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Post Gallbladder removal diarrhea 2 1/2 months after surgery

Posted by anniegk @anniegk, Feb 3, 2022

I was wondering how long you have diarrhea after gallbladder removal. It has been 2 1/2 months since the surgery. My doctors just brush it off when asked.

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anniegk | @anniegk | Aug 19, 2022
In reply to @emjae "My gallbladder was removed about 5 weeks ago. I have had no digestive issues since surgery,..." + (show)
@emjae

My gallbladder was removed about 5 weeks ago. I have had no digestive issues since surgery, luckily. I have had liver-area pain that prompted an ultrasound and MRI to check for stones in the common bile duct. (Ultrasound saw a stone in the CBD but the MRI did not.)

3.5 days ago I had some popcorn . That night, an incredibly painful bloated stomach that woke me up. The next morning diarrhea. I was surprised because I have had popcorn since surgery with no issues. I'm on day 3 of diarrhea. I've been living off dry toast and Gatorade.

Is it possible that after 5 weeks of zero digestive issues from my gallbladder removal, I can suddenly have them? Or could this be another issue entirely? My diet is fairly mild. Little to no fried foods. Normal BMI. Not sure if any of that matters.

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Have you ever been told you have Diverticulosis or Diverticulitis? A condition where you have little bulging pouches in the lining of the Colon. These are very common and can get infected and inflamed and cause symptoms like you describe. Ask your Doctor about it.

REPLY
tryingrealhard | @tryingrealhard | Aug 19, 2022
In reply to @anniegk "I ignored my intwrmittent stomach pain and 2 ultrasounds that showed calcified stones that were still..." + (show)
@anniegk

I ignored my intwrmittent stomach pain and 2 ultrasounds that showed calcified stones that were still attached to the wall of the gallbladder. None of my doctors were too concerned so I let it go. I ended up in the ER septic with a gangreneous gallbladder that had to be removed right away. I could have died. Be sure your gallbladder isn't infected, which will require a good doctor who is willing to test you, before you attribute it to diet. A good low fat plant based diet is good but please make sure your gallbladder is not inflamed or infected or full of stones...don't make the same mistake I did. You would have thought I learned a lesson from my Aunt when she died from ignoring her gallbladder symptoms until it was too late. Please be careful.

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I am seeing a common theme here. So sorry this happened to you all. Happened to me too. For over a year I kept telling my doctor at a military clinic how much pain and vomiting I was having (at least twice a week). Kept getting its a food poisoning diagnosis even though my pancreatic and liver enzymes kept climbing. They said gall bladder was fine on ultrasound. Ended up in hospital with ischemic colitis (basically colon started dying) and doctor said my gastrointestinal tract looked like a 70 year old man…I was a 25 year old female. I had a HIDA scan which showed my gallbladder was only functioning at 19% no stones, just not working. They did emergency surgery and removed it.

I know the surgery saved me, but I wish I could say it wasn’t with complications. I have bile reflux and too many GI issues over the years to list. There is some risk with the surgery so just educate yourself, take others advice about second opinions, and advocate for yourself. You know when something is not right. Try not to let doctors easily pass off symptoms as nothing to worry about.

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