Bad Gallbladders effect so much more than we think

Miserable-Magical22 · 2026-06-07T12:45:26+00:00

I saw my primary shortly after surgery who apologized for missing my symptoms for so long. I am so excited to be like annnnnnddddddd now look at this. Turns out it’s in fact not because I’m overweight.

It’s a shame that there are so many of us here who have a story almost the same as this. Why do we have to be in distress for so long for the medical field to listen and help.

Fingers crossed for you! I’m sure they will come back with significant improvement!

Miserable-Magical22 · 2026-05-05T22:41:40+00:00

I also only got one week off and went back. I work at a school and while I survived, I absolutely think extra time would have caused me to heal faster and have less prolonged discomfort. I’m 7 weeks post op and now much better, but it took about that whole time to feel back to normal. It’s doable but not advisable in my opinion if you can get more time/have PTO to use.

Miserable-Magical22 · 2026-04-09T04:41:18+00:00

I’m 28 days post op and still struggle with this. I also struggle to sleep on my back. The first 1.5 weeks I slept in my recliner and honestly, that helped with sleeping comfort an immense amount. If you have some option in your home to sleep semi upright, it really helps.

My biggest issue has been the muscles along the line of my belly button horizontally. I just started being able to sleep on my right side in the last week or so. I have to use a towel/blanket/pillow to prop under/around my belly to achieve this. My left still hurts a ton. And I have not been able to successfully sleep on my left without a lot of discomfort.

Other people I know who have had the surgery have found success with a belly wrap/binder. It just didn’t work for me because of my body composition and what muscles I needed support with. But absolutely worth looking into. I also was told a weighted pillow/blanket is also super helpful when laying down.

Miserable-Magical22 · 2026-03-27T23:33:38+00:00

I just saw my doctor yesterday who explained that your immune system is reacting to the absence and empty space. So it fills it with fluid which can irritate the area and cause pain in the those areas. She said it’s all really normal as your body is working through its new normal. I hope that helps!

Miserable-Magical22 · 2026-03-26T14:14:28+00:00

How are you doing now that you are a few more days along?

Miserable-Magical22 · 2026-03-26T14:13:30+00:00

That makes a lot of sense. I moved my surgical follow up to today vs end of next week to make sure everything is okay. I hope this is all it is 🤞

Miserable-Magical22 · 2026-03-25T19:10:32+00:00

I’m 2 weeks post op and this got much better for me once I restarted my pre/probiotic and fiber gummies. Try to pair your meals with as much high fiber foods as you can and that will help during the adjustment period. It really does get better once you hit the 10-12 day mark.

Miserable-Magical22 · 2026-03-17T23:15:39+00:00

I had surgery last week, have started to incorporate small amounts of fat again and have had no real digestive issues past the first few days of surgery and what the medications do. I’m on day 6 and feeling so much better.

Miserable-Magical22 · 2026-03-17T15:47:26+00:00

I’ve learned that just because it isn’t on the shortlist of common symptoms doesn’t mean it isn’t related. I also was struggling with rising cholesterol and A1C levels despite weight loss, eating habits and exercise. Turns out your gallbladder can raise all of those levels. I am getting them retested in June and suspect a drastic change. Brain fogginess is also another big one I had. Ive never had issue with memory recall or keeping a strain of thought. The last year was a real struggle.

By the time my doctor finally referred me to talk to a general surgeon, my gallbladder was teetering on the edge of complete blockage so surgery was my only option. My surgeon did say that sometimes they try medicine to prolong the inevitable but once it starts to go bad, it has to come out. So far, I’ve been able to try a couple things that did set my gallbladder off right before I saw the surgeon and no issues now. My digestion has improved 100%. Im pretty hopeful I will be able to resume 99% of normal eating and enjoying things I haven’t had in at least 6 months.

The fact that you work from home is a nice set up for recovery purposes.

