Gallbladder removal?

[Muneca729]

Hi,
I am 19 yr old female.  I am relatively healthy. Since October of 2002, I have been having RUQ pain, nausea, vomiting, and lots of weight loss.  I have changed my diet.  In Jan. of 2003 I saw my PCP. He ordered an u/s of gallbladder. The results were no stones.  He sent me to a GI and I had a HIDA and a CT of abdomen and pelvis.  The CT came back normal.  The HIDA was normal until the injection of CCK.  My ejection fraction is 0%.  My question is I am having my gb removed this week, but is it absolutely necessary?  I know my gb isn't not functioning, but how can this be without stones?  Also, what happens after the lap chole?  I appreciate your info.  

Thanks,
Muneca729

[Kevin Pho, MD]

Hello - thanks for asking your question.

A biliary ejection fraction of lower than 35% is considered abnormal.  In some cases, this may be associated with Sphincter of Oddi dysfunction (SOD).  In any case, a low biliary ejection fraction predisposes you for gallstone formation in the future.  The decision for a cholecystectomy should be made in conjuction with your personal gastroenterologist and surgeon.

A certain amount of postoperative pain occurs after a lap chole. Nausea and vomiting is not uncommon. Once liquids or a diet is tolerated, patients leave the hospital the same day or day after the laparoscopic gallbladder surgery. Activity is dependent on how the patient feels. Walking is encouraged. Patients can remove the dressings and shower the day after the operation.
Patients will probably be able to get back to normal activities within a week's time, including driving, walking up stairs, light lifting and work. In general, recovery should be progressive, once the patient is at home.

The onset of fever, yellow skin or eyes, worsening abdominal pain, distention, persistent nausea or vomiting, or drainage from the incision are indications that a complication may have occurred. Your surgeon should be contacted in these instances.
You should make an appointment with your surgeon within 2 weeks following your operation, even if your post-operative course has been uneventful.

I stress that this answer is not intended as and does not substitute for medical advice - please see your personal physician for further evaluation of your individual case.

Thanks,
Kevin, M.D.

Links:
Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy
http://www.gicare.com/pated/epdlv01.htm

Patient Information - Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy
http://www.health.qld.gov.au/informedconsent/PatientInformationSheets/laparoscopic_cholecystectomy.pdf

[Lillibet]

Sounds like you need to get it out. Mine was functioning at 33.4% but they still felt that it needed to come out. Just be warned that after the surgery, you cannot go out to Wendys or McD as some people claim. They body needs time to adjust. I had mine out on the 24th January, and I am still on a pre-gallbladder surgery diet! I can only tolerate small amounts of bland food (no seasoning, no spices), and nothing fried. I have some reflux from the bile that is still bothering me. But I do feel better than I did two weeks ago.... It takes time, lots of it. You can have serious complications if you leave a gallbladder in when its clearly not functioning (even without stones). Good luck!

[gardenmaniac]

my daughter is also 19, had no stones in her GB, had URQ pain and nausea. Her HIDA ejection was 8%.  she had her GB removed Dec 27, 2002. It has been 7 weeks & she feels SO much better. Everyone recooperates at different rates..she did eat a Wendy's burger 10 days after surgery. She is in college and doesn't have a good schedule for eating, so sometimes she waits too long to eat & then things don't settle well even yet...but you are lucky that the Dr's even did a HIDA scan...my daughter hurt for a year and a half....& we had to keep bugging them to keep looking.

Her surgeon gave her only a 60% chance of the surgery taking away the pain because they are not sure why the GB ceased functioning. So...it may not take care of things, but from what i understand, you GB will not start working again. Good luck...keep us posted..

[juliana]

I was wondering what your symptoms where before you had your gallbladder removed, are you still taking medication?

[juliana]

I was wondering what your symptoms where before you had your gallbladder removed, are you still taking medication?

