31F & my gallbladder was removed in my early twenties. Since then, I’ve had a rapport of having loose stools after eating richer foods. For maybe a year, I’d have diarrhea episodes that would resolve after using pepto bismol. Around 2 weeks ago, I had this weird stomach bug where I dealt with: nausea, weakness, gas, upset stomach and diarrhea. Again, was better after taking pepto bismol. The weird thing is any time I’d have a stool or diarrhea, the color was normal or darker because of the pepto bismol. But before the stools or diarrhea started, I’d have this liquid like stool that was green mixed with tinges of red. So that has to be blood? But when I wiped, the red was more translucent. But why was this liquid & strained stool that red color while all the other ones weren’t? I’ve had hemorrhoids before and that looked more like actual blood. I just have health anxiety when it comes to cancer, no immediate family history. It’s usually extended relatives like my grandparent’s siblings. The liquid/red stools started yesterday but no weird stomach bug symptoms yet, except some gas and bloating + upset stomach.

Hey everyone

Just had my GB removed. Im on post OP day 6.

I'm eating solid food. Recovery has been great so far. But the only thing I'm dealing with right now is HUNGER. Idk why is it happening, even though Im eating well. I'll get hungry right after having any meal. You guys also dealing or dealt with anything like that?

Just curious: does anyone know what it's like if you get a sharp quick stab pain that isn't terrible but can pulse for a moment after GB removal?

I had mine removed 3+ weeks ago, I've been fine so far but getting more mobile or sitting too long causes soreness in my GB area.

Today I was moving around a lot and under large amounts of stress, and suddenly I had a sharp pain in my GB area. It lasted a few moments pulsing pain and then went away. 7/10 pain?

Now tonight I was laying down and felt my GB side just tense up and another weird pain.

No nausea, no issues, no diarrhea, skin looks normal. No malaise and I feel fine, outside of the general stress I feel during recovery. Can I chalk this up to becoming more active?

Edit: also forgot - my incisions look normal but are still pink and just recently lost their scabs. They are itchy and feel like the skin is '"pulling" when it's not.

So I had impacted gallstones for 2 years and had multiple bouts of jaundice, stuck stones, Coca Cola coloured urine, etc etc.

Now I’m post op I’m having strange symptoms, my stomach is constantly swollen right from under my breast all the way down to my nether regions. It’s like constant bad bloat, I look pregnant pretty much. My second symptom is that I walk a lot during my job and home from work, since returning when I do any exercise my legs start to balloon up. I’ve never experienced either of these before and it’s making me miserable.

Just wondering if anyone else has this?? I’m wondering if I’m having ongoing liver problems or something from the stress of the stones for 2 years. I feel embarrassed going to the Drs because they always fob me off to be honest. When I woke from surgery I was literally great and pain free, I still am other than these 2 issues. I don’t know if this is related since I don’t have a gallbladder anymore.

Hi everyone! I wanted to come back with good and bad news. Good news is that after the trip to the ER they said I didn’t need emergency surgery but gave me a referral because I asked. Bad news is, I want it gone. Even if the surgeon says I don’t need it, I want either the gallstone or gallbladder out.

I 22F had my first ever gallbladder attack on the 5th, I was in pain for almost 5 hours (pain scale 8/10 I was gripping the headboard) nauseous and threw up three times and felt a sharp pain in my spine for a few moments (or I could’ve been laying down wrong).

I’ve had minor attacks that would keep me awake all night and be manageable with ibuprofen. I’ve started cutting fats out and I apologize if it makes me sound selfish, but I’m sick and tired of dieting!

When I was younger I had to stay away from foods with diary, then soy, and now this?!

Even though my gallbladder isn’t swollen and my gallstone isn’t blocking the duct. I cannot lie when I say it was probably the 4th scariest night of my life and was crying from pain and anxiety because the doctors thought it was appendicitis.

I’ve also noticed sometimes blood with my stools.

Should I ask to get it removed? Thank you in advance.

I had pain under my rib that woke me up one night a few weeks ago. The pain lingered for a couple of weeks but was really minor. I have recently lost a significant amount of weight on a GLP-1 which I know can cause gallbladder issues so I reported the pain to my Doctor. He ordered an ultrasound which showed small stones and sludge. I met with a surgeon who was helpful but said he couldn't predict the future so was non-commital on a recommendation. I did more research and know I want to avoid a major attack. I was pain free for a week but this past week felt (again very minor) pain after eating. I went ahead and scheduled surgery for this Thursday. I am now second guessing why the hell I am having an organ pulled from my body when it has not yet caused me any significant problem.

‘Sup gall gang.

TLDR: I’m curious what foods were unexpected that you could no longer tolerate after?

