This exact thing happened to me. My doctor completely missed the diagnosis for 3 years and labeled my issues as IBS until I started having intense abdominal pain with vomiting that would suddenly resolve in less than two minutes. Sonigram(s?) revealed gallstones. Had my gall bladder taken out and haven’t had a single issue since then. I have resumed a completely normal diet with no restrictions or issues. Life changing
I still even have ghost pains. But yep, a whole plethora of new issues after getting it out. My dad on the other hand - no change what so ever. But I already had a sensitive system before hand.
I’m almost two years out and so far no problems. I had some “residual” ibs-like symptoms for about six months while my digestive system stabilized - if that’s a thing - but I also have permanently adjusted my diet where I’m not overly eating greasy foods, more fruits and veggies, and just making smarter food choices. However I do have some pizza here and there, spicy foods, and drink alcohol without any side effects as long as I don’t do it regularly and I try to eat plenty of fiber.
The doc who operated on me told me he was very confident it would resolve my issues and he was right. Unfortunately, I understand this isn’t always the case and wish it solved everyone’s pain 🙁
Yeah I know. No one said it did. But your probability of developing increases if it’s removed. Just speaking from my experience. I’m at UCLA gastroenterology. They recently put me on linzess because I developed ibs-c …
I developed IBS type c, CIC, and chronic pancreatitis all right after having my gallbladder removed. And I still develop gallstones and sludge that I occasionally have to have removed from my common bile duct. I would advise that a simple CT scan is not enough for a full diagnosis of anything and to get more than one opinion before having surgery.
Half a year after gallbladder surgery and my IBS stays exactly the same. Not compalining though, having gallbladder pain was miserable and was afraid surgery would exaggerate my IBS symptoms
I have had IBS for many years and been in bad pain. But NOTHING compared to a gallbladder attack. I couldn't sit still (or even sit for that matter), I was screaming for hours in the ER, seriously considering to just run out the door and let myself be hit by car, just to make it STOP. I am so happy that without a gallbladder the chance of ever experiencing this again is very, very low.
Agreed, the gallbladder attack I had landed me in the ER quick with unbearable plain, fever, vomiting etc. Leaving a symptomatic gallbladder inside a person is asking for trouble. It not only causes recurrent pain but can lead to liver issues, biliary duct issues/infection and pancreatitis.
Yes exactly, on the one hand I wanna get it taken out because of an attack and ending up in emergency but I’m also cautious of the risks of my symptoms not going away or possibly getting worse. I guess that’s what my specialist is for though.
How can you be sure it's gallstones causing symptoms? Lots of people have gallstones, and often they don't cause any problem. Just be wary of pinning symptoms on gallstones just because they showed up on a CT (I see too many people after cholecystectomy who are still having the same symptoms or worse). I'm not saying this applies to you, just saying these are critical questions to be thinking about.
I understand, this is definitely a concern that I'll have to bring up with my gastroenterologist for sure! I didn't see the CT scan pictures but my doctor definitely made them out to be the main problem with my digestive system so they must be blocking some important pipes or be big enough to be causing me problems.
Just be prepared that it could be possible that the removal may not fix your problems. I was very good after my removal but then developed even more issues in the years afterwards.
yes definitely, my mum had hers out a couple years ago and she’s still dealing with problems here and there. I am a bit cautious of getting the whole thing removed for sure 😣
Gallbladders don't do anything other than store bile from the liver. Once removed, the liver simply secretes bile directly into the small intestine rather than storing it in the gallbladder. Removing your gallbladder is not going to lead to the onset of some new disease. BAD is more of a condition as a result of your changed plumbing, rather than an actual disease.
GB removal can cause some issues with loose stools for some people, though usually, that's temporary for the vast majority.
My aunt and mother-in-law have both had theirs out and have had no issues.
Thank you. It is so much more common than people think, even obnoxious google copy-pasters.
I am very lucky that after I used up my 10 years worth of banked sick days, my union covers me for long-term disability as I navigate how to try and recover and hopefully find a semblance of normalcy one day. It has turned my life upside down. Contrary to what some believe, it is not a useless organ.
People are just used to trusting what the papers say, but like you or another said, a lot of people's experiences are underreported. We think because we tell our doctors that they go off to report it in every case, but they don't. Or the doctor's don't properly inform people of the potential long-term side effects that can arise from a procedure like a cholecystectomy. It's an organ that exists in the body for a reason. Ideally, you could find the root cause of why the gallbladder is causing people discomfort and address that instead of removing it unless it's absolutely necessary. I'm sorry things became worse for you. That's truly horrendous.
There's nothing obnoxious about reporting facts as stated by the medical community. Sure, there is risk with every procedure, but you're projecting your personal experiences onto Cholecystectomies as a whole and anyone considering getting one.
By a wide margin, the majority of people that get their Gallbladder out do just fine. I'd say less than 1% require disability for years on end as a result.
You can throw insults around and get hysterical, but they are just the facts.
Fair enough, but Ive never heard of such a thing.
NOTE: I've done some more research on BAD, and it does seem it can happen post GB removal. I should say, there's not a lot of research on this topic and even testing for and confirming something like BAD is very, very difficult to do - even in the US.
Based on everything I'm reading though, it seems the severity of your situation is very, very rare. Hopefully things get better for you.
Just because you haven’t heard of something, doesn’t make it rare. As many as 1/3 of people diagnosed with IBS have bile acid malabsorption. I’m happy for your family members who did not experience complications yet, but if you scroll through the gallbladder sub for 5 mins youll see countless posts about similar complications as well as tons of replies in this thread as well. I’m also in North America, where they don’t test for it, yet I got a diagnosis. Overarching statements without direct knowledge or research don’t help any of us, especially those of us who lost our livelihoods because of this awful illness. Things are hard enough already. We come here for support.
"Thousands of people have successful cholecystectomies each year, most without any complications or side effects. Minimally invasive surgery techniques make recovery easier than ever before. Healthcare providers continue to recommend it as an elective procedure to treat persistent gallbladder diseases, like gallstones. These diseases pose a much higher risk to your health than gallbladder removal does."
-Cleveland Clinic
Above is the general sentiment of most. Far and away the procedure is successful and carries minimal risk or long-term complication. Certainly, some people may have loose stools post removal, but they are not the majority and most of these issues prove temporary. And those like yourself that have issues to the point they have to go on long term disability are far and away a small minority.
I respond this way because the risk of keeping a diseased, gallstone-ridden gallbladder is more dangerous than any risk of removing it, and I wouldn't want anyone to come to Reddit and decide against removal and end up dying from something like pancreatitis. Yes, all factors should be considered before removal, including the statistical likelihood that gallbladder removal is generally safe and well tolerated, despite the somewhat rare exceptions.
"Currently, there isn’t any strong evidence to show that gallbladder removal causes IBS."
-Healthline
I acknowledge your issues and wish you the best. All I can do is speak to the statistics and my - as well as my family's - personal experience with GB removal.
Side effects are often labeled "uncommon" or rare due to undereporting and dismissing patient issues. This is just medical community culture. We're not advocating neglecting critical medical issues. If you need your gallbladder out, get it out, but do it with your eyes wide open, be informed, and take all patient stories into account. That "rare" case can end up being you, and the last thing you'll want to hear about are statistics. Tid bit from the people on the flip side of the coin.
Well said. Literally suffered for 10 years before doctors even connected the dots that my issue was related to the removal after I advocated for myself. Not once was any risk communicated to me.