[Lillibet]

Hi,

My symptoms were classic gallbladder symptoms: URQ, radiating to the back and shoulder blades, some nausea but no vomitting. I think that since I always went to a strict no fat diet when I got an attack, this helped. I had ultrasounds done and there were no stones, no thickening of the walls. Hidascan five years ago ejection was 55%, so I didn't have surgery then. Last October the HIDA scan ejection was 33.4%, and my gastrointerologist felt 100% sure that it was my gallbladder. I also have ulcerative colitis so it was hard to figure out what was affecting my system.

Tomorrow will be three weeks since the surgery, and in the last week I started to feel better, but not quite myself. I am taking Reglan and that seems to help. However, just last night I had two slices of whole wheat toast (no butter), and 97% fat free ham (turkey), and spent the entire night tossing and turning with indigestion and some burning. Although I took a Reglan before dinner, and another one before bed! So who knows what's going on.

Bottom line: if you have symptoms of gallbladder disease, get it checked out thoroughly and make sure everything else is functioning before removing the g/b. Or you might continue suffering and feel very helpless after going through surgery etc.

[Lillibet]

This is for anyone out there who might have information regarding gallbladder removal in senior citizens. I have a neighbor who is 78 years old, he is diabetic, has had blood pressure, arthritis and problems with reflux from time to time.

He has had the usual tests for gallbladder problems and the ultra sound showed thickening of the walls, and his HIDA scan was 34%. He is worried about having surgery at his age, and would like to know if anyone has read or knows of information that might help him decide whether it is absolutely necessary to remove his gallbladder at his age.

He has nausea, but no pain.  He is on a restricted diet both for the diabetes and now it's fat free for the g/b.

Any info would be appreciated.

[painpillhead]

hello all.
I have Hep C and I was having URQ pains.  I had u/s and found that I had gallstones.  I had it removed in Sept 2002.  I went on the current treatment for Hep C, and have 1 more week to go, however, I still have a vague pain on my right side and back around the ribs.  I did have a biopsy done in April 2002, and it was a little painful afterwards..This pain feels a bit like that, but it has been nearly a year since the biopsy.  Do I need to be doing something else?
thank you.
Lori

[surgeon]

Since the gallbladder is just a storage pouch for bile, and since when the gallbladder is removed the liver still makes all the bile it ever did, and it all gets into the intestine where it helps to digest fatty materials, and since we eat regularly and don't need to store bile the way people did before civilization, removing the gallbladder rarely leads to side effects. Most people can eat whatever they want. A small number has trouble with fatty meals -- diarrhea is the usual problem. Often it gets better with time.

As for a 78 year old: of course the concerns need to be addressed between the patient and the doctor, with a clear discussion of what the benefits are expected to be, and what the risks are of leaving it in, versus risk of removal. It's a very common operation, and most older folks have a few things wrong with them. In general they are easy to manage for surgery. The laparascopic proceedure is generally much quicker to get over than the old way. Most older folks would be kept in the hospital a day or two longer than younger ones.

[teamplayer]

My father had his gall bladder removed in Nov.  He was transferred to a transitional care nursing home to recover from the surgery, where he contracted C-DIF, some sort of intestinal bacteria.  He was put on an antibiotic and it seemed to clear up.  He is now back home and is having a minimum of 6 "BMs" per day!  This has been going on for the last 3 weeks.  His stool is also soft, but not to the diarrhea point.  He has been taking all sorts of OTC meds to hopefully firm his stool up and cause him to not go so often.  He has also tried all sorts of foods that are supposed to "bind", but to no avail!

Any advice?

Thanks so much!

[Lillibet]

Hi,

How old is your dad? Did he have other health problems as well? The problem I am having after g/b surgery (mine was done last month, 1/24/03), is constipation! I am taking stool softeners, eating prunes, drinking tons of liquids, but I am not getting anywhere. I also had a partial obstruction, and the ER doctor said I would have to take about 3-5 warm water enemas to clean the system out. It did work. Is your dad eating fatty foods? I heard that fatty foods can cause very loose bm's.

