Had hemorrhoidectomy on Decemeber 7th, 2017 and am still having issues with swelling. I had three internal grade 3 hemorrhoids removed and can feel large external swelling on my right side. Not sure if swelling is coming from internally or externally. Is this normal even after a month out?
Also, using the bathroom has become more difficult recently. It's like the first push to start pooping is an involuntary strain type spasm that I cannot control. My body is forcing and pushing and sometimes I have no control of it. I assume it's because of trauma to the area. Straining is obviously something I want to avoid so does anyone have input?
can I ask what symptoms you had for the internal piles I got a consultant appointment tomorrow. dreading it
I'm on my 10th day so I'm not sure how long the swelling will last.
As for pushing...I try so hard not to but it's like its beyond my control!! Last thing we need is a hemmoroid coming off a hemmoroidectomy. I don't know why the pushing is involuntary...but yes I try not too but can't control it.
What did your Dr tell you when you went for the post-op?
I have some bumps there that scaring me into thinking it's another hemmi...but I really don't have much swelling anymore. After I have a BM though it swells up for hours.
I filled the fingers from a latex glove with water and froze it....mini ice packs that fit nicely between the cheeks. The relief is wonderful. I've read of people freezing half a hotdog to use too. Maybe try something like that to see if the swelling goes down?
If you have to have surgery do it. I'm not gonna sugar coat it...its a nightmare but absolutely necessary. Short term pain vs long term discomfort wins out.
One thing I can add...I foolishly believed when people told me I would be feeling good in a week. You will not be. I'm on day 10 and..yes I do feel better overall...but when I have a bowel movement it just ruins my whole day and I'm in bed for the remainder.
what was your symptoms of internal hemorroids? I got to speak to consultant due to rectal bleeding tomorrow.
My symptoms from my internal hemorrhoids....they became external hemorrhoids. Thrombosis is the term. I've been dealing with hemmoroids for many years...when they got bad you could kinda push them back up and they would eventually go away. This last one I had to have surgery on because it took on a life of its own and severely impacted my day-to-day life. It was a beast. I'm no authority by any means but my Dr wouldn't even consider surgery with my internal hemorrhoids. Have you had a colonoscopy yet? That will be the first step and will decide what avenue the Dr wishes to take. Good luck
no colonoscopy yet. Just consultant tomorrow to discuss the rectal bleeding etc. my gp suspects hemmeroids internal. after you seen your consultant how long was your wait for colonoscopy
I'm in Canada so it took me 3 months before I had a colonoscopy. Free healthcare is great...but wait times are crazy. After I went to the Dr to get the results of the colonoscopy I only had to wait 3 weeks for the surgery. Hopefully you don't have to have a hemmoroidectomy...sometimes they can remove polyps and fix minor things during the colonoscopy itself.
Hi Maxwell, hope that you recovered well.
Were you able to get any answers?
I am 29 days post op and feeling what seems to be a hemorrhoid. I had 3 internal, had them removed because of anal itching. I have read other forums with one article saying that's it due to swelling which lasts up to 8 to 12 weeks. Looking for more info.
I'm not doing so bad but my goodness this is a LOOOOONG recovery... In my case I had three internals removed. The major swelling probably lasted for a month and then every so slowly began to go down over the course of the following month. I've noticed recently that whenever I pass gas, the gas is expelled in the left direction. Have been dealing with hemorrhoids for years, I've sort of used this as a compass to figure out where swelling was located. Before surgery, I had occasional issues with an external hemorrhoid on my right side but it always went away. I would say it occurred once every 2-3 months but recently I've been getting into the gym to try to become healthier again and it seems to be rearing it's head. This is extremely frustrating because I felt like I went through the finale of treatment to address my issue. I no longer have internals but to see this external one returning is beyond depressing. I guess I'll have to monitor my workout routine and see what happens. On top of the external (which I'm confident will go away as it usually did), I have skin tags where I assume my internals were removed. This doesn't bother me too much as I realize there was a chance they would occur with surgery. From what I've read, they can be easily removed and the recovery time would be a breeze in comparison to the hemorrhoidectomy. Other than that, I've been trying my absolute best to keep my head up. Some days it is harder than others. This past week has been difficult for me. I understand this is a long recovery and process but I would never wish this upon anyone. It feels more like a mental marathon rather than a physical one. Best of luck to you!
Thanks for the info, I'm on week 5 and still have swelling after poops too, I feel like I get 1% better every day, my surgery was exactly what u had, so what was ur total healing time?
I get the involuntary straining too btw, soo awkward
My doctor told me for radio active frequency surgery of internal piles. Is it a good technique
The involuntary strain is unreal. I can only prepare for any time I go to the restroom , even for peeing. It does ruin my day when I poop as well due to onflam
I am in my 5th week of recovery. After the first few weeks I felt like I was making progress, but now I am stuck in the swelling phase. After every bowel movement (sometimes 3-6 per day), the swelling starts. It ranges from uncomfortable to disabilitating. I am doing everything directed by my physician. Plenty of fiber, stool softeners, walking as much as possible and enough water (3-4 liters per day) that I am constantly peeing.
Am I doing something wrong? Does this phase never end? I would love to get my life back, but it is hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
I'm curious, those of you that are experience this straining/ spasming, did you get a prescription for Valium as well as a pain med?
yes you get prescriptions for pain pills but they can also be your enemy because they will bind you up, and possibly get you addicted, I stopped taking them after a week and a half two two weeks, there's not much you can do about the spasming it's kind of a natural thing afterwards and it doesn't last that long in my experience, but when they tell you that you're only going to be out of work for 2 to 3 weeks, that was a lie, I suffered for about 5 to 6 weeks after it and I still have a little pain from here and there, if you can, take off as much time as possible
Hey Justin. Looks like I am now in the "Swelling phase" as well here after about 17 days post op too. What a pain in the ass! The main pain I was feeling is gone now and its just the irritating feeling of something poking out down there. It's red and tender to the touch and makes it tough to sit. It's even a little irritating walking around. It feels like exactly what my hemorrhoids felt like pre-op when they would prolapse (I had 3 internal ones that would prolapse on a BM and then I'd push them back in). Very depressing to feel so similar to where I was pre-op after 17 days of intense post op pain. Encouraging though to see in this thread I'm not alone though.
Do you remember time-wise when your swelling went down? Does what I described sound like what you had as well?
Hey Dino, I'm totally stealing "the swelling phase". So accurate, very well put. I think I just got here myself 2 days ago, or about 2 weeks post op. Seems to be right around the same time frame as everyone else too. Feels like something is sticking out down there, is tender/ sore and makes wiping pretty much impossible. Deep pain I had for the first couple weeks is mostly gone now that we're in the "swelling phase".
How are you doing now? Any advice you can give me as to what I can expect time wise on this swelling going down? Anything special you're doing (or did) with creams ointments etc? I'm just still taking lots of epsom salt baths. The swelling isn't really getting any worse, but it's certainly not getting any better yet.