u/SamCam9992

I had my laparoscopic gallbladder removal one week ago, so here’s my short day 0–7 recovery diary. I know when I was anxious for surgery stories like this really helps so here you go. For context, I’m 34 female, no children, this is my first experience with anything medical whatsoever.

Day 0: Surgery day
Checked in at 7 a.m., went into the operating room around 11:45 a.m. and was out of recovery around 2 p.m. It was my first experience with general anesthesia.

I had four incisions and went home the same day. I vomited after discharge and had some nausea, throat hoarseness and burning around the belly-button incision.

I took my prescribed pain medication every four to six hours as needed.

Day 1
Quite sore around my belly button, especially when moving, but I could walk around independently.

Mostly had liquids and small amounts of soft food. Sleep came in short bursts.

I only needed two doses of my prescribed pain medication.

Day 2
Pain improved quickly, and I switched to regular Tylenol, only needing one dose that morning.

Had my first small bowel movement and was able to eat a little more normally.

Day 3
Completely stopped taking pain medication. I was still tired, but the remaining pain was mild.

I could get up and down on my own, but I still had to support myself and avoid using my abdominal muscles so I wouldn’t trigger pain.

Returned to my own apartment and was able to sleep on my side.

Day 4
Removed the larger dressings, showered and left the Steri-Strips in place. The shower was very energy consuming and I had to lay down afterwards, but it felt great.

Started having some episodes of watery diarrhea, mainly after coffee, tea or soup.

Went for a very short walk outside, but got tired after walking for five minutes.

Day 5
Still had diarrhea, but solid foods like a bagel seemed to digest much better.

Swelling and bloating were still noticeable, but my mobility continued improving.

I was able to do a load of laundry with no issues.

Day 6
Had my first more normal/solid bowel movement after the diarrhea started.

Sleeping comfortably on my side and stomach, with very little incision pain.

Went for a short walk outside was able to walk about five minutes longer than day four. Walked to the corner store to pick up some toiletries.

Day 7: Today
This has been my best day so far. Energy, sleep and abdominal swelling are all gradually improving. I drove my car for the first time and was able to do so with no issues. I only drove for 15 minutes, but I felt no discomfort.

I’m still feeling mild pain in two places: around my belly-button incision and an occasional short, sharp pain where my gallbladder used to be. It comes and goes throughout the day and is only around a 2–3 out of 10.

Had a completely normal bowel movement. Eating something solid before drinking coffee or water seems to prevent the digestive urgency I was having.

My surgeon gave me four weeks off of work (and this is fully paid by my company) so I think I’m really gonna enjoy the downtime over the next three weeks. My concern going forward is whether the diarrhea is gonna remain consistent or if this is just my body relearning how to digest. I’m gonna keep track of what I am eating and how my body responds. The steri-strips should come off this week naturally so I’m going see what the scars look like underneath as well.

Figured I’d post my experience because I read approximately a million of these before surgery and they genuinely helped. For context, I’m 34F, this was my first surgery/general anesthetic, and I’m not super active day to day, although I usually do about a 30-minute walk five times a week.

I checked into the hospital yesterday morning around 7 and was in my bed by about 8. Surgery got pushed later than expected, and I was eventually rolled into the surgical area around 11:45.

The actual OR part was probably the most intense few minutes of the day, mostly because it’s one of the only parts I really remember. I was rolled into the room, transferred onto the operating table, had my arms positioned out, monitors going on, people moving around me — just a lot happening very quickly. Then basically nothing. Next thing I remember is recovery.

The surgery stayed laparoscopic as planned, and I was back from recovery by around 2 p.m. I have four incisions total. Three are so tiny I can barely see them, but the belly button is a different story — I have a huge padded gauze dressing over it that sticks out probably an inch or two. That area is by far the sorest part of the whole thing. I had a pretty large stone, so I’m wondering if they needed a slightly bigger incision there to get everything out. My instructions say to leave all the gauze on until Saturday.
I was discharged the same day. Once home I mostly stayed in bed, but I’ve been getting up regularly to pee and walk around a bit. Getting up and down is definitely the hardest part, but once I’m standing I actually feel pretty decent.
Food-wise, they told me to stay mostly on liquids for the first 24 hours and then slowly reintroduce food while keeping things low-fat for the first week or two. Yesterday/overnight I managed some soup, yogurt and half a banana. Today I’ve had a couple slices of chicken cold cuts, some smoothie and I’m slowly drinking an iced coffee with fat-free creamer. Thinking rice later.

Pain has honestly been more manageable than I expected. I was prescribed 1 mg hydromorphone/Dilaudid and I haven’t taken one in around 12 hours now. At this point the belly button incision is really the only thing that hurts much.
For anyone who didn’t need much of the stronger medication, what did your Tylenol/Advil schedule look like for the first few days? How much were you taking and how quickly did you start spacing it out?

I’ve also had a mild headache today, although I was a three-coffees-a-day person before surgery and basically stopped cold turkey, so caffeine withdrawal is definitely a possibility. 😂

Overall, first 24 hours have been pretty positive. Sore, tired and moving like I’m 95, but doing much better than I had built it up in my head.

What’s everyone’s game plan for tomorrow with the weather looking the way it does?

I only bought Sunday tickets this year specifically to see Lorde, so I’m committed. I just went out and bought one of those clear, thicker rain ponchos with buttons to wear over my outfit, and I’m probably going to put my hair in a slicked back bun and accept defeat there.

