Gallbladder support thread 2020

[MustTidyUpMustTidyUp]

Have been having problems recently and will need to have gallbladder removed. Waiting for app from surgeon.
I have found the old gallstone / biliary colic support threads helpful so thought would set up a new one. Would be good to hear how others are managing symptoms and ideas of waiting times following the last six months.

I have a very high pain threshold and put the pain of gallstones down to being very unfit and prone to severe ‘stitch’ everytime I did anything a bit energetic. Missed the warning shots of repeated mild pancreatitis attacks too and thought it was either indigestion or I had eaten something that did not like me. Doh

Collapsed with severe pancreatitis and was raced through A&E straight to HDU under surgical care. Had to wait for the severe pancreatitis to stabilise before the consultant surgeon was willing to risk operating to remove my gallbladder as an urgent op. To say I was very unwell from the severe pancreatitis is being polite. I gather a mild attack hospitalises most people due to the pain driving them to A&E within the first 12 hours.

IF you have gallstones that cause biliary colic please become informed on the symptoms of pancreatitis. If I knew then what I know now I would have gone to A&E before. Occasionally a passed gallstone can irritate the pancreatic duct as it passes and that can set off pancreatitis. I found it that is a medical emergency the hard way and I count myself lucky to have survived.

The best management until surgery is to eat very small meals, think young toddler portion sized and to avoid all saturated fat’s and limit the good fats to no more than 20g a day well spread across six very small meals/healthy snacks. Larger meals and fatty meals will be extremely painful.

If at any time your symptoms worsen or the colic is prolonged [3+ hours] or you show signs of jaundice please go straight to A&E.

Thanks for the info. Lovely GP has told me to go straight to A and E if have another bad one. Have had antibiotics and definitely the pain is a million times better, no major attacks since finished course.
Am dreading hearing how long the wait for surgery is though

WRT food, I certainly don’t feel like eating big meals. Have been on soup /yoghurt for last few weeks and rarely hungry.
(Not like me and can do with losing a stone or two)

For anyone that’s interested the current surgery waiting list in my area is 6 months!

It's a year in my area :( six months is still a long time to wait!

I didn't know this thread existed - I just started a thread about my rib/sternum pain which I think is related to my gallstones... it's just a constant ache in my chest/upper abdomen.

Also TMI but I have urgent BMs after everything I eat and its yellow :( really suffering at the moment.

I get the rib/ sternum pain also. Whenever I eat. I’m sure it’s linked. Yellow sounds dodgy. My digestion is ok but I don’t eat anything above 5% fat to try and reduce symptoms. Doc said need to go to no fat at all. Jeez.

It's horrible isn't it? Gives me so much anxiety - I barely slept last night.

I prob also need to go very low/no fat - admittedly I've not been very strict with my diet so that might help. Can't wait to get it out!!

Hope you get your appointment soon so you can get on a waiting list.

Had app this morning so now on the list (1050 people on it :-0) going to see about going privately.

Ouch over 1000 ☹️ Good luck if you do manage to go privately! Let us know how you get on

I was admitted via a&e 2 weeks ago with acute pancreatitis due to gall stones. Never diagnosed before. Waiting list for removal was 12 months though consultant said I would go to the top of the list so would be a few weeks ie up to 12. I phoned private healthcare, and all sorted, I'm having surgery tomorrow, their main concern was having pancreatitis again as it can be troublesome if not treated quickly.

I had covid test on Friday and isolating since be aware some nhs say isolate for 2 weeks pre op. However I have a light head cold! Hoping they will still go ahead.

Diet and small portions definitely, I also found slightly spiced food would set off.

These are my food hacks:

Skyr yoghurt is high Protein and no fat
Oatley products also low fat, nice custard you can have with fruit.
Tesco low fat olive marg is the lowest of the low fat margarines.
Turkey mince to make burgers, spag Bol,
meatballs etc
Jaffa cakes!! Yes! And rich tea biscuits.
Tuna steaks - expensive but delicious with salad and new potatoes.
Apples and apple juice help your digestion generally.

I had my GB out two years ago.

I'd known about the gallstones for a few years and was offered surgery but refused as the attacks weren't frequent. Over the course of a summer they became more frequent and I had my GB out 2 weeks after my appt with the specialist. It was a great relief.

I can't believe that you have such long waiting lists! I think my Mum had to wait about 6 weeks and that was considered a long wait. We're in Scotland and our NHS is bit better resourced.

YoBeaches let us know how you get on today and good luck.

I have an app on weds with consultant (private) really hoping he will agree to get it done ASAP. So fed up of feeling crappy all the time. Also worried they’ll start cancelling elective surgery again :-(

Same here - I can’t afford private at all but I’m still worried they’ll cancel electives again ☹️ I don’t know what I’ll do if they do!!

Thank you, going ahead with the head cold. I agree re timings and greater lockdown measures preventing private procedures.

See you on the other side!

Good luck YoBeaches!

How are you YoBeaches?

Staying overnight tonight, was a bit later going for surgery than planned - went down at 4pm , and I have to say the pain afterwards was pretty rough and I'm usually good with pain. I think it's the gas they use to inflate the area for keyhole. It's slowly passing through but yeah it was very painful till about 8 pm. Took about 1.5 hrs and confirmed no stones in pancreas (phew!)

I've eaten toast and a yogurt and gallons of sweet tea. Hopefully I'll sleep and feel better in a few more hours. Thanks for thinking of me x

So glad it went well. Hope you’re feeling bit better tomo x

Well despite not a lot of sleep (think I was wired from the drugs) I feel much better today. Most of the gas has dispersed I think, less bloated and less pain. It's actually better to sit upright in a chair and walk around than it is lying down.

Don't want to put anyone off with the pain afterwards, it was bad for a couple of hours but as soon as I could have the next set of meds that sorted it out.

Also I had a scratchy throat from the tubes and kept coughing, the lovely nurse brought be honey and hot water which did the trick. Maybe bring something in, lozenges even would help.

Going home in about an hour, expecting 2 weeks recovery think.

Yobeaches, The Royal College of Surgeons has a useful ‘recovery from gallbladder removal surgery’ PDF guide. I found it helpful although a tad frustrating as everything is taking me so much longer to do. [Severe pancreatitis then surgery as soon as I was stable with a much larger removal incision]

As you have had pancreatitis very recently you MIGHT need an extra week to recover. I hope you have absolutely plain sailing and no further problems from now on. Glad you did not have any stones wedged in your pancreas ducts. It’s painful enough when they graze the ducts!

Keep on top of the post op pain you might have for the first 48 hours. Compared to severe pancreatitis and repeated arterial blood tests I found the post op pain to be nothing- except for when I sneezed. That hurt. Everyone’s pain tolerance is different but post op pain should rapidly improve from keyhole surgery after the first 48 hours.

Take it steady today, stick with the boring Uber low fat diet for a couple of weeks to give your guts a rest. S-l-o-w-l-y re-introduce and begin to work out what your body is able to cope with.

Thank you @triballeader lots of good advice there appreciated.

Watching with interest. I'm waiting for a scan for possible gallstones and think I may have overlooked several episodes of pancreatitis as stitch or muscle pain from generally being a bit unfit. Does anyone find that being active/overdoing it gives them a flare up of pain?

@MustTidyUpMustTidyUp hey - did you have your private appointment last week? If so how did it go?

It got cancelled! New one this aft, will update later.