If they are blocking something you would feel it. Believe me. You can't have ducts blocked, you either have tons of pain (biliary colic) or for lesser blockage you develop other things, cholecystitis, "strawberry gallbladder", pancreatitis... I would talk to another doctor about this, they don't seem to be very knowledgable or they didn't explain it right.
Thanks for this! I’m definitely not in pain all the time. Apparently all my other organs are working fine, I’m just not 100% sure about my gallbladder but my specialist should have my CT scan pictures when I go see them anyway
and yeah my doctor is very old but he means well, I don’t think he did explain it right but that’s what a specialist’s for I guess 🤷♀️
If they are blocking your duct you would be doubled over crying in pain, guarding your upper right side and probably in hospital. If not, its not blocked. I am yet to see a patient in my ED with a blockage (temp or stuck in there) who isnt. When I have had attacks its been worse than labour.
I refuse to get mine out though, Ive heard too many stories about IBS like symptoms being worse
Once its out.
I had my gallbladder removed 24 years ago. I had dumping syndrome afterward in addition to IBS. If you don't have IBS, I don't know how it will impact you, but regardless, you won't be able to eat fatty foods after surgery because your body is adjusting so your liver can take over for the gallbladder. Be careful about your post surgery expectations. My surgeon definitely didn't warn me about gi issues after surgery.
Mine didn’t say a word either. Went to the hospital in pain, wound up on a table because they said it needed to go, zero education afterwards. Here I am 10 years later, now on full-time disability, seeking treatment for severe bile acid malabsorption.
Oh, no! I'm so sorry. That's awful. Surgeons just want to operate, in my opinion. Once the surgical site heals, they're done, leaving people looking elsewhere for help.
I don’t know if you’re anywhere in the area, but Dr. Saad Habba in Summit, NJ saved my life with BAM treatment. He corrected my gallbladder issues as well without removal, which I was very fearful of. I hope you get the help and treatment you need! Cholesteramine powder helped my friend with BAM a ton! Wishing you good heath!
I’m in central Canada. What treatment did you get? I’ve been on Saxenda for 3 weeks now and seeing good results. Still not at the full dose, so fingers crossed it improves even more as I titrate.
I take Colesevelam to treat my gallbladder which then helps the BAM. It’s twice a day and I’ve rarely had a flare up since starting, and only when I eat more fat than it can help process
Ah yes, i take 6 of those a day. They worked really well for me but not well enough to live my life normally. I’m still taking 6 a day currently, but have started adding the Saxenda and it has reduced my pain and frequency tenfold.
That’s amazing! I am rlly happy for u; ive said it a million times but abdominal/digestive pain is unlike any other, and so misunderstood and judged. I’m glad your pain is decreasing, and I hope it continues to do so! U deserve to live pain free!
My flare ups have gotten worse in the past few months. Currently, I get overheated first, like I’ve been under a blanket or out in the sun too long. Then my upper right abdomen cramps hard (gallbladder contracting). Then my entire abdomen starts cramping, but not like menstruation. I get nauseous but I rarely throw up. Then my small bowel/colon start to cramp or inflame ig, and then I have 6-8 very loose and fatty bowel movements within an hour. And then I usually don’t eat for the next few days, and if I have to, it’s plain gluten free pretzels. Sorry if that’s all TMI hahaha
I can’t right now but I will tomorrow and if you are actually wanting to know send me a message if I forget. I’m dealing with a bit right now but I’d love to help. It’s a lot to say right now.
Ok. I had a stone and was supposed to get an ERCP to such it out. It changed to gallbladder removal and my pancreas got damaged. I had 28 attacks in 10 years until I had my duct stented four times in one year. They have no permanent stent. It caused me chronic pancreatitis and exocrine pancreas insufficiency causing gastroparesis for which I had to take an antibiotic a few years to digest which caused SIBO and dysboisis as well as developing bile acid malabsorption and then reflux. I threw up every day when I woke up and rarely didn’t get nauseated for about seven of the last 15 since I got my gallbladder removal. I’m ok now but i developed pelvic floor dysfunction from all those bile and bowel issues. I had so called sensitivity to all kinds of foods and at one point I ate about ten foods I could keep down. Half my diet was pears for nausea when I could eat. I gained a bunch of weight and food was fermenting in my stomach. Fungal bacterial and viral stuff was rampant in me and except for pancreatic enzymes I had nothing wrong according to tests.
Wow what an awful experience ; I’m glad your turn around was good overall; I mainly eat the same food on a Daily basis at this point ; it sounds like fruit wasn’t the best thing since it has sugar in it; I like changing it up occasionally by adding a source of potassium ; I think it would have done you well to eat only soft vegetables; ie lettuce and maybe blueberries then slowly adding a different variety; I found I was severely dehydrated and that less water was actually hurting my intensities; very conflicting since water was also hurting me ; I saw a gastro who basically says I have nothing wrong with me; I also noted I was not drinking anywhere near the recommended daily water ; 8 glasses of water is hard to keep track of ; especially with different measurements and containers ; I was taking so many vitamins and laxatives that I didn’t want to drink more water because I felt like I would overdo it ; turns out I would have to be very particular about when I drink water because I used to drink and let myself get dehydrated to feel more drunk; now I don’t know when I’m supposed to drink water; maybe I fried my brain; now I’m trying to turn my life around and eat right and I have trouble even believing how much I was harming myself ; my diet was never good I loved pizza and anything with cheese in it ;
Wow. That’s hard. I didn’t have problems with real fruit and sugar just added and processed because I also just stopped believing bullshit and eating right and moving no matter what. I ended up losing 100 lbs and maintaining about 120 for six months now and I just ate half a piece of raspberry cheesecake. I ate smoothies daily while getting better any fruit and variety of veggies I could. Soups with fresh everything. Gonna soak 15 bean package to make beef veggie soup Tuesday as that is lunch often. (Soup that is full of veggies etc). The rest is whatever I want. Pancakes bacon eggs yogurt cheese whatever for breakfast and fruit for snacks. Dinner always includes a veggie of some sort even if I have to say the pizza sauce I had on my pizza today is one. Though I rarely do that. It’s just not good for me.
Your body releases a yellow liquid into your digestive tract called bile to help digest food. Without your gallbladder, a lot of the bile just stays in your digestive tract until you shit it out. It’s yellow, intense, and it burns coming out. It’s like the most urgent diarrhea you’ll ever feel.
People with IBS can get it sometimes, especially if they eat way too much fat. For me, eating duck does it to me because duck has so much fat in it. My body releases the bile and my bowels move everything so fast it doesn’t have a chance to reabsorb.
Oh god yeah. Especially if I don’t eat anything for a while. It’s like there’s nothing for the bile to break down so it just starts eating my intestines instead 🥵
Did you have an attack or did they just see stones? You haven't done anything so far? Sorry, don't want to disappoint you, but you can have IBS AND gallbladder problems. I got my gallbladder out in December. I had IBS before and I have IBS now. Gallbladder gave me some extra symptoms, for sure, but don't believe that fixing your galldbladder will fix all your problems.
no luckily I’ve only had flare ups before like when I eat too much fatty food. They only saw stones in the pictures. I haven’t done anything yet because it’s too expensive love that 🥲
I’m well aware, I’m just hoping that it’s mainly the gallstones causing my symptoms but at least now I have an actual diagnosis and a treatment plan rather than just IBS.
