Shadowing Practice: Gallbladder Removal Laparoscopic PreOp® Patient Education Feature - Learn English Speaking with Video
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Your doctor has recommended the removal of your gallbladder.
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But what does that actually mean?
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The gallbladder is a small organ located below the liver.
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Its function is to store bile used by the intestines to digest food.
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Gallstones, small calcified deposits, sometimes form and block the bile ducts, which lead from the gallbladder to the intestines.
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In many cases, the problem becomes so severe that the only effective treatment is to remove the entire gallbladder.
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This is the most common reason for gallbladder surgery.
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Other reasons for removing the gallbladder include chronic or severe infection or the growth of a tumor.
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In the case of gallbladder removal, there are no real alternatives to surgery.
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Leaving gallstones untreated will lead to discomfort at minimum
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and allowing a gallbladder infection or tumor to progress unchecked can put your life at risk.
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Because of these risks
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it's rare these days for a physician to recommend any treatment other than the surgical removal of the gallbladder.
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Surgical procedures performed by making an incision large enough to expose the entire operative area are called open procedures.
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Your doctor believes that your medical condition
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and overall state of health make you a good candidate for a less intrusive laparoscopic surgery.
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A laparoscope is a narrow tube that contains a light source and a small video camera.
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Using a laparoscope, the surgeon is able to operate by making one or more very small incisions
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through which the sterile laparoscope and possibly other instruments are inserted into the body.
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Using the laparoscope's video camera, the surgeon is able to explore and inspect the interior of the abdomen,
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often allowing the surgeon to see with greater detail and with more clarity than with the human eye alone.
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However, it is important to understand that during the procedure,
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your surgical team is always prepared to convert a laparoscopic procedure to an open procedure,
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should they feel that your condition requires a more direct approach.
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If the surgical team makes this decision,
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you will find upon waking up that your doctor has made a larger incision and that healing may proceed more slowly.
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Converting to an open procedure will affect the length of your recovery and will probably require hospitalization.
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Of course, no surgery is completely risk -free, but your physician believes that if you decide decide not to undergo the recommended procedure,
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you may be putting your health at risk.
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On the day of your operation, you will be asked to put on a surgical gown.
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You may receive a sedative by mouth, and an intravenous line may be put in.
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You will then be transferred to the operating table.
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In the operating room, the anesthesiologist will begin to administer anesthesia, most probably general anesthesia.
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The surgeon will then apply antiseptic solution to the skin around the area where the incisions will be made.
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Place a sterile drape around the operative site.
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After allowing a few minutes for the anesthetic to take effect, a small incision is made above the umbilicus.
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Then a hollow needle will be inserted through the abdominal wall and the abdomen will be inflated with carbon dioxide.
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An umbilical port is created for the laparoscope.
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Three more incisions will be made with care taken to keep the openings as small as possible.
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Once in place the laparoscope will provide video images
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that allow the surgeon to locate and pull back both the liver and gallbladder.
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Next the surgeon removes the connecting tissue in order to expose the cystic duct and cystic artery.
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Using clips the surgical team clamps off both the duct
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and the artery which are later cut to prepare the gallbladder for removal.
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Finally, any remaining tissue connecting the gallbladder to the liver is cut.
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The gallbladder is moved into the laparoscopic working port where it is taken out of the body.
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All of the instruments are withdrawn the carbon dioxide is allowed to escape, the muscle layers and other tissues are sewn together,
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and the skin is closed with sutures or staples.
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Finally, sterile dressings are applied.
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Most patients experience at least some pain following surgery, but
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if properly handled it shouldn't present any serious problems pain used
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to be regarded as an unavoidable side effect of surgery
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but today pain can be managed with great effectiveness
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and as the patient
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you have an important role to play before surgery be sure to ask the medical staff about the type
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and duration of pain normally associated with your surgery.
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Find out in advance about your pain management options.
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Work with the staff to develop a pain management plan.
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Discuss your options.
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There are alternatives to drugs that can lessen your need for pain medication.
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Ask your doctor for help in finding a pain management class.
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Many of these workshops teach helpful relaxation techniques,
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positive thinking, and nerve stimulation exercises.
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Following surgery make sure to let your nurse know right away how you're feeling
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and whether or not you are in any pain.
