Physical therapy exercises after gallbladder removal

Rehabilitation measures carried out after surgery to remove the gallbladder also include exercise therapy. Doctors especially emphasize the importance of physical therapy after removal of the gallbladder for patients who have undergone classic cholecystectomy. With laparoscopy, the importance of exercise therapy is slightly reduced, but not completely rejected. In both cases, breathing training of the diaphragm is also important.

Is physical activity allowed after laparoscopy?

In the first 2 weeks, any physical activity is strictly prohibited.

In the first 2 weeks, any physical activity is strictly prohibited. Lifting weights more than 3 kg from 3 weeks. Until the sutures heal, you must not: sharp bends; massage: fast walking; exercises associated with muscle load, regardless of muscle group.

Before a walk, do not drink tonic drinks. Sex - after the discomfort in the abdominal muscles disappears.

If there is redness of the healing sutures, do light breathing exercises, no more than 2 deep inhalations and exhalations. If after removing the stitches on days 3-5 there is a burning sensation or twitching in the muscles - a light walk indoors. Absorbable sutures - 3-5 breaths in a supine position.

If there is a need to lift any object from the floor, lightly kneel down or squat down, stand up slowly, preferably hold on to a support.

For the first 3 weeks, avoid sitting in a bent position. Do not wear high platform shoes or heels.

For the first 1.5 years, do not wear tight belts or clothes.

Lifestyle after gallbladder removal

Be sure to stick to the diet

Be sure to stick to your diet. The first 7 days - puree soups, mashed potatoes, cereals, yogurts, low-fat cottage cheese.

When ventilating the room, do not stay in the room. Overheating and hypothermia - inflammation of the seams is strictly prohibited. Walk slowly for the first month, slowly going up the stairs.

Throughout life.

1. Eliminate fried, smoked, alcohol, vinegar as a sauce from the diet; dishes cooked over a fire.
2. Minimize onions, garlic, mustard, horseradish, preserves with cloves, red pepper and plenty of vinegar; Replace vinegar with lemon juice.
3. Do not lift more than 10 kg, if this happens - bed rest for 24 hours.
4. Do not swim in an ice hole in winter.
5. Immediately stop any physical activity if shortness of breath occurs.
6. Instead of sugar, give preference to honey.
7. Do not combine acidic and fatty foods.
8. Do not take choleretic drugs without a doctor's prescription.

Watch a video about life without a gallbladder:

Exercises after cholecystectomy standing

Moving after surgery is not only possible, but it is necessary! Of course, we felt sorry for ourselves - stress, we went through such a test. However, let's pull ourselves together - the operation is completed, we are set for a full recovery. We need to help ourselves - get up and do the following exercises:

1. We carefully raise our arms up in front of us as we inhale, and lower them as we exhale. Breast level is the first stage, then we try higher. It’s elementary, but after anesthesia, I’ll tell you, it’s not quite easy to do. In the first days after cholecystectomy (especially by laparoscopy), many patients experience a sore throat and difficulty breathing. By helping the diaphragm move, we facilitate the release of excess gas that was pumped into us and the normal flow of air. Number of repetitions – 10-12 times.

A more difficult version of the exercise is to take the belt from the hospital gown in both hands. We raise our arms to chest level, the belt is tense, without sagging, and we also lower them in a tense state.

1. We raise and lower our hands one by one to a level acceptable to you.

1. If the exercises described were easy for you, move on to slow rotations - hands, elbows, full range of motion with straight arms. To begin with, five to eight movements will be enough. Next we increase it.

1. Take a piece of paper, a piece of newspaper. We bring our arms bent at the elbows in front of the chest, palms touching each other (Chinese bowing pose), paper between the palms. We try to leave an imprint on the paper on both sides, press, flatten it. Voltage – 10-12 seconds.

1. While sitting on the bed, you can roll a water bottle from toe to heel. An excellent option is to use a round comb; you will be provided with acupressure massage of your feet.

1. Hands on the belt. We rise on our toes, you can roll from heel to toe.

!!! Important: the first gymnastics should be no more than 5-7 minutes. Perform exercises next to a support - the headboard, window sill, chair!!!

1. We take turns moving the right and left legs back, if possible to an angle of 45 degrees. Better to hold on to support.

1. We take our right leg back and bend it at the knee joint three to five times. We change the leg.

1. We abduct and bring the right leg to the side, then the left. Number of movements – 10-15.

!!! Important: in the hospital you should not bend or turn your body. Such exercises can be mastered only in the second or third week after surgery!!!