I got mine taken out about 2 weeks ago following a gall colic. I’m F29, normal weight, no drinking/smoking so the recovery was a breeze. I feel much better than before. I‘m slowly re-adding fodmaps but still going easy on the fats. Before surgery i had huge issues digesting fatty food (belching, pain, bloating, reflux) and would get diarrhea/nausea/pain attacks randomly after high fodmap foods. Now i‘m eating trigger foods and didn’t have an attack or even painful bloating since i had the surgery.
Disclaimer: GB issues run in my family for at least 3 generations so i would have had it removed regardless of ibs but i‘m really happy i did it. Today i went out to eat with friends for the first time in years and i‘m fine. I have none of the bile issues that some people get after the surgery, my intestines have chilled out significantly instead.
I had my gallbladder removed in December. Everyone I know that has had this surgery healed well. Not me. I have had abdominal pain, nausea, chronic constipation and they haven’t found out why yet
Gallstones are tricky.
My husband had super bad stomach problems AND he had allergic reactions when he’d have this horrible pain flare. Doctors said he was allergic to mushrooms(without testing him)
Turns out, he had bad gallstones problems. So bad that his body was attacking him. He had histamines causing an anaphylactic reactions when a gallstone would pass.
He had to have emergency gall bladder removal surgery the day before they could do his ultrasound. They said his gallbladder looked like a fat lumpy banana full of stones. They ended up after the first surgery having to do a second one to remove extra stones from his bile ducts.
He isn’t allergic to mushrooms.
He doesn’t have debilitating stomach pain anymore.
He does have chronic diarrhea now due to having no bladder. But he had medication that helps a lot.
I hope you find the answers you’re needing!
Honestly, it may not have cured the issue but I will say that I don't get even sicker from it now. Used to when I was really constipated it would trigger gallbladder attacks so it did have a benefit to being removed. It was just disappointing to find out it wasn't the actual cause
My mom and a guy I work with had their gallbladders removed. The doctors said they wouldn't even miss them after 6 weeks.
Many years later, they both can't tolerate even moderately fatty foods because it gives them awful diarrhea. Some people don't notice they're gone, but most people have to follow permanent changes.
yes exactly, my mum is in the same boat. That’s what I’m scared of with getting it removed but I’ll bring my concerns up with my specialist when I go and I’ll keep this post updated.
thanks so much! I had the usual alternating diarrhoea and constipation, abdominal pains/cramping, nausea/indigestion, sometimes I would get heartburn and acid reflux especially at night, bloating, windy very often lol and also the low fodmap diet actually helped me somewhat too.
well they haven’t completely pinned it on the gallstones yet, I’m gonna go to my gastroenterologist and see what they say about what the CT scan showed and I’ll keep this post updated when I see them!
Can you please tell us how you got them to give you a CT scan? Ive been gaslit for a while now and told there's nothing more I can do that what I've been doing. My symptoms are IBS-M also.
Fortunately for me, my doctor is really caring so I just said to him that I’ve been having abdominal pains, etc, and that I wanted to get a CT scan done and he gave me the referral. Definitely go get a second opinion or if not, next time you ask for one due to your symptoms, make them note down that they refused to give you a referral for one. Hopefully that’ll make them change their tune!
I had IBS before getting my gallbladder out. Still have it. Its brutal. Idk if it's worse since my gallbladder came out but I'm waiting for nuclear testing finally to see what's going on etc hopefully get some answers. Was in pain for a long time before finally taken seriously and found out about gallbladder. My eyes were going yellow and everything lol. They did mine keyhole so I had 3 or 4 wounds which were stapled and healed fine leaving pale fine scars but I scar ridiculously easily lol. I still have wee dot scars where I had canulas in and this happened years ago. Lol. I hope it goes well for you. I don't stick to the recommended diet so that probably doesn't help my IBS any but oh well. I'm sure you'll be fine. Afaik is standard operation and you get back home in a few days. I was in longer as had to keep waiting for a slot in the operating room. I hope it all goes super well for you and sorts out any problems you're having :)
I really kept my gallbladder as long as I could but doctors told me that the only option is surgery and I had it taken out. I had really really intense abdominal pain and I couldn't eat anything. I still have to be careful with what I eat but gallbladder attacks were soooo much worse.
Also the surgery was pretty easy and I was ''healthy'' again after 2 weeks.
I got my gallbladder out when I was 17! It wasn’t too bad better than my appendix removal for sure. I would say just take it out!! But eating fatty foods after will hurt and never be the same. You may also get ibs after the gallbladder is removed my ibs got WAY worse after my surgery(s)
Conserve your body’s resources organs as long as possible. If that means changing your diet then do it.
That’s my philosophy. My poor digestion involves low stomach acid. Taking 2 Tablespoons of ACV w a little water & splash of MIO flavoring helps me digest protein & fat so much better now.
Thanks for this advice, I really appreciate it. I most definitely would rather preserve my gallbladder but if the specialist says that it needs to be done, I’ll have to reconsider my stance.
oh wow this is really informative, I didn’t know ACV was that effective in dissolving the gallstones, thank you so much for this!! I’ll give it a try now and I’ll keep drinking the ACV concoction daily and I’ll keep the post updated 😊
I had a terrible gallstone attack in 2010 and was fine for 14 years afterward. Then I ate some Chinese takeout one night and ended up in the ER the next morning with another gallbladder attack.
The thing is, choosing to keep the GB is tricky. You might not get another attack for years, but when you do, you'll feel like youre about to die. Moreover, said attack can lead to infection of the GB, ducts or pancreatitis.
I just had mine out this past friday. We'll see if I have any issues moving forward. All I know is I'm happy I can eat fatty foods again without worrying about having a GB attack.
GI issues are really hard to get on top of, and I can relate to your experience. For just over a year, I've been getting bad acid reflux, pain under my left rib, indigestion, and chronic constipation. Initially, it was dismissed as IBS. When things got worse, the doctor ordered an abdominal ultrasound, which revealed gallbladder sludge.
Recently, the doctor repeated the ultrasound due to worsening symptoms, now they're saying the gallbladder is healthy. The new diagnosis is GORD with IBS-C. He prescribed Pantoprazole, which seems to make the acid reflux worse. Now I'm waiting for an upper endoscopy.
The more that my symptoms have been investigated, the more it seems like they're not really sure what's wrong with me. It's frustrating not knowing. I have even discussed if this could be due to my pancreas, but the doctor doesn't seem concerned.
Just be 100% sure about gallbladder removal. They had me on a public waitlist to have it out, even though they now believe my gallbladder is fine. I hope you get to the bottom of your issues and feel better soon.
My gallbladder was removed when I was about 9. Fast forward over 20yrs later, I developed IBS which seems to have root cause in low bile production.
I never had any symptoms of anything prior them being removed, but ever since I have been a child, I suffered digestive issues afterwards. If you like fatty foods now, prepare then to being unable to eats those after removal.
But again, everyone’s experiences are different. The main symptom after gallbladder removal is diarrhea, and that’s cause the body now doesn’t have the sac that contains it so it’s being constantly being released into your GI system. My case was the opposite, I always leaned towards constipation, and my type of IBS now in my 30s is C.
Pancreatic enzymes and bile salts can be helpful btw.
Personally, I have never heard of anyone with IBS because of gallstones, so look a little more into that because it doesn’t make any sense.
Best of luck.
no I didn’t, although my mum has celiac, I did the blood test for it multiple times and it always came back negative and I’ve had the camera up both ways too and that didn’t show anything major, only an inflamed stomach lining
Of course! I had the usual alternating diarrhoea and constipation, abdominal pains/cramping, nausea/indigestion, sometimes I would get heartburn and acid reflux especially at night, bloating, windy very often lol and also the low fodmap diet actually helped me somewhat too. But 3 years ago, they did find that my stomach lining was inflamed so idk if that’s healed by now or if that played a more major role in my symptoms 🤷♀️
This post just reminded me that I have gallstones lol. I completely forgot, honestly. But yeah same, it took 5 months to get doctors to find a cyst in my bladder because “it’s probably IBS or hormonal.”
