Gall Bladder removal - pls help me decide

[Tupperwarefan]

Hi
I started having gall bladder problems shortly after the birth of my little girl 10 years ago. I had the most intense pain, about 5 times over 2 years and then the severe pain subsided. But, over the remaining years, I have had periods of what can only be described as soreness and a feeling of being bruised, where my gall bladder is.

Fast forward to recent months, after a few weeks of what I thought was gastritis thanks to a stressful time at work, I have had 4 attacks of severe pain, over a period of 5 weeks. I've had a scan and my gallstones have multiplied and I have been recommended that I have my gall bladder out.
The problem is I am so scared! I'm not afraid of the op, but I am afraid of long term life after. I have read about post gall bladder removal syndrome and how it can cause D&V decades later. I have read about Sphincter of Oddi, terrible gastritis, uncontrollable weight gain and many other awful symptoms. Some people wish they had never had it done. I have also read about faecal incontinence (although rare).

I feel stuck between a rock and a hard place. The surgeon didn't really put my mind at rest about these things and I am very, very nervous.

Can anyone who has been through this (maybe a long time ago?) please help to reassure me? I am on a v low fat diet, am losing weight that I can't afford to lose, and am so miserable. Thank you

I had mine out 3 years ago. Op was quick and without complications and I've never had any problems since. I know others who have had theirs removed, also without issue. You'll be grand x

Exactly the same for my husband. Some foods he knows will cause him issues. All preferable to the excrutiating pain he was experiencing before he had the gall bladder removed though.

People will always post about the bad stuff, it's like complaining vs compliments
Nobody posts I had a perfectly fine meal, but if it was awful they're all over it

I was told to avoid my back op etc etc, which was really helpful when having it wasn't a choice. I mean I could have refused but I would have been paralysed. Surgery went perfectly, smooth recovery and left with very few after effects

whats your long term plan? Can you continue on this way? I had issues but they were manageable long term but then it turned into a life threatening emergency out of the blue. I haven’t had any issues since having it removed. I can eat anything, no digestion issues, no running to the toilet after eating high fat meals and no pain once I had fully recovered

People will always post about the bad stuff, it's like complaining vs compliments

The OP did ask!!

And I have been very careful to make it clear that the long term complication that I have is vanishingly rare.

Oh no I meant in general! So if you google or look on say social media, people generally don't post that everything was fine if it wasn't either really bad or incredible
Not many people say yeah I had the surgery and it was totally forgettable

I thought that I would update this thread! That very day that I posted the thread about being unsure, I became ill with terrible pain. Then I went yellow. I went to A&E and was admitted to hospital. I came out yesterday, minus my gallbladder, having had a gall stone stuck in my duct
I had an ERCP to remove the stone on Monday and the gallbladder removed on Tuesday. I'm home now and am recovering. Still feeling sick and with a mild temp

Thank you to everyone who took the time to convince me to have this op. In the end, the choice was made for me.

The reassurance on this thread, that everything will be ok has been very helpful.

Wishing you a speedy recovery. So sorry you had to be admitted as an emergency though.

Yes, it would have been far easier as a planned procedure. I waited too long, I just thought maybe I could control the attacks with my diet. The night I got my stone stuck I had had a v low fat dinner! I just need to get better now! Hopefully it won't take too long.

I'm so glad it's over now and removed! I hope you have a quick recovery!
Getting my gallbladder removed was the best thing!

Oh crikey you poor thing. Glad it’s gone now though. Wishing you a speedy recovery

Poor you, I hope life is pain free and simple now it's happened

I had my gallbladder removed five years ago, I’ve been completely well since.

I have Sphincter of Oddi but to be fair those are
minimal compared to what I suffered plus they are fairly infrequent. My big attacks were several times a week and I was hospitalised. I have no regrets.

After years of gallbladder attacks that really upped in frequency in pregnancy (I blamed acid reflux lol) I got cholecystitis. It took 6 weeks of antibiotics to shift it. The pain was constant. Since then my gallbladder is diseased, it no longer functions and I cannot eat more than 10g max fat a day. I’m living off fruit and rice, I can’t even digest chicken for example. I’m deficient in all kinds of vitamins but I can’t even take a multi vitamin as it sets my gallbladder off.
The hospital said I should have the operation in eight weeks, well eight weeks have come & gone! This is ruining my life. I can’t go out anywhere for the day unless I want to fast all day. So don’t put it off for years OP, get on the waiting list asap.

It's out @Applesinmyhouse Thanks to an emergency stuck stone, it's out. I'm just trying to recover. But I feel so sick! No idea what to eat

Best wishes for a speedy recovery OP! You won't miss it, I promise!

Had mine out over twenty years ago - no issues at all and so much better without it. I don't know anyone who has had theirs out who hasn't been glad to see the back of it.

How did you know you had an emergency stuck stone? I always wonder how you know the difference between the normal pain and the stuck stone pain, is it just loads sorer?

@MeinKraft I had gallbladder attacks for years, they usually hit at night and would last 4-6 hours, they were very painful but bearable.

When the gallstone got stuck I was in agony, I managed to tolerate it for about 6 hours before I started vomiting. That was the point where I knew I needed A&E.

When I got there they tried to give me oramorph but I could t keep it down. They found I had a temperature and blood tests showed high inflammation markers which is when I was sent for a CT.

Once they realised it was a gallstone and infected gallbladder I was shipped off in an ambulance to a different hospital and put on morphine and IV antibiotics.

@MeinKraft I had an mri at the hospital which confirmed it. My symptoms started with intense pain in the top of my stomach. That lasted all night. Then the next morning I was feeling v sick and couldn't even drink water without the pain increasing. I was getting jaundiced too so I went to A&E.

It amazes me how long people are left to suffer. When I first visited a GP after being in absolute agony I was diagnosed with a gall bladder episode. GP told me I had to have 3 episodes before I could have scan for stones. After another horrendous attack saw a different GP who was furious that I had been told to wait. She sent me straight to hospital for a scan where it was shown I had multiple stones and I had surgery within the month.

Thank you @FatAgainItsLettuceTime and @Tupperwarefan I know what to look out for now