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Original poster

gallbladder agony

113 replies

unicornwonders · 24/03/2023 03:05

i’ve been suffering with pain on and off for years, but tuesday i had the pain under my right rib cage, lower stomach and back, absolute agony for 10 hours, went to gp got sickness meds and had bloods and was told i would hear back by end of week. i’ve been tender and sore under my ribs and lower stomach since, once again i’ve woken up in agony it’s been 4 hours and again pain killers won’t touch it, i can’t take this anymore, i’m sick of the pain and sick and now it’s hurting my chest, i’m waiting on a call back from 111 i just don’t know what to do or what to expect

OP posts:
newtb · 25/03/2023 08:58

Wear leggings or anything with a soft waistband, not jeans which are too stiff and uncomfortable against the body

Gargantuaetpantagruel · 25/03/2023 09:13

@PammyShipman Can I ask what are the problems you've experienced post gall bladder removal?

Original poster
unicornwonders · 25/03/2023 17:56

the unmanageable pain has struck again, painkillers again not touching it! don’t know if it’s worth going back to a&e if they won’t take it out any sooner than thursday…

OP posts:
WinterMermaid987 · 25/03/2023 18:07

I had a suppository anti inflammatory which was the only thing that helped as it worked quicker.
I had key hole surgery to remove my gallbladder and it was the best thing ever to not struggle with that pain again. I did get an infection in the port site under my bra band area which delayed my return to work by a week but it’s generally a quick op to recover from.

WinterMermaid987 · 25/03/2023 18:08

I’d go back toA&E incase you are at risk of sepsis

FatAgainItsLettuceTime · 25/03/2023 18:11

WinterMermaid987 · 25/03/2023 18:07

I had a suppository anti inflammatory which was the only thing that helped as it worked quicker.
I had key hole surgery to remove my gallbladder and it was the best thing ever to not struggle with that pain again. I did get an infection in the port site under my bra band area which delayed my return to work by a week but it’s generally a quick op to recover from.

Diclofenac suppository. it's magic stuff, I had it after having DD and a second degree tear, I had several hours of absolutely no pain at all before it wore off and I started to feel what had happened to my poor torn apart nether regions.

Original poster
unicornwonders · 25/03/2023 18:11

my inflammatory markers were high but no antibiotics etc given as was told i didn’t need them. Not sure what to do

OP posts:
BettyOBarley · 25/03/2023 18:29

Have you tried keeping a food diary to see what sets it off? Random things like cake used to set mine off (before I knew to avoid it!)

Buscopan helped me with the pain, even though it's not made for that, it did help (and is also what I was given by a doctor in Mexico when I was suffering over there!)

Delphigirl · 25/03/2023 18:34

Sympathy, it is the absolute pits. No saturated fat at all, in the slightest, including no eggs, and experiment with tiny drizzles of olive oil and eg salmon (oily fish), but carefully. If you are desperate for a biscuit, have an oatcake. Honestly, you really have to be that careful until it is removed.
it is the worst ever pain.

Original poster
unicornwonders · 25/03/2023 18:47

in all honestly i’m not actually eating due to the pain so food isn’t setting it off

OP posts:
m00rfarm · 25/03/2023 18:51

PammyShipman · 24/03/2023 03:29

But are you still eating fat?
Not just 'fatty foods'? Anything with any fat in.

I even had to switch from white to brown rice while waiting for the op. It was miserable and I hated it but I hated the attacks even more.

Any fat will cause the gallbladder to essentially squeeze to release bile. With a stone/ stones in it they will block the duct and cause the pain.

Just bear in mind that even though things seemed like a miracle cure for me at first, gradually issues with not having a gallbladder have crept in.

You have my sympathy as it's horrible either way. The attacks are horrible, the consequences of not having a gallbladder are horrible.

What sort of issues are you now experiencing. I had mine out about 3 years ago. I have been able to continue eating more or less anything I want that includes fat, but I do avoid milk. However, recently, I have been wolfing down gaviscon overnight as I am feeling the bile coming up consistently. Is this something you have started to experience or something else?

anon37484291918 · 25/03/2023 18:58

FatAgainItsLettuceTime · 25/03/2023 08:54

This was mine, just the one big stone that got stuck and nothing was gonna shift it.

Like others have said, once the gallbladder was gone I have had no problems at all.

Tiny word of warning though, the painkillers you're on (codeine) can cause constipation so make sure you're having plenty of water, fruit juice and if needed some stool softeners. You don't want to add constipation discomfort to gallstone pain if you help it.

That stone is HUGE!

Frlrlrubert · 25/03/2023 19:37

unicornwonders · 25/03/2023 18:47

in all honestly i’m not actually eating due to the pain so food isn’t setting it off

I was like this and I had no inflammatory markers, so I'm guessing you are worse.