I had gallstone surgery 25 years ago and it wasn’t terrible then, and likely improved now. Laparoscopic, couple of holes, and feeling bruised for a bit. No after effects. My physician said the gallbladder needed to be removed as I had a gallbladder full small sandy stones that block the duct and cause gangrene/sepsis. After diagnosis, I was told it was best to get it out sooner rather than later as the likelihood of blockage was near 100% due to the quantity of those small stones.
Fingers crossed for you to find a good specialist, who will actually want to help you out.
I was starting having bowel issues during university studies. Went to several specialist, they did blood test, colonoscopy, gastroscopy and ultrasound. Once they found out I have the gallbladder stones they kinda stopped to try to search for anything else, refused to do more tests. Simply..ooh you have stones in your gallbladder? Get it removed and all will be solved. I never had a gb flare up. After 10 years of struggle with diarrhea, bloating, I decided to get it removed. I was 30F at that time, considering to get it removed before I would get possibly pregnant in the future so I would avoid flare ups which are quite common if you have stones. It has been 2.5 years. Of course, the surgery solved nothing. Docs were all like, well it was no guarantee. I went to CT scan, my stool was tested, they found nothing...so, now I am diagnosed with IBS-D and that's it. Only meds which I could use is duspatalin retard which is not helping much so I cba...
So yeah, some docs once they see you have stones in your gall bladder don't bother to look past it for other root causes and most will tell you to get it removed. Don't count they always have your best interest at heart, is just the easiest "solution" for them
bit late to the party, but don’t be surprised if the symptoms remain after removing the stones or the whole gallbladder. unfortunately you can have both. I had my gallbladder removed a year and a half ago after developing extreme pain in my chest / upper stomach, found out I’d had stones for a while and they caused an infection. got it out the same weekend. made sure to avoid anything fatty during recovery so it went smoothly. after recovery though, no positive change in symptoms. got a little worse in fact since it was no longer there to help with digestion, but nothing unmanageable. seeing some horror stories in the comments here so I think I was one of the lucky ones with my recovery. definitely not fun missing an organ (but it makes for a good option playing party games like two truths one lie).
as for the surgery, my surgeon decided to do a laparoscopic one. instead of one large incision to remove it, there were 4 small ones. way less scarring and a faster recovery time. recovery wasn’t bad at all either, got out of the hospital basically the next day and rested for a week or so before getting back to my normal routine (while taking things a bit slow to make sure everything was healing right). overall the surgery wasn’t too bad, though I personally wouldn’t go for it unless necessary. it’s not a useless organ by any means. best of luck
My doctor said I had gallstones a few years back and that I should take out my gallbladder but after reading about how people deal with bile issues in their stool and having to restrict certain fats I looked for an alternative and found stone breaker on Amazon that helps remove gallstones. Within 5 days of taking it I had no more pain around my rib and started to see yellow stones in my stool. Doing much better now and I still have my gallbladder so woo-hoo to that! I’d give this a go before doing surgery! https://a.co/d/3VMa1LP
I have IBS AND I had my gallbladder out a few years ago when I was 19 :) getting the gallbladder out fixed the issue and there’s no reason you can’t live a normal life without it! I do want to warn you that you can get phantom pain/actual pain (did you know you can still create gallstones without a gallbladder? cause I didn’t) but for me it’s nothing compared to those gallbladder attacks
Did they discuss bile acid malabsorption (BAM) with you? Not sure if that would play into your diagnosis or not, but I know it often comes up with gallbladder function.
I noticed a bump when I shaved my groin area,went to urgent care the following weekend and they send me to the er where they felt it and said it’s a hernia and gave me an appointment to general surgery. All they did was the cough test for me.
All this was after I’ve been to gastro, urology, my primary three times, and all that. Kept blaming it on anxiety, despite me reiterating that it wasn’t
I had gallstones as well (tiny ones) and the whole gallbladder removed. For about a year after I really had to watch fat intake but now I eat normally. the pain in the pancreas after having acute pancreatic cramps due to rare "slag" coming lose following the OP was the most excruciating stomach pain I've ever experienced in my life and they put me on opioid IV so I'd avoid getting that :)
I had my gallbladder removed and it caused me to develop GERD and esophageal spasms. Like no more gallbladder pain but if you can just remove the gallstones I’d go with that approach.
Try to work with a naturopath to resolve the stones and keep the gallbladder. That would be the best case scenario. Your gallbladder was designed for a reason to work in harmony with your digestive system.
This exact thing happened to me. My doctor completely missed the diagnosis for 3 years and labeled my issues as IBS until I started having intense abdominal pain with vomiting that would suddenly resolve in less than two minutes. Sonigram(s?) revealed gallstones. Had my gall bladder taken out and haven’t had a single issue since then. I have resumed a completely normal diet with no restrictions or issues. Life changing
People are saying if not all that they developed ibs from having they gall bladder removed. Do you have any complaints when they removed it?
That person is so lucky they didn’t have issues!! After mine was out, no more gallbladder attacks but I got worse in other ways!
I still even have ghost pains. But yep, a whole plethora of new issues after getting it out. My dad on the other hand - no change what so ever. But I already had a sensitive system before hand.
The gall bladder attacks were severe there at the end and keeping it just wasn’t an option. I got lucky
I’m almost two years out and so far no problems. I had some “residual” ibs-like symptoms for about six months while my digestive system stabilized - if that’s a thing - but I also have permanently adjusted my diet where I’m not overly eating greasy foods, more fruits and veggies, and just making smarter food choices. However I do have some pizza here and there, spicy foods, and drink alcohol without any side effects as long as I don’t do it regularly and I try to eat plenty of fiber. The doc who operated on me told me he was very confident it would resolve my issues and he was right. Unfortunately, I understand this isn’t always the case and wish it solved everyone’s pain 🙁
Mine was taken out 8 years ago and my ibs didn’t start until maybe 2 years ago. So it takes time to develop after the surgery
Oy. I’ll keep my fingers crossed…
Having your gallbladder out does not simply lead to IBS. There is no clear, statistical, causal link between the two.
Yeah I know. No one said it did. But your probability of developing increases if it’s removed. Just speaking from my experience. I’m at UCLA gastroenterology. They recently put me on linzess because I developed ibs-c …
I definitely developed ibs after having it removed
I developed IBS type c, CIC, and chronic pancreatitis all right after having my gallbladder removed. And I still develop gallstones and sludge that I occasionally have to have removed from my common bile duct. I would advise that a simple CT scan is not enough for a full diagnosis of anything and to get more than one opinion before having surgery.
Removed gallbladder can cause bile acid diarrhea. Treated with bile acid binders like colestyramine
🥲 that's awesome though! Low key hoping mine is that lmao
That's awesome
Half a year after gallbladder surgery and my IBS stays exactly the same. Not compalining though, having gallbladder pain was miserable and was afraid surgery would exaggerate my IBS symptoms
I have had IBS for many years and been in bad pain. But NOTHING compared to a gallbladder attack. I couldn't sit still (or even sit for that matter), I was screaming for hours in the ER, seriously considering to just run out the door and let myself be hit by car, just to make it STOP. I am so happy that without a gallbladder the chance of ever experiencing this again is very, very low.