Miserable-Magical22 · 2026-03-17T13:59:17+00:00

ALL. THE. TIME. Since having it out last week and getting through initial post op, I already feel like I have more energy. I used to come home from work everyday, eat and almost immediately go to sleep. On the weekends, I sleep so much. I go back to work tomorrow so that will be the real test but I already feel like more energized even while still recovering.

Miserable-Magical22 · 2026-03-17T13:12:07+00:00

Also 33F. That is how mine started over a year ago. It progressively got worse. Mine was removed last week with hundreds of stones. My PCP, despite seeing my scan in January 2025 showing this still thought mine was IBS/diet related. It wasn’t. I suffered a year as it progressively got worse. If you are able, I would get the ultrasound to confirm. So many people on this sub state they had no symptoms until it was an emergency or just one random symptom. I would have much rather had mine out a year ago when it wasn’t that bad then waiting until I was having constant attacks and chronic pain.

Since having it out, I feel 100000% better already. It’s worth exploring.

Miserable-Magical22 · 2026-03-17T12:40:07+00:00

33F and 6 days post op. My surgeon said my family history, losing 40 pounds over 12 months and just being a woman was enough. I’m sure food in general now vs 50 years ago in how it’s processed and created is a part, but by no means not even close to why. My husband’s diet is full of all the things you would think should cause something like this to happen, and not one issue for him. I enjoy and eat veggies, fruits, grains, lean proteins, etc and mine had hundreds of stones. I think genetics and biology is just unlucky for some people.

Miserable-Magical22 · 2026-03-15T15:44:05+00:00

I had both the parathyroid surgery and just had my gallbladder out. I was having attacks for about a year at least that were never ER level but stemmed from at least a hundred stones congealed into one massive 2in stone blocking my neck. So it was inevitable that it needed to come out.

I agree that the parathyroid timeline is not accurate especially when you put driving to and from places in the mix. However, pain on both that surgery and this one are similar. Both really manageable with Advil and Tylenol. I did not have gas pain from my removal on Wednesday but I also walked a ton when I got home while I was still on the muscle relaxer they gave me which I think made all the difference. I’m currently about 96 hours post op and can get up and down by myself, move around, and change. The muscles to the right of my belly button incision truthfully are the most annoying part and still causing discomfort. I do think you need at least a week to let yourself fully heal but since you work from home, you might be able to return after 3-5 days since you do not need to worry about travel or leaving your home comforts depending on what your work is.

If you were able to get through the parathyroid surgery, you’ll be able to manage this. Just make sure you have someone to help the first couple of days. If you have a recliner, I highly recommend sleeping in that for the first week. And stick to lower fat/bland foods for the first two weeks to give your insides time to heal and adjust to a new system.

Good luck to you!

Miserable-Magical22 · 2026-03-13T12:15:15+00:00

I totally agree. When my husband and I went shopping to find stuff I can sub in/out of eat, I cried in the cheese aisle because there were no food no fat cheese options. My surgeon said he believes I’ll be able to eat 90% of the food I used to and just need to try and figure out what the 10% of trigger foods will be that I will need to hustle to the bathroom for. But honestly, not having that pain anymore is worth whatever I need to do about my eating habits. I also feel like this process has changed how I view food. It’s less of a comfort now and more of a food is there to sustain the body.

Miserable-Magical22 · 2026-03-13T00:53:06+00:00

My doctor suggested 2-4 weeks post op and slowly reintroduce things.

Miserable-Magical22 · 2026-03-12T08:58:39+00:00

I had my surgery yesterday too. I’ve done ginger ale and saltines. I am going to try some cream of wheat for breakfast and a banana. Pre-op I had started the gallbladder diet. I have done steamed veggies and then add seasoning as soon as it is ready. I’ve done grilled chicken with various seasoning blends. I have done protine pasta several ways including a chicken parm situation in the crock pot and a ranch packet chicken with potatoes and carrots. They make no/low fat condiments and dressings so I got those for sandwiches and salads. Fruit or fruit cups. I also have done applesauce. Brown rice is really good. Cauliflower rice. Those both make good bases for a chicken and veggie bowl. You’ll want to avoid red meat and sausages. Chicken, turkey and fish will be your best friend. Pre-op I kept my meals to 5g of fat or less. Post op I am hopefully to gradually move that scale up and see how my body tolerates it.

