Life with no gallbladder...

Its been three months since gallbladder surgery, and as I write this my stomach has been hurting for the last few hours. Ugh!  But don't worry its just phantom pain. Awesome!  I can still feel it!!!  I didn't know a single thing about gall bladders going into surgery.  I was in excruciating pain (Worse then childbirth without an epidural or equal, I'm not sure-- It was pain!)  They said it was my gall bladder and that it had to come out.  I asked if it HAD to come out.  They told me this pain would just keep happening every time a stone escaped my gall bladder, that next time this could be worse.  At one point they were sure the gall stone had escaped my gall bladder and lodged itself in my liver duct.  My liver enzymes and test all came back very low, they told me I could start turning a yellowy color eventually.  I was scared of the surgery for obvious reasons (If your new, my dad died from an allergic reaction to anesthesia.  It's cool, I was 5, I don't remember much).  It never crossed my mind what life without a gall bladder would be like.

Well let me tell you...

Life without a gall bladder is PAINFUL!  I may have second guessed their professional opinions if I knew anything about this-- which is still nothing.  I do know that I can't eat.  It hurts.  When I was discharged from the hospital I was given NO diet restrictions and no lifestyle changing advice; except once.  A discharging nurse told me that my doctor did not recommend any diet restrictions, but that she personally would try to keep it low fat for awhile.  And oh my, was this women a genius!  I can't eat anything with fat, or fried.  I have gone down the list of pain inducers and isolated many things.  Every time I was onto something, I was wrong.  No wings, no french fries, no dressings, no mayo, no cheese, absolutely nothing spicy, and butter is my mortal enemy.  My stomach hurts, literally within 5 minutes if I eat the wrong thing-- anything from uncomfortable to doubled over.  If I ingested the forbidden butter:: Unbearable!

I tried googling complications from gall bladder surgery, pain after gall bladder removal, etc.  Forums of people, all complaining about mild stomach pains, life long dieting, severe diarrhea, and full on pain that feels like the original gall bladder attack that landed them in the hospital in the first place.  They all say the same thing about the outcome too.  All the tests and check ups in the world reveal, surprise, no gall bladder and no complications.  There is nothing there to hurt?  Phantom pains is the diagnosis.  There are some people complaining about their pain 3, 6, 10 years post surgery!  I can not live with this pain for the rest of my life, that's why they were supposed to be removing the source of pain.

And then it happened.  I woke up in the middle of the night to breastfeed, just like last time.  Half way through feeding I started getting uncomfortable, just like last time.  To the point where I had to stop feeding and started stretching my back out, couldn't lay down, got up, paced... just like last time.  At the point where I wanted to jump in the shower for some hot water pressure on my back, I realized... Damn, this is just like last time!  Luckily, Bryan came in to the bathroom to check on me and reminded me that I still had some vicodin left over from my surgery.  Thank goodness!  I laid back down to try and sleep.  Bryan asked if I was alright.  It still hurt, but the pain medication was taking the edge off enough to lay down.  I just wanted to close my eyes and sleep through the pain.  For the life of me, I don't understand what it could be.  But I know the feeling is worse then a phantom pain. 

If I am going to have full on "gall bladder" attacks, without a gall bladder... then I would like mine back please, so I can at least eat again!