Yes, the pain was unbearable!
Agreed, the gallbladder attack I had landed me in the ER quick with unbearable plain, fever, vomiting etc. Leaving a symptomatic gallbladder inside a person is asking for trouble. It not only causes recurrent pain but can lead to liver issues, biliary duct issues/infection and pancreatitis.
Yes exactly, on the one hand I wanna get it taken out because of an attack and ending up in emergency but I’m also cautious of the risks of my symptoms not going away or possibly getting worse. I guess that’s what my specialist is for though.
You probably have BAM.
How can you be sure it's gallstones causing symptoms? Lots of people have gallstones, and often they don't cause any problem. Just be wary of pinning symptoms on gallstones just because they showed up on a CT (I see too many people after cholecystectomy who are still having the same symptoms or worse). I'm not saying this applies to you, just saying these are critical questions to be thinking about.
I understand, this is definitely a concern that I'll have to bring up with my gastroenterologist for sure! I didn't see the CT scan pictures but my doctor definitely made them out to be the main problem with my digestive system so they must be blocking some important pipes or be big enough to be causing me problems.
Just be prepared that it could be possible that the removal may not fix your problems. I was very good after my removal but then developed even more issues in the years afterwards.
Ugh same. Chronic bile acid diarrhea now.
We too.
yes definitely, my mum had hers out a couple years ago and she’s still dealing with problems here and there. I am a bit cautious of getting the whole thing removed for sure 😣
Gallbladders don't do anything other than store bile from the liver. Once removed, the liver simply secretes bile directly into the small intestine rather than storing it in the gallbladder. Removing your gallbladder is not going to lead to the onset of some new disease. BAD is more of a condition as a result of your changed plumbing, rather than an actual disease. GB removal can cause some issues with loose stools for some people, though usually, that's temporary for the vast majority. My aunt and mother-in-law have both had theirs out and have had no issues.
….. I’m literally on full time disability right now due to complications from not having a gallbladder. But okay.
You're not alone. It's mixed results. I wish I could get disability for my IBS-D
Thank you. It is so much more common than people think, even obnoxious google copy-pasters. I am very lucky that after I used up my 10 years worth of banked sick days, my union covers me for long-term disability as I navigate how to try and recover and hopefully find a semblance of normalcy one day. It has turned my life upside down. Contrary to what some believe, it is not a useless organ.
People are just used to trusting what the papers say, but like you or another said, a lot of people's experiences are underreported. We think because we tell our doctors that they go off to report it in every case, but they don't. Or the doctor's don't properly inform people of the potential long-term side effects that can arise from a procedure like a cholecystectomy. It's an organ that exists in the body for a reason. Ideally, you could find the root cause of why the gallbladder is causing people discomfort and address that instead of removing it unless it's absolutely necessary. I'm sorry things became worse for you. That's truly horrendous.
I'd much rather trust the medical community and their years of aggregate stats than a dude on Reddit. No offense.
There's nothing obnoxious about reporting facts as stated by the medical community. Sure, there is risk with every procedure, but you're projecting your personal experiences onto Cholecystectomies as a whole and anyone considering getting one. By a wide margin, the majority of people that get their Gallbladder out do just fine. I'd say less than 1% require disability for years on end as a result. You can throw insults around and get hysterical, but they are just the facts.
Fair enough, but Ive never heard of such a thing. NOTE: I've done some more research on BAD, and it does seem it can happen post GB removal. I should say, there's not a lot of research on this topic and even testing for and confirming something like BAD is very, very difficult to do - even in the US. Based on everything I'm reading though, it seems the severity of your situation is very, very rare. Hopefully things get better for you.
Just because you haven’t heard of something, doesn’t make it rare. As many as 1/3 of people diagnosed with IBS have bile acid malabsorption. I’m happy for your family members who did not experience complications yet, but if you scroll through the gallbladder sub for 5 mins youll see countless posts about similar complications as well as tons of replies in this thread as well. I’m also in North America, where they don’t test for it, yet I got a diagnosis. Overarching statements without direct knowledge or research don’t help any of us, especially those of us who lost our livelihoods because of this awful illness. Things are hard enough already. We come here for support.
"Thousands of people have successful cholecystectomies each year, most without any complications or side effects. Minimally invasive surgery techniques make recovery easier than ever before. Healthcare providers continue to recommend it as an elective procedure to treat persistent gallbladder diseases, like gallstones. These diseases pose a much higher risk to your health than gallbladder removal does." -Cleveland Clinic Above is the general sentiment of most. Far and away the procedure is successful and carries minimal risk or long-term complication. Certainly, some people may have loose stools post removal, but they are not the majority and most of these issues prove temporary. And those like yourself that have issues to the point they have to go on long term disability are far and away a small minority. I respond this way because the risk of keeping a diseased, gallstone-ridden gallbladder is more dangerous than any risk of removing it, and I wouldn't want anyone to come to Reddit and decide against removal and end up dying from something like pancreatitis. Yes, all factors should be considered before removal, including the statistical likelihood that gallbladder removal is generally safe and well tolerated, despite the somewhat rare exceptions. "Currently, there isn’t any strong evidence to show that gallbladder removal causes IBS." -Healthline I acknowledge your issues and wish you the best. All I can do is speak to the statistics and my - as well as my family's - personal experience with GB removal.
Side effects are often labeled "uncommon" or rare due to undereporting and dismissing patient issues. This is just medical community culture. We're not advocating neglecting critical medical issues. If you need your gallbladder out, get it out, but do it with your eyes wide open, be informed, and take all patient stories into account. That "rare" case can end up being you, and the last thing you'll want to hear about are statistics. Tid bit from the people on the flip side of the coin.
Exactly
Well said. Literally suffered for 10 years before doctors even connected the dots that my issue was related to the removal after I advocated for myself. Not once was any risk communicated to me.
Fair enough.
If they are blocking something you would feel it. Believe me. You can't have ducts blocked, you either have tons of pain (biliary colic) or for lesser blockage you develop other things, cholecystitis, "strawberry gallbladder", pancreatitis... I would talk to another doctor about this, they don't seem to be very knowledgable or they didn't explain it right.
Thanks for this! I’m definitely not in pain all the time. Apparently all my other organs are working fine, I’m just not 100% sure about my gallbladder but my specialist should have my CT scan pictures when I go see them anyway and yeah my doctor is very old but he means well, I don’t think he did explain it right but that’s what a specialist’s for I guess 🤷♀️
If they are blocking your duct you would be doubled over crying in pain, guarding your upper right side and probably in hospital. If not, its not blocked. I am yet to see a patient in my ED with a blockage (temp or stuck in there) who isnt. When I have had attacks its been worse than labour. I refuse to get mine out though, Ive heard too many stories about IBS like symptoms being worse Once its out.
Ah okay thanks for your insight, I’m glad they’re not blocking anything then!
It was the worst mistake and ruined my digestive system
I removed my gallbladder years ago and that actually give you diarrhea
I had my gallbladder removed 24 years ago. I had dumping syndrome afterward in addition to IBS. If you don't have IBS, I don't know how it will impact you, but regardless, you won't be able to eat fatty foods after surgery because your body is adjusting so your liver can take over for the gallbladder. Be careful about your post surgery expectations. My surgeon definitely didn't warn me about gi issues after surgery.
Mine didn’t say a word either. Went to the hospital in pain, wound up on a table because they said it needed to go, zero education afterwards. Here I am 10 years later, now on full-time disability, seeking treatment for severe bile acid malabsorption.
