Nine Months Post Op

For those of you who are worried about more long-term side effects of the operation, I thought I would do another update as to how I am now.

My recovery was quick and I was back to work within three weeks of the operation.  Lifting was a bit uncomfortable for about six weeks afterwards, but it only felt like I'd been doing lots of sit ups at the end of the day!

Eating wise - I was able to get back to a normal diet almost straight away and haven't had any problems digesting fat (although I know some people do, so I am lucky!).  I have put a bit of weight back on, as the temptation of being able to eat fatty foods again was too much, but I am working on getting that under control again now.

I have four tiny scars from the operation that aren't really that visible - only when I point them out to people can they really see them.  To be honest, they pretty much blend into my stretch marks from when I was pregnant with my son!

For me, the operation was thing I could have done for my gallstones - I have had no nasty side effects from the operation and it has allowed me to resume "normal" life.  For those of you who are still waiting for your operation, good luck and I'm sure it will all go well!

My Operation

Pre-Op Procedure
I arrived at the Day Procedure Unit at 7.30am and was checked in by a nurse.  She asked a few simple questions (such as when had I last eaten, was I allergic to anything) and explained that I was third on the list so would probably go into theatre late morning.  I then returned to the waiting room to wait for the doctor and anaesthetist.  The anaesthetist applied some EMLA cream to my hands to numb the area for my cannula and asked a few more questions.  He explained the side effects of the anaesthetic, including a sore throat from the tube that they pass down the throat, dizziness and nausea.

When the consultant called me in, he explained how the procedure would work.  Essentially they make four incisions in my stomach, one under my bellybutton, one below the bra line and two on my right hand side.  They are about 1-2cm wide.  They pass a tube through one of the holes to inflate my stomach to allow them more room to operate and remove the gallbladder.  Two titanium clips are placed on the artery & bile duct connected to the gallbladder and then the gallbladder is removed.  They hold the gallbladder by the neck so as not to risk losing any stones.  A local anaesthetic is then injected into the stomach to reduce the pain caused by the gas and the wounds.  They then seal the wounds with steri-strips and cover with dressings.

After meeting with the consultant, I waited for another 1.5 hours before the nurse called me in to get changed into my gown.  They gave me two anti-sickness tablets and then I was walked down to theatre.

The Operation
In the anaesthetic room, I was asked to remove my dressing gown and lie on the bed.  They removed my EMLA cream and attached three heartbeat monitors (two to my chest and one to my left hand side).  It took a little time for them to find a vein, but once they did I didn’t even feel the needle go into my hand.  If you are nervous about needles, I really recommend having some EMLA cream put on before the procedure.  The anaesthetic was injected into my cannula and within a minute I was drifting off to sleep…

Post Operation

I woke up back on the ward and felt as though I had had the best sleep ever!  The nurse sitting next to me explained that all had gone well and it was all over in about 50 minutes.  I remember slurring my words and rambling on about how wonderful they all were and how I was going to buy them all a big box of biscuits (it is like being drunk – a weird but wonderful feeling!). 

In the ward, they gave me water and cups of tea to drink and monitored my blood pressure and pulse every 15 minutes for the first 1.5 hours.  I had half a toasted tea cake with REAL butter (yay!) and half a salmon sandwich.  After 2 hours, they got me to my feet and walked me through to the recovery lounge.  I had some soreness in my tummy, but otherwise I felt really good.  The consultant popped in to tell me that it was a huge success and that there would be no complications.  He wanted to sign me off work for 3 weeks since he was concerned about me lifting, but thought that I should be able to walk around and carry out normal household duties within a week or two.  He said that my gallbladder was packed with stones which explains why I was having so many attacked and gave me a few of them in a jar (which I accidentally left in the hospital).  They were absolutely tiny so it amazed me that they caused so much trouble!

In the recovery lounge I drank more tea and chatted with the other post-operation recoverees.  They removed my cannula and helped me to walk to the changing room to get dressed.  Getting dressed alone was a bit of a challenge as they told me not to bend over, but somehow I managed it.  By the time I returned to my chair, they had called my husband and he was on his way to collect me.  They discharged me 4 hours after my operation with instructions to take ibuprofen and paracetamol for a few days.  The dressings were to stay on for 48 hours and I was to avoid lifting anything heavy for 2 weeks. 

How Am I Now?

Today is 3 days post operation and I feel lots better.  My tummy barely hurts at all now.  I have a few ulcers around my mouth from where they put the tube down my throat but I am treating them and they are getting smaller now.  I am still quite tired and have to have naps after small periods of activity, but I can easily see myself feeling almost back to normal by the end of next week (i.e. 2 weeks post op). 

