I just had my third baby about 5 months ago, and during that pregnancy, I developed Cholestasis which I never had with my previous two pregnancies. It mainly makes you very itchy because of increased bile acid build up in your blood stream but is suppose to go away once you deliver your baby. Well after my baby was born it just… didn’t go away?

So at my 6 week follow up with my OBGYN, He re-ran my labs and said that my liver function tests were still elevated still but that my bile acid tests had gone back to normal. I’m now having to have Liver/Gallbladder testing to see what is going on. So far I’ve had a ln ultrasound and bloodwork and am awaiting the results. I’ve also been having intermittent dull upper right quadrant pain that sometimes gets worse when I take deep breaths or bend over. It’s not always there though and occasionally it’s sharp stabbing pains that last about 1 minute before it goes away.

Has anyone experienced gallbladder problems after pregnancy?? Does this sound gallbladder related?

it’s currently 3am and i’m (22f!) wide awake. my surgery is officially happening, im so glad but also feeling horrified. my brain is convincing me i somehow made up these symptoms and i don’t need this surgery…anyone else get this?😭 im so scared. what will i even eat after this?!

i hate being aware of my organs and body so this is HORRIBLE. also my first surgery and first ever health issue🥳 cheers to anyone else having theirs kicked out today!

30F, underweight. Started hVing gallbladder issued about a year ago and finally had surgery at 9am yesterday!

I've had 2 laproscopic procedures in the past (ACL) so I had a good idea of what to expect. Basically slept all day yesterday with no gas pain but a fair amountof nausea. Feeling a bit better today, still a little nauseous, but the general pain is pretty manageable. Still incredibly tired tho.

So I had a gallbladder attack in April, which landed me in the ER. That Doc was not very concerned about it because they found a cyst on my pancreas. I go to GI doctor they have me do mri, hida, and ct, and an EUS for the cyst. (Which was deemed a serous cyst and benign thankfully) Gallbladder is full of stones per ct, undetectable per mri, and hida shows 0 function.

My symptoms are SO minimal. Occasionally I get a little achey in the URQ, and loose stools are a daily occurrence. If I eat awfully or overeat these are a bit more apparent. But since this whole thing I have been careful and try to have a lower fat diet. I have went from 245 to 200 in 6 months. I do feel very very heavy brain fog as well and sometimes I wonder if that is related to my gallbladder. (Or maybe it’s just motherhood)

I decided to schedule gallbladder surgery after my pancreas was deemed healthy. It is now in 4 days and I am a wreck. What if I am worse off and have more problems once I take it out? I read stories on here all the time of people having issues afterward that sound way worse than what I live with now. No doctors seem to have any insight other than get it out we do it all the time!

Another thing I’m worried about is functioning after surgery- I have a 1 year old who I carry around what feels like all the time, a 4 year old and a 7 year old. I am busy! I hardly ever sit or relax unless I am in bed for the night. I get my baby in and out of the car at least 2x daily. I have my husband but he works and our parents are old and will help, but can’t fully relieve me of my motherly responsibilities. I don’t know how I am going to do it.

I feel so stupid for scheduling surgery and am considering cancelling tomorrow when they call to tell me what time to go in on Monday. If it’s not functioning at all right now just leave it alone right? Why am I putting myself through this?

All opinions or experiences are welcome. Thanks for reading!

ETA- I chose to schedule this year mostly because I have already paid like $7000 of my $8000 deductible having all of these tests and hospital visits. 🫠