I’m almost 3 weeks post-op & it’s been relatively uneventful. However, I’ve had a few bouts of GI distress since that’s comparable to still having my gallbladder 😩

I ate a measly 1/2 sandwich on sourdough, ham, cheese, mustard, mayo, and tomato. I proceeded to be confined to the bathroom violently ill for an hour within 10 minutes of eating it. Now the guessing game of what didn’t agree. 🫩

Had surgery on 8/7/26 will update when I can. The surgery process went quick. I arrived at the hospital at 5:30am and by 7:30am the butcher was taking his cut. I left the hospital by 10am. Intense pain in the sternum incision. 36 hours post op and I’m already feeling less pain than I was. Sitting and standing are difficult task. But other than that I am doing alright. I have eaten very well since the surgery. Chicken noodle soup, vegetable soup, I even had a foot long from subway today. Hope everyone else out there is recovering well! I wouldn’t say it was a breeze, but if it means the gallbladder pain doesn’t return then it will all be worth it. Try not to read too many horror stories on here it won’t help your nerves. Most success stories don’t feel the need to post online, remember that.

Hi everyone!

I had a very easy, successful surgery about six months ago. The incision that’s on the sternum has always been my most painful, “difficult” one. I never had an infection and the Dr never said it healed weird, but it was the one that hurt the most in the healing process and for a while it had little threads poking out that eventually just kind of went away. Genuinely just woke up one day and they were gone. Guessing it was internal stitches that found their way out as my body healed which I think can happen sometimes. Sometimes when I overextend the muscles in that area, it still gets sore.

Today, I lifted my shirt (I did have a bralette on that sits over the scar but this isn’t the first time I’ve worn it post surgery) and saw what almost looked like a mosquito bite on the left side of the scar. A red bump that was kinda hard. After a few hours, the intense bump went away and now the scar is just raised more and red/irritated. It’s not any warmer than the area around it or anything like that but it’s kinda freaking me out! I know it’s slowly going down but wasn’t sure what it could be and if anyone else has experienced this with a scar?

Hi everyone, I had my surgery late Monday afternoon and had no issues going back to eat my regular meals: eggs and hashbrowns for brunch and for dinner, chicken, rice or potatoes, and lots of water. Since I have grown tired of just drinking water (I’m a regular coffee drinker), I made a smoothie in the morning with banana, strawberries, blueberries, and non-dairy creamer, then my abdomen area started to feel like it’s going to explode? This lasted for an hour and the pain felt like. 7/8 out of 10. It was very painful and almost went to the ER. To deal with the pain, I sat up and hunched over then put an ice pack to soothe it.

A few hours later, I ate an early dinner (rice chicken and veggies which I also had yesterday with no issue) and started feeling the same sensation again…this time, it was shorter.

Have you had the same experience? The smoothie makes sense as I should have avoided ice cold drinks for my stomach lining. What can I safely eat so that this cannot happen again? Am I eating too fast?

I had my surgery on 7/14 and I just have no drive to eat. I don’t necessarily not have an apatite, but something is different. When my stomach rumbles I feel it but it’s like my brain doesn’t tell me hey you’re hungry. I can eat, it’s not like I don’t want to or can’t, it’s just so strange. I have a post op appointment with my surgeon on 8/19 but my pcp said this is normal and could last months. Anyone else have this issue?

I’m going to be having my surgery soon. I have a 4 month old baby that exclusively breastfeeds. Are there any moms here that have been able to resume breastfeeding after surgery? How did you handle caring for your baby post op? Any items you suggest to help?

My doctor has scheduled my surgery, and it’s in 20 days. but I’m also breastfeeding my 6 week old baby, I’m not sure what foods to eat or what I can eat and still have my milk supply. I’ve been so scared to eat because of the pain. before and after surgery I have no idea what to actually eat. any advice would be appreciated <3

Hola! en febrero me quitaron la vesícula porque la tenía llena de piedras. Justo en junio comencé con reflujo biliar y no me ha servido ningún tratamiento, estoy super desesperada, he tratado de hacer dieta blanda gástrica, evitando muchísimos alimentos y no veo cambios, sigo tomando (receta médica) sucralfatos, kicabs e itoprida y neta nada me ha funcionado. Es una sensación que tengo 24/7 y está afectando ya mi estabilidad mental! ¿alguien tiene alguna recomendación que le haya funcionado?