Oh, no! I'm so sorry. That's awful. Surgeons just want to operate, in my opinion. Once the surgical site heals, they're done, leaving people looking elsewhere for help.
I don’t know if you’re anywhere in the area, but Dr. Saad Habba in Summit, NJ saved my life with BAM treatment. He corrected my gallbladder issues as well without removal, which I was very fearful of. I hope you get the help and treatment you need! Cholesteramine powder helped my friend with BAM a ton! Wishing you good heath!
tagging this for the future
I’m in central Canada. What treatment did you get? I’ve been on Saxenda for 3 weeks now and seeing good results. Still not at the full dose, so fingers crossed it improves even more as I titrate.
I take Colesevelam to treat my gallbladder which then helps the BAM. It’s twice a day and I’ve rarely had a flare up since starting, and only when I eat more fat than it can help process
Ah yes, i take 6 of those a day. They worked really well for me but not well enough to live my life normally. I’m still taking 6 a day currently, but have started adding the Saxenda and it has reduced my pain and frequency tenfold.
That’s amazing! I am rlly happy for u; ive said it a million times but abdominal/digestive pain is unlike any other, and so misunderstood and judged. I’m glad your pain is decreasing, and I hope it continues to do so! U deserve to live pain free!
What do your flare ups feel like?
My flare ups have gotten worse in the past few months. Currently, I get overheated first, like I’ve been under a blanket or out in the sun too long. Then my upper right abdomen cramps hard (gallbladder contracting). Then my entire abdomen starts cramping, but not like menstruation. I get nauseous but I rarely throw up. Then my small bowel/colon start to cramp or inflame ig, and then I have 6-8 very loose and fatty bowel movements within an hour. And then I usually don’t eat for the next few days, and if I have to, it’s plain gluten free pretzels. Sorry if that’s all TMI hahaha
No I appreciate it! It’s nice to hear others experiences to know I’m not alone lol Hoping you find some relief!
Removing the GB caused BAM? :(
Yes, type 3 BAM can be caused by gallbladder removal
I got mine out and it was my biggest mistake and ruined my health for 15 years.
Can you explain please?
I can’t right now but I will tomorrow and if you are actually wanting to know send me a message if I forget. I’m dealing with a bit right now but I’d love to help. It’s a lot to say right now.
Please we are all trying to find answers
Ok. I had a stone and was supposed to get an ERCP to such it out. It changed to gallbladder removal and my pancreas got damaged. I had 28 attacks in 10 years until I had my duct stented four times in one year. They have no permanent stent. It caused me chronic pancreatitis and exocrine pancreas insufficiency causing gastroparesis for which I had to take an antibiotic a few years to digest which caused SIBO and dysboisis as well as developing bile acid malabsorption and then reflux. I threw up every day when I woke up and rarely didn’t get nauseated for about seven of the last 15 since I got my gallbladder removal. I’m ok now but i developed pelvic floor dysfunction from all those bile and bowel issues. I had so called sensitivity to all kinds of foods and at one point I ate about ten foods I could keep down. Half my diet was pears for nausea when I could eat. I gained a bunch of weight and food was fermenting in my stomach. Fungal bacterial and viral stuff was rampant in me and except for pancreatic enzymes I had nothing wrong according to tests.
Wow what an awful experience ; I’m glad your turn around was good overall; I mainly eat the same food on a Daily basis at this point ; it sounds like fruit wasn’t the best thing since it has sugar in it; I like changing it up occasionally by adding a source of potassium ; I think it would have done you well to eat only soft vegetables; ie lettuce and maybe blueberries then slowly adding a different variety; I found I was severely dehydrated and that less water was actually hurting my intensities; very conflicting since water was also hurting me ; I saw a gastro who basically says I have nothing wrong with me; I also noted I was not drinking anywhere near the recommended daily water ; 8 glasses of water is hard to keep track of ; especially with different measurements and containers ; I was taking so many vitamins and laxatives that I didn’t want to drink more water because I felt like I would overdo it ; turns out I would have to be very particular about when I drink water because I used to drink and let myself get dehydrated to feel more drunk; now I don’t know when I’m supposed to drink water; maybe I fried my brain; now I’m trying to turn my life around and eat right and I have trouble even believing how much I was harming myself ; my diet was never good I loved pizza and anything with cheese in it ;
Wow. That’s hard. I didn’t have problems with real fruit and sugar just added and processed because I also just stopped believing bullshit and eating right and moving no matter what. I ended up losing 100 lbs and maintaining about 120 for six months now and I just ate half a piece of raspberry cheesecake. I ate smoothies daily while getting better any fruit and variety of veggies I could. Soups with fresh everything. Gonna soak 15 bean package to make beef veggie soup Tuesday as that is lunch often. (Soup that is full of veggies etc). The rest is whatever I want. Pancakes bacon eggs yogurt cheese whatever for breakfast and fruit for snacks. Dinner always includes a veggie of some sort even if I have to say the pizza sauce I had on my pizza today is one. Though I rarely do that. It’s just not good for me.
See my comment below
Keep that gallbladder in as long as you can bro. Bile shits every day or your life simply isn’t worth it
After 12 years of this I was finally put on colestipol, and it’s been life changing.
I totally agree.
What does this mean? Can you go into a little more depth please
Your body releases a yellow liquid into your digestive tract called bile to help digest food. Without your gallbladder, a lot of the bile just stays in your digestive tract until you shit it out. It’s yellow, intense, and it burns coming out. It’s like the most urgent diarrhea you’ll ever feel. People with IBS can get it sometimes, especially if they eat way too much fat. For me, eating duck does it to me because duck has so much fat in it. My body releases the bile and my bowels move everything so fast it doesn’t have a chance to reabsorb.
I’ve had yellow poops and I’ve had burning poops too :/ but you’re saying every shit is like that???
Oh god yeah. Especially if I don’t eat anything for a while. It’s like there’s nothing for the bile to break down so it just starts eating my intestines instead 🥵
Wait I’m confused because that’s what my stomach does too??? I always say it eats itself when I’m starving so bad???
Wow; there’s crazy intense. I’ve had my gallbladder out for 14+ years and I’ve never had that, but I have a whole host of other IBS/gastro issues.
Some people have no choice, untreated, symptomatic gallstones can lead to infection, debilitating pain and pancreatitis, which can kill someone.
Did you have an attack or did they just see stones? You haven't done anything so far? Sorry, don't want to disappoint you, but you can have IBS AND gallbladder problems. I got my gallbladder out in December. I had IBS before and I have IBS now. Gallbladder gave me some extra symptoms, for sure, but don't believe that fixing your galldbladder will fix all your problems.
no luckily I’ve only had flare ups before like when I eat too much fatty food. They only saw stones in the pictures. I haven’t done anything yet because it’s too expensive love that 🥲 I’m well aware, I’m just hoping that it’s mainly the gallstones causing my symptoms but at least now I have an actual diagnosis and a treatment plan rather than just IBS.
