Has anyone had gallstone pancreatitis without the typical gallbladder attack pain?
Since December 2025, I've been to the ER 10+ times because of severe chest burning and nausea, vomiting with bile, after eating especially spicy or hard-to-digest foods. My main symptom was intense chest burning—not the typical right upper abdominal gallbladder pain. Over the past several months, I was given several possible diagnoses, including GERD, hiatal hernia, gastroparesis, functional dyspepsia, and gallbladder disease.
Last week, I went to the ER again because the same burning and nausea symptoms. They found I had acute gallstone pancreatitis. The doctors said gallstones and sludge had moved into my common bile duct and caused a blockage. I underwent an ERCP with a sphincterotomy, and a bile duct stent was placed.
The surgeons told me my pancreas is still too inflamed to remove my gallbladder right now, but they strongly recommended having it removed within the next 2–4 weeks to prevent another attack.
Has anyone had a similar experience, especially with severe chest burning instead of the typical gallbladder pain? If you had your gallbladder removed, did those symptoms improve?
I also see many educational videos from people saying the gallbladder is an important organ that should be preserved, including Dr Bergs videos. But there doesn't seem to be any clear direction on what the alternatives.
If you've been through this, I'd really appreciate hearing what your doctors recommended and how you decided what to do.