So, for those of you who are still waiting for your operation, try not to worry.  It was nowhere near as bad as I thought it would be and I am already feeling almost back to normal!

Brunch: Salmon, Scrambled Egg & Rocket

I know a few of us struggle with ideas for breakfast/brunch that we can eat and not set off a dreaded attack.  Personally, I don't eat breakfast, as it makes me feel sick (from the acid reflux), but by mid-morning I am normally feeling well enough to eat.  So, most days I combine breakfast and lunch and just have 2 daily meals (brunch and dinner).

Today's brunch was scrambled egg prepared with a small bit of skimmed milk, salt, pepper and a few chilli flakes (or chives would work well too), with a dry piece of toast, dry-fried salmon and rocket.  Doesn't it look tasty?

Some other ideas for breakfasts that are gallstone-friendly are: -

• Grilled tomatoes on dry toast
• Poached/scrambled egg (prepared with only skimmed milk) and dry toast
• Cereal/porridge with skimmed milk
• Toast and jam (no butter)
• Fruit, fat-free yoghurt and honey
• Egg-white omelette with veggies like mushrooms, peppers and courgettes
• Oatmeal made with skimmed milk mixed with berries

I also have a Hairy Biker's recipe for crumpets, summer fruits and fat-free yoghurt that I'm going to try tomorrow so will try and post the recipe if it is yummy! (Update: It wasn't!)

Panfried Seabass with Chilli, Ginger & Spring Onion

Tonight I made Panfried Seabass with Chilli, Ginger & Spring Onion, served with roasted butternut squash.  In my opinion, I put in slightly too much chilli (2 whole chillis to serve 2) so I have reduced the amount in the recipe below.  Feel free to take it out altogether if you don't like it, or if chilli is an aggrevator for your gallstones. 

Ingredients:
2 seabass fillets
200g butternut squash
100g courgette
1 red chilli
3 spring onions
1 clove of garlic, thinly sliced
1 cm cube of ginger, thinly sliced
1 tbsp of chopped parsley
Low fat spray

Method
1.  Preheat the oven to 180°C and spray a baking tray with low fat spray to prevent sticking.  Chop the butternut squash into chunks and put on baking tray and into oven for 20 minutes.
2.  After 20 minutes, chop up the courgette, chilli, and spring onions into small pieces.  Fry the courgette for 2-3 minutes in a frying pan with some low fat spray until it starts to brown.  Add the chilli, spring onion, ginger & garlic and fry for a further 2-3 minutes.  Remove from the heat.
3.  Check that the butternut squash is now soft and almost ready to eat.  If not, leave in the oven until it is.  The fish only takes minutes to cook, so you need everything else to be ready to serve when you start to cook it.
4.  Once the butternut squash is ready, put the seabass fillets into the pan (skin down) with some low fat spray.  Pan-fry for 2 minutes on each side and remove from the heat.  Serve the seabass on top of the courgette/chilli/onion mixture, with the roasted butternut squash on the side.

Serves 2
Difficulty: 7/10 (1 = difficult, 10 = easy)
Taste: 9/10

My Op Date

I finally have an op date!  I phoned the consultant's secretary today to chase them and they have had a cancellation, so on 22nd January these horrible stones will finally be gone!  I can't wait!

I have to report to the hospital at 7.30am so I should be home on the same day, which will be nice as I don't sleep well in hospitals.  Then I'll have 2 weeks at my parents so that they can help me with my son, as I won't be able to lift him for a few days at least.

Ooh I am so excited!

Roasted Cod with Mediterranean Veg

Tonight I made the Hairy Biker's Roasted Cod recipe and it was amazing!  It was a recipe from their new "The Hairy Dieters: How to Love Food and Lose Weight" cookbook - which I have to say contains lots of recipes that I can't wait to make (unlike some cookbooks where you only like 1 or 2 of the recipes).

The cod was really tasty and you really wouldn't know that it was a low fat recipe.  I removed the parmaesan cheese when I made it, as I wasn't sure if cheese would set my gallstones off, but it was still full of flavour and moist.

I found the balsamic vinegar to be a slightly strong flavour over the vegetables, but it worked really well on the fish.  It could well be that I was a little heavy handed when drizzling it over the veg!

You can find the recipe in their cookbook, or via Women's Weekly here.

Taste rating: 8/10
Difficulty rating: 6/10 (1 = Expert, 10 = Easy)