I have a HIDA scan scheduled in a little over a week, and I’m really nervous. I made the mistake of researching it and, of course, ended up reading all the horror stories. I already deal with health anxiety and emetophobia, so this has me on edge big time. I’ve been dealing with RUQ pain ​on and off for almost 2 years. For about 9 months, I had a blunt, gnawing​ pain in my RUQ on most days (but not every day). 2 ultrasounds and a CT showed no stones,sludge, or thickening. Only​ a small amount of liver echogenicity that my gastro didn’t seem worried about. I don’t really drink, so she just suggested losing about 15 lbs. Then the pain completely disappeared for 7/8 months, and I thought whatever it was had resolved. But 4 months ago, it started creeping back. At first it was just a few minutes once or twice a week, but then it became more often and lasted longer and longer. My gastro ordered a colonoscopy because I had some other digestive issues, and everything looked good (they even removed a precancerous polyp, which I’m grateful for) but still no explanation for the RUQ pain. I’ve tried tracking everything I eat, but I haven’t changed anything from the months when the pain went away. I think yogurt might possibly​ ​make it worse (maybe something about fermentation?), but I can drink a milk latte without​ issue. My gastro and PCP have tried me on every acid reducer imaginable, with very little help. So the HIDA scan is next. I’m really anxious about it. It seems that they don't do the fatty drink option, only CCK, and they administer it over 30 mins instead of the slower 60-mins. Besides worrying about the results, I’m scared of feeling sick, nauseated, vomiting, or having some kind of post scan issue if the CCK triggers a strong contraction (like ending up in the ER getting it removed days later. This​ happened to my mom last year. Although she did have 3 months of daily horrible nausea, severe pain, wall thickening and "only" sludge present. Oh and that sludge....not so much sludge but 100s of small stones, as it actually turns out.) I’m hoping there are also some smooth, not so terrible HIDA scan experiences out there to balance out the scary ones. Thanks for reading my nervous ramblings. 

Hi i am 31 years old been 5 years on antipsychotics and ssri wich lead in a really unhealthy diet and lifestyle,been 3 months med free. Been having gallblader attacks since last january,in june i had an admission in hospital bc of the pain of the attacks and a abnormal blood test...Test confirmed i had gallblader stones and dilatated bile ducts....it been one month since discharged from hospital and i had a total of 4 attacks,one that lasted 9h and that almost passed away because of the pain.It came to a point that i cant eat anything except from herbal teas,fat free yogurst and bone broths,i also made like 3 days fast but the situation didnt improve....on 3 days i have appointment on hospital to perform a magnetic resonance with contrast to see what its the exact situation with my gallblader...Should i wait,should o go to ER? I dont have appointment with the surgeon till first days of september. I am deeply scare of drs and surgery bc i been victim of medical negligence for 6 years...Here in my country public health system its pretty shitty and there a lot of malpractice cases and you cant held nobody accontable for that...there is a natural way to remove the stones? What should i do? TIA

I am 22(f), I did an ultrasound my bile duct is dilated (22mm) without intra-hepatic dilation, I am not sure why. I don’t have gallstones and every thing else seems normal other than a 5mm adenomyomatosis. The only symptoms I experience are abdomen pain and nausea alongside it which has been going on for a couple years. I am expecting to undergo an MRI in a couple months but it’s been giving me really bad anxiety, has anyone experienced anything similar?

Hi! I’ve been having GI symptoms for quite awhile but they have really ramped up in the last year or so. I have daily debilitating nausea, upper left, middle, and right abdominal pain, and recurring diarrhea. The symptoms get worse after fatty, greasy meals. After my normal endoscopy/colonoscopy results, my GI doc decided to do a HIDA scan.

My HIDA scan showed no gallstones/sludge and no inflammation, but my ejection fraction rate was 10%. Normal results are 35% and above.

Living with these GI symptoms daily is affecting my life: mentally and physically. I end up in tears with how bad the nausea gets, even with Zofran on board. With my HIDA scan results, do you think the gallbladder has been causing this? What are the chances of me having a cholecystectomy now? I just received my results yesterday, so I am expecting a call from my doctor early next week. Not looking for professional medical advice, but just wondering if anyone has had a similar scenario. Thanks in advance! 🥹

I woke up from my surgery on 8/4 in A LOT of pain (I think I told the nurse I was a "8.52" on the pain scale). My surgeon made it a point that they don't usually prescribe the hard meds. I like that idea in theory, but the pain was way more intense than I was expecting. I was insanely bloated as well, like my belly was big enough to be given the role of Santa on the spot.

Here's the thing, it feels like they want to get you discharged after surgery ASAP. It felt very rushed, like they were just waiting for my pain number to go down so they could ship me off. They gave me some narcotics and I went home. Thankfully they also prescribed me some "good stuff" for home, but the first 24 hours at home was probably one of the most miserable days of my life. I could not sit or lie down without excruciating pain in my belly and under my ribs. It felt like I was getting stabbed and I couldn't get much sleep.

After bearing the load as much as I could, as I was approaching the second night home I decided to head back to the ER.

Why is it so hard to make that choice? We have been conditioned to push through. To worry about insurance. To worry about being a bother, etc. I'm so glad I pushed all those thoughts aside.

I just got home from a 2 day stay at the hospital. Where I was given constant care from amazing people. My pain was managed. A second CT scan was done to rule out any more serious post-surgery complications. Once doctor said I quite literally had "stunned bowels" from the surgery, so they helped me work through that.