I cut out all fat I could was literally eating plain white rice and plain chicken breast and still having attacks.

As I said, tramadol worked for me. It made me constipated so I only took it (and therefore, ate) in the evening. I lost 2 stone in 2 months.

I'd call 111 and tell them the codeine (I think you said) is no longer working and that you need a Dr to prescribe stronger meds to get you to Thursday when it comes out. And honestly, I've they'd have said no I'd have gone to A&E. I've known people get oramorph for their gallbladder pain.

My attacks tended to last around 8 hours, so A&E was pointless as they be subsiding by the time I got seen.

1AnotherOne · 25/03/2023 19:43

Go back to a&e. They might admit you and add you to their emergency surgery list

davegrohll · 25/03/2023 20:01

Hi op, go back to a&e, you're down for surgery so they should definitely give you some morphine or something

Bouledeneige · 25/03/2023 23:45

Ignore the folks who think you can just manage what you eat and you'll be fine.

I had a acute cholecystitis after many attacks and ended up in such an acute crisis that they had to operate - there is nothing you can do when gallstones are being passed, get stuck and send your body into spasms - they are horrific. It magnified over many attacks and there was nothing I could do to limit them or reduce the pain. Nothing hit the sides and the surgeons recognised that it needed treatment immediately.

Sorry OP this doesn't help you. I believe the waiting list for treatment is bad.

Yellowdays · 25/03/2023 23:54

I must have been very lucky, as I also had acute cholecystitis, and a fat free diet initially enabled me to gradually stop having gallstone attacks except very occasionally. After a couple of years I have reintroduced fat, although I stick to nuts, seeds and olive oil, in the main. I can eat a couple of squares of dark chocolate ok. I was told it can be done, and it seems it can, but you have to be dedicated to a lifestyle change. One thing which stuck in my mind was the consultant I saw when
I I left hospital told me that people with gallstones return in their droves at Christmas. I determined that wasn't going to be me.

Greensheep242 · 26/03/2023 09:50

Did you get any better painkillers?

Stravawindow · 26/03/2023 09:55

I didn’t eat food with fat and that didn’t stop my attacks. The only thing that did was removal.

My gp was brilliant and I had a lot of meds. Buscopan helped. I was also given morphine to have at home.

hopsalong · 26/03/2023 10:23

Log on to Amazon now and buy a TUDCA (bile acid) supplement. I get the Double Woods one but any decent brand will be fine.

It's a bile acid and dissolves cholesterol in the gallbladder, reducing stone and sludge formation. Two years ago I was struggling on and off with gallbladder pain, the attacks not quite as bad as yours at your worst (one trip to A&E in a 12 month period), but frequent, debilitating, and depressing because I became so fanatical about avoiding fat. The TUDCA didn't work instantly but it instantly improved things. After a month the pain had gone, the whites of my eyes were no longer yellow and my digestion /bms were much more normal. I no longer take it regularly but start again if I feel any return of symptoms/ tightness under my rib cage. Probably I should take it every day but it's quite expensive and I don't like swallowing pills.

Original poster
unicornwonders · 26/03/2023 18:15

i didn’t end up going back in i took one of my sedatives to get to sleep, i can’t wait to have it out, still in pain just trying to manage through, thanks to everyone for their help

OP posts:
Original poster
unicornwonders · 27/03/2023 10:08

after the operation, did you have any follow ups?

OP posts:
Fladdermus · 27/03/2023 10:18

I had no follow up after the operation. It's usually keyhole, so there isn't really anything to follow up.

The surgery is a doddle by the way. It's not like sleeping, there's no awareness of time passing. You close your eyes and immediately open them again and it's all over. I was home and pottering around the house a few hours after. Bit sore for a few days but not sore enough to even take any painkillers.

Delphigirl · 27/03/2023 14:55

I did have one zoom follow up to check everything was ok. I had a stitch or two they told me to go to the gp to have taken out but I did it myself.

simbobs · 27/03/2023 15:14

My husband was suffering like you. In A&E they realised that he had stones stuck in his bile duct and first had a procedure under sedation to deal with that. This involved a hospital stay. They were very keen to get him booked in for gall bladder removal soon after that. The operation for removal was day surgery, as others have mentioned. Recovery was OK but he does look like he has been in a knife fight! I don't think any consideration was given to the possibility of lifestyle changes instead of surgery, nor was he given much in the way of advice about managing any symptoms caused by the gall bladder removal. He does have to rush to the loo more than once in the morning, which I assume is a result of the operation. He won't talk to a doctor about it, either. Good luck to you.

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