[Muneca729]

Hi, everybody.  I appreciate all of your advice.  Well my gallbladder is gone.  It has been a week today.  I am still in a little bit of pain and a little sick.  I am not up to my old pre-gallbladder problems diet.  I just have one question for everyone that had their gb out.  Did anybody have their whole stomach area seem like it had gotten bigger or swollen?  Their is no redness, but it kinda looks like it did when I was pregnant.  I was wondering if this is normal, and if it will go away.  It has gone down a little, but still I am curious.  Thanks for everything guys.

[Lillibet]

I'm glad you're feeling a little better. My abdomen was swollen too after the surgery, and still is a little puffy three weeks later. I'm thinking that initially it was the gas they used, but weeks later I am beginning to think that my colon is the culprit. I have a lot of problems with constipation since surgery, and I am wondering if you have the same problem. I had a partial obstruction two weeks ago, and ended up in the ER. The doctor said that I should use 3-5 enemas to clean out my system, and that did help for awhile.

What are you eating? No matter what those doctors tell you, DO NOT eat anything with fat, spices etc. for a few weeks until your system adjusts.

I can finally eat solids, after 11 days on liquids. I am taking Reglan because I was told the bile was backing up into my stomach and causing all the problems. I eat boiled rice, potatoes, veggies, even chicken breast with just a little salt, and herbs (parsley, cilantro).

Hope you stay well. Most people disappear after they feel well, and I think it's good to let people know how you're doing, so they feel there is some hope. I am able to do light housework, but no drive as yet because of the dizziness and incredible fatigue. But I am SLEEPING at last! and that's a great thing for me.

Take care.

[Archi]

I had my gall bladder removed 7/00. 2.5 years later I was still running to the bathroom after every meal. In Dec 02 I started on the atkins low carb diet. I have not had ANY problems with reflux, running to the bathroom or anything. All the problems stopped IMMEDIATELY.   I've discovered (for me at least), greasy, fatty, spicy, acid foods are not the problem. Any meal HIGH in carbs will send me running to the bathroom within 15-30 minutes of eating it. Doing the atkins diet, keeping my carbs between 20-30 has regulated my body 100%.  I feel better than I have felt in the last 5 years.

For what it might be worth to someone.....

[Lillibet]

That's very interesting. So can you eat greasy foods and not have a problem? I've been watching my diet, and although I don't eat any fat, I am still having some pain and indigestion. In fact, I can't wear a bra since the surgery, because that area feels like there is a huge elastic band squeezing the heck out of me!

I eat a lot of carbs,and what I am seeing is that I have a lot of uncomfortable gas that is not easy to expel. My stomach growls at night, and feels as if there is a roller coaster moving around the intestines....

Tell me more about this diet.

[Archi]

The diet basically starts you out on a 2 week induction period designed to purge your body of all the carbs, refined sugars, etc.  For dieting, one adds carbs back slowly until they stop loosing weight, then they know how many carbs they can consume to loose weight, maintain or gain. For me, (weight loss was a bonus) but I didn't have a lot to loose, so the benefit for me has been helping my stomach problems. I've added carbs and subtracted carbs and I can tell when I've eaten too many, I get gas, bloating, run to the bathroom and have that general yucky kind of feeling that I'd been so used to for the last 5 years.  

Right now, I can eat any and all the meat I want, (I choose lean cuts and lots of fish) but it can be as spicy or as i want it to be, (i love sausage, which is both spicy and greasy... doesn't bother my stomach a bit)  cooked any way EXCEPT breaded. I eat 2 cups of salad and 1/3 cup of  veggies every day...(certain ones like: green beans, broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus, certain squashes, salad stuff, spinach, etc).. I can also eat cheeses, creams, half & half and butter (because margarine has chemicals that are unhealthy) eggs, dill pickles, decaf coffee, tea, diet sodas, V8, fruit 2 o which is a flavored water, (splenda is the artifical sweetner recommended because it's made from sugar and not chemicals)...  and Great Vitamins... multi, potassium, calcium, omega 3, etc...  

