I had mine out, and it was a pretty easy procedure. Just remember you should feel a little better each day. I went home on a Thursday and started feeling a little worse each day over the weekend and on Monday called the doctor and they had me come in. Apparently they had missed a duct and I was leaking bile. I was a pretty sick puppy, but they were actually able to sedate me and go thru my mouth and repair the leak, easiest procedure ever and as soon as I woke up from that I felt like a million bucks. Just listen to your body after and if each day is a little worse, call the doc. You'll feel like you have pulled all the muscles in your tummy, but it goes away quick. The other great advice I received is when you get the SHARP pain in your shoulder get up and walk around. Laying there makes it worse, if you can make yourself move around the air trapped from the procedure gets moved and the pain goes away. Seriously if I could make myself take two trips around my dining room table the pain would stop.
I had mine out in my mid-20s. The "old-fashioned" way, as another poster put it, so I have a long zipper scar across my belly. /laugh
Definitely take it easy afterward, and eat carefully. Now, almost 20 years later, I don't think much about eating to my gallbladder, but for a while after the surgery I definitely could tell when I'd eaten too much fat and didn't have enough gall to digest it.
it's great to hear all of your experiences here...my mom is having emergency gallbladder surgery tonight! I'm hoping it will relieve her of her immense pain! =(
it's great to hear all of your experiences here...my mom is having emergency gallbladder surgery tonight! I'm hoping it will relieve her of her immense pain! =(
I'm sure everything will go well! Keep us informed on how your mom is and how they did the surgery!
I've been going through attacks for 2 years, I'm happy to have this little bugger taken out! Put it this way, I'd rather be in labour for another 69 hours than have to deal with gallbladder attack pain for even just one hour!
I will keep you posted! She just went into surgery. They are trying to do it laparoscopicly, but they might have to go in the "old fashioned" way. She's been in pain for weeks...she has gallstones and it's all infected and angry...gotta get it outta there!
Good luck to you on your surgery as well...everything I read says that people feel SO much better after the surgery!
dh had his gallbladder removed about three months ago. He'd never had any pain or anything, and he's not a very big guy (5'7'' 170 lb). He just started having these crazy-bad pains in his stomach for about three days and eventually decided to go to the E.R. They quickly brought him in for surgery and he stayed in the hospital for about three days. He says he never has any pain anymore, whatsoever. Good luck to you with your surgery and to stellargirl's mom!
hey! Thanks for asking...she's doing great...
She is sore from the procedure, and feels a little bloated from the air they put in there. Because her gallbladder was so large and inflamed (2x the size it's supossed to be), even though she was able to have it done laproscopically, one of her incisions is quite large.
She says she feels ouchie...but that for the first time in months she has NO stomach pain...and that any pain from the procedure is NOTHING in comparison to the pain she experienced from her gallbladder. She had basically been living on egg whites and jello...so she's excited to actually start introducing normal foods again. (we have a date for PF changs soon! lol). She's actually smiling and laughing today!
Last edited by StellarGirl; 04-24-2010 at 02:08 PM.
AW! Thats wonderful to hear!! I'm so happy for her!
I'm having the main incision above my belly button because I already have a scar from a past laproscopy below my bellybutton. I wonder if I'm going to have a place for my belly ring when it's all said and done! LOL!
Well, I made it!! They were able to do it laporscopically, so I came home this afternoon. I'm in a little pain, but as others have said, nothing like the pain of an attack!
So, I'm on the road to recovery...thanks for all of your help everyone!