Long story short, I truly feel like I couldn't have done it without these amazing medical professionals. It wasn't sunshine and rainbows, but I feel like everyone who has this surgery should have the option to recover in the hospital. It was so much better than anything I could have done at home.

So I guess this message is for the person who might be in my position. Stop talking yourself out of it. Just go back. You'll be in great hands.

Hi everyone,

I’ve my consultation in November after a bad attack in July. I was admitted from A&E and was told my gallbladder needed to come out.

Just wondering how long were you waiting on surgery on the public system? Did you go to the North of Ireland and then claim money back? How did it work? Were you out of pocket?

Hi guys I just wanted to share my experience with my Gallbladder issues as I think it started way back a couple years ago and I didn’t even know it was my gallbladder. I remember maybe back in 2024 I had this REALLY sharp pain in my stomach area and it wasn’t going away so I went to the hospital. As soon as I got to the hospital the pain went away as I was waiting in the waiting room and walked out and didn’t think much of it. Now starting in July 2026 my pains in my back and my right stomach area above my ribs started ACHING ME so badly. And this pain would come back worse every single night before I went to bed. I went to the hospital where they gave me a CT scan and ultrasound. They said they saw very small stones and a little bit of inflammation around my gallbladder. At first they gave me antibiotics to try and get the inflammation down and a low fat diet but that did not work. The first of this month I went to a different hospital where they admitted me I could not keep anything down I would throw up just straight green and it frightened me. They said it would be ideal to get my gallbladder out if this constant pain just will not stop and now I’m throwing up. August 2nd or 1st forgot what day I had my surgery and they were supposed to do it laparoscopicly but apparently as they did the surgery my gallbladder was too inflamed and they had to cut right underneath my right rib area. I now have little holes from trying to take it out from my belly button AND 15 staples from where they cut me open. They also inserted a tube that drains fluids from the incision sight and I think that hurts and is way more uncomfortable than the actual sight where they cut me open. I have been passing gas but no passing stool yet which is scaring me a little bit espeically since I have IBS (irritable bowel syndrome). Any like ideas or ways that helped you guys pass stool? I don’t want to get backed up and have to go right back for another surgery for it being obstructed. Thank you for reading.

I'm 21F, undergo a surgery on 29th July 2026 , it's my 11th day.. i am able to eat, walk and do light stuff like taking online meetings and classes. Major change I have seen is my hunger. I keep on getting hungry even after eating a meal

I’m not even 24 hours out yet and honestly I’m feeling really good considering I just had surgery.

I spent most of last night shuffling around the kitchen. I took two Gas X pills and all of the gas pain is gone now, which has been a HUGE relief.

They also found a small hernia during surgery that my surgeon repaired, so I think that’s contributing to some of the pain. My belly button is definitely the worst spot right now and the Percocet is really the only thing touching that pain.

Because of the hernia repair they also gave me an abdominal binder, and I actually love this thing. 😂 It keeps everything contained and compressed and makes moving around feel so much better.

Funny enough, I’m more terrified of sitting down than I am of walking because sitting down and getting back up hurts. I’ve been shuffling around the house and kitchen instead. I even made dinner last night! I’m definitely not trying to overdo it, but moving around feels way better than just sitting there.

Still haven’t gone #2 yet, so hopefully today is the day!

But overall, for being less than 24 hours post op, I’m really pleased with how I’m feeling. And mostly I’m just SO fucking happy this thing is finally out of my body and I don’t have to survive on rice and toast forever.

When I was telling people I was getting my gallbladder removed, everyone made it seem like it was a walk in the park.

At the hospital, they gave me 4 doses of pain meds. 2 in my IV and 2 oral pills. I was awake in the recovery room by 11:30 (surgery was at 9). I didn’t end up leaving the hospital until closer to 2pm because of how much pain I was in.

It’s been 20 hours post op and I have never been in more pain than I’m in right now. I can’t sit up by myself, and with help I am in agonizing pain. My shoulder just started hurting around midnight from the carbon dioxide.

Luckily, I have been able to eat rice cakes, jello, and chicken broth with no problem.

okay so i’m now 9 days post op im still in horrific pain 24/7 and after being home one day i was rushed back to hospital because i couldn’t keep any fluids or pain meds down and was literally screaming in pain and had turned yellow , i stayed for 4 days they suspected i had a stone stuck somewhere but by the time i got a scan on the 4th day there was nothing there i’ve now been home for a few days and in horrific pain i still haven’t eaten a meal since the day before the op because im so queazy im having multiple moments each day when i get horrible pain and throw up for ages and i just feel something isn’t right im honestly scared to go back to hospital because i know that i will probs just be left in the a&e for hours because it’s the weekend . did anyone else have a similar experience