I've started to add some low carb bread and oatmeal and a little bit of milk and the occasional splurge of something I really shouldn't have (sweets, or pasta, but I suffer when I do those)....

The first two weeks are tough, and I felt like all the joy had been sucked out of eating... no pastas! no breads!! no sweets!!!  but I've realized that I feel so much better that it just isn't worth.

I'd heard about the Atkins diet several years ago. Recently there have been studies to back up what Dr. Atkins has said all along. In a nut shell it is this... we consume an unbalanced diet, in that we eat way more carbs than our bodies need, and basically the body uses the carbs and stores everything else. We also have a very unhealthy intack of "refined" everything, sugars, grains, etc.

We went and picked up a copy of his book and read it cover to cover.  He of course tells you to go see your doctor (get cholestrol tests, etc).. By the way, our family doctor says she's reading great things about the diet and she has family members on it and they are doing well for their various ailments (diabetes, overweight etc).

It's hard to change the way I was taught... low fat, low cholestrol, stay away from beef, butter, nuts, go easy on cheese, stay away from the spicy, greasy, acidy foods... etc... It's been hard rethinking the way I cook, but it has been SO worth it.

It makes me wonder why more doctors, especially those dealing with the gastrointestional stuff haven't checked this diet out more closely.....

[TiredOf Pain]

It has been 5 years since my gb was removed. I have never stopped having URQ pain. I also have had the IBS symptoms since the removal. I went on the Atkins diet and I hardly had the spasms. I ate fatty foods and spices and it wouldn't affect me. Now that I'm off that diet I have gained weight and the IBS is back. So it seems there is something with that diet that contradicts what we are told. My doctor couldn't figure out why it was better eating that way I was.

As for URQ Pain- it continues. I have recently had some tests done all normal (CT, EGD, MRI) The dr says I'm stressed and need to take Zoloft and "just let it go". I wanted to tell him he shouldn't go and get his hip replacement that he was about to have done and he should "let it go"! Anyways, I'm tired of pain. I just heard about Sphincter of Oddi dysfunction. This sounds like it could be my answer. But I worry when I hear about it coming back. I just am tired of living with this pain and not sleeping well, etc...

Any thoughts or comments would be great. It's good to know I'm not alone. TOP

[Archi]

may I ask why you changed back off the Atkins diet?

[wishingyouwell]

IS THIS YOUR REGULAR DOCTOR, OR IS IT A GASTRO/SPECIALEST THAT TOLD YOU IT WAS STRESS ? THERE GOES ANOTHER WORD THAT IS USED TO LIGHTLY ALONG WITH IBS WHEN THEY CAN'T DIAGNOSE THE PATIENT(I HATE THAT ) .I WOULD SUGEST TAKING YOUR TEST TO A ANOTHER DOCTOR FOR A SECOND OPION (GASTRO/SPECIALEST).THEY ALMOST KILLED ME THROWING EVERY THING OFF ON IBS AND STRESS ETC.WENT TO AT LEAST THREE GASTRO SPECIALEST THE LAST ONE  DID A UPPER SCOPE , AND A  COLONOSCOPY AND FOUND THAT I HAD SEVERAL DIGESTIVE DISEASES THE MAIN LIFE THREATING ONE BEING SEVERE AND EXTENSIVE DIVERTICULITIS DISEASE WHICH THEY HAD TO REMOVE PART OF THE COLON FOR .I AGREE I THINK I WOULD HAVE TOLD HIM WHERE HE COULD  PUT HIS HIP REPLACEMENT (SMILE),SEE IF YOU CAN GET THE COLONOSCOPY DONE ALSO HAVE THEM TO DO A LIVER SCAN AS YOU KNOW IT IS IN YOUR UPPER R/Q IT MAY NOT BE THE PROB BUT NO HARM DONE IF YOU CAN RULE IT OUT .IF YOU ARE A F/MALE IT IS EVEN MORE OF A REASON FOR THEM TO THROW THE IBS AND STRESS **** AT YOU. IF IT WAS UP TO THE QUACKS I SEEN BEFORE GETTING TO THE REAL DOCTORS I WOULD BE WEARING A BAG OR WORSE,DEAD!!SO BE PUSHY ,STRONG AND ACTIVE IN YOUR HEALTH CARE IT MAY TICK A FEW PEOPLE OFF BUT AT LEAST YOU WILL GET TO THE BOTTOM OF YOUR HEALTH PROBLEMS .GOD BLESS AND KEEP YOU STRONG ,WISHING YOU WELL

