1. < Digestive Health

Gallbladder not functioning properly, issues still going year later

Posted by bunnycuddlez @bunnycuddlez, 1 day ago

Okay, this is a long one so stay tuned… LOL
Alright, about 2 years ago now i started feeling crummy, actually kinda pregnant (my ladies will understand) i was experiencing nausea, vomiting, bloating, indigestion, diarrhea, constipation, (i literally have to undress to potty, i sweat so bad) food aversions, the pain comes and goes. I can be miserable for an amount of time then just poof its gone, but it comes back on and off throughout the day, i also experienced no period with this so it actually made me think i really did seal the deal. I started out at the OB, turns out not pregnant but guess what still all the symptoms. As time went on the pain worsened and then i started to notice my pain got worse after eating foods, especially Italian. So went to my PCP went thru a bunch of testing to get to the last one, the HIDA scan which tests the function of the gallbladder mine was at a whopping 22% so it automatically got taken out, now a GI did not do my surgery or check me out she was like a general surgeon she only covered some things, she tried medicines and diets nothing helped, then sent me off to the GI, so now here i am a year after my surgery and im still experiencing the same pain. Instead of the pain being under my right ribs like a boot feeling, most of my pain is on my left side, i have all the same symptoms listed above with a pain under my left ribcage on my side, my stomach feels like an accordion just being shoved downward when im trying to stand, day to day life is unbearable anymore. Doc is setting me up with a CT to test pancreas and liver function, then the stomach emptying test for gasteopareosis…… has any else ever experienced this!? Im in desperate need of help trying to get answers, maybe someone has been thru this that can help a girl save a few months of pain and agony?
Oh- period did come finally before gallbladder surgery but went without one for 6months😬

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dlydailyhope | @dlydailyhope | 1 day ago

@bunnycuddlez
I am assuming you had extensive bloodwork, an abdominal ultrasound, endoscopy and colonoscopy to check your gastrointestinal system before moving to the HYDA scan? Have you had updated testing/imaging since your surgery? You have been suffering way too long.

I had all of the above and the HYDA scan last. My gallbladder is ejecting only 7% bile when the minimum should be 35%-40%. I was told to get my gallbladder out but I have held off due to other higher priority surgeries needed (spine).

I have read some have had issues with getting their gallbladder out where symptoms continue or they have complications. This makes me nervous about getting mine out. I do know that having smaller, more frequent, lower fat diets can help reduce symptoms.

Have you ever been tested for allergies to foods or autoimmune illness? Have you ever worked with a nutritionist/dietitian to review diet/supplements? Do you take any other medications or supplements?

REPLY
2 replies
biga282 | @biga282 | 1 day ago

Maybe you have a hernia? Appendix? Best of luck. I had my gallbladder out because of gallstones. If the bile duct gets plugged you can develop an infection I was told?

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Mentor
Janell, Volunteer Mentor | @jlharsh | 1 day ago

Hi @bunnycuddlez , and welcome to Connect!
You are going through some awfulness, I am sorry. My journey includes some of what you describe and I so wish I could give you an easy button to push. I can say, keep moving forward. Joining Connect is a great step to take.

There certainly is a lot going on in our guts, and it sounds like you are in a good place with a GI that is making sure your anatomy, all your parts are working the way they should. That will be another step forward. You have some great input from others, too. It may move you forward even quicker to focus on what you can control in the meantime. Regular exercise and good, consistent meals helped me figure out they play a role. I have a regular routine so when it changes I can point to it. One example, I knew when I felt absolutely horrible after changing my eating routine and fasting for 10am blood work recently that going too long without eating makes a difference for me. Information like that is what only I can identify and helpful for my doctor to know.

Do you eat any differently since getting your gall bladder out? When do you have your CT and stomach emptying tests?

REPLY
blessedwildapplegirl | @blessedwildapplegirl | 1 day ago
In reply to @dlydailyhope "@bunnycuddlez I am assuming you had extensive bloodwork, an abdominal ultrasound, endoscopy and colonoscopy to check..." + (show)
@dlydailyhope

@bunnycuddlez
I am assuming you had extensive bloodwork, an abdominal ultrasound, endoscopy and colonoscopy to check your gastrointestinal system before moving to the HYDA scan? Have you had updated testing/imaging since your surgery? You have been suffering way too long.

I had all of the above and the HYDA scan last. My gallbladder is ejecting only 7% bile when the minimum should be 35%-40%. I was told to get my gallbladder out but I have held off due to other higher priority surgeries needed (spine).

I have read some have had issues with getting their gallbladder out where symptoms continue or they have complications. This makes me nervous about getting mine out. I do know that having smaller, more frequent, lower fat diets can help reduce symptoms.

Have you ever been tested for allergies to foods or autoimmune illness? Have you ever worked with a nutritionist/dietitian to review diet/supplements? Do you take any other medications or supplements?