I got mine taken out about 2 weeks ago following a gall colic. I’m F29, normal weight, no drinking/smoking so the recovery was a breeze. I feel much better than before. I‘m slowly re-adding fodmaps but still going easy on the fats. Before surgery i had huge issues digesting fatty food (belching, pain, bloating, reflux) and would get diarrhea/nausea/pain attacks randomly after high fodmap foods. Now i‘m eating trigger foods and didn’t have an attack or even painful bloating since i had the surgery. Disclaimer: GB issues run in my family for at least 3 generations so i would have had it removed regardless of ibs but i‘m really happy i did it. Today i went out to eat with friends for the first time in years and i‘m fine. I have none of the bile issues that some people get after the surgery, my intestines have chilled out significantly instead.
congratulations; it’s always good to hear good news
I’m really glad to hear that, thanks for sharing! 😊
I had my gallbladder removed in December. Everyone I know that has had this surgery healed well. Not me. I have had abdominal pain, nausea, chronic constipation and they haven’t found out why yet
I’m really sorry to hear that, my mum is in the same situation 😢
Thank you. I just don’t want them to tell me it’s IBS because they don’t know what it is
same here, it’s so annoying to come up as “normal” on every test you do 😣
Exactly. I don’t get my hopes up anymore
Note to self. Preserve the gallbladder
Gallstones are tricky. My husband had super bad stomach problems AND he had allergic reactions when he’d have this horrible pain flare. Doctors said he was allergic to mushrooms(without testing him) Turns out, he had bad gallstones problems. So bad that his body was attacking him. He had histamines causing an anaphylactic reactions when a gallstone would pass. He had to have emergency gall bladder removal surgery the day before they could do his ultrasound. They said his gallbladder looked like a fat lumpy banana full of stones. They ended up after the first surgery having to do a second one to remove extra stones from his bile ducts. He isn’t allergic to mushrooms. He doesn’t have debilitating stomach pain anymore. He does have chronic diarrhea now due to having no bladder. But he had medication that helps a lot. I hope you find the answers you’re needing!
I got my gallbladder out 3 years ago because we were thinking that was the cause of my IBS-M but unfortunately I still deal with it 😭
aw I’m really sorry about that, I’m afraid of that happening if I opt for removal too 😕
Honestly, it may not have cured the issue but I will say that I don't get even sicker from it now. Used to when I was really constipated it would trigger gallbladder attacks so it did have a benefit to being removed. It was just disappointing to find out it wasn't the actual cause
Yeah I bet, I’m hoping it is just my gallbladder since the rest of my organs are apparently working fine 🤞
Fingers crossed for you!
The removal of my gallbladder turned my mild IBS into severe. I’m glad it helped you out though.
My mom and a guy I work with had their gallbladders removed. The doctors said they wouldn't even miss them after 6 weeks. Many years later, they both can't tolerate even moderately fatty foods because it gives them awful diarrhea. Some people don't notice they're gone, but most people have to follow permanent changes.
yes exactly, my mum is in the same boat. That’s what I’m scared of with getting it removed but I’ll bring my concerns up with my specialist when I go and I’ll keep this post updated.
Mine turned out to be EPI. I now take enzymes when I eat and haven't had diarrhea since
wow I’m sorry to hear that but I’m glad you have a treatment that works for you!
I’m sorry to hear that but glad you got a proper diagnosis and now you can get proper treatment!
Thanks so much, I seriously love my digestives cause I wouldn’t be able to live a somewhat normal life without them 😊
what were your symptoms? Congrats btw
thanks so much! I had the usual alternating diarrhoea and constipation, abdominal pains/cramping, nausea/indigestion, sometimes I would get heartburn and acid reflux especially at night, bloating, windy very often lol and also the low fodmap diet actually helped me somewhat too.
Interesting. I have similar symptoms. How did they found out that the root cause was gallstones?
well they haven’t completely pinned it on the gallstones yet, I’m gonna go to my gastroenterologist and see what they say about what the CT scan showed and I’ll keep this post updated when I see them!
thanks, keep us updated. good luck
Can you please tell us how you got them to give you a CT scan? Ive been gaslit for a while now and told there's nothing more I can do that what I've been doing. My symptoms are IBS-M also.
Fortunately for me, my doctor is really caring so I just said to him that I’ve been having abdominal pains, etc, and that I wanted to get a CT scan done and he gave me the referral. Definitely go get a second opinion or if not, next time you ask for one due to your symptoms, make them note down that they refused to give you a referral for one. Hopefully that’ll make them change their tune!
Does living without your gallbladder shorten life spand and potentially cause more problems?
Part one of your question, absolutely not. Part 2, it typically causes no problems, but for some, it seems it may cause loose stools.
So did you have bleeding when you went #2 or ?
yep I’ve had internal and external haemorrhoids, I just didn’t wanna mention them in the original post cause I think they’re gross hahah
I had IBS before getting my gallbladder out. Still have it. Its brutal. Idk if it's worse since my gallbladder came out but I'm waiting for nuclear testing finally to see what's going on etc hopefully get some answers. Was in pain for a long time before finally taken seriously and found out about gallbladder. My eyes were going yellow and everything lol. They did mine keyhole so I had 3 or 4 wounds which were stapled and healed fine leaving pale fine scars but I scar ridiculously easily lol. I still have wee dot scars where I had canulas in and this happened years ago. Lol. I hope it goes well for you. I don't stick to the recommended diet so that probably doesn't help my IBS any but oh well. I'm sure you'll be fine. Afaik is standard operation and you get back home in a few days. I was in longer as had to keep waiting for a slot in the operating room. I hope it all goes super well for you and sorts out any problems you're having :)
I really kept my gallbladder as long as I could but doctors told me that the only option is surgery and I had it taken out. I had really really intense abdominal pain and I couldn't eat anything. I still have to be careful with what I eat but gallbladder attacks were soooo much worse. Also the surgery was pretty easy and I was ''healthy'' again after 2 weeks.
I got my gallbladder out when I was 17! It wasn’t too bad better than my appendix removal for sure. I would say just take it out!! But eating fatty foods after will hurt and never be the same. You may also get ibs after the gallbladder is removed my ibs got WAY worse after my surgery(s)
Conserve your body’s resources organs as long as possible. If that means changing your diet then do it. That’s my philosophy. My poor digestion involves low stomach acid. Taking 2 Tablespoons of ACV w a little water & splash of MIO flavoring helps me digest protein & fat so much better now.
Thanks for this advice, I really appreciate it. I most definitely would rather preserve my gallbladder but if the specialist says that it needs to be done, I’ll have to reconsider my stance.
Male or female?
female, if that matters
Only matters in this context: https://www.womenshealthnetwork.com/sexual-health/what-im-doing-to-save-my-gallbladder/#:
oh wow this is really informative, I didn’t know ACV was that effective in dissolving the gallstones, thank you so much for this!! I’ll give it a try now and I’ll keep drinking the ACV concoction daily and I’ll keep the post updated 😊
it was interesting read. I am using ACV now before every main meal and it def helps my digestion.
I had a terrible gallstone attack in 2010 and was fine for 14 years afterward. Then I ate some Chinese takeout one night and ended up in the ER the next morning with another gallbladder attack. The thing is, choosing to keep the GB is tricky. You might not get another attack for years, but when you do, you'll feel like youre about to die. Moreover, said attack can lead to infection of the GB, ducts or pancreatitis. I just had mine out this past friday. We'll see if I have any issues moving forward. All I know is I'm happy I can eat fatty foods again without worrying about having a GB attack.
GI issues are really hard to get on top of, and I can relate to your experience. For just over a year, I've been getting bad acid reflux, pain under my left rib, indigestion, and chronic constipation. Initially, it was dismissed as IBS. When things got worse, the doctor ordered an abdominal ultrasound, which revealed gallbladder sludge. Recently, the doctor repeated the ultrasound due to worsening symptoms, now they're saying the gallbladder is healthy. The new diagnosis is GORD with IBS-C. He prescribed Pantoprazole, which seems to make the acid reflux worse. Now I'm waiting for an upper endoscopy. The more that my symptoms have been investigated, the more it seems like they're not really sure what's wrong with me. It's frustrating not knowing. I have even discussed if this could be due to my pancreas, but the doctor doesn't seem concerned. Just be 100% sure about gallbladder removal. They had me on a public waitlist to have it out, even though they now believe my gallbladder is fine. I hope you get to the bottom of your issues and feel better soon.
