think the NHS should warn about Gall Bladder ops??!!

[lisad123isgoingcrazy]

I am tired of seeing posts on here about ladies suffering after gall bladder being removed :(
I know I have had no end of trouble since they removed mine and in pain most days or stuck to the loo :(
They told me it would all be fine after the op but clearly its not.

Im shocked by how many of us are suffering when im sure the NHS dont see all this :(

I had my gall bladder removed 12 months ago and I too was told there would be no side-effects.

Fortunately, in my case, that was exactly right and I have had absolutely no trouble at all and can eat whatever I want but from what I have read on here, I realise I am the exception to the rule.

However, my aftercare was very poor - didn't have a follow-up appointment with the surgeon or anything so if I had had problems, not sure where I would have gone with them.

i was very ill for 6 weeks after and it took me a good 4 months to feel well. now 16 months down the line i am getting similar pains and making visits to a and e

its not good :(

Just wanted to add that it's not all bad news and that I had my gall bladder removed in 1994 by keyhole surgery at the tender age of 26 and have not had a problem since. Just wanted those who are going for the op to have a success story.

I had mine out following pancreatitis. Not a problem since. mine was done laparascopically too.

I had mine removed in 2007 by keyhole surgery and wasn't given any practical advice on the after effects.

Unfortunately as a result of my op I developed acute pancreatitis 4 times in 3 months, and now I have to stick to an ultra low fat diet or I'm violently sick and in loads of pain; my gp told me a couple of weeks ago that I have borderline chronic pancreatitis :(

I am about to have my gall bladder removed and I am worrying about whether it is the right thing to do. Having read all the posts on here and searched around a bit, it does seem to leave people with some problems. However, there risk of more serious complications from gall stones does worry me.

I wonder though if it seems worse, because those that are having problems, will go online to look for help, and those without problems will be so busy getting back on with life?

Sorry for those that are having problems, must be doubly bad after suffering, having the op, and then hoping for some relief.

Wish these things were a bit more clear cut and not so fraught with worries.

I have to say the pain I have now is no where near as bad as the gall stone pains, just a shame that it happens.

I had my gallbladder out 18 months ago (keyhole surgery) and have had no after effects at all. I consider it a huge success because it has got rid of the completely awful, debilitating attacks of pain/vomiting I was getting before. I was 35 when I had it done, with 2 children under 2 and after 8 months of the most excruciating attacks and losing 1.5 stones - I wouldn't hesitate about having the op myself. I just wanted to add a good story.

Sorry for all those people still suffering.

That's good to hear norkily the attacks are truly awful aren't they?

Hope you get some help soon lisa Have you returned to your GP to see if there is anything they can do? I really sympathise, the idea of going through the surgery and then still suffering, albeit less than before, is not something I would relish tbh. Hope you get some relief soon

no my GP just says its IBS and sends me home with tablets.

My GP said that's what my attacks were before I ended up at the hospital with a really bad attack and later had a scan to confirm gall stones!

My mother had hers out,she was ever so slightly tender for a few days afterwards,and has had no problems whatsoever since. Best thing she ever did,but I'm sorry to hear that it doesn't work so well for everyone.

will ask Sue what that condition is that she has after her gall bladder op. it was passed off as IBS for ages. she is having to do an elimination diet atm, and its hard, as there is so much she cant eat.

those who have had it done, you must must stick to the low fat diet. because from what i've heard, its vital to your health.

I had my gall bladder out a few years ago following pancreatitis. The operation was straight forward and I was only a bit bruised afterwards, no real pain.

The only problem now is if I eat a VERY high fat meal (like lamb followed by a rich pudding) I can get an upset stomach. I don't follow a very low fat diet though and am otherwise problem free.

I had mine out nearly 2 years ago and fortunately am back to eating pretty much what I want and haven't had any unwanted side effects.

My surgeon (one of the best in his field according to him, lol) told me at the time, after I asked him about possible side effects as I had a friend who still needed to be fat free after the op or she would get pain and diahorrea, that pain and diahorrea after the op is coming from some other part of the digestive system and that it needs further investigating, and that the gallbladder problems were probably masking the fact that another condition existed as well....or something along those lines.

interesting about a post op low fat diet being vital to health misdee....am intrigued!!

soemthign to do with the body being able to process the fats so well after the gall bladder is removed. my friend knows more. she has suffered a lot after her op.

'not being able to process fats'

my surgeon explained to me that the bile is constantly dripping into the digestive tract after the op, rather than being stored in the gallbladder until needed to process fatty foods and that this may have the effect of increasing stool frequency/consistency but shouldn't affect the amount of fat that the body can process at any one time, hence no need for law fat diet unless overweight. My stools are definately more frequent since the op, but that's the only difference for me.

It does seem to affect people differently though, inspite of what surgeons say!

Misdee - interesting about the low-fat diet. I wasn't told any of that - the surgeon said I could eat whatever I wanted after the op....and he was right. I eat a lot of high-fat foods with no side-effects at all.

Just wanted to add that it was definitely the best thing I ever had done as the pain really was so excruciating - so to anyone reading this about to have it done, it is not all bad news

Just wanted to add my experience. Had my gall bladder removed by keyhole over 8 years ago.
It did take me a while to recover from op, but not usually I would say, was back to work in 6-7 weeks.
No one mentioned side effects to me following the op, and indeed apart from the first few days I haven't suffered any at all.

The only thing that causes that type of pain, under my rib cage, spasms of almost contraction strength is if I take strong pain killers. I never know why.

I am sorry for all those still suffering, but really I couldn't of coped with the pain. There wasn't another option for me. My life was on hold.

x