Gallbladder Surgery

On April 20th I am having my gallbladder removed.  This is really upsetting to me as I am afraid this will be a setback for me.  In the last 6 months I have been able to lose 98 pounds by exercising and eating healthy.  I am very fragile though.  I don't want to put this weight back on and in my mind the smallest thing could be an excuse for disaster.   I am feeling really good except for my gallbladder attacks.  I was bound to get gallstones.  My identical twin sister had her gallbladder removed 5 years ago.  Since then she has put on about 70 pounds.  This scares me.  The last 3 days I have been eating really bad from the stress of having to have surgery.  I could use some support.  I am so close to reaching the 100 pounds lost goal and I feel like I am sabotaging myself.  On Monday I weighed 222 pounds.  I started out at 320.  I almost feel scared to say that I have lost 100 pounds and the last 3 days I have been eating really bad.  I have a problem I know.  I self destruct.  I have had so many years of low self esteem and when I eat bad I feel guilty and not worthy of having success.  So now that I have come this far I am falling back into some old habits.  I feel like crap.  I ate cookies and donuts this morning.  I am sick to my stomach.  Tomorrow is a new day but I wish I could understand why I do this.  I feel so much better when I am eating healthy and exercising.  It seems like everything else in life runs smoother too.  I still need to lose another 70 pounds and keep it off this time.  I am so glad  I can come here and share this with you.  Have any of you had your gallbladder removed?  Any advice would be great.  Thanks again for all your suppport.  We are in this together and I know we can succeed.  My stomach hurts right now from pigging out but I am gonna suck it up and go for a walk.  Enough of the pity party for me.  I should be thankful I can walk and exercise.  Some people don't even have that luxury.  I still have the bag of cookies sitting on the table.  I was going to  save them for my kids.  NO I am going to throw them away in the bottom of the dirtiest trash can outside.  I am strong (and full right now).  Love you guys.

Hi, Just wanted you to know I had my Gallbladder out and it was not that bad, they do it so much faster now with a small scar. I can still eat veggie, salad etc. You will be fine and  back on your daliy routine before you know it..  Best of Luck. and Keep in touch Virgie

PS  How did you get down 98 pounds in 6mo, that is greatCan you give me a  sample of your eating. if you feel well enough. Virgie

This is what I do and what has worked for me so far.  I don't count calories.  I eat 4 meals a day.  Breakfast at 7am small lunch at 11 am snack at 2pm and dinner at 6pm.  These are the foods I live off of. Weight control oatmeal, Kashi and Total cereal, nonfat milk yogurt and cottage cheese, lots of fresh fruit and veggies, salads salads and more salads with Newmans low fat dressing.  Homemade chicken veggie soup, sugar free jello, pretzels when I need crunchy and salty, sugar free fudgesicle when I need chocolate, chicken and fish, and whole grains.  These are the things I avoid: sugar, salt, soda, fried food, fast food, white bread, rice and pasta.  I use weigh****chers bread for a sandwich.  No mayo only grey poupon.  I let my body tell me if I need to eat.  If I feel too hungry I will find something healthy to eat.  Water is what I struggle with.  I have a hard time drinking enough.  I have decided that I am going to go buy a container that I can fill up with 80 oz of water.  I will fill it in the morning and try to fini**** by the time I go to bed.  I nurse one or two  16 oz bottles a day right now and that is not enough.  Because I have lost so much weight so quickly the weight loss has already started to slow down.  I still need to lose 72 pounds and I know this will be much harder than the 98 I have already lost.  I went for a walk tonight and it felt good.  I like to exercise thank goodness.  I bought myself a bike and a good pair of shoes.  I don't live in a great area so I walk the same block 4 times.  All the neighbors think I am nuts but who cares.  I want to stay close to home.  They can think I am nuts as long as I am losing those pounds right?  I have to stay focused on my goal and only let this surgery be a small bump in the road and not a roadblock. 

Don't worry about having your gallbladder out.....very short recovery that is if they do it laprascopically(sp?).....if it is the old fashioned way I definitely feel for you in your hesitation/anxiety.....surgery is never fun and does kind of throw a rachet into the works Not to be gross, I actually lost quite a bit of weight due to the after-effects of it......I ended up having dumping syndrome (you "go" as soon as you eat) I found that eating fatty foods actually made it worse......an ironic bonus of sorts.......but after a while it does slow down...... Keep mobile (it seems that you are) and you shouldn't have any problem avoiding the weight gain.....hopefully you aren't like my father-in-law (which you obviously aren't--you are a fighter not a quitter), he gets a paper cut and is on bed rest for 3 days and wonders why his back never healed from previous surgeries. However recovery is different for everyone due to pain tolerance and how the body adjusts.....don't worry I had an easier time losing my gall bladder than I did my tonsils!  Oy now thats another story! As the wiseman Larry says "GIT R DONE!!!"

Hi mama Awww, don't be scared! I would think the surgery will help you getbackontrack. True, it will interfere in walking for a short bit, but exercise does not actually burn all that much calories, really. It's more about ton and keeping muscles efficient.  For 6 weeks, after surgery, yes, you will need to take it easy, but you are not going to feel like eating all that much either.  During this time, don't bring stuff like donuts and cookies around. Say no one time at the store instead of trying to say no ten times til they are gone!  Those kids don't need them either. certainly for six weeks, they can live without.  In the recovery period, worst case, you might put  on a few pounds.  Ain't no thang. You'll take it off. You'll be so grateful to feel good again and be able to get outside.

I too would say don't sweat it, but keep sweating!  I imagine your sister may have had other reasons for the weight gain than the surgery.  Perhaps her eating habits changed after surgery?  See, the gall bladder stores bile which is used to break down fats so they are easier to absorb. You may even experience that the fatty food pass right through you. If anything this is a good thing because you won't be able to absorb fats as easily!  Many people do report weight gain after this surgery but I think in most cases it's because they changed their diet.  I think if you stay on  your current diet you'll be fine. Your weight loss achievements are astonishing! You're gonna hit that 100 mark and reach your goals!

You guys are so sweet.  Thank you so much for your encouragement.  I got up this morning and did an hour of cardio.  1/2 hour bike and 1/2 hour walk.  I have decided I will work these next few weeks extra hard to become as healthy as possible before I go into surgery.  This will make recovery much easier.  At least I am 100 pounds lighter when they operate.  I would of really had some problems 100 pounds ago.  Once again thank you everyone for your support.  I really appreciate it.  Love you guys.