Jump to this post

Unless your gallbladder is filled with stones that they can’t get rid of, or is actually dead, don’t let them take it out! Oh, my God, I almost died after they took mine out because I couldn’t digest anything. I weighed 73 pounds for five years and subsisted on mashed potatoes and canned carrots. I’m 5 foot four. I’m finally back to being able to eat, although I’ve had something going on since last November, but before that I was eating, but I cannot longer eat any raw vegetables, no spices of any kind, so no prepared foods, fat doesn’t go down, (except for avocados and for a while, coconut milk yogurt, but then that started making me sick), the list goes on. Without a gallbladder, you don’t have enough digestive acids to fully digest your food and then you don’t absorb your vitamins, etc. It’s really dangerous and they shouldn’t even do it. They should check our gallbladders periodically and make sure they don’t have stones so they don’t have to take them out ever. It basically killed my mom because after they took hers out, she had constant diarrhea and began kind of wasting away and then she had such terrible acid reflux that they put her on a proton pump, inhibitor, which broke both of her hips, and also she got two infections, C diff and E. coli, which I have read is not that uncommon if you don’t have enough stomach acid. Her body couldn’t fight them. I would give anything to have my gallbladder back. I told the doctors for six years before it went out that it was going out and because they’re Pipida scan said that it wasn’t they didn’t believe me. I was right, but by the time they found it, it was already dead, and I had to remove it, or I would’ve gotten sepsis. I’m scheduled to have a colonoscopy in a couple of weeks and honestly, I don’t even trust doctors. Not sure what to do. I guess I’ll go, but I haven’t had very good experiences with doctors. It seems so difficult to find a really good one. Good luck to you, but again, I would keep your gallbladder if you can, unless it’s actually dying. 💕

REPLY
1 reply
dlydailyhope | @dlydailyhope | 1 day ago
In reply to @blessedwildapplegirl "Unless your gallbladder is filled with stones that they can’t get rid of, or is actually..." + (show)
@blessedwildapplegirl

Unless your gallbladder is filled with stones that they can’t get rid of, or is actually dead, don’t let them take it out! Oh, my God, I almost died after they took mine out because I couldn’t digest anything. I weighed 73 pounds for five years and subsisted on mashed potatoes and canned carrots. I’m 5 foot four. I’m finally back to being able to eat, although I’ve had something going on since last November, but before that I was eating, but I cannot longer eat any raw vegetables, no spices of any kind, so no prepared foods, fat doesn’t go down, (except for avocados and for a while, coconut milk yogurt, but then that started making me sick), the list goes on. Without a gallbladder, you don’t have enough digestive acids to fully digest your food and then you don’t absorb your vitamins, etc. It’s really dangerous and they shouldn’t even do it. They should check our gallbladders periodically and make sure they don’t have stones so they don’t have to take them out ever. It basically killed my mom because after they took hers out, she had constant diarrhea and began kind of wasting away and then she had such terrible acid reflux that they put her on a proton pump, inhibitor, which broke both of her hips, and also she got two infections, C diff and E. coli, which I have read is not that uncommon if you don’t have enough stomach acid. Her body couldn’t fight them. I would give anything to have my gallbladder back. I told the doctors for six years before it went out that it was going out and because they’re Pipida scan said that it wasn’t they didn’t believe me. I was right, but by the time they found it, it was already dead, and I had to remove it, or I would’ve gotten sepsis. I’m scheduled to have a colonoscopy in a couple of weeks and honestly, I don’t even trust doctors. Not sure what to do. I guess I’ll go, but I haven’t had very good experiences with doctors. It seems so difficult to find a really good one. Good luck to you, but again, I would keep your gallbladder if you can, unless it’s actually dying. 💕

Jump to this post

@blessedwildapplegirl
Thank you❣️❣️❣️

Based on your story and experience (thank you for sharing), I will try to keep my low functioning gallbladder as long as possible. 😉

REPLY
1 reply
blessedwildapplegirl | @blessedwildapplegirl | 23 hours ago
In reply to @dlydailyhope "@blessedwildapplegirl Thank you❣️❣️❣️ Based on your story and experience (thank you for sharing), I will try..." + (show)
@dlydailyhope

@blessedwildapplegirl
Thank you❣️❣️❣️

Based on your story and experience (thank you for sharing), I will try to keep my low functioning gallbladder as long as possible. 😉

Jump to this post

You’re welcome. Good luck! I hope you can keep it.

REPLY
bunnycuddlez | @bunnycuddlez | 23 hours ago
In reply to @dlydailyhope "@bunnycuddlez I am assuming you had extensive bloodwork, an abdominal ultrasound, endoscopy and colonoscopy to check..." + (show)
@dlydailyhope

@bunnycuddlez
I am assuming you had extensive bloodwork, an abdominal ultrasound, endoscopy and colonoscopy to check your gastrointestinal system before moving to the HYDA scan? Have you had updated testing/imaging since your surgery? You have been suffering way too long.

I had all of the above and the HYDA scan last. My gallbladder is ejecting only 7% bile when the minimum should be 35%-40%. I was told to get my gallbladder out but I have held off due to other higher priority surgeries needed (spine).

I have read some have had issues with getting their gallbladder out where symptoms continue or they have complications. This makes me nervous about getting mine out. I do know that having smaller, more frequent, lower fat diets can help reduce symptoms.

Have you ever been tested for allergies to foods or autoimmune illness? Have you ever worked with a nutritionist/dietitian to review diet/supplements? Do you take any other medications or supplements?

Jump to this post

Thank you for responding! Yes! I actually didnt have an endoscopy/colonoscopy up until last month. 😬 I was scheduled to set up an appointment last year in May but when my HIDA scan results came back, they scheduled me for surgery instead. I found out just yesterday that after surgery i was supposed to have an ultrasound and everything rechecked if the symptoms didnt go away, so its on the list now im waiting to hear back on the date for that. But YES even after surgery i still have the same symptoms i just dont have the boot feeling under my right rib cage anymore, shes had me on a low fat diet, high fiber diet, and a few others. I can eat the same thing breakfast, lunch & dinner all week…. Each day is different sometimes id be running to the bathroom in the middle of trying to eat, sometimes i go days without, it varies day to day. Minute to minute it feels like. I actually never gotten the COVID vaccines. Ive taken numerous medications, she started treating it as acid reflux but we trial and error (i would have to look at everything weve tried) its been so long, my brain isnt what it used to be anymore😅 now im on a trial of IBSRELA, today was my first day.

REPLY
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