[Lillibet]

I don't see how eating greasy foods and spicy foods would work for me. I haven't been able to eat anything with fat for the last five years. Whenever I eat cheese, or Chinese food for example, I would end up with awful pains and indigestion (now that the g/b is out, it's the same)! My parents had mentioned the Atkins diet but the doctor said that with ulcerative colitis I should stay away from fat....

Does Atkins mention anything about gastro diseases???

[Lillibet]

http://www.atkinsdietalert.org/


check this out everyone.

[wishingyouwell]

hi lillibet,i just have two questions ,what type of test have they ran on you so from the time the gallblader problem started up to now ? sounds like upper and lower digestive (colon,etc.)problems.have they done any tes tfor your present digestive problems? god bless, wishing you well

[wishingyouwell]

hi, did your doctor put you on this diet ,or was this a choice you made on your own ? the reason why i ask is, if your doctor put you on this diet being a doctor he had to know the risk the same as the atkins alert sight doctor .what my point is, he and any other doctor that recomends this diet is responcable for the dammage which it could cause to the  patients in his/her care .therefor opening themselves up for malpractice .if dammage has  been done to anyone due to this diet i would seek the advice of a laywer the laywer will have you to see a gastro /specialest of his choice to find the extent of the dammage.hughes and colman law firm is a great firm for such cases they cover almost all of the states .i have been harmed greatly by two meds but i can not name them due to legal reasons but i can say this if it were not for one of the meds i would no doubt still have the rest of my colon .all i can say is be darn careful what you take for ibs.god bless ,wishing you well

[Archi]

My "atkins" book which is an older copy does not mention using the diet for stomach problems. It's original intent was to help heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes. The added benefit his patients found was weight loss.  I started it to support my husband who needed to get his weight/blood pressure and cholestrol levels down.  The benefit I found was that my stomach problems have totally disappeared.

As with ANY diet, there are positives and negatives (largely depending on the individual circumstance). Our family doctor says she's reading great things about the diet and has two family members on it. She's supportive and of course wants to check our cholestrol levels every so often and make sure everything stays  okay. She says my husbands (high) cholestrol (on our low fat diet) should come down on this diet as most do unless they are sensitive to eggs or have major heridity factors.

I find it interesting that there are just scores of people on these message boards who are miserable and no one knows why. (most would say they eat "healthy")  I also find it interesting that almost every week in the news they report how people are fatter and more unhealthy increasingly every year. I'm really starting to believe there is something not quite right about the balance of information out there.

Perhaps the problems lie more in the fact that  everything we eat these days has been "refined", "added to" or "taken away from"... (to provide "low fat healthy stuff) and the food has gotten away from it's more natural state. It may, in the long run, be the reason so many people are suffering from health problems.

For me, the atkins diet helped me realize what a carb and sugar junkie I had become .. (on a low fat diet).  I can honestly say, and I stress.. for me... I no longer have reflux, heaviness in my chest/diaphram area, indigestion, gas, or running to the bathroom after every meal (missing gall bladder).  I can't explain it, other than I've limited my carbs to 20-30 a day. I know the few times I have splurged (a non spicy pasta dish no less)  I've gone right back to reflux, running to the bathroom, and just a general yucky feeling. For my stomach problems, there is something to the atkins diet. I can take vitamins and calcium suppliments or whatever is needed like that to combat any of the supposed problems of the diet. It's still got to be healther than staying on prevacid, or the original one I had which was propulsid (pulled off they market because of  causing LETHAL heart  problems).

