8pm I went down for surgery. I seem to remember I was back in the room by 10:30.
I slept reasonably well. My obs were done regularly. The door was kept ajar and there was some light/noise in the corridor. The woman in the other bed snored!

I was discharged just after lunch. The other woman had a visitor. She said she hadn’t slept. I assured her she very much did!

I had mine removed 18 months ago. I had to be at the hospital for 7am and waited in an outpatient waiting room which only had about ten people in it - everyone was there for day surgery.

I was collected from there by a nurse/other member of staff and we walked down the corridor before being shown to a smaller waiting room - specific to the surgeon I think. I didn't have to wait long before being taken through to a room where I think I was weighed, had someone talk through the surgery and possibly take blood. I was given surgical stockings to put on along with a hospital gown. My own dressing gown and slippers (which the hospital kit list said I should bring) were also put on and my usual clothes went in a bag. I'm fairly certain this is when I had a cannula put in my hand for the anaesthetic later.

I didn't have to wait too long before meeting the surgeon who talked me through the surgery, showed me diagrams and explained that he would do keyhole surgery. He also explained that he didn't expect to need to perform open surgery but that it was always a possibility so I should be aware of this. I told him soluble stitches don't dissolve in me so he wrote on my notes that he would use an alternative and explained this would mean I would need to return to the hospital to have them removed in ten days.

After that I returned to the room where I'd been given the stockings before walking down to where I would be given the general anaesthetic. My bag of clothes was put under the bed and I got onto it. My dressing gown was admired by the anaesthetist who asked about previous general anaesthetics I'd had, medication etc. before saying I'd be asked to count down from 10 to 1 whilst the anaesthetic went in. I took my dressing gown and slippers off and gave them to a nurse. The last thing I remember is starting to count backwards.

I've no idea how much later this was but I know nurses kept trying to wake me and keep me awake when I was coming round from the anaesthetic. I was in a recovery ward with curtains between the beds but open at the end. I couldn't see or hear anyone else apart from the nurses calling my name and encouraging me to stay awake. Once I was sufficiently with it, my bed was wheeled through to a general surgery recovery ward where I was offered water to drink. I drifted in and out of sleep in my own curtained bay (with curtains pulled across the end so I couldn't see anyone and they couldn't see me). Various nurses and other staff came and checked up on me periodically and I was told I needed to have something to eat and go to the loo before I'd be discharged. I was given spare dressings for the incision sites and told to keep the wounds clean and dry for the first 48 hours but that I could then shower. During the afternoon I was given a cheese sandwich (my request) and at that point the friend who was coming to meet me was telephoned and given a likely collection time. I spent most of the afternoon asleep but forced myself to get up and use the loo because I wanted to go home. I've no memory of the type of ward because I didn't see or hear other patients. I went home at 5pm, having made sure I'd worn really soft, high waist jogging bottoms so I could pull them higher than the wounds. I think a nurse helped me get dressed - I wasn't in pain but felt very cautious of the wounds.

Cocodamol was the pain relief I was prescribed at discharge and my discharge papers had me signed off work for two weeks in the first instance. My friend and I walked along the day surgery corridor very carefully to the exit and got into the car. I was exhausted and felt tender but the painkillers seemed to be working well. Once home, I drank water and ate rice cakes before going to sleep in my own bed.

Following as I'm having mine out in a few months time and am bricking it, I had sepsis after my last section so I'm in no rush to do anything that might risk it happening again.

For those who have had it done and have also had sections, how bad is the recovery on a scale of one to caesarean?

Also, could you lie down properly in bed or did you have to prop yourself up? After I had the DC I couldn't lie on my side for a couple of weeks as it felt like my insides were going to fall out of my scar and it was too uncomfortable to lie flat on my back.

And when did you start eating normally? The surgeon said I should eat bland foods for two weeks and then I can eat normally but a few people I've spoken to said they had the runs for ages afterwards if they ate anything that wasn't bland. I'm going on holiday nine weeks after it.

I had mine out last year and was open surgery so a different experience. It was planned as keyhole but due to complications had to be converted to open during surgery. Prior to surgery I arrived at 6am, had my own room and had surgery around 10am. Following surgery, again due to some complications and the fact it was open surgery I was moved to my own room and was in hospital for 5 nights. To reassure you, I was extremely anxious too (although for different reasons) I let the staff know about my anxieties and they were lovely and supportive. Good luck and and feel free to ask any questions.

Open surgery is a worry for me. DH can only take two weeks off and we have four young DC, oldest is 10yo and youngest is 2yo. Was it a very long recovery?

The surgeon doing mine introduced laparoscopy to the Trust and teaches it at the university, he did say that while it's always a risk it is very unusual for him personally to have to convert to open which I guess is good.

To go off on a tangent slightly here (sorry OP) but has anyone had to have this due to damage to liver and therefore gallbladder caused by having severe preeclampsia in pregnancy?

@Bearfrills I had 8 weeks off work so fairly long but I did start to feel not too bad around the 4 week mark. It is unusual to have to convert, my surgeon said mine was the first one he’d had to convert in 10 years.

Tell the hospital you have PTSD so they can plan your care appropriately.

@Helini I am due to have my gallbladder out in a couple of weeks at MKUH! I have also worked there a few years ago.

The day surgery unit is mixed sex but the bays are single sex with cubicle curtains. Most of them have a trolley and a chair, some have just a chair then move you after surgery. There are a couple of single rooms which are usually allocated to people with medical needs but you could talk to them in advance to see if one might be available for you. Once you come out of theatre you'll likely still be pretty sleepy so absolutely ok to have a nap, though the nurses may wake you to do obs etc.