Stages of rehabilitation

The rehabilitation process begins immediately after the end of general anesthesia - 30-75 minutes after completion of the operation (cessation of infusion), regardless of the type.

The first stage is quenching strong thirst. Do not give anything to drink until 3 hours after waking up! Moisten lips with a cotton or gauze swab soaked in boiled water. No more than 5 ml should enter the mouth.

Give drinks on demand, preferably once every 10-15 minutes. After 3 hours, no more than 50 ml every half hour. Regular drinking regimen after 12 hours, if there is no nausea.

The second stage is a post-operative diet of puree soups, liquid porridges for up to 3 days.

Get up slowly for up to 7 days.

Mineral water is not carbonated. Leave the carbonated one for 24 hours for the gas to escape.

During the week, drain the first broths.

The first 3 days, for prophylactic purposes, an antibiotic 2 times a day. Optimal 1 of the cephalosporins; for contraindications - synthetic penicillin; if not, natural. Painkillers administered intramuscularly only when necessary - slow down healing, high load on the liver.

Relieve nausea with cerucal, metoclopramide; mint dries out the mucous membranes.

Important! These stages, in addition to quenching thirst, are performed as needed, and not one by one.

Physical exercise

Baths and saunas no earlier than six months after surgery

There are no clearly defined periods for playing sports or performing heavy physical exercises.

Playing sports no earlier than 3 months, and swimming - 1.5 months. Weightlifting no earlier than 5 months. Light – 4-5 months. Sprint 9-12 months.

Contrast showers, baths and saunas no earlier than six months. This also applies to immediate air temperature changes of more than 15 degrees.

After the stitches have completely healed, you can go to the swimming pool. The rabbit is no earlier than six months old. Butterfly after 9 months. Start from a distance of 25 m with a surface breaststroke. A week after healing until mild tingling occurs.

Further, water procedures depend on the condition of the body. If one or another procedure (swimming) results in heartburn, bitter belching for more than 24 hours, or discomfort in the right hypochondrium, resume after a 2-week break after consulting a doctor.

Physiotherapy

Exercise therapy exercises only after the permission of the attending physician. The complex is prescribed individually.

The most common:

Important! The starting position for all exercises performed standing is with your feet shoulder-width apart. Movements should be smooth. If you feel slightly tired, stop. Do not do gymnastics on an empty stomach or empty stomach. Do the exercises no earlier than 1.5-2 hours after waking up.

Therapeutic exercises after laparoscopy

Number and nature of loads after surgery

Initial physical activity after surgery consists of half-hour walking outside. Walking accelerates the blood and increases the outflow of bile, which slowed down after the gallbladder was excluded from the digestion process. Having supported the body by walking, you can move on to increasing physical activity. For the correct recovery regime after removal of the gallbladder, they resort to two types of therapeutic exercises: after laparoscopy and after cholecystectomy.

Each complex has its own characteristics related to both the severity of the operation and the physical fitness of the patient. Let's look at them in detail.

Exercise therapy complex after laparoscopy

Laparoscopy of the gallbladder is a gentle type of operation; it is performed with minimal trauma to the patient’s tissues and organs. Bed rest after it lasts 6 hours, then the patient is allowed to get up and take short walks around the ward with the support of a nurse.

Permissible physical activity can be given from the 2nd day after surgery. Initial exercise therapy involves working out distant parts of the body (limbs), then it is supplemented with more complex exercises:

1. Body turns in both directions, which are done while lying on your back.
2. Alternately pulling the legs bent at the knees towards the stomach.
3. Contraction and relaxation movements of the perineal muscles.
4. Alternating straight leg raises.
5. Performing leg raises from a lateral position.

Each exercise is performed 8-10 times.

Some of the physical therapy exercises used after removal of the gallbladder are performed while sitting on a chair:

1. Bend forward with your hands reaching your toes.
2. Pulling the leg to the chest, which is bent at the knee, changing limbs.
3. Imitation of walking (can also be used in a lying position).

Each movement is repeated 6-8 times.

The complex is necessarily supplemented with breathing exercises. Such activities help bile to leave the liver easily and improve your general condition.

Exercises performed in a standing position:

1. We stand up straight, put our hands on our belts, and perform 4 squats. If the patient has problems with joints, squats can be done with support.
2. Remaining in the same stance, we bend left and right with the same frequency of repetitions in each direction as in the first exercise.
3. With a stationary pelvis, we perform circular movements with the body 4 times in each direction. We monitor the uniformity of breathing.

The duration of classes in the first weeks is 12 minutes, then you can increase it to 20 minutes per lesson.

