Issues losing weight after gallbladder removal.

[KittyChimera]

I started dieting in October, because I decided that I wanted to be healthy before I turned 30, and my 29th birthday was coming up in November. I got a gym membership and started eating better, and then out of nowhere at the end of October, I had to have emergency gallbladder surgery.

Since I had the surgery, I think that I've gained like 40 pounds, even though I am eating healthier and eating less. I started paying particular attention to what I was eating, and counted calories very specifically and gained 5 pounds over a week. The next week, as an experiment, I ate whatever I wanted and only gained 1.5 pounds. 

Has anyone else had this problem? When I had the surgery, they didn't say anything about how it would affect my body or anything, or how I should be eating if I wanted to get healthy and lose weight. In the follow up with the surgeon, I didn't really get a chance to ask him because he came into my hospital room at like 5am to check the incisions and talk to me and because he woke me up I was really groggy so I didn't really think to ask any questions. 

According to the calculations from Fitbit, I need to eat about 1700 calories a day to lose 2 pounds a week, but people are telling me that that's way too high and I need to cut back to 1200. Does anyone have any thoughts? 

[t56]

I am sorry. It is awful. Never being comfortable in our own bodies is just a horrible feeling. I was 45 when mine came out and also told that it was my age. It is an excuse for what Drs. don’t know how to fix. It is a constant, every day struggle. I eat only so my Hypoglycemia is not messed up. Other than that, I would starve. 19 years now and nothing had helped. It don’t like shopping for clothes because my body is not proportioned. I long to be normal again. Drs. totally ignore instead of admitting it is a problem. I don’t think they care. I don’t think they are even trying to figure it out. If they were, someone would have already had an answer, that works.

[UkuleleMama]

Not to knock all doctors, but sometimes I do wonder about the medical training. I asked my gastroenterologist over and over why I developed gallstones when I didn't seem to fit the profile. At the time I had absolutely no gallbladder symptoms and would never have known anything if it hadn't been for the CT scan, so I asked what I could do. He said diet makes no difference, I was either going to make gallstones or I wasn't, nothing I did mattered. And his gastroenterological specialty is supposed to be nutrition for cancer patients! What in the world does he tell them: Eh, diet makes no difference, you either get cancer or you don't. So not helpful. I tried for a year to do all sorts of things, take digestive bitters, take a digestive enzyme pill, add beetroot powder to water, add apple cider vinegar to water, eat certain foods, avoid others .... but eventually I did have a whopper of an attack because I had a gazillion stones and no space left. But the difference in my body is crazy. I went from being in shape to feeling like the Pillsbury dough boy. My stomach looks embarrassing. I am uncomfortable. Oh, and I went to the gynecologist also in trying to figure out the initial side pain. His response to me was "sometimes our bodies just do weird things." I mean, I suppose. So my conclusion is doctors really don't know and my guess is as good as theirs. Anyhow, my very helpful husband (not) just showed me a photo of Pink, who had emergency gallbladder surgery 7 years ago and has a flat stomach and is perfectly in shape. I suppose that's his helpful way of telling me it's all in my head and I don't try hard enough. I think there are enough of us out there who are trying, though, so there has to be some connection. Some reason why some of us just pack on the weight. Meanwhile, I'm off to do some P90X exercise.

[t56]

I have read of people who have gone a full year before their swelling started. All of a sudden it is there . Something, like another procedure activated it. People always put blame on the person with the life change. Where is their common sense. People DO NOT gain weight over night.

[UkuleleMama]

I'm 10 lbs. heavier now than at the time of my gallbladder surgery a year ago. The first extra 5 lbs. came on "slowly" over the course of maybe 10 months, creeping up up up. The last 5 lbs. came on basically all at once last week. Which is odd because I've also been running more now that the weather is nicer. None of it makes sense. Every morning I weighed myself and I was a pound heavier than the day before. I even weighed myself before going to run and then once I was home. Usually you lose a pound or two after a run from sweating but I wasn't losing anything. One of those days that I ran 5 miles it was so hot I was sweating incredibly and the effort to run was insane. I passed my husband on the trails and he looked half dead, too. Once home, I got on the scale and I weighed the exact same as before I went. The next morning I was another pound heavier. I'm on the verge of crying I'm so frustrated. My husband does not make it easy, either. He's 5'9" and his weight goes back and forth between 128 lbs. and 135 lbs. depending on his running mileage. And he eats like 4,000 calories a day just so he can keep his weight up. Whatever. I'm going to experiment with adding the digestive enzymes back in before dinner and maybe a glass of water with apple cider vinegar before lunch. And maybe generally drink more water. Something to make sure the bile is working and my body is digesting the food and not just storing the fat.