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Be specific and help them to measure your discomfort.
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If you're having trouble expressing yourself try to rank what you're
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feeling on a scale from one to ten never be shy about asking for help
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if you experience pain
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that just won't go away report it to the nurse pain is an important indicator
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that helps you and your medical staff understand your body's healing process gallbladder surgery only rarely leads to complications.
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The first is a persistent residual neuralgia or pain around the scar.
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It can be either localized or general.
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It may develop soon after surgery or even weeks or months later.
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Usually it will decrease in intensity with time but in very rare situations it can become permanent.
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More frequently Additionally, patients report achiness in the shoulders and chest.
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This is caused by the body's reaction to the carbon dioxide used to inflate the abdomen,
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and it will clear up in a matter of a few days.
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A more serious complication comes from accidentally damaging the bile duct, but these are very rare occurrences.
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Finally, as mentioned earlier, the surgical team may decide to end the laparoscopic procedure and convert to an open surgery.
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Thank you.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This speaking lesson is built on the video “Gallbladder Removal Laparoscopic PreOp® Patient Education Feature”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: gallbladder, surgery, pain, procedure, surgical. This video has 81 sentences and 1029 words to shadow. The speech runs for 8:48. The speaker talks at a steady 117 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing. Only 78% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is demanding.
Key vocabulary in this video
15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| procedure noun | /pɹəˈsiː.d͡ʒə/ | A particular method for performing a task. |
| surgical adjective | /ˈsɝd͡ʒɪkəl/ | Of, relating to, used in, or resulting from surgery. |
| surgeon noun | /ˈsɝd͡ʒən/ | One who performs surgery; a doctor who performs operations on people or animals. |
| removal noun | /ɹɪˈmuː.vəl/ | The process of removing or the fact of being removed. |
| duct noun | /dʌkt/ | A pipe, tube or canal which carries gas or liquid from one place to another. |
| tissue noun | /ˈtɪʃ.(j)u/ | Thin, woven, gauzelike fabric. |
| convert verb | /kənˈvɝt/ | To transform or change (something) into another form, substance, state, or product. |
| dioxide noun | /daɪˈɑksaɪd/ | Any oxide containing two oxygen atoms in each molecule. |
| abdomen noun | /ˈæb.də.mən/ | The belly, or that part of the body between the thorax and the pelvis, not including the back; or in some lower vertebrates, the portion between the cardiac… |
| nurse noun | /nɝs/ | Anyone performing this role, regardless of training or profession. |
| connect verb | /kəˈnɛkt/ | To join (to another object): to attach, or to be intended to attach or capable of attaching, to another object. |
| infection noun | /ɪnˈfɛkʃən/ | The act or process of infecting. |
| instrument noun | /ˈɪnstɹəmənt/ | A device used to produce music. |
| physician noun | /fəˈzɪʃən/ | A practitioner of physic, i.e. a specialist in internal medicine, especially as opposed to a surgeon; a practitioner who treats with medication rather than… |
| heal verb | /ˈhiːl/ | To make better from a disease, wound, etc.; to revive or cure. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| go away verb | To depart or leave a place. | |
| pull back verb | To retreat. | |
| wake up verb | /ˌweɪk ˈʌp/ | To stop sleeping; to awake. |
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | are called · are inserted · will be asked |
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | has recommended · has made |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 5 contractions and reduced forms, such as you're, shouldn't, won't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “th” sounds: withdraw /wɪðˈdɹɔ/, anesthesia /ˌæn.əsˈθi.ʒə/, anesthetic /ˌænəsˈθɛtɪk/
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: tissue /ˈtɪʃ.(j)u/, infection /ɪnˈfɛkʃən/, physician /fəˈzɪʃən/, associate /əˈsoʊʃi.ət/, medication /mɛdɪˈkeɪʃən/
- Long words — get the stress right: operative /ˈɑpəɹətɪv/, associate /əˈsoʊʃi.ət/, accidentally /ˌæk.sɪˈdɛnt(ə)li/, medication /mɛdɪˈkeɪʃən/, intensity /ɪnˈtɛnsɪti/
How to practise with this video
- Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
- Shadow it sentence by sentence at normal speed, repeating each one until your rhythm matches the speaker.
- Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like procedure, surgical, surgeon.
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.