When two weeks have passed after surgery, you can increase physical intensity, but only after receiving permission from your doctor. After a month, you are allowed to move on to other loads. Active exercises include cycling, working out in the gym, and swimming. After a month, you can slowly pump up your abs.

Note!

Those who like to take a steam bath are allowed to go to the bathhouse 1.5 months after laparoscopy performed on the gallbladder. Strength training and professional sports training are allowed after 3 months. Strict adherence to the specialist’s recommendations promotes rapid recovery.

Physical therapy gymnastics after cholecystectomy

Cholecystectomy is a classic type of operation to remove the gallbladder, which is used in cases where conservative methods of dealing with the problem do not give a positive result. Exercise therapy after cholecystectomy is necessary for the speedy return of all organs to their normal state. The goals of therapeutic exercises are:

• improvement of blood flow in the digestive organs;
• normalization of breathing;
• prevention of complications;
• formation of an elastic postoperative suture.

In the first days of the postoperative patient, light physical activity in the form of walking and simple exercises is allowed. A set of initial health-improving gymnastic exercises looks like this:

1. Diaphragmatic breathing (deep inhalation and exhalation using the abdomen). Performed every 20 minutes for 4 repetitions.
2. Rotational movements of the body to train the pelvic muscles. Several repetitions are done.

In the second week, the patient can independently move around the ward, corridor, room. In addition, the exercise therapy complex is complemented by special exercises aimed at launching regeneration processes and normalizing the functioning of the heart and gastrointestinal tract. The movements performed by a person strengthen the abdominal muscles and abs. These include:

1. Warm up by walking and breathing exercises. After walking for 2-3 minutes, you need to stand up straight, inhale, drawing in your stomach, and exhale, sticking out your stomach. Pay special attention to the exhalation so that the stomach is engaged.
2. The main movements are done at a slow pace. Stand straight, arms down, then raise them up, feet shoulder-width apart, reaching for your hands. We returned our hands to their original position and lowered themselves. As you rise, inhale, then exhale.
3. Shallow squats with hands on the waist.
4. We leave our hands on our belts and begin to lean back and forward.
5. Rotate the body in a circle.
6. We do cross bends with the hand. We try to reach the left foot with our right hand. We repeat the movement with the left hand.
7. Wrapping your arms around your waist, twist your torso.
8. To restore breathing, do the first exercise, but at a slow pace and smoothly.

All movements are repeated 8-10 times.

We move on to performing gymnastic exercises from a different position (lying on our back):

1. Doctors also recommend starting them with breathing exercises. After breathing correctly for 1-2 minutes, we proceed to exercise therapy.
2. Without lifting your foot off the floor, pull one leg toward your stomach. We do the exercise with the other leg.
3. Now we work with both lower limbs. We bend them and pull them towards the chest.
4. The legs remain bent, but now you need to straighten them up one by one.
5. Remaining in the same position, we alternately spread our legs to the sides.
6. Performing the following movement depends on the physical fitness of the person. Having raised and straightened your legs, you need to clasp them with your hands and pull your head towards them.
7. Do the “bicycle” for 1 minute.

Each exercise is performed 8-10 times.

A month has passed since the operation to remove the gallbladder, but the patient is still prohibited from excessive physical activity. Playing sports and in the gym will have to be postponed until a later date. In mild form, they can be started approximately 6 months after surgery. In winter, you can go skiing or Nordic walking if your body responds positively to physical activity.

Breathing exercises

Start performing on the 5th day:

1. Position lying on your back; slow breath; hold your breath for 1-3 seconds; exhale very slowly – 1-3 repetitions.
2. Short inhalations and exhalations: start from day 5-7 for 30-60 seconds – increase to 2-3 minutes.
3. Position, standing; when inhaling, rise on your toes, raise your arms up, stretch your whole body up; exhale – starting position; inhale – 15-30 – exhale 10-15 seconds; start on the 10th day after surgery.

Attention! Stop breathing exercises at the slightest dizziness.

Breathing exercises from day one

Working with the respiratory system is necessary in order to help the liver timely release stagnant bile. It is carried out at each rehabilitation period, starting from the first day. Breathing training looks like this:

1. Standing, legs together, raise your arms up, spreading them to the sides, take a deep breath, then lower your arms, exhale.
2. Standing, hands are on the belt, legs are spaced slightly wider than shoulders. Bend backwards, arms go to the sides and rise up. Let's take a deep breath. Bend slightly forward, hands return to the belt, elbows move slightly forward, exhale long.
3. Transition to a lying position. One hand should be placed on the stomach, the other on the chest. Inhale deeply, arms should rise, exhale slowly, arms should lower.