There won't be any food beforehand, obviously, but I think if you're there at a meal time they will offer something. You might want to take a snack in your bag - but check with the nurses before you eat post-op!

I was told ~5% chance of them needing to convert from keyhole to open surgery, which would mean an overnight stay.

I have to go deal with my DC right now but please PM me or post here if I can help any more.

Bearfrills, it was a bit uncomfortable for me to lie down but possibly because my top cut was about 10cm - not as small as most due to size of gallbladder/stone (it’s the size of a large plum stone!). I spent a few night sleeping propped up with loads of pillows. I started eating almost normally straight away, I was on a very low fat diet prior to surgery so introduced fat back slowly and smaller quantities of food, but mostly normal food. Can’t comment on the runs as I have IBD so have dodgy bowel anyway.

A few *nights!

@Bearfrills I’d say the discomfort after the GB surgery was a 2/3 compared to the c section. I was very happy to be that comfortable after the red hot poker through the shoulder/am I having a heart attack moments that led to it being removed!

I went in for day surgery. I was first on the list so arrived about 7 am. The surgeon and anaesthetist came to see me and check all was ok. I was on a ward with 4 beds but only one other was occupied and was a women. The area round the beds was huge and had lots of curtains for privacy.

I walked down to the theatre and then the anaesthetist made very jolly conversation while he sent me to sleep. Woke up a few hours later back on the ward having had keyhole surgery.

They couldn’t let me home until I had eaten but the gas they inflate your stomach with for keyhole was quite uncomfortable, a bit like a mild gallbladder attack oddly enough. After an hour or so I managed a biscuit and they said I could go home.

The scars were itchy but fine. They’re very small and I can barely see them now, a year later. The only one that was a nuisance was the one on my navel as it’s right where my waistband sits and kept rubbing.

I recovered really quickly. I rested completely for a couple of days and didn’t drive until I could do an emergency stop, but h tv at was only a week.

Haven’t had any problems since.

Hope it goes well and make sure they know about your PTSD. The nurses I had were very reassuring and very helpful.

@MooseBeTimeForSummer they're the pains I'm getting lately! It hadn't been bothering me and the "stones" were only picked up on a scan for something else entirely. The surgeon said that I had sludge which will eventually become stones and that he can 100% guarantee it will cause problems in future so best to have it out now while it's not inflamed or causing me any problems and I'm relatively young enough to bounce back from it (38). But then the last couple of weeks I've been getting pain on and off in my shoulders exactly as you described, like a hot poker, and also a sharp stabbing pain in the centre of my chest around my breastbone. I actually saw my GP as I was worried it's my heart and she reassured me that it's not cardiac. All my twinge type pains are in the front of my abdomen, slightly towards the left, which the GP has said is referred pain as when I do occasionally feel it in my right side it's the exact same pain.

I'm glad I agreed to get it out as I think it is starting to cause me problems, as predicted, but I wish there was an easier way! I know statistically it's all very safe and my surgeon has an excellent reputation but I'm a total wimp at heart and will most likely make a knob of myself by crying at some point.

@BuntyBonus I had mine out last year as well, started keyhole but ended up open. I've not met anyone else that's happened too ! My doctor was not impressed as he's an expert at keyhole surgery, wrote lots of pApers etc 😊

Sorry you are anxious OP but entirely normal to feel that way.

Speak up about your fears so the hospital can make arrangements to accommodate you.

I had keyhole surgery to remove my gall bladder a few years back, it was so worth it to be out of that awful pain. Try to focus on that if you can.

Good luck.

I had mine out about 10 years ago. I get very, very anxious around hospitals and surgery. I have found telling each person involved in your care how anxious you are really helps, and they go through everything step by step.
I had key hole and was in overnight. I had my own room with it's own bathroom. Bit difficult walking to start with. Similar to c section which I also had, but recovered fairly quickly.

I slept a fair bit first few days. Just take things slowly. I was child minding at the time and took two weeks off then went back to it. The only thing I couldn't do for a few weeks was life anything too heavy, but the children I had were all older so understanding.

Good luck.

Thank you so much for taking the time to reply in detail. It's really helped me to picture exactly what could happen and imagine the scenarios. For the actual operation itself, I'm strangely really looking forward too it because since DS was born 2 years ago, I haven't had a longer stretch of solid sleep than 4 hours however, when I was a teenager, I had all my wisdom teeth removed and I can remember waking up feeling like I'd had the best sleep of my life!

It's just the fear before the surgery.. like that sick anxiety feeling you get when waiting to get on a rollercoaster. That moment when you've climbed the coaster and they are hanging you off the drop.

And after, just being vulnerable on a ward. The sounds, the smell even the nurses in uniform.

I know I'm going to be fine, I know it's all okay it's just trying to convince my brain to believe it. It's frustrating.

You really need to contact the hospital and ask about the set-up, each hospital is different.
For mine, each patient had their own little room rather than being on a ward. At first I thought this is good, but being shut away in a room when you're in pain and not seeing any nurses was quite scary.
I went in early morning and they discharged me at 11pm, with a two hour drive home. I begged them to let me stay, but they said there wasn't space.
They wouldn't let my mum in until they discharged me, getting up and getting dressed without any help was very difficult.
They glued the scars instead of stitching them and actually glued the dressing to them.
All in all, I wouldn't go to Hinchingbrook hospital again, it was horrible. A friend that had the op at a different hospital had a completely different experience and was well cared for.
As for recovery, it was worse than a c-section. But I think it would've been easier if they hadn't rushed me home.