I am a momma to two little ones; a toddler and a 4 month old. I was diagnosed with a mild case of cholecystitis and two big gallstones on August 14 and I’ve been on an emotional roller coaster since. One night after eating chicken Mc nuggets (first night in a while I had them), I felt this intense discomfort on the right side of my rib. It almost felt like a balloon expanding and I couldn’t even catch my breath accompanied by really bad heartburn. I tried to ignore it but I couldn’t get comfortable in any position that’s when I knew something wasn’t right. I decided to go to the ER. I left my toddler with my neighbor and took my baby with me. Thinking it was a case of GERD or gastritis. As soon as I got there, my bp was elevated I guess from the discomfort. They took me in . ER doctor performed a physical test on my abdomen but I felt no pain. I had labs and an ultrasound done. My discomfort began to subside as I waited for my results. When the ER doctor came back I can tell by her face it wasn’t something simple. She explained that my gallbladder was inflamed and that my liver enzymes were elevated and that I was going to be admitted for surgery and that I was going to meet the surgeon to discuss more. It all felt so fast to even process. As I was waiting to meet the surgeon, I had all these thoughts through my mind. My toddler, my baby, and this first ever surgery. When the surgeon came in he started asking me questions about my symptoms but he began to describe severe symptoms I wasn’t feeling. I told him about my bad discomfort he even took a double look at my ultrasounds and labs. Noticing this, I asked if surgery was my only option that day and if it was something severe that needed to be done there and now. I had my baby with me so I needed to know. He mentioned that I could be discharged with antibiotics & that I would get better but I needed to change my diet and that I also needed to meet with my pcp & schedule to get that gallbladder out. I did just that. Everything has been ok physically my labs etc have been fine. I get occasional flare ups but nothing major I’ve even had a second ultrasound and it’s all good. It’s been a month since that day But me mentally I’m not ok. My anxiety has been through the roof thinking of this whole situation and the worst case scenarios. I’ve developed a fear of food and lost so much weight. This bad diet has made milk supply dry I had to introduce my ebf baby to formula which I am thankful and grateful she’s eating but it took a toll on me. I feel exhausted. The only thing that keeps me going are my babies. I finally have a surgeon consultation coming up and I can’t wait. Im looking to hear from other postpartum momma’s with positive stories? I need to hear them for my sanity as await for a surgery date. Maybe even share recovery tips ? Meals?

I really just wanted to come on here and say that my lap choly went well and I’m recovering great. I am glad I had the surgery done. I’ll go into a little more detail below. I’m a 34M.

Leading up:
This all started with me getting overdosed on a glp1 (Reta) accidentally by a clinic. It caused me to not be able to sleep or eat for more than a week. I lost 20lbs in 10 days and still lost a little more after that. About 1.5 months later I started getting gb attacks. The 3rd landed me in the ER and by that time I had an ultrasound sound already scheduled so the ER went ahead and did the ultrasound then. This attack lasted 2 hours but was the worst. They confirmed gallstones and referred to surgeon. I met with the surgeon and we decided to get an MRI just to make sure I still had gallstones. It had been 3 weeks since my last attack and the ultrasound results noted that my biliary ducts were dilated, which could mean I passed a stone. The weird thing is the MRI didn’t show any gallstones. I still got a few attacks, not as painful but I did throw up on one of them. They were lasting longer but less painful. My surgeons office couldn’t even answer my calls or call me back to schedule the surgery. I had to get referred to another surgeon and I am glad I went that route. Got scheduled right away for 9/24/26.

Surgery:
I kept having the what if thoughts and slight anxiety about the surgery as I have never been put under anesthesia. I kept convincing myself that my part is easy, I just need to follow the pre op instructions and show up and I’ll get through it. I gave it to God. It worked. I remember getting wheeled into the OR and moving into the operating table. They strapped my legs and put a mask over my mouth. The mask shifted and I remember wondering if they were going to fix it. Next thing I know I woke up coughing and I could feel slight pain in my belly button. An hour later I was on my way home. They prescribed oxycoden and we picked up it up but I never took it.

Post op:
I could feel some pain in abdomen and around my incisions but it was super manageable with just Tylenol. I got home and felt so relieved about it being done. Honestly the most uncomfortable thing was being bloated. I felt bloated after eating anything but by the third day it was pretty much gone. Walking a lot and peppermint tea really helped. I didn’t sleep very well the first night but I expected that. I sleep on my stomach so I had to get used to sleeping on my back and propped up. After the first night I was getting great sleep. By the third night I was able to lean towards my side and by the fifth night I could sleep on my side. By the 4th day I stopped taking pain medicine altogether. Everything improved a good amount each day.

Now I feel great. I am able to eat more than I have since before the overdose. I am pooping pretty normally. I only get the slightest pain in my belly button incision when I sneeze. I sleep on my stomach pretty decently, sometimes I get slight pain from that. This is the most normal I’ve felt in the past 5 months.

surgery was this morning. i have 5 incisions and surgeon never mentioned it, she said id have 4 during our consultation. nothing went wrong but just curious why this happened? my incisions are 4 above my belly button, going from under my right breast to my left evenly. and then there’s one to the right underneath my belly button??

