no clue what's going on inside of me

I am a 43 year old female and had by gall bladder removed on 4/1/11. The nurse joked that I was having surgery on April fools day, but the joke was surely on me. I still feel like my gall bladder is there, in it's previous painful state, and then some. I only started having pain 1 1/2 weeks before it was removed (no stones, but only 5% functionality). Got lucky, or so I thought, by being able to have GB removed the day after my consult with the surgeon. 5 weeks after the GB removal, I suffered a day and a half of horrible diarrhea, dehydration and abdominal pains that reminded me of labor pains. Before each bout of diarrhea I would feel nausea, have cold sweats along with dizziness occasionally. The diarrhea went away and I was able to rehydrate, but have not been able to get rid of the abdominal pain before almost every BM. In addition to the horrible gas (which has never smelled like this in my life) I also suffered abdominal spasms up to 5 and 6 times a day that would bring me to my knees. I started taking Norco during the day and Diazipam in the evening to control the pain at the recommendation of my surgeon, who just happened to be on call that weekend . I was able to get in to see my surgeon 4 days after the diarrhea subsided. They did blood tests to rule out Pancreatitis. Test came beck negative.
He referred me to the local Digestive Clinic and I was able to get in pretty quickly for an Endoscopy, which also came up with absolutely no problems. Of course, the Doctor that did the Endoscopy was conveniently on vacation before giving me the results and left absolutely no forwarding recommendations for when the results came back. Furtunately, I was able to get in to see a FNP that was somehow able to get me in for a few more blood tests and a CT scan that day. But still, no prognosis. According to all of my tests, I am as healthy as a horse. But at times, my gut feels like I've been stepped on by one. I have started taking additional fiber, quadrupled the amount of liquids and water, and still feel no better. Oh, I forgot to mention the bloody stool the day before I was able to see the FNP. I should have saved it and taken it with me to my appt. Because, of course, my next stool for the sample tested perfectly fine. I feel like demanding a Colonoscopy or at least a deep colon cleansing only because I have a feeling that the GB was not really the problem. Although, I doubt my insurance would cover a colon cleansing. I already eat a very low fat diet and cannot fathom why my symptoms for Cronic Cholecystitus would start and my GB is already working at only 5%. I was able to go back to work for about 2 weeks after the GB surgery, but these spasms have rendered me useless. I can't bend over to do laundry or load and unload the dishwasher without having the spasms and being bed ridden the rest of the afternoon. Digestive clinic suggested adding Probiotics and calling them in a week.
I am at my wits end. Thank goodness that I have a really good short term disability plan through my work, but after missing 3 weeks of work for the GB removal and recovery and now almost 5 weeks because of not being able to perform my job (I have to constantly move and stoop over) and being on pain medication, I am getting extremely frustrated that they are now assuming that all of the "discomfort", to put it mildly, is due to scar tissue from other abdominal surgeries; c-section, appendectomy, and hysterectomy. I am not sure what to do next. I guess I should also be clear that the spasms are not only in my colon area, but it is in my entire abdomen, and makes me short of breath. Please, any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

When you have your gallbladder removed, you can have diarrhea due to constant flow of bile (the gallbladder is used to store bile, so without it, your liver will spill the bile directly into the gut). There are medicines to take that bind up the bile and should reduce irritation in your gut. Have any of your DRs talked to you about this???

You also should reduce the fat content of your food I think, since without a gallbladder your digestion of dietary fats is going to be more difficult.

I agree with the others that have suggested bile salt diarrhea as the culprit. There is great information written in lay terms that describes what can happen when the gall bladder is removed at the link below. Please read that and then get to your doctor for a script for medication to get you feeling better.

http://www.gihealth.com/html/education/bilesaltDiarrhea.html

Bloating can cause the nausea and perhaps even spasms. Could you have developed lactose intolerance?

I am sorry to hear about your conditon, it is very frustrating not to know what is going on, I feel for you! Have you been tested for Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori)? Or another thought, have you been tested for Sphincter of ODDI Dysfunction?

What helped me with diarrhea after my gallbladder removal was taking a Probiotic, taking Citrucel, eating oatmeal for breakfast with flaxseed, and oddly, eating Stonyfield Yogurt. I started with Activia, but found I like the Stonyfield better. I used to be Lactose Intolerant myself, but the yogurt helped with diarrhea, so go figure.

My problems with diarrhea after gallbladder removal didn't start until week 8 Post Op, but even at that, my Gastroenterologist was hesistant to give me Welchol. Welchol does work well for me, however, it can constipate a person. I then started having problems with an Internal Rectal Prolapse and possible Pelvic Floor Dysfunction, and no longer need to take the Welchol.

I hope things get better for you, I am not a doctor but I do think the low fat diet sans ice cream works best. Hope you get some answers from your doctors, let us know how you're doing. Ruth

I think we may have figured out what is going on. My doc is pretty convinced that I have Sphincter of Oddi Dysfunction. The reason for all of the lower abdominal pain stemmed from the pain medication I was taking to ease the pain from the Sphincter of Oddi constricting almost continually. Being constipated from norco caused gas and bile to back up in my system making it difficult to actually determine to original location of the pain. Johns Hopkins website says that this occurs in about 20-30% of all patients after having their gall bladder removed. I am relieved that is isn't irritable bowel, because I was getting worried that it was leading to a colonoscopy. Doctor took me off of the norco and replaced it with a non-narcotic pain reliever and put me on blood pressure mediation to relax the intestines and the sphincter. Feeling a little better so far, but may need a stent put in if blood pressure medication doesn't completely do the trick. Thank you to all of you for your suggestions. I truly believe that I am on the road to recovery.