Gall Bladder Surgery Gas

My Dad just had his out and was tender for a few weeks. He was told to lay off fatty foods, and try a smaller meals 4 times a day until his body adjusted. So my first thought is what is she eating?
Good luck! A. H

L. ~
The pain meds can actually be causing the pain! They are very constipating! She can increase her water intake, walk, increase her fiber. She also can take mylicon (over the counter) ~ it will help to break the gas up into smaller bubbles, so it hurts less moving through the bowels; and some colace (also over the counter) ~ it doesn't have a stimulant in it, just softens the stool by pulling water into the bowel. Tell her to try some hot tea, laying on her belly (if she can tolerate it) or at least on her left side, and if the colace an mylicon don't work, she can try an enema (fleets).

This is what we give patients after abdominal surgery to help. I always buy the generic or store brand, they're the same as the name brand but much cheaper.

Hope she feels better!
D.

Has she tried fiber like metamucil or that miralax. That might get her started again . I know people have all different effects after that surgery. I still have gas issues after eating certain foods and I had mine out 7 years ago. Good luck

Hi L., I had my gall bladder out about 6 months after I had my son and the gas pain most people experience if it was a lapriscopic surgery is in the shoulders and lasts about 4-5 days. It did take about a year for my digestive track to get back to "normal" but maybe she would benefit from Miralax (stool softener) with a fiber intake such as Benefiber or BeneSure to help things get moving. Since it's been 5 weeks I would have the dr. check out her abdomen to make sure everything's in order.
Hope this helps, K.

Pain meds are VERY constipating! Increased fiber may cause her more gas. I would push yogurt...as much as you can get her to eat at first. Once she starts going again normally, you can cut it back to once a day. Stay away from stimulant laxatives, they will cause more trouble. She can try glycerine suppositories (stimulant free) as well as Miralax in her drinks. Neither one will cause any ill effects if overdone. Colace is a good stool softener, but can cause gas, sometimes. Stay away from cheese, rice, bananas.

I would call the surgeon no matter what...just to have it on file that she is having trouble.

~L.

I have never had personal experience with gull blader surgery but I know that if you keep taking pain pills they will block you up. 5 weeks seems like a long time to me but I would def. call the doctor and see what they say.
Good luck to the both of you.

Ouch! Been there - done that. The only thing that is going to get her "stuff" moving in the right direction is to walk. She needs to move as much as possible. It will hurt, but must be done. 5 weeks is waaay to long.

Good luck!

S.

When you say she hasn't a good bowel movement does that mean she hasn't had one or the ones she had are softer or dirreha? It's a silly question I know, here's the reason I ask. My husband had gall bladder surgery 3.5 years ago. Since then he has never had what I would consider a normal bowel movement. They are always very soft, if not runny and a very small amount. We can also usually time it to about 45 minutes from the time he eats solid foods. We talked about that with the doctor and she said that it was normal, but not everyone experienced that. If she's not even having anything then you might want to try foods high in fiber - mini wheat cereals, prunes, high fiber breads, that sort of thing. They say that high fiber keeps you regular. There are also foods that can be considered softeners (or you could use a stool softener), but I can't think of what ones they are - bananas are not.

Good luck, if all else fails - call her doctor that did the surgery.

Hi L., There are a few things your mom-in-law could try to improve digestion and get things moving. "An apple a day" is no joke - the pectin is a softener. Two apples will help a normal digestive tract, but since hers is more delicate, start with one. Same with fiber - go easy to avoid bloating. (Think of fiber as "scrubbers" - cleaning out too much too fast would cause anyone discomfort). I'm a fan of the raw food movement - but in her case (like my dad's) she may need to cook fibrous veggies to avoid pain.

Drink plenty of warm liquids. Icy cold liquids slow down digestion, so avoid them especially at mealtimes. There are herbal teas to help BMs (slippery elm, for example), but warm water with lemon will help also.

If you are into supplements, consider digestive enzymes (or eat fresh pineapple or papaya at the start of a meal) and probiotics (or eat yogurt).

Hopefully the doctor is in this week - she should give a call to be sure. I hope she feels better soon:)

I would think to up the water and fiber intake to get things moving also the pain medication could be constipating her so maybe start to wean off of those... maybe a stool softner will help for a short period of time...

I would sugest she talk to her doctor about it to make sure her specific problems are normal, but I had stomach/intestinal problems for about a year after having mine removed.

Hi L.,

Well, I didn't have gal bladder surgery, but I did have a c-section and experienced horrible gas pains as well. It took me WELL over a week to have a bowel movement. This is what my doctor told me. For the bowel movement...do not take laxitives (if you have to take it too many times your body can get too use to it and when you stop you may still have trouble going). Instead, just take stool softeners (it will make it easier). For the gas pain, she needs to make sure that she gets up and moves around a lot. Gas tends to buble in places if she is stationary. Even if she is sore from the surgery, she needs to get up and move. Hopefully this helps her. Good luck!