Katie G

Thanks for the kind words Harry. Hi gia - yes, I guess I could be considered an expert since I went through your experience for 5 years! I was told by my surgeon after GB surgery in 1997 that I would have softer, looser BM's, but NOBODY told me that I could end up with explosive, uncontrollable diarrhea like I did. I've suffered from IBS-D for 20+ years so just thought that was getting worse. However, when I had my GB removed, the "D" problem became much worse. I suffered in silence and shame hoping it would clear up. Got a little better, but then all h*** broke loose again in 2001 when I had anti-reflux surgery (Nissan fundoplication). The diarrhea became an everyday occurrence after drinking coffee in the a.m., and again after eating breakfast/lunch/supper - sometimes I couldn't get to a bathroom in time - even in my own house and just a few steps away. I was wearing maxi pads to work to protect my clothes - not always successful. I can't tell you how many times I had to leave work or call in sick because I'd messed myself.

I don't even remember how I found this board - I think it was from doing internet searches related to diarrhea. But I was almost suicidal by the time I found this board - I was considering trying to get disability because I couldn't always make it to work without a problem. I'd gone back to my GP several times in tears and he'd try different meds without success. Even Immodium didn't help - if the diarrhea was going to happen it did anyway.

I found this board in 2001 a few months after my surgery and began posting my problems with diarrhea on it. Some of the recommendations I found were to increase fiber and try taking calcium supplements which can help form solid stool. This worked for about 2 weeks and then wham! - everything was back to running to the bathroom and bringing in packages of underwear/maxi pads to work. It was horrible, and even though my husband was supportive/caring, he didn't really know how to help.

When I re-posted that I was still having problems, some angel on this site (can't remember who exactly), mentioned the term "bile salt diarrhea" and when I did searches on it, I found that it matched me to a "T". Basically bile salt diarrhea is the result of not having a gall bladder anymore to hold digestive bile from the liver, so during or after a meal, my liver was "dumping" bile directly into the small intestine and in the lucky 5-10% of us who suffer this after GB surgery, it causes a laxative effect. In other words, I'd be in the middle of a meal (or shortly after), and suddenly I'd feel the rumbling and get up to rush to a bathroom and literally explode into the toilet. My stools were always either water or very soupy, never formed, and a bright yellow or light tan color. The website I found the most helpful regarding bile salt diarrhea was called [url="http://www.gihealth.com"]www.gihealth.com[/url] and talked about a medication called bile salt sequestrant called Questran (powder form) or Colestid (pill form). Other posters on this board also responded to me saying that it worked wonders for them. If you do have bile salt diarrhea, please understand it is not the surgeon's fault - it's just us being unlucky in dealing with bile directly dumped into the small intestine. Many GB surgery patients never have this condition.

I went back to my doc and requested we try Colestid. He was willing to give it one month, and if my diarrhea wasn't under control by then, he would have me undergo colonoscopy to check for more serious colon disorders (like Crohn's). In just 2 days, I had my first formed stool like I'd never had in 5 years!!!! I have now been on Colestid for a year and have only had about 5 bouts of diarrhea TOTAL since taking it, either due to a stomach "bug" or something that didn't agree with me. I am a NEW woman who can smile at life again. No more clothing changes, embarrassment, calling in sick, etc. However, I still take calcium supplements and Metamucil wafers too for bowel health.

I've posted responses on several other messages here related to gall bladder problems so please read through my messages there too. A search of bile salt diarrhea could also be helpful to you. But in a nutshell, Colestid has been my manna from heaven, and I'm so thankful for the poster who first informed me about it. I know that my story helps others as well. Just know gia, that you are not alone, and we are all here to help.

Good luck and keep us posted,
Katie G

P.S. Some docs are reluctant to prescribe Questran or Colestid because in higher doses it's actually used to lower cholesterol. For bile salt diarrhea, much smaller doses are needed. For example, I take 2 Colestid every a.m. Someone with high cholesterol may need to take 4-8 pills per day. So if your doc doesn't want to prescribe it, be sure to bring in articles about bile salt diarrhea and how Colestid works on that to inform him/her correctly.