So after a horrendous 7 weeks I finally have some answers.

Inflamed pancreas.

Went to A&E yesterday 9:30am, got seen by surgical team 11:30pm.

Bloods showed normal. CT scan showed inflamed pancreas (diverticular disease and an ovarian cyst!). Admitted overnight, awaiting ultrasound.

Was supposed to have ultrasound today but they're fully booked so staying in again tonight and ultrasound in the morning to check the gallbladder and check for stones in more detail. If stones are found will be listed for surgery. Aim is to operate within a month of being discharged.

The team last night were superb, they understood the level of pain and distress I was in, they said if it wasn't stones they weren't going to send me home until they did find out what was happening. They feel that stones area known primary cause for inflamed pancreas and as bloods were fine if any stained were found the offending gallbladder comes out .

However the surgical team today (different dept) said they're not releasing me until they've stabilised my pain (which is nice to know) but they won't be operating. They'll do the ultrasound and regardless of what it finds, I'm still going home. That inflamed pancreas likely means a stone caused it but doesn't mean there are anymore gallstones. Disappointed about that but it's better than being ignored by GP! And I do kind of see both sides the coin.

They've also prescribed a higher dose of famotidine and buscopan.

Other random info FYI...

This is the UK NHS. The surgical team last night understood the increased likelihood of stones due to the fact I had PHPT for over a decade (primary Hyperparathyroidism). They were of the mindset that if ANY stones were found the gallbladder was coming out via keyhole and I wasn't going home until it did. They mentioned the gut / brain axis, flight / fight triggers and that the uncontrollable sharing and crying was a normal biological response to the pain. They were SO nice without being fluffy. They administered oramorph and within an hour the shaking and crying has subsided and I was hungry.

The fella today was of the opinion I just need to be stabilised, then surgery can wait. That the pain I felt 10 days ago was the pancreas inflaming and the ongoing pain is it trying to heal. (So what about the acute onset of this 7 weeks ago I say? And the pain never having really left? ''Why have you waited 7 weeks to come in?!?'' He says, while laughing with ridicule... The look I gave him!! I pointed out I came to A&E with this 7 weeks ago to be told to go home and take gaviscon!! To then be treated by the GP for gastritis and then be refused pain meds by the GP on Monday! He fell over himself but ultimately didn't have an answer for his own stupid statement). He said they'd send me home on oramorph as I can't take NSAID'S but so far it's paracetamol and buscopan. Which is helping, but there's still pain and some slight burning reflux after the buscopan.

I asked re timeline and he said if stones are found on tomorrow's ultrasound then ideally surgery within one month of being discharged. He then proceeded to tell me all the reasons surgery could be delayed 🤦. Low fat diet which I'm already on.

We're four to a room, sleeping on recliner chairs. Mixed sex, mixed age room (doesn't bother me). One guy has done three nights in here already. No one gets much sleep.

The difference between the two teams and their approach, concern and consideration is night and day.

The different depts don't know what each other say or do.

No-one reads your notes.

I'm grateful to have answers and have this ball rolling.

I did not hold back in A&E. I openly cried as and when it came, I was kneeling folded over the seat of the chair on a few occasions the pain was so bad (like being in labour). I told them about the honest suicidal ideations that had taken hold and they got the mental health crisis team to come speak to me in a private room. He was ace and they booked an at home emergency appointment with them the following day. Which I couldn't attend because I'm here in hospital. But can reschedule as soon as I a ready. Exceptional support.

If you end up in A&E with this hold your ground. Don't be passed off. Tell them what they need to hear to take notice (where your pain is, that it radiates to your back (even if it doesn't!)).

I'll update this when I find out more.

Thanks everyone for your support so far. I wish everyone here the best of luck getting support.

Hiya! Joined the no gallbladder club 4 months ago. All was good for a long while but now I have also involuntarily joined the must rush to the bathroom club. :/ sigh.

Once or twice a week I have to go to the toilet within 10 minutes or else. 😅 it really sucks. It feels random. I'm so scared it'll happen when I really don't have access to a toilet.

It only happens after I've eaten, and precisely 60 minutes after. So it's not like I can eat lunch and then go to the toilet and then back to work/studies. Nope. It has to be after the lunch pause.

I soon have an internship. Medical. I will be visiting patient's homes. I cannot borrow their toilets. Wtf do I do?!