I haven’t done a festival in this much rain in ages, though, so I’d really appreciate any tips, especially for staying somewhat dry and comfortable all day without carrying a million things.

I finally got ahold of someone who could help. Weirdly, the Ticketmaster chatbot through the app was the only option that actually worked. The phone number listed on the Osheaga website wasn’t very helpful, and the agents seemed completely lost about how to refund and reissue the ticket.

But it’s done! I’m officially going Platinum for the first time on Sunday. Any tips on how to maximize the experience? Best viewing areas, lounges, food, bathrooms, arrival time, or anything else I should know?

Is anyone heading to the Osheaga box office today and willing to ask whether ticket upgrades can be done in person? I’m trying to upgrade my Sunday Gold ticket to Platinum, but the phone agent couldn’t figure out how to refund and reissue the ticket and seemed very confused. I’d really appreciate it!

FYI, Ticketmaster still has some regular-price Sunday tickets available, not resale, even though Osheaga is showing as sold out.

I ended up splurging on a Gold ticket, so two questions: does the Gold section have any kind of overhang, and is there any chance I can stay dry on Sunday? lol

Crime in Montreal actually dropped in 2025, and the city continues to have fewer crimes per capita than Toronto, Vancouver, Ottawa, Calgary and Edmonton.

People feeling unsafe doesn’t necessarily mean the city is less safe. Crime gets far more attention online than it used to, which can make it seem more common even when the numbers say otherwise.

Obviously no city is perfect but the constant narrative that Montreal has become uniquely dangerous simply isn’t supported by the statistics. Please ignore the noise and look at the facts.

I’m having my gallbladder removed soon and would love to hear from people who were in a similar situation going into surgery.

I’m in my early 30s, have no other health issues, and I’m fairly active in my everyday life. I usually walk around 5,000–10,000 steps a day.

I live alone in an apartment with one flight of stairs. I’m planning to stay with my parents for at least the first 24 hours, but when did you feel comfortable going home, sleeping alone, showering, preparing food, and generally taking care of yourself? Were stairs difficult during the first few days?

I also work as a project manager for an aerospace company. About 90% of my job is at a desk, although I occasionally have to walk around and supervise employees on the shop floor.

My surgeon has recommended four weeks off. I’ll follow her advice, but I’m curious whether anyone with a similar health, activity level, and type of job felt ready to return after three weeks, or whether you were glad you took the full four.

I know everyone’s recovery is different. I’ve just seen such a wide range of experiences that I’m hoping to hear from people whose age, health, and lifestyle were fairly similar to mine.

There’s a decent chance I’m getting my gallbladder removed sometime this week or early next week, possibly on an emergency basis, and I’m supposed to go to Osheaga on Sunday.

Has anyone had their gallbladder out, an appendectomy, or another laparoscopic abdominal surgery and tried to do something like this shortly after? How many days did it take before you felt okay leaving the house and being on your feet for a while?

I obviously wouldn’t be trying to stand in a packed crowd all day. I’d sit whenever I could, take it very easy, and leave if I started feeling rough. I’m mostly trying to figure out whether this is maybe doable, or whether I’m fully lying to myself.

Why are a certain subset of white American women obsessed with giving their kids normal names and then spelling them in the most ridiculous way possible?

Like, it can never just be Madison. It has to be Madisyn.

Riley becomes Ryleigh. Jackson becomes Jaxson. Emerson becomes Emersyn. Mackenzie becomes McKynzlee.

Even when the name is relatively normal, they always have to throw in a random Y, add an extra X, or tack on “leigh” somewhere so it looks unique.

I had some pre-op testing done at Lachine Hospital today, and the staff were excellent. This post is absolutely not about them.

I genuinely don’t think I’ve ever heard so many angry, combative people in one waiting room before. There was only one nurse available for blood tests, so they were running about 40 minutes behind. Not ideal, obviously, but hardly a catastrophe.

For practically the entire time I was waiting, someone was yelling or complaining at the reception desk. Some people were furious about the delay. Some were angry that appointments had to be made online and that the clinic was booked for the next few weeks. Others just seemed generally pissed off and looking for someone to take it out on.

I’ve worked with the public for years, but if I had to deal with that all day, every day, I would quit in tears on day one. Huge kudos to the receptionists and nurses for staying calm and professional through all of it.

Two things I’ve learned:

1. You are never going to get anywhere by immediately becoming aggressive. I have genuinely gotten so much help over the years simply by being nice to public-facing staff. Do people honestly think screaming at reception is going to make a nurse appear out of thin air?

2. We all know the healthcare system sucks. You suck more for yelling at people who have absolutely no control over staffing, funding, online booking systems, or how many appointments were scheduled that morning.

Be frustrated with the system. Stop treating the person behind the desk like they are personally responsible for that.

I’ve had a few overnight ER visits over the past several weeks because of a chronic issue that will hopefully be resolved with surgery soon. The staff during my most recent overnight visits were incredibly kind, and I’d love to drop off a small thank-you for the evening/overnight ER team.

I was thinking of bringing some individually packaged snacks or chocolate and a thank-you card for everyone to share. Is that generally allowed in Montreal hospitals? And how would I go about dropping it off and making sure it actually gets to the overnight staff rather than just whoever is working when I arrive?

I know policies probably vary by hospital, but I’d appreciate hearing from anyone who works in an ER or hospital setting.