To effectively influence breathing exercises on the postoperative condition and the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract, it is necessary to perform it every day for 30 minutes. During the recovery period, doctors recommend alternating diaphragmatic breathing training with physical exercises designed specifically for patients with a removed gallbladder.

Before you begin the treatment complex, consult your doctor. Determine the degree of stress according to your health. Try to increase the load in portions, gradually moving from easy exercises to more complex types. Do not give up gymnastics even a year after the operation, keep your body in good shape.

Hiking

The first walks should not last more than 30 minutes. Thirst will arise. Bring still or boiled mineral water with you. Boil water for at least 30 minutes. Drain the top third.

Wear linen T-shirts under warm clothes. Move slowly. If you have a bandage, sit down after 10 minutes. There should be no burden. The step is measured.

Dizziness, burning sensation in the operated area - reduce walks to 15-20 minutes. Don't go far from home. Once a month, go to the coniferous forest. Walk on flat ground. Avoid excessive sweating in the operated area.

Spa treatment

To speed up recovery, therapy with mineral waters is prescribed in sanatoriums

To accelerate the restructuring of the digestive secretion organs to new conditions, mineral water therapy is prescribed. Recommended: Borjomi, Essentuki 17, Naftusya. Medicinal mineral waters retain their healing properties for no longer than 6 hours after they are received from the source.

Naftusya – up to 15 minutes. For this therapy to be highly effective, it is necessary to undergo treatment in sanatoriums focused on the treatment of liver and gallbladder diseases. In these centers, the diet is based on diet No. 5 or No. 5a: Kislovodsk, Essentuki, Morshin, Truskavets.

Temporary distribution of rehabilitation by stages

The removal of one organ from the digestive system certainly affects its functioning. The body has to get used to new operating conditions, when bile is produced and enters the intestines more slowly. To prevent bile stagnation, special breathing and physical exercises have been developed to help the patient successfully complete all stages of rehabilitation. Recovery time intervals are indicated in the table:

Rehabilitation begins in a hospital, and it consists of several stages:

1. Working with breathing. These exercises consist of 10-15 breaths performed with deep amplitude through the nose and sharp exhalations through the mouth. Performed 5-8 times a day for 3-5 minutes.
2. If laparoscopy was performed, the patient is allowed to get up 5-6 hours after it is performed.
3. Adaptation diet, including liquid food (porridge, soups) without spices and salt.
4. Exercise therapy to restore physical activity.
5. Drug therapy with drugs with analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects. Means for correcting bowel function.

Possible consequences

Bloating and flatulence may be symptoms of complications after surgery

The main complication is postcholecystectomy syndrome - digestive disorders due to uneven redistribution of the load between the organs that secrete secretions in the gastrointestinal tract - the stomach, pancreas, liver, as well as the microflora of the large intestine.

The syndrome may appear 4-7 years after surgery. The type of surgery does not matter. With the development of the syndrome: constant heartburn, flatulence, dysbacteriosis, dyspepsia.

Other complications.

1. Suppuration in the operated area with possible blood sepsis.
2. Immune diseases.
3. Autoimmune manifestations - allergies, inflammatory diseases throughout the body.

What do experts recommend?

1. After removal of the gallbladder, permanently exclude beer and pork fat from the diet, regardless of heat treatment; meat, fish, eggs that have undergone improper heat treatment; give preference to plant foods - carrots and beets daily.
2. Avoid hunger – satisfy hunger even at night; meals are fractional.
3. Gradually accustom the body to physical activity - this also applies to athletes.
4. Any medications only as prescribed by a doctor; folk remedies - only pharmacy preparations or a prescription drawn up by the attending physician.
5. Take general and biochemical blood tests, and do an ultrasound of the abdominal cavity 2 times a year.
6. Do not sunbathe for more than 2 hours a day; Avoid midday sunlight.

Exercises after surgery in hospital

It is worth performing special movements after surgery to remove the gallbladder while still in the hospital. Why is this necessary?

• you help the body quickly recover from the side effects of anesthesia (patients often experience heaviness in the chest and shortness of breath for several days)
• you stimulate your intestines
• you enrich the blood with oxygen
• you start metabolic processes
• you put yourself in a positive mood
• you recover faster

In a hospital ward, especially after a planned operation using laparoscopy, be sure to start a set of exercises already on the second or third day. Open abdominal surgery naturally requires a short delay in “active sports achievements.”

But you still need to perform the exercises recommended below while lying down to the best of your ability.