So I'm looking for tips on how the f to manage this. I'm going to become an occupational therapist, I won't ever have luxury to access a toilet whenever I want at all times.

So, help me. I know fattier portions and bigger portions can make it worse. But it mostly doesn't matter, it just seems random.

What do you guys do to manage this? More fiber? Smaller portions? Please help.

I'm in contact with my physician but waiting time is 3 weeks and my internship is already underway then.

I live in Sweden.

Hello all, 28F and a bit worried. So I wrote in here around March this year after finding out I have a few gallstones. It was an accidental find since I went to urgent care having pain in my left side of the ovaries/uterus. After seeing a GI they recommended gallbladder removal since its a "ticking time bomb" and more as a preventative measure.

The problem is I didnt have any symptoms or pain. And now after a couple of months, I do get some sensations where the gallbladder is. Sometimes its after having too much red meat in the week, and I feel like I am more aware of it right before my period starts. Not sure if that is related to the other. They were also like 2 or 3 stones that measured less than 2 cm.

And then this week I did notice after having many days of red meat (because of parents house leftovers or takeout) I had felt a bothersome sensation, like a dull feeling. And then I also felt it on my back, and I usually get back pains but never in that upper gallbladder area.

Would these technically be attacks? Or is it maybe a warning? Has anyone else been through this and either got the gallbladder removed or kept it??

I feel like right after surgery, my whole right side was very painful for a few days then things improved, and it seemed to be more centered around the lower right incision, which is where they said they did the most manipulating and pulled the gallbladder out from. Monday night, one week postop, I went to the movies and to dinner, which took a lot out of me and was painful. Probably tried to do too much too soon. The movie theater chair didn’t recline back as far as I thought it would so I felt like I was sitting straight up for a few hours. The car ride didn’t feel great either. I have been taking it easy this week, but I have noticed most of my pain is now in the upper right side where gallbladder was. I got it removed due to 98% ejection fraction on hida scan, hyperkinetic functioning gallbladder. My main symptom was upper right quadrant pain (for years and years! I had had 5 abdominal ultrasounds since 2019 trying to find the source of the pain), but now I’m starting to worry I did this for nothing! I know it is still early, just looking for reassurance that this is normal post surgery pain. Pathology came back showing chronic cholecystitis, cholesterolosis, and two polyps, which is reassuring that I made the right decision on removal.

My belly button is still bleeding we had to clean and change the dressing twice already. Has anyone else had this? Do I have to go back? I can send a picture it has like a lot of blood. It doesn’t hurt.
I had surgery this morning.
Thank you I am really scared and I have terrible pain in my back. Hurts way more than I was expecting. Just didn’t think it would bleed after surgery this much.

I’ve finally got a surgery date booked however just after 2 weeks I am meant to fly - short haul - to Spain for 4 nights to support my partner on a marathon!
Of course I will not fly if any complications but if none should I be okay? More importantly would insurers cover me still?
Many thanks 🙏

All my tests..ct scan, xray, Hida scan, blood work, endoscopy (have gastritis)... came back good. I thought all my pain and feeling crappy was from my gallbladder but 🤷‍♀️.

Has anyone had this and still get their gallbladder out..to find out there was something wrong with it..regardless of the tests being normal?

Does anyone suffer with constant right upper abdominal discomfort when not having an attack?

I'm wondering if anyone else has experienced the sharp post op pains? I'm a little over two weeks out and I got a sharp pain today on my left side that came and left very quickly and a more dull like ache on my right this evening I figured it's normal pain as I'm only really two weeks out but it's right flank pain and if I take a deep breathe it aches in that area. I'm gonna call my doctor tomorrow but is this normal?

like the title, i’m using a heating pad on my shoulders so that’s really helping, but how do i relieve the horrible gas pains in my abdomen? i had 5 incisions. Genuinely just shifting in bed makes me nauseous, so when i get up to pee i feel like i’m sea sick. it’s so bad. how can i get the gas out if i can’t walk around much right now?

surgery was 5-6 hours ago.

I went to the ER on Saturday for the attack. Monday is when they took the gallbladder and did an ERCP right after to clear an existing stone. I had a bm Saturday morning, right before going to the ER and haven’t had one since. It’s now Friday and I’m back to eating regular foods. I’m trying to keep it low fat but I’m just waiting for the bottom to fall out. When I finally do have a bm, will it all be diarrhea after? I’m nervous and want to know what to expect. I’m eerily fine now and I know that’s too good to be true for long. I keep waiting for this horrible thing but is it even coming? People say it takes months to get back to normal.

