Today’s Throwback Thursday is a re-post of what I documented on Reddit just a few days after getting home from the hospital in 2020. This is my full gallbladder experience and it is long, but hopefully can resonate with fellow sufferers and shed some light on what happens when that little bastard goes unchecked for too long.

2017

My gallbladder story begins in March 2017, age 31, female, just over 3 months after starting a very strict diet and losing about 40 lbs. (starting weight 333.4 lbs.) in that short time frame. (In fact, it’s presumed that the too-fast weight loss is probably the catalyst for stones forming.)

It didn’t take me too long to figure out that the episodes I was having periodically were, in fact, gallbladder attacks. Symptoms would gradually build, like a cramp, over about 10 minutes, then leave me in excruciating upper-abdomen pain with balled up fists and the ability to do nothing but try to control my breathing and remain calm as waves of pain passed through for about 30 minutes, then release.

After the attack was over, I would feel cold, sweaty, and exhausted, but otherwise recovered. The following day I would have a little tenderness in my upper abdomen, like a pulled muscle.

I tried to research as much as possible and eat a healthy, gallbladder-friendly diet with nothing fried, greasy, or fatty. Added emphasis on as much fiber as possible, including supplemental fiber powder in drinks, and also as much apple cider vinegar as I could stand. With this diet, I was able to continue my weight loss and keep my gallbladder in check until I got in for a doctor’s appointment.

Doctor, of course, ordered an ultrasound (which confirmed that yes, there were multiple stones). Referred to surgeon. (July 2017, weight down to about 270lbs.)

My surgeon was very realistic with me about the fact that my gallbladder would obviously not “get better” and would eventually need removed, but he also commended the fact that I was able to control it with diet. I told him, flat out, that I was half-scared to have it removed right away because it was basically the ‘monkey-on-my-back’ keeping me in line with my diet and weight loss. As in, “hell no, you may not eat that cheeseburger because if you do, I will make you suffer!”

Surgeon liked my analogy and agreed that if I could keep it on the rails with diet, it was not necessary to have it removed right away. But, basically, if my pee turned brown, my poo turned gray, or I had another attack, THEN it would be time to have something done.

Y’all, I was scared to have surgery. And I didn’t want to try to come up with the $5k deductible. So hearing that surgery was off the radar for however long was a relief!

I continued my diet, continued losing weight slowly and steadily, and had no signs of gallbladder trouble through 2018 and 2019. (Down to 250lbs. at lowest weight.)

2020

I’d like to try to blame my eating habits on the COVID situation, but truth is, I started eating poorly around the holidays of 2019. A couple cookies didn’t bother me? Okay, I’ll have a couple more… My weight loss had plateaued through mid-2019 and was steady around 260lbs. When COVID lockdowns hit, everything got stressy, eating “wrong stuff” was a small pleasure in the day. Also have an ongoing health situation with a family member that requires travel and quick / easy meals… blah, blah, long story short, I wasn’t doing well with my diet. Weight was back up to 278lbs. (highest) at the end of June.

So let’s say, six months of poor dieting, 15-20lbs. of fatty weight gain.

Saturday, 7/4 – Chinese take-out for dinner, followed by a big bowl of watermelon before bed.

Gallbladder attack started around 10:20pm. I could feel it coming on (builds for about 10 minutes, start to get cold sweats, body knows something’s wrong). Curled up on my right side in bed, breathing, waves of pain, almost exactly 30 minutes later, it releases and I stand up from bed as if nothing ever happened.

Ten minutes later, I start getting pain again. Not as severe, and not as centralized, but radiating throughout my abdomen. This pain lasted all night, could not sleep, finally decided at about 6am that I probably should go to the hospital. Started pacing around, found some relief with pacing, continued it for about an hour, and the pain subsided enough to let me get to sleep (I was exhausted by then).

Sunday, 7/5 – Slept pretty much all day. Pain mostly gone, figured I was in the clear.

Monday, 7/6 – No pain during the day. Everything seemed normal. Went about daily business, drove out of town and back, etc.

Didn’t eat much all day, and thought maybe a high-fiber dinner would help keep gallbladder in check like it used to do. Ate a bowl of steamed broccoli.

Like clockwork, about 10:30pm, upset stomach and pain starts. But not the normal gallbladder attack pain; this is more like the weird abdominal radiating pain felt post-attack on Saturday. The best way to describe it was that it felt like my entire belly was full of air, like I was so bloated, and I just needed to do a hundred burps or something.

