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I know rapid weight loss can cause gallbladder issues. For those of you who had to have your gallbladders removed, what were your symptoms? And how was the recovery?

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I know rapid weight loss can cause gallbladder issues. For those of you who had to have your gallbladders removed, what were your symptoms? And how was the recovery?


I had VSG surgery along with gallbladder removal and hernia repair on 10/11/17. I had no symptoms the just discovered stones during pre-op testing and said it would be best to remove my gallbladder. All is well no complaints. Just taking it easy. Walking and taking my prescribed meds.


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I had my gallbladder removed a few years ago, long before the WLS, due to very restrictive diets. I'm 2.5 weeks out now and I think I start feeling some pains on the left side right under my ribs. It could be related probably to gall, as the post-op diet is quite restrictive and gall doesn't go freely from my liver. But this is just my guess, I'm not a doctor.

Other than that, gallbladder removal sometimes causes a chronic diarrhea, especially if you get some fatty foods. No other issues so far.

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2 hours ago, Missytee said:


I had VSG surgery along with gallbladder removal and hernia repair on 10/11/17. I had no symptoms the just discovered stones during pre-op testing and said it would be best to remove my gallbladder. All is well no complaints. Just taking it easy. Walking and taking my prescribed meds.

I asked to have mine removed at the time of VSG surgery because I was told years ago it would eventually need to come out due to gallstones accumulating. I attempted to relay this to my surgeon through his staff but it was close to the time of surgery and it didn't really go anywhere unfortunately. Wish it had been taken care of all at once like you!

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32 minutes ago, temkins said:

I had my gallbladder removed a few years ago, long before the WLS, due to very restrictive diets. I'm 2.5 weeks out now and I think I start feeling some pains on the left side right under my ribs. It could be related probably to gall, as the post-op diet is quite restrictive and gall doesn't go freely from my liver. But this is just my guess, I'm not a doctor.

Other than that, gallbladder removal sometimes causes a chronic diarrhea, especially if you get some fatty foods. No other issues so far.

I don't have the pain but terrible vomiting. Docs think gallbladder might be the problem (ultrasound shows its full of gallstones).

Do you happen to remember if vomiting was an issue for you before it was removed?

I just don't want to go through a second surgery, especially feeling like this, if its not going to fix the problem

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I don't have the pain but terrible vomiting. Docs think gallbladder might be the problem (ultrasound shows its full of gallstones).
Do you happen to remember if vomiting was an issue for you before it was removed?
I just don't want to go through a second surgery, especially feeling like this, if its not going to fix the problem

I had vomiting south mine. It had to come out 3 months after surgery. The pain was the worse tho. Mine had stones and started a blockage.

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11 minutes ago, tinytummy17 said:


I had vomiting south mine. It had to come out 3 months after surgery. The pain was the worse tho. Mine had stones and started a blockage.

Sent from my SM-G950U using BariatricPal mobile app

That's why I'm confused! I did feel some achiness in that area with certain foods prior to my pre op diet but nothing I would describe as pain and nothing since virtually cutting fats out since pre op dieting. But the vomiting is brutal. Since 10 days post op and seems to be getting worse.

I'm so lost :(

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11 hours ago, Ready2Live! said:

Do you happen to remember if vomiting was an issue for you before it was removed?

Not in my case. I just had a terrible pain all night long at my back, couldn’t sit. Took lots of NSAIDS with no success. Next morning I was at doc’s office, had Ultrasound and a surgery in a couple of of days.

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Symptoms of a gallbladder problem:

Pain: The most common symptom of a gallbladder problem is pain. This pain usually occurs in the mid- to upper-right section of your abdomen. It can be mild and intermittent, or it can be quite severe and frequent. In some cases, the pain can begin to radiate to other areas of the body, including the back and chest.

Nausea or vomiting: Nausea and vomiting are common symptoms of all types of gallbladder problems. But only chronic gallbladder disease may cause digestive problems, such as acid reflux, gas, nausea, and vomiting.

Fever or chills: An unexplained fever may signal that you have an infection. If you have an infection, you need treatment before it worsens and becomes dangerous. The infection can become life-threatening if it spreads to other parts of the body.

Chronic diarrhea: Having more than four bowel movements per day for at least three months may be a sign of chronic gallbladder disease.

Jaundice: Yellow-tinted skin may be a sign of a common bile duct block or stone.

Unusual stools or urine: Lighter-colored stools and dark urine are possible signs of a common bile duct block

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Thanks Temkins and Berry78. I have consistantly read about the pain being the most common thing.

I guess I am really trying to see if anyone improved after removing their gallbladder when vomiting (and/or diarrhea) was the only symptom.

I'm feeling pretty bad and can't imagine doing another surgery right now if it won't help.

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My symptoms were pain in my stomach radiating to my back. Sometimes I would vomit. The pain lasted for hours. It was awful. Had my gallbladder out two years before surgery and haven’t had any issues since. Best decision ever.

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I asked to have mine removed at the time of VSG surgery because I was told years ago it would eventually need to come out due to gallstones accumulating. I attempted to relay this to my surgeon through his staff but it was close to the time of surgery and it didn't really go anywhere unfortunately. Wish it had been taken care of all at once like you!


Yes...I’m glad my doctor did everything at once too.


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I actually had no problems. I didn’t even know I had stones until my pre op testing.


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I need mine out but I'm trying to wait until next year due to work. I don't have any stones but I was having pain so the doc gave me a HIDA scan and the results came back abnormal with an Ejection Fraction of 86% (normal per my surgeon is in the 30-60% range). Since I don't have stones my surgeon is comfortable letting me manage the pain and we will be removing the gallbladder after the 1st of the year.

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