[t56]

I cut out ALL starches. I have been frustrated for 19 years. Never had any problems before. In fact, I had to eat a lot just to maintain 115. It is a blooming mess.

[Debsym]

Its so frustrating I've completely  given up. 5 days a week exercise for nothing! It seems pointless!! Harassed  doctor for weeks finally convinced them to send me for an ultrasound ans take blood tests... hormones etc ans been on the list for endocrinologist for 3 months waiting! Asking them to check liver  function, insulin resistance, blood triglyceride levels all hormones etc. Will update if anything shows up!! Thwre must be something!! Had bloods taken in January all fine.. 

.but now I'm convinced  them somethings changes only because my period stopped in February!! Panicking  now!! I have a huge roll of fat under my ribs that sticks out miles!! Its so embarrassing I look 9 months pregnant!!! I tried digestive enzymes but found no use. They just give you diarrhoea.  I think the problem is that the gall bladder must have more function in the body than they think!! not just breaking fat down....I read in a paper that the gall bladder has estrogen and progesterone receptors which were related to how much fat from what you eat is dissolved or stored . And hence if ita hone hormones change... and high estrogen means no periods ans weight gain that's my theory however bloods were fine in january maybe different now! Sigh back to the exercise  bike in tears again x

[Debsym]

Yeah horrible!!! Ivw forced  doctors to take hormone levels and waiting for endocrinologist appointment 3 months now will update if anything shows up

[t56]

👍

[t56]

I had all kinds of tests. The Endocrinologist just sent me away when I went to him. Several ultra sounds. No starches has helped, but I just lost my normal body weight, not the weight from the no gallbladder. My wrist are so small now, but that pregnant belly is hanging in!!!

[Debsym]

It is so frustrating! Hope we all find a solution one day! Instead of being fobbed off!! I've tried vitamin  supplements keto diet personal trainers ox bile. Nothing works. I get severe  cramping pain where gall bladder used to be but nothing unusual ever shows up in blood tests.  So unhappy and horrible feeling. Actually was asked when baby was due in a shop last week ... mortified... especially now my period has vanished! I'm 34 and my partner and I wanted to start a family soon but 1 I am fat to over weight and 2 somethings seriously gone wrong with hormones!! They told me to lose weight and my period will return!! I've been trying that for 8 months I am getting huge!! Had to buy 3 sizes bigger clothes ! I'm going back next frifay for hormone results but peob ne normal like they were in January ans they will tell me being obese is the cause of period loss!! And I have never done so much exercise in my life! Diets not perfect but I dont see how someone can lose nothing in 8 months of 4 workouts a week and 10000 steps a day!! 

[UkuleleMama]

Hmmm, interesting regarding hormones. I just did a super quick google search that said high estrogen levels can cause weight gain. And also read on two sites about the estrogen and progesterone gallbladder connection. You can read the articles here and here. There's a quote on the second link that says: "women who have had their gallbladder removed often suffer from symptoms of estrogen dominance a few months after surgery." I guess that can all make sense. I did have a pituitary tumor in between daughter #1 and daughter #2, thirty-three years ago. I had hyperprolactinemia, brought on by the tumor, which is an overproduction of prolactin and also affects the levels of estrogen. The doctor said the tumor and hyperprolactinemia were due to an imbalance of hormones caused by the birth of my first daughter. I don't really quite remember the how's and why's of it, it was so long ago. I wonder if the gallbladder removal triggered another hormone imbalance. Okay, well, now I can check out balancing my hormones and see if that makes a difference. At least it's something to look into.

