UPDATE in OP 10/17 gall bladder removal recovery please

Not the same, but when dh had an open appendectomy, driving home over bumpy roads was unpleasant to say the least. He was released less than 24 hours after surgery.
He had me to help him so I dont recall what else he needed- rest, no lifting, hold a pillow over the area to cough are what I remember

Mine was also laparoscopic, but it was no walk in the park;recuperation was significantly more difficult and lengthy than my c-section. Rest. Rest. Rest.

Hope your recovery is swift and uneventful.

I don't have any advice to offer but I am sending positive thoughts that you get fixed and feel wonderful shortly.

Don’t get constipated. Take whatever stool softeners and laxatives they recommend. Better to go too much than too little.

I had a lap chole and was tired a sore for about a weekend. An open procedure requires a lot more recovery time. No heavy lifting. You’ll be tired and sore, so give yourself permission to actually rest. So many women tidy up and throw on a load of laundry and putter around. Don’t do that! At least the first week or two, just rest.

Mine was laprscopic too. Stairs were tough. I was told to go backwards on them or hug a pillow. I also had a pillow nearby to hold/braces myself for coughing/sneezing.

Wishing you a sucessuful and speedy recovery from surgery.

Either way, once your gallbladder is gone, most people need to limit greasy types of foods. The obvdious like fried anything, but milk, cheese and ice cream, milk chocolate; all of which can cause diarrhea and bloating.

Easy meals. May want to have some premade, small individual servings ready to pop out of the freezer.

Cling Wrap to put over the incision area to assist in not getting it wet while bathing/showering.

Some people use ice packs to help with bruising and swelling, but the small ones can hurt as all the weight is in one samll area, so a larger thin one is better to lay across your entire tummy area to lessen the weight directly on the incission. Something like this. Large Ice Pack

Laparoscopic surgery here too. I'll just say this, my recovery from my full hysterectomy was far easier and quicker than my recovery from gallbladder surgery. I thought it would be the other way around.

Mine was done with the full incision, way back in 1980 after the birth of my first child. I couldn't lift anything over 10 pounds for about 6 weeks. It probably took 6 weeks to fully recover, but I felt nearly there after 4 weeks.

Good luck!

Plan to have a friend help out.  If you have to bend too much to change around your laundry, it could be rough.  Vacuuming may also be.  Don't do too much too soon.

Any chance that you can have it laparoscopically?

i hate asking outside people for help so this is what i would do:

if need be, you can do laundry.  just don't carry the laundry basket around. you can load the laundry and even empty the dryer.  it may mean more light loads so you have less laundry at a time to put away. just no lifting a laundry basket. 

trash will have to go out in much smaller bags. maybe gallon size bags and  you may have to do it more often. at least you will not be lifting one heavy bag. walking is good for you anyway. 

you can probably skip vacuuming for a couple of weeks.  same with the sweeping so you aren't bending too much. those two things can wait.  

I haven’t had mine out, but have had many physical issues that seriously limited my mobility, and then DH’s issues when I was unable to help much. So my perspective is a bit different but hopefully helpful.

How will you handle things if you can’t get upstairs? Are your cats items downstairs? Can you close them off down there with you? What about your clothes? Books? Craft items? Medications? If your doctor thinks stairs might be an issue have a list of things and a friend ready to help you relocate downstairs. If he says they will be an issue start moving things down and organizing now.

Any chance you can sleep downstairs and avoid the stairs for a while if needed? At least be prepared for the possibility. I don’t know that a blow up bed would give you enough support sitting up, maybe a couch? Have a twin bed/linens to borrow and someone to help set up on standby if possible maybe. I had surgery for a torn achilles and the doctor told me I would be in a walking boot so we didn’t have anything ready. I couldn’t even use crutches. Our bedrooms and full baths are all upstairs and we were in no way prepared for that. Had to buy a good blowup bed, which was still really difficult to get up from, and take showers at a cousin’s house. So just something to keep in mind.

Along with putting things on a level where you can reach them, consider that you might need a button-up shirts if you can’t lift your hands over your head.

I’d have make ahead meals and snacks ready to go. DH’s (laparoscopic) diet was pretty plain for a while. I swear he lived on applesauce. I’ll check and see what else didn’t give him issues. It turns out he can eat as he did before now, he was a lucky one hopefully you will be as well!

And I’m someone who would much prefer to be over prepared than under. Under prepared could mean you need to ask for help when you weren’t prepared to. I’d have every last scrap of laundry completed and a week’s worth of comfy clothes set where they’re easy to get to and in case I need them downstairs so no one has to dig around for them. Stations set up everywhere I spend time with snacks, generic meds, wipes, water, books, would care, trash can etc. so I can get up as little as possible. A lightweight bag to keep Rx pain meds, water, phone, tablet with me at all times, even when I go to restroom. If something happens you need your phone on you at all times.

Don’t create more work than need be, if you are comfortable with it, consider disposable plates, silverware and cups, Clorox wipes, and paper towels.

Do anything and everything you can ahead of time. Laundry, grocery shopping and other cleaning and hygiene supplies purchased, picking up prescriptions, house completely clean, fridge cleaned out and all trash emptied, cooking and prep work done so you only have to reheat, any returns (library books?) done and items mailed out, a grocery delivery service that will put things on your counter set up, etc. And have helpers on stand by. I don’t know how long until you’re allowed to drive, but know who will be available in case you’re not able to unexpectedly. 

Also, decide to let some things go ahead of time, especially things requiring lifting and bending. The bed doesn’t have to be made and as long as you have appropriate clothes to wear the laundry can wait. Sweeping, vacuuming? Your health and healing are more important. If it will really bother you not having those things done, have a friend scheduled to come in, or hire someone. Use your (depleted) energy on things you have to do, heating your food, basic hygiene, caring for your cats and healing. 

I don’t know if you’ll be able to bathe immediately following surgery, but consider how you’ll handle keeping clean if you can’t. Even if you’re allowed to shower, will you be able to handle the pain or have the energy? Do you need help in the shower? Get body wipes ready. We have tons of wash clothes so I could use them for a while, but you need to consider not making too much laundry.

Hopefully this doctor was wrong and it can be done laparoscopically! You’ll still want to prepare, but not nearly as much.