Gallbladder Removal - Anyone had this done?

[gratitudee]

Posted here so I can hopefully get more answers, I hope that's ok.
I just wanted to hear peoples experiences, I've searched a lot and can find a lot of horror stories about pain and constant diarrhoea for years after surgery. Is this normal? Is there anyone who had symptoms before but they went away after the surgery and didn't get worse?
I think mine is going to have to come out but I really don't want to live with years of diarrhoea.

I was having very frequent gall stone attacks for over a year 14 years ago, and finally had it removed after a stone got stuck in my bile duct and sent me jaundiced. So I had it taken out laparoscopically, and recovered from the operation really quickly. I can now eat whatever I like (unfortunately!! I've put on all the weight I lost and then some!) however I find that if I don't eat for too long, and then eat a meal this can give me stomach cramps followed by very urgent diarrhoea which has caught me out a couple of times. I find that grazing and eating little and often helps me to avoid this.

I had mine done over 20 years ago in my 20s. Best thing ever. Never suffered again since. I would just be prepared for the pain after the op and have a hot water bottle for the referred pain (trapped wind common after abdominal surgery). Good luck.

Would have the op a hundred times over rather than the attacks! I find I’m fine as long as I eat regularly, if I don’t eat for ages then have a meal I get an upset stomach, but not really bad.

Had mine out about 6 years ago, I was an urgent case but not emergency after a couple of bouts of pancreatitis and being in so much pain.
I have a few little issues with my stomach, occasional unexplained upsets which usually follow eating something rich (so not really unexplained but not a bug IYSWIM) but I can live with that, it's 100% better than the pain and discomfort I had before.
I was back at work in 3 weeks (key hole surgery) and in a manual job but light duties for another 3. I had had quite a bit of time off beforehand because of the pancreatitis and pain attacks but was immediately better once soreness worse off.
Never regretted it.

I tried managing my gallstones on a low fat diet, it did work for 3 years but then when it stopped working it stopped horribly. I was getting attacks almost every time I ate anything and it started to affect my liver function so became very unwell in a short period of time.

Having my gallbladder out was definitely a positive step. My diet is mostly unrestricted as long as I keep things in moderation...Christmas time does see food making a rapid departure through my body but otherwise it's not a problem (ate a pizza last night and no issues).

I had mine out a few years back after developing pancreatitis and early liver failure. Entirely my own fault, I’d ignored it for 8 years.

I’ve had no Ill effects and having freedom from the attacks is life changing.

Thank you so much to everyone for your honest replies. It's nice to see some without any issues at all. I can live with not eating overly fatty foods as long as I can eat normally again.

Did anyone else have loose stools before surgery? I have (TMI) 'fatty' yellowish stools now as they think I'm not producing enough bile to break down the foods. Anyone else have this and it went away after removal? It's not diarrhoea but it's not 'normal' either if you know what I mean. Hoping it will return not normal but I think this is wha is making me more worried about the BAM afterwards.

@Calic0 That's very reassuring to know if can be treated. I've read so many stories of people saying they just have to suffer and not go out anymore and that scares me. It's nice to hear that there is hope with the right medication. I'm glad your GP sorted it quickly for you.

I didn't have a gall bladder so much as a bag for holding two enormous gall stones - apparently I must have had them from birth! I must have had symptoms for most of my life before the really bad attacks started after DS was born. Removal of that pesky bag of stones revolutionised my life! No adverse effects ever, nothing!

(I have my stones in a jar!)

I had mine out about 5 years ago. Was home within a couple of hours and back at work after just one day off.
Have had no side effects at all.
Good luck, and try not to worry.

Had mine out about 15 years ago after having pancreatitis. No problems since.

I had mine out 10 years ago and have been completely fine ever since.

Had mine out about 12 yrs ago. No problems and recovered well within a couple of weeks.
A few years down the line I developed what I thought was IBS with almost constant diarrhoea But it got so bad last year that I was finally set for checks and scans and found that I have Bile Acid Malabsorption. Apparently it is fairly common after have your gall bladder removed, but no one told me this at the time. I am now on daily medication for life which does help with the diarrhoea.

Even if I had known about BAM, I would have still gone through with surgery as I was in constant pain with gall stones.