Every diet has it's pitfalls, I guess it's a matter of deciding with a good, knowledgeable doctor, which ones you can live with and which ones you can't.

[TiredOf Pain]

Hey there! Thanks for th responses. Why I went off Atkins, like all diets you get tired of eating what is on the list and miss other things. I'm deffinetlt a carbo adict! I've also decided since I have gained weight back that has probably lead to problems. Maybe it has to do with less crabs and less weight on the body.

(Wishing you well) Yes it was a Reg GI that said it was stress. I have also taken myself off the Zoloft as I was falling asleep all day long and feeling like crying. Now off it I seem better with those things. Thanks for your comments. I am definetly going to keep pushing. At this point I have decided to see someone else. In fact he is a specialist with this area of post-lab. chole pain and sphincter of oddi dysfunction. I will have to drive 4 hours to get to the Cleveland Clinic but I think it will get me answers. I'm faxing all my info to them with reports from GI doctor and they will be reviewing them to let me know what I should pursue.

Thanks again everyone! TOP

[wishingyouwell]

hi tired of the pain ,i am so pleased to hear your spirits are up ,i am also very pleased to hear that you are going to the cleveland clinic for a second opion .(god is good!!!!!)i am going to have my neuro surgery done at clevland clinic .at first i thought this sight was linked to the c/clinic but after futher investigation i found it was not. so i will be having it done at c/clinic after all. i am, as you know ,displeased with the lack of concern this sight has for the patients that can not pay the 15 $ fee m.h.i is charging ,and i thought it was ran by c/c  i figured if they had so little thought for online patients then their concern for in house patients couldn't be that great. but thank god it is not c/c that owns this forum .so i will fill more confortable going now .i am pleased to hear good news from you and i pray for your strenth and continued well being ,god bless and keep you well ,wishing you well

[Lillibet]

Hi,

I put myself on this fat free diet because anything with fat bothered me, and after g/b removal still bothers me. I am hoping that in time I will be able to add a little fat, as the body needs it.

Before g/b surgery I couldn't digest any fats, beef, eggs etc. I am not about to try that now and get sick again. I had tried a little chicken breast (still hard to digest), and there was a small amount of fat. I suffered with pain and indigestion even without the g/b!!

I am doing better now that I am careful and diligent about what I put in my mouth. It's still the diet that I used before surgery. I'm in Oklahoma if that helps in any way to explain that most of the doctors I've seen don't know their backsides from their elbow! or maybe it's universal.

My dad is awaiting g/b surgery, and he can't have fatty foods, nor spicey foods, so I don't see how the Atkins diet would work for him.

But as you said, so many of us are eating HEALTHY foods, and fat free to low fat diets and we're always sick.... makes you wonder.

[wishingyouwell]

i went through so many doctos before getting the ones that had a clue as to what they were doing ,it was simply scary .but i am glad you are doing somewhat better.and maybe going out side of your area for another opion would be a good idea .if i had went along with the first several doctor on ibs i would hate to think where i would be today ,so be strong and god bless .wishing you well

[TiredOf Pain]

In the last week I have two thers from my area going to the c/clinic. I live over 4 hours away. Although I know many come form all over. The more I looked into the place I realized that they are a good place to go for GI stuff.

And yes you are right God is very good, all the time. (Even when it doesn't make sense.) Thanks for your prayers. I reall need them the last  3 nights I haven't been able to sleep as the pain has been really bad and is also starting to hurt on the left side as well. So I should hear something soon.
May God bless each of you here and may we all know his peace and presence during our good days and not so good days! TOP

[wishingyouwell]

hi, keep us posted on how things go, i will pray for you .stay strong in your faith and i believe things will be ok ..god speed ,wishing you well

[Archi]

You mentioned that you can't tolerate fat, but when you eat something with fat, are you still eating high carbs with it? For instance, after my gall bladder was removed, there was no way I could eat sausage, egg and biscuit, it would go through me within 15 minutes. (not that I ate something like that often because I was a low fat/ low cholestrol person...) but occasionally I'd splurge... I always blamed it on the "greasy" sausage.... but I've discovered, if I don't eat the biscuit, I can eat all the sausage and eggs I want without any discomfort. If I splurge and eat the biscuit with it, I'm back in the bathroom...  