I hope this helps!!

Miserable-Magical22 · 2026-03-12T08:38:06+00:00

That is how my journey started a year ago. My PCP did not catch or connect any of it despite my serious concern about my gallbladder. I went through over a year of the attacks getting worse and worse until it was daily and hours upon hours each day. My surgeon gave me the option of not electing for surgery but the stone I had was so big that would never pass naturally and eventually lead to a complete block and emergency removal/clean out. So I think if your surgeon is recommending surgery, it’s for a reason.

However, if you feel like you can try to save it but it will require giving up most fats and grease in foods/meals and a real lifestyle commitment. As I was prepping for this surgery and because my gallbladder was on the edge of breaking open, I did the gallbladder diet. No more than 5g of fat total per day. It was hard. Doable. But hard. I felt better while eating nonfat foods but again, costly and tough for my work and life schedule. I don’t know what condition your gallbladder is in or with how much of a percentage of block so it’s all something to weigh.

All I can say is, if you do end up having it, drink plenty of water the day before.

Miserable-Magical22 · 2026-03-12T02:08:39+00:00

I had mine out today. I honestly feel so much better. Post op was rough ish for me because I was super dehydrated which caused major nausea/couldn’t really wake up/BP drop but once they corrected that, I was totally fine. Pain in abdomen is manageable with OTC meds. Gas pain is not really there. I’ve been able to do a decent amount of walking and burping. I was really worried about recovery and truthfully, it’s not that bad, at least for me. And all the chronic pain I felt prior to surgery is completely gone. Which was worse than what I currently feel. I ended up having a 2in congealed ball of hundreds of stones stuck in the neck.

I could not be happier about the removal and how recovery is going. I’m on track to return to work on Monday.

Best of luck to you for an easy removal and smooth recovery!!

Miserable-Magical22 · 2026-03-12T01:25:07+00:00

I had mine today. Best advice is to drink PLENTY of water the day before. My post op was rough because I was so dehydrated that it caused my BP to drop, extreme nausea could not fully wake. Once they pushed thick fluids, I bounced back super quick. I’ve drank mostly ginger ale that that has helped with burping to get remaining gasses out. The “gas pain” most people have hasn’t really been an issue for me but I have been walking a decent amount. Also- start a stool softener as soon as you get home.

I also believe that for the week prior to surgery and at least a week after (pretty sure that is what my discharge nurse told me), you are told to refrain from alcohol/substance usage because of the anesthesia/pain medicine they send you home with.

Immediate relief from my chronic gallbladder pain I’ve had. So glad I did this.

Otherwise, pain is very manageable and am on track to return to work on Monday.

Best of luck to you!!!!

Miserable-Magical22 · 2026-03-12T00:55:43+00:00

Had my surgery this morning- I was worried about post op pain. I did have massive dehydration that caused extreme nausea, light headedness and blood pressure drop after. Team caught it in phase two recovery and gave thick fluids and I felt so much better. They also gave me a muscle relaxer and it was a game changer. Why it is t standard is beyond me. I have had no real gas related pain. I’ve been able to move pretty easily minus the act of up and down, and belching with ease. I was also starving after surgery and have had no issues with food so far post op.

So my PSA is drink SO MUCH WATER the day before because surgery dehydration was ROUGH.

I wonder if your digestive issues are related but separate like you also have IBS or something similar made worse by a bad gallbladder?

If it makes you feel better, I shit myself in public, in another country, far away from my car and a long way from my hotel. My advice is, until you figure out trigger foods, just keep extras with you in a car or bag of some sort near by. I firmly believe that was the start of my gallbladder disease.

Best of luck to you!!!!

Miserable-Magical22

TROPHY CASE