I had mine out 3 years ago. I had open surgery rather than keyhole due to a complication so the recovery took a while but life is so much better now! I have almost no stomach problems, only occasional upset after particularly fatty foods (ice cream seems to be a trigger for me) but it’s not often and nowhere near as bad as the gallstone attacks I had before removal. Good luck with it

Had mine out last July. I had multiple attacks that ended up with me being hospitalised with pancreatitis. I had the gallbladder removal around 9:30am and was back on the ward by 11:30 and eating within an hour. I’ve never felt so well after surgery (and I have had many!) and really did feel instantly better.
I had a few days of feeling quite sore but it was mainly from being in bed and trying to lay flat. I wasn’t able to eat diary for a couple of months but thankfully now that’s not an issue. Every now and then I’ll get a bad belly after eating something really fatty but that doesn’t happen very often.
I have 4 scars on my torso and 2 of them are still quite raised and feel sensitive some times but it was only a year ago so I’m not surprised.
It was honestly the best thing to happen for me as the attacks were the worse pain I’ve ever been through.

I had mine out about 6 years ago, best thing ever being able to eat what I wanted after being so careful for ages because I was so scared of having an attack. I stayed in overnight but only because I didn’t go for the op till late afternoon and I never react well to anaesthetic. I was looking after my toddler with no help on about day 5 post op and back at work within two weeks. I’ve had no trouble since with any attacks but reading other posters talking about this diarrhoea problem is making me think, I’ve always thought it was IBS but I’m off to google now....... I do get frequent bouts of it but it’s still preferable to the gallbladder attacks.

I had mine removed about 10 years ago after several violently painful attacks ( blue light to A&E once).

After removal I was told that not only did I have gallstones but the gallbladder itself was partially calcified, so better out than in.

The procedure was laparoscopic and left very tiny marks, which have completely disappeared. After a few days of minor discomfort I was absolutely fine.

I have never had the diarrhoea problem in fact dulcolax is always in my bathroom cabinet!

I had mine out 6 years ago. I still have the odd problem - I get an upset stomach sometimes for no reason at all, I can't eat anything too fatty, and I can no longer eat eggs or mushrooms for some reason. I've also had acid indigestion since then and sometimes get pain that I would put down to gallstones if I still had a gallbladder!

It's still better than the other option though. I'd had pancreatitis and when I asked the surgeon what would happen if I didn't have it removed he just said 'you could die'. That made up my mind for me!

I have and it was absolutely fine. Had to stay overnight just in case because of a fever but I was fine in myself. Recovery was very quick, no complications and the only after effect I've had is sometimes if I eat breakfast too soon after waking I can feel a bit sick. Diet is completely as it was before. Best of luck OP

Had mine out 13 years ago. Pain. Occaisionally I get a cramp where my scar tissue (internal) is when twisting awkwardly and bending at the same time. My very occaisional (before) IBS is now occaisional not worse.
I am 100% fine with these as neither cause me whole days and nights of pain, sleep loss and inability to do certain tasks.

Once every few months a twinge here and there in my mid forties now is absolutely fine after a solid year of being terrified to eat (I was in my 30s my doctor refused to even consider I might have gallstones when a nurse suggested it at an immunisation appointment).
It was honestly liberating. My life was reduced significantly around careful eating and weekly pain management.

And in terms of recovery, home same day up and around next day. Pregnant by the following month. Zero complications.

Three people I know have. All reckoned that the lack of pain afterwards was the best thing ever. None had any regrets except that they didn't have it removed sooner.

Had mine out 8 years ago, fine since, though I can’t take any codeine products as a result.

Quite a few people have this issue if you google it!

I had mine removed and have had no issues at all.

I had my gallbladder removed when 5 months pregnant! I had 16 years of undiagnosed/misdiagnosed issues that turned out to be gallstones. I had a 3cm stone removed from outside my gallbladder where it was causing major issues and my gall bladder itself with dozens f smal stones during an 8 hour keyhole surgery. Both baby and I were perfectly well and safe and all symptoms immediately disappeared for me. I slowly reintroduced all foods to my diet and am happy to say I have no remaining issues at all, I can eat all the ice cream I like!
I understand some people do have issues afterwards, almost all less bothersome than the gallstones. I think most of us are absolutely fine after, but we don't post about i online so much!
Good luck with your surgery