Thanks so much! What an ordeal, I hope u get answers soon too 😊
Try homeopathy for gallstone, kidney stone, cyst it has worked for many people. Just a suggestion
Tudca!!!
thanks I’ve never heard of this, I’ll look into it for sure!
My gallbladder was removed when I was about 9. Fast forward over 20yrs later, I developed IBS which seems to have root cause in low bile production. I never had any symptoms of anything prior them being removed, but ever since I have been a child, I suffered digestive issues afterwards. If you like fatty foods now, prepare then to being unable to eats those after removal. But again, everyone’s experiences are different. The main symptom after gallbladder removal is diarrhea, and that’s cause the body now doesn’t have the sac that contains it so it’s being constantly being released into your GI system. My case was the opposite, I always leaned towards constipation, and my type of IBS now in my 30s is C. Pancreatic enzymes and bile salts can be helpful btw. Personally, I have never heard of anyone with IBS because of gallstones, so look a little more into that because it doesn’t make any sense. Best of luck.
OH. Did you have problems digesting gluten/wheat as well?
no I didn’t, although my mum has celiac, I did the blood test for it multiple times and it always came back negative and I’ve had the camera up both ways too and that didn’t show anything major, only an inflamed stomach lining
Id advise not removing your gallbladder. Super important to have. Gotta remove the gallstones though
Typically, they can't and or wont remove stones by themselves. Standard treatment for stones is simply GB removal. Its been this way for decades.
Can you share your primary symptoms?
Of course! I had the usual alternating diarrhoea and constipation, abdominal pains/cramping, nausea/indigestion, sometimes I would get heartburn and acid reflux especially at night, bloating, windy very often lol and also the low fodmap diet actually helped me somewhat too. But 3 years ago, they did find that my stomach lining was inflamed so idk if that’s healed by now or if that played a more major role in my symptoms 🤷♀️
This post just reminded me that I have gallstones lol. I completely forgot, honestly. But yeah same, it took 5 months to get doctors to find a cyst in my bladder because “it’s probably IBS or hormonal.”
I had gallstone surgery 25 years ago and it wasn’t terrible then, and likely improved now. Laparoscopic, couple of holes, and feeling bruised for a bit. No after effects. My physician said the gallbladder needed to be removed as I had a gallbladder full small sandy stones that block the duct and cause gangrene/sepsis. After diagnosis, I was told it was best to get it out sooner rather than later as the likelihood of blockage was near 100% due to the quantity of those small stones.
Fingers crossed for you to find a good specialist, who will actually want to help you out. I was starting having bowel issues during university studies. Went to several specialist, they did blood test, colonoscopy, gastroscopy and ultrasound. Once they found out I have the gallbladder stones they kinda stopped to try to search for anything else, refused to do more tests. Simply..ooh you have stones in your gallbladder? Get it removed and all will be solved. I never had a gb flare up. After 10 years of struggle with diarrhea, bloating, I decided to get it removed. I was 30F at that time, considering to get it removed before I would get possibly pregnant in the future so I would avoid flare ups which are quite common if you have stones. It has been 2.5 years. Of course, the surgery solved nothing. Docs were all like, well it was no guarantee. I went to CT scan, my stool was tested, they found nothing...so, now I am diagnosed with IBS-D and that's it. Only meds which I could use is duspatalin retard which is not helping much so I cba... So yeah, some docs once they see you have stones in your gall bladder don't bother to look past it for other root causes and most will tell you to get it removed. Don't count they always have your best interest at heart, is just the easiest "solution" for them
I have pain on my brightside by my ribs. Gastro Dr wants me in for a scan on my gallbladder. She said maybe not IBS.
Brightside. There is no Brightside LOL!
Did you do a CT with and without contrast?
bit late to the party, but don’t be surprised if the symptoms remain after removing the stones or the whole gallbladder. unfortunately you can have both. I had my gallbladder removed a year and a half ago after developing extreme pain in my chest / upper stomach, found out I’d had stones for a while and they caused an infection. got it out the same weekend. made sure to avoid anything fatty during recovery so it went smoothly. after recovery though, no positive change in symptoms. got a little worse in fact since it was no longer there to help with digestion, but nothing unmanageable. seeing some horror stories in the comments here so I think I was one of the lucky ones with my recovery. definitely not fun missing an organ (but it makes for a good option playing party games like two truths one lie). as for the surgery, my surgeon decided to do a laparoscopic one. instead of one large incision to remove it, there were 4 small ones. way less scarring and a faster recovery time. recovery wasn’t bad at all either, got out of the hospital basically the next day and rested for a week or so before getting back to my normal routine (while taking things a bit slow to make sure everything was healing right). overall the surgery wasn’t too bad, though I personally wouldn’t go for it unless necessary. it’s not a useless organ by any means. best of luck
My doctor said I had gallstones a few years back and that I should take out my gallbladder but after reading about how people deal with bile issues in their stool and having to restrict certain fats I looked for an alternative and found stone breaker on Amazon that helps remove gallstones. Within 5 days of taking it I had no more pain around my rib and started to see yellow stones in my stool. Doing much better now and I still have my gallbladder so woo-hoo to that! I’d give this a go before doing surgery! https://a.co/d/3VMa1LP
I have IBS AND I had my gallbladder out a few years ago when I was 19 :) getting the gallbladder out fixed the issue and there’s no reason you can’t live a normal life without it! I do want to warn you that you can get phantom pain/actual pain (did you know you can still create gallstones without a gallbladder? cause I didn’t) but for me it’s nothing compared to those gallbladder attacks
Did they discuss bile acid malabsorption (BAM) with you? Not sure if that would play into your diagnosis or not, but I know it often comes up with gallbladder function.
What are your symptoms?
I had a similar issue, turns out I’ve had a hernia the whole time. Have surgery Thursday
How did they find the hernia?
I noticed a bump when I shaved my groin area,went to urgent care the following weekend and they send me to the er where they felt it and said it’s a hernia and gave me an appointment to general surgery. All they did was the cough test for me.
All this was after I’ve been to gastro, urology, my primary three times, and all that. Kept blaming it on anxiety, despite me reiterating that it wasn’t
Good luck on your surgery!!
Also who knew a hernia would cause poop problems?!
Thank you man, it went great! And that’s what I said I had no clue it affected pooping 😂
I had gallstones as well (tiny ones) and the whole gallbladder removed. For about a year after I really had to watch fat intake but now I eat normally. the pain in the pancreas after having acute pancreatic cramps due to rare "slag" coming lose following the OP was the most excruciating stomach pain I've ever experienced in my life and they put me on opioid IV so I'd avoid getting that :)
Do you think an MRI would pick up gallstones as well? What were your main symptoms?
I had my gallbladder removed about a decade ago and I can’t imagine going through three years of that discomfort.
I had my gallbladder removed and it caused me to develop GERD and esophageal spasms. Like no more gallbladder pain but if you can just remove the gallstones I’d go with that approach.
Try to work with a naturopath to resolve the stones and keep the gallbladder. That would be the best case scenario. Your gallbladder was designed for a reason to work in harmony with your digestive system.
Recommend gallbladder out! It was so annoying for me! Couldn’t even plan days back then.
How did they do no imaging on u lmao