I don’t know if it will help you- but I was having similar issues and before surgery the surgeon suggested taking a magnesium supplement as magnesium deficiency can be linked to a lot of these issues and is hard to test for. That was probably 5 years ago and unless I forget to take the supplement I have not run into anymore problems. Just something to ask about - as there’s really no risk in trying (the doctor that told me to try was shocked at how well it worked for me- I had cramping under my rib cage so bad is was visible just by looking at me.)

Good luck!

Since I know this sounds like quackery here is a peer reviewed study :-)

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/18076730/

I had mine out by lap surgery a few years ago. The surgeon said something like "you can eat whatever you want and you won't have any problems with diet." The day after surgery I hiked (gingerly) two hours and worked up to five hours five days later. And I've never noticed a thing about digesting fat differently or anything else like that. Of course, that's just my story.

I had my gallbladder removed about 10 years ago and it has been an issue every since, in part because of the gallbladder removal and partly due to the doctor's error.

I had the minimally invasive surgery and my surgeon clamped off my common bile duct instead of the duct entering my gallbladder. After my surgery, the doc explained this happened in x% of surgeries (I don't recall the correct % but I recall it was higher than I thought reasonable) and it was never brought up as a possibility beforehand. This required two additional surgeries, within about a month, to fix the problem. As a result of the surgery to remove the clamp, or whatever you call the device, I developed an incisional hernia that required surgery about a year ago.

As far as food digestion...prior to the surgery I had a cast iron stomach. Now, I am highly sensitive to anything mildly spicy or greasy. About the spiciest food I can keep down is Taco Bell mild sauce. Anything more than a modest portion of diary also causes problems. Or, if I eat later in the evening than I should, I will likely get sick.

Not to be gross, but I vomit my food two to three times per week. My wife compares my symptoms to her bouts of morning sickness; queasy stomach, frequent vomiting, etc. As a result, I am very careful about the foods I eat and the times of day I eat. Switching to very small portions, and eating more frequently, throughout the day has helped.

My liver enzymes are also regularly elevated and as a result, are tested and monitored throughout the year.

Prior to the surgery, I passed a gallstone and it was incredibly painful, I thought I was having a heart attack. When they performed an ultrasound of my gallbladder, I could see 7-8 more gallstones, and the thought of passing them didn't seem appealing.

Having the benefit of hindsight, I would not have the surgery and would joyfully pass the remaining gallstones.

Wife had hers out taken out in ER less than a week after she had back surgery. Found her laying on the bathroom floor in so much pain she couldn't call for help. I thought she was still sleeping. The amount of stones was really unbelievable. Xray lit up like the Griswold's house during Xmas. Good times.

I've known her a very long time and her diet has never been bad and always in moderation, but her digestion system is very sensitive now. No spicy food at all, but she didn't like it before so not a big change. Tough to digest meats are a no-no. Ground turkey is her go to and she seems to do well with chicken sausage (not sure how that one works). Other than that she'll eat what she feels like, in moderation. No lasting issues beyond that.

As others are showing, I would say try other things first and avoid if you can. If you happen to be in the group that has side effects, it's for life.

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~Brad

Thanks for the responses, all. I am open to other remedies.

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Yes

This for me. Having mine out was one of the best thing that happened to me. I stopped being hungry all the time & dropped 80lbs in a couple of months. Only side effect is have to take a Zantac/similar everyday, and super-spicy Mexican (not Thai or Chinese) really takes a while to settle down.

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"There are two novels that can change a bookish fourteen-year old's life: The Lord of the Rings and Atlas Shrugged. One is a childish fantasy that often engenders a lifelong obsession with its unbelievable heroes, leading to an emotionally stunted, socially crippled adulthood, unable to deal with the real world. The other, of course, involves orcs." John Rogers

Wifie had her removed 6-8 years ago. She has always had a sensitive stomach. It became a little worse after the surgery, but, not by much.

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If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went. - Will Rogers

Emery's Third Coast Triathlon | Tri Wisconsin Triathlon Team | Push Endurance | GLWR

Had mine out a couple years ago. Was having issues. Dr. said I needed it out.. I disagreed, tried changing diet, some other things.. it was about 8 months later (I lost a lot of weight) finally decided changing eating wasn't helping, lots of food by then were causing me issues. But since I had heard about the possible issues after I was reluctant. Well, Its out and I pretty much eat whatever I want. Only difference, need to make sure I keep the Fiber HIGH... I eat 3 or 4 prunes a day, most days. It works for me. A few days of forgetting and problems. but as long as I keep the fiber up. No real issues. On some other med's now that have BM changed, but really the GB surgery, seems to have little impact on my eating. That said. I don't have a High fat diet. But will occasionally eat 3 or 4 pieces of pizza and have no issues. Maybe if you eat high fat all the time it might be an issue, but for my diet not an issue.

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Just Triing
Triathlete since 9:56:39 AM EST Aug 20, 2006.
Be kind English is my 2nd language. My primary language is Dave it's a unique evolution of English.

I had mine out in 2009, after months of walking around with a gray pallor and being sick as hell from eating anything or nothing. It was done lap and the surgeon told me three weeks of graduating to daily life from bed rest. This may have been due to how sick I was (bile duct and organ were inflamed AF). I needed every day of those three weeks to feel human again.

In the beginning, I was told everything from "say goodbye to ice cream" to "eat less than 26g fat per day". Well, I started with the 26g of fat and gradually worked my way back up to a normal (healthy) fat consumption level for someone of my age/gender/activity level.

Long term effects include lactose intolerance, heartburn induced by spicy foods or cumin, and ill-fated GI consequences after consumption of large leafy green salads or a bunch of other cruciferous veggies. Things I can pretty much live with instead of dealing with a dying gallbladder.

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Level II USAT Coach | Level 3 USAC Coach | NASM-CPT
Team Zoot | Tailwind Trailblazer
I can tell you why you're sick, I just can't write you an Rx

A cousin of mine was killed by a gallbladder removal surgery. She had a her common bile duct cut and discovered only a week or two later. Repair didn't work out very well I think there wasn't much duct to deal with. A few years of liver and pancreas problems and she finally died.

Having said that in 25 years of family practice I have not had any patients who have had esp negative outcomes. Commonest thing is changes in how your intestine deals with certain foods. Usually diarrhea with certain foods. I think it you clip/cut the wrong duct as a surgeon it is a surgical error not a complication.

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They constantly try to escape from the darkness outside and within
Dreaming of systems so perfect that no one will need to be good T.S. Eliot