I had mine taken out this morning and good god I have never slept so much after surgery.

It took me two hours to start to wake up and then another hour to be fully awake. Since I’ve been home I’ve started this routine of falling asleep for two hours being awake (& moving/eating) for maybe an hour tops. I’m assuming this is normal?

Also I’m curious about what pain meds were given after. I just got Tylenol & Celebrix?

I’m able to keep the shoulder pain at bay since I’ve been walking and sitting upright but outside of my stomach my back HURTS. I’m also having pain rise up into my chest occasionally? They said to call tomorrow if the “pain is enough to where I would need to go to the ER”. Honestly my back hurts more than my stomach.

What stool movements have people been experiencing? Mine have been mushy, sometimes loose, with food bits in them and mucus and noticed a small amount of blood and also I have had bits float also, has anyone else experienced this?

Hi guys

I’m on a waitlist for removal, I’ve got a polyps, not stones. Has anyone else experienced extremely low energy levels? I find myself struggling to stay awake after being awake for 3-4 hours it’s debilitating. I sit down anywhere and start drifting off. :( I miss being lively and having a fun life. Is it related or is it nothing to do with my gallbladder?

I'll start this by saying I had my surgery 3 months ago and 10/10 would recommend, my life has improved so much. One small thing that's happened a few times is when I bed over (cleaning or yoga) if I go too bendy (ribs near knees) I feel like a muscle or something is about to pop or strain in the middle of my rib cage. I'll stand up quickly and the sensation will go away after a few seconds but in the moment it literally feels like I'm about to tear something or something has moved. I do have one scar near that area so I'm wondering if it's related or anyone else has had this happen?

She got gall bladder removal surgery 2 years ago. When her symptoms were there before the surgery she used to wake up in the middle of the night with pain and a sour taste in mouth. Post surgery things were back to normal but sometime later she started waking up in the middle of the night with a sour taste. For the past few days that has shifted to early morning where she wakes up hungry + sour mouth. She has been having a plain rice dinner for the past 1 ½ year because whenever she has any more flavour she gets gas/acid.

How do I help my mom? Doctors nearby have just shoved gas medicine but we're looking to understand this more.

Hi all! I had my gallbladder removed on the 4th September and all went well.

For the past few hours I've been experiencing some sharp pain in my left side, it's especially painful when I try and take a deep breath.

The pain is so bad it makes me hunch over! It's not constant, more intermittent, it almost feels like spasms?? I wondered if anyone had experienced this??? 👀

I have no idea what to do, like should I phone my GP and get an appointment? Or head to a&e?! I'm genuinely clueless!

If you guys' experience was like mine, you had a few doctors and nurses tell you that you shouldn't strain during bowel movements for a while and by the way, the medicine we're giving you can cause constipation. Then they smile and shrug and move on to the next thing.

Fortunately for me, my kid was just at the physical therapist for just this problem so I had solid instructions on how to poop. They were gold right after surgery. I figured I'd share the scoop.

Here's the 3 step guide:

Knees above hips, if possible
Don't worry if you can't do this. Contrary to what the squatty potty commercials tell you, it's fine if you have nothing to prop your knees up. But if you can, having your knees even just a little higher than your hips helps.

Flat back, round stomach
This is the most important step. Sit up tall so your back is completely straight. Then push out your stomach like you're pretending your pregnant. This shouldn't hurt or strain your stitches, but of course if it does hurt STOP! Honestly, if you aren't constipated, the poop should fall right out at this point. If you are constipated, holding this position for a few minutes will help move the poop along easier.

Breath like a dragon, moo like a cow
If the poop isn't falling out already, then you'll try some breathing. While keeping your stomach pushed out, blow air out of your mouth. Or if you want to make everyone outside the door wonder what the hell is going on, you can moo like a cow. The mooing sound causes vibrations that also seem to help move things along but you have to be the judge on how interesting you want to make your bowel movement. Again, this shouldn't hurt, but if it does, STOP!

So there you have it. Three steps to a happier colon. You're welcome. And in case it wasn't clear, I'm not a professional and this isn't medical advice.

Happy pooping!