Pain was getting worse by the minute. I was freezing, sweating, laying down, standing up, sitting on the toilet, pacing around… Finally, around midnight, I threw up. (I am NOT a throw-upper. I can count on both hands the times I recall ever throwing up in my entire life.) And here comes TMI so skip ahead past the next paragraph if you don’t want to hear about the puke…

Disgusting as it was, I was concerned and wanted to make sure I wasn’t throwing up blood or something, so I checked it out… what I threw up was broccoli (that night’s dinner) and a few stray pieces of watermelon (from before the attack on Saturday). Disgusting, I know, I’m sorry. But the point is: fiber. I physically could not digest that fiber anymore.

I felt some relief after throwing up, and again I was exhausted, so I fell into bed and slept a few hours. Pain had me awake again sometime in the wee hours of the morning and I was such a mess, husband’s insisting we’re going to the emergency room, Mom’s here to drive me…

Checked into the ER at about 7am.

Hospital

Tuesday, 7/7: Blood work, IV started, and CT scan ordered fairly quickly from ER. I was given anti-nausea med and Toradol for pain, which helped slightly, but the pain was back within an hour or so. The next option was morphine, 4 units. I started having a panic attack as the morphine was administered (couldn’t stand the feeling of losing control, felt like falling, etc.), but it did make me numb and helped me sleep.

My diagnosis of pancreatitis came sometime that morning and I was admitted to a room and started on antibiotics.

Doctor said my lipase level was initially 20,000+. (Had no idea what that meant at the time.)

I was also apparently very dehydrated, though I had no idea.

I had turned pretty yellow with jaundice.

There was concern that a gall stone had passed and become stuck in the common bile duct and was blocking up the works for the pancreas, so I was sent down for an MRI.

The MRI confirmed that my gallbladder was very angry, but no stone blockage could be seen.

Wednesday, 7/8: Skeptical of the MRI non-findings, I was sent by transport ambulance (which was a painful hell in itself) to a hospital an hour away for an ECRP scope procedure. While they were in there, they placed a stent in the common bile duct. No stones were found, but apparently things were very muddy / sludgy.

Thursday, 7/9: Resting and preparing for the gallbladder removal surgery scheduled for the following day. Blood work beginning to look better.

Friday, 7/10: Gallbladder removed by laparoscopic surgery around 11am. Surgery went well, though surgeon mentioned that he took extra long (apparently twice as long, according to Mom who was frantic in the waiting room) to get the job done without having to go to open surgery. (I had been warned that a drain might be needed as well; thankfully it was not.)

There are 3 holes, plus the belly button hole.

I was given clear liquid diet for dinner that evening and beef broth was the most amazing thing ever after having not been able to eat or drink ANYTHING in 4+ days.

Saturday, 7/11: Clear liquid breakfast, but surgeon ordered me to eat a regular lunch to prove I could handle solid foods before they’d release me. I had a great appetite and ate well – pot pie and broccoli – no problems. Blood work was looking better, still not perfect but trending well. I went home in the afternoon and rested well.

Back Home

I’ve been home for 3 days now. I’ve not needed to fill the Percocet script; pain has been do-able. Today, the worst of my pain is actually in my back muscles, which I’ve been using to compensate for not using my abdominal muscles much, so the back is a little crampy and unhappy with me.

I’ve eaten mashed potatoes, mac ‘n cheese, jello, flan, sorbet, vegetable soup, white bread, bananas… Knock-on-wood, aside from a little indigestion last night that I think came from eating too much tomato-based foods yesterday, I’ve been doing well. No nausea, etc.

I’m still not moving at full speed, but that’s okay. Thankfully I work from home anyway, so I’m able to gradually catch up at my own pace and am taking it easy.

I have to return in 6 weeks to have the stent removed via ERCP.

I will be getting back into my healthy eating habits, and back on track with weight loss.

My biggest fear right now is getting the bill… ho hum.

Moral of the Story

Surgery isn’t as scary as I had envisioned. It would have been a LOT easier to just have the surgery at my leisure 3 years ago, nip it in the bud, so to speak. It also would have cost me just a deductible, rather than the whole out-of-pocket maximum shebang that I am now expecting.

Just because you can’t see or feel the problem does not mean it is healthy and/or going away.

When gallbladder gets mad, things can go south very quickly, and you might be powerless to regain control.

Yes, you may be able to control your gallbladder problems with diet. If you do, please consider having regular checkups or scans and make sure you stay very much on top of your game with it. It is not a long-term sustainable option, IMHO.

This story was written in July, 2020, and originally posted on Reddit. For more Throwback Thursdays, check out My Life.