[mmsgamma3]

I’m so glad that this is just not my issue! I u sweat and what you mean about feeling fat and jiggly...that’s me all the time! I have considered going vegetarian for a while.  I gave up meat except for fish for about 6 months and no change at in fact I gained weight.  I am doing intermittent fasting right now and I’m waiting to see how it works out in the long run...FINGERS CROSSED

[UkuleleMama]

I'm not advocating going vegan -- or plant-based -- because when people shove things at you it can be obnoxious. But if you wanted to try, I followed the 21-day kickstart program on The Physician's Committee for Responsible Medicine site several years back because my daughter wanted to go vegan AND lose weight. The rest of us here were already vegan for a while, but since she lived an hour away I thought if I did it along with her I could give her advice and share the experience and we could message back and forth. You know, mother-daughter bonding. I made the recipes, but I wasn't dieting and ate a lot more than they say, because I was only 118 and running at the time. All pre-gallbladder. Sigh. But my daughter followed it religiously. I can't quite remember, but she lost between 7 and 9 lbs. in that 21 days. I was actually thinking of doing it again so I had a framework. You can sign up here: https://kickstart.pcrm.org/en

Being vegetarian still allows dairy, meaning cheese. And that's kind of fattening. So maybe try this for 21 days and see if it helps??? Obviously being vegan isn't helping my weight at the moment, though! But I had to go to the hematologist constantly because of the pain no one could figure out. She said I had absolutely no inflammation in my body and everything was super duper. Just had gallstones. Which I guess is genetic since both my parents had theirs taken out.

The only intermittent fasting I'm doing is I decided not to eat anything -- except maybe a clementine -- after 9:00 pm. We eat dinner around 6:00; no dessert at all unless it's a holiday. Then somewhere around 9:00 we tend to have tea. My husband always pigs out so I'll allow myself a clementine if I can't take watching him down cookies. He drives me crazy that he can eat so much and not gain weight. Ugh! And then breakfast is around 7:30  or 8:00 a.m. Coffee and my husband makes smoothies.

Well, I wish us all good luck!!

[Lnvrz219]

I know this post is a bit old, just wanted to follow up and see how you are doing....

[Lnvrz219]

Hi.. any update, how is it going ? 

[Sjacks]

No real change for me. My weight contunies to go up every few months and exercise does not help. 

Wish I had something better to report. 

[t56]

No changes for me😪

[UkuleleMama]

I managed to push my weight down to 127 lbs. as of this morning. I don't think it's sustainable, though. After my last post I upped my running mileage and also am running a little faster. Which is to be expected -- the more often you run the easier it gets, so the faster you go. BUT, I turned 63 on Friday (and yesterday was my 40th wedding anniversary). I know there are lots of other folks 60 ands older who run, but I feel like the amount of running I need to do to lose weight, plus watching what I eat, etc. and so on, is way more effort than it was pre-gallbladder. Now I have to push harder and longer to see results and I am seriously physically tired. The effort to take the weight off is exhausting me. Probably just gain it all back if I ease up. Anyway, so far I don't look any better. My stomach is still super blubbery. My husband wanted me to buy a "sexy negligee" for our anniversary yesterday so I tried one on at Kohl's and put it back on the rack. I know 127 sounds like I should be on the thinner side but it's still 9 lbs. more than I had been before my gallbladder got taken out and I think all 9 lbs. is literally sitting on my waist, nowhere else. The negligee looked ridiculous. So, yeah, I took off a few pounds but the effort is insane. 

[Debsym]

Nope sadly same position here! Im now 240 pounds and disgusted! My stomach is huge. Thinking of calling off my wedding in October I was 180 before surgery and I look like monstrous!. Still 5 days per week at the gym making no difference! I have an appointment with the endocrinologist in 2 weeks after being on a waiting list for 7 months! Will update if anything useful comes out of it! I have now started getting severe pain where my gall bladder used to be and it shoots up to my right shoulder. A friend has mentioned sphincter of oddi dysfunction. However health professionals claim you should lose weight with these issues...sigh... Seriously considering cancelling my wedding to pay for weight loss surgery abroad! Depressed and down!

[Debsym]

Im vegetarian but am trying to be vegan...Ive cut out bread pasta, crisps sweets, tea, coffee cheese. I only drink water protein shakes and vegetables! This cant go on! Its unsustainable and I will soon be having heart problems being these obese and yet they dont help us!!