I don't want to give the impression that I eat a LOT of fat greasy food... I do eat more meat on the atkins diet, but I choose (accept for my breakfast weeknesses) lean cuts of meats, we grind our own hamburger meat,  and we eat a lot of salmon and white fish.... so don't think I eat a LOT of junk and totally get away with it.... but I do get away with it now when I do splurge whereas I NEVER got away with it before.

In your particular case, with the digestive "disorder" the doctor diagnosed, you've got a totally different playing field.  

I think I'm just really on a quest to try to find out why so many  feel so lousy and why our doctors have so few answers. Would seem when scores of people have the same symptoms, there's a common denominator somewhere....

[wishingyouwell]

i could not agree more about the fact you would think out of all the doctors someone would have answers ,i have come to believe if they found a cure for cancer ,digestive probs, brain tumors ,epilepsy etc. it would put one heck of a dent in the financial world of doctors ,hospitals,not to mention the drug companies.so i think between what the goverment fills it would do to the economy to loose that much revenue per year and over the long run,and the loss of rev.for the medical world ,they like it  just the way it is ,less a few good surgeons and doctors(and there are some still out there) ,but that is only my opion .this sight has been free for a very long time noe it cost so that kind of explains it in and of itself. wishing yoou well

[Lillibet]

You may be right about the carbs. and fat together. I am seriously thinking of getting my hands on the book and taking a look at it. These last few days have been a bit depressing for me, because I am on the stupid fat free diet and continue suffering. So, I might as well eat some and see what happens, right? I hear people talking about eating all the fat you want and losing weight. I am very small (lost tons of weight before the surgery and after), so I don't have anything to lose really. However, if some fat in the diet will help me, it's worth a shot.

Is the focus more on protein than fat? Or just the fact that meat, salmon etc., contain fat and it's okay to have them? Are you avoiding all breads, pasta, rice and potatoes? I live on whole wheat pasta and rice at the moment (and sweet potatoes).

If you ever want to correspond directly with me on this matter, here is my email address (***@****). I am really interested in knowing more about the diet.

Thanks a bunch

Lillibet

[Archi]

There is an updated book out... I saw it at Walmart this week... should have gotten it... you know how that goes....  (like "atkins for life" or something.) anyway, it even has meal planner pages with recipes so you don't have to struggle to figure out what to cook.

Anyway, in it, it does mention digestive benefits. You asked about the focus. I think the focus is more about balance. Low Fat/low cholesterol diets have taken us way out of balance and our metabolisms are out of wack because of it. I just went monday and had my cholesterol checked. It was outstanding. My good cholesterol was high and my bad was low. The dr was pleased. I'm pleased, actually shocked because it goes against EVERYTHING i've been taught about eating.

For the first 2 weeks I avoided ALL grains, refined sugars, pastas, etc. Since then, I've added low carb breads, pastas, and oatmeal in small doses.  We splurge about every 2 weeks and go for pizza though. As long as I don't stuff myself (which is hard because I LOVE pizza), I have no problem at all.  I'm eating mostly atkins with a few things that I want on the side. The difference is, those things are "on the side" and not the meal itself.

[anly5]

I had a HIDA scan and results showed 17% ejection fraction. I have had nausea after eating but managed it with diet changes for the past 2 years.  The worst symptom I have along with that is pressure and an excruciating headache, like an "ice cream" headache.  The docs say that is not a classic complaint.  But it happens a lot and today I am having a lap chole.  Just wondering if anyone has had that. I am an RN and hope I can be a well-behaved patient....

[angels28]

Does anyone know if removing my gallbladder will affect my liver's ability to metabolize drugs/medicine (eg. Zoloft,Allegra)?