I need help!!!

Digestive health
1

Hi every one,

I was diganosed with a fissure at the start of the year and have used coconut oil and rectogesic cream on it since then when it flared up occassionally. It felt very localised and the rectogesic also helped with it is well. The pain was only there every now and then.

However, about 2.5 weeks ago I ate something I know I shouldnt have (bread and rice) which clogged me up and I think something happened - perhaps a bigger tear?ie it has been the most horrendous pain since then and it hurts 24/7. I have been scrolling through to see if any one else has these same symptoms.

Without being too graphic - I take ducolax to keep every thing soft, (but perhaps have not had as much fibre and water as I should over the years), any way, there is no pain when I go to the toilet and i have not sighted any blood. The pain comes on gradually after I have a bm and gets worse throughout the day. The more I go the toilet, the worse it is.

I saw a surgeon who said that I have a chronic fissure and that because I have a hypertensive sphincter, it wont heal by itself. My muscles are in so much spasm that it wont alow any blood flow in to the area to heal the cut.

The pressure that builds up over the day is horrendous and the occassional shooting pain - there are some days I cant even sit down. The coconut oil, salt baths, topical creams, additional fibre and drinking loads of water have done zero in the last 2 weeks

In fact there is no change in the pain levels on a day to day basis at all. I does not feel like its improved at all.

Im really scared as I dont want to have surjury. The surgeon suggested botox to relax the sphincter and she also said rather than a fissurectomy, she would do some local debriding, ie take of the scar tissue and open the way for new fresh tissue - but if Im in spasm, then Im back to square one - a cut that wont heal.

Does any one have any advice or thoughts? Im so stressed and to be honest I think that contributes to the pain aswell.

Any comments are welcome.

2

Sounds like the botox would help with the hypertensive sphincter.  It is this that is causing your pain by squeezing the fissure.  I had the botox done years ago.  Took two attempts (as they don't want to overdose you and leave you without any control over your bowels so the first attempt wasn't enough to relax the sphincter properly).  It isn't surgery even though you go under GA.  It gives you up to 6 weeks relief which allows the fissure time to heal.  I would say that it is worth a go, and it sorted me out (after the second attempt !).  Mine has re-occurred, but I have never had to have botox again.  Take the fibre/fluids thing really seriously ... for the rest of your life unfortunately.  When I have a lot of fruit and veg things are so much better.

Good luck !

3

Have you tried diltiazem cream (anoheal)?  It has much the same effect as the botox in that it relaxes everything.  It really did help me.  They won't always prescribe it on the NHS as it's £80 a tube, but at one stage I saw a private consultant who's put it on my record, so now my GP will prescribe it.

4

Hi Nicole sounds just awful poor you, hope you get this sorted, your gonna have to have something done, cant go like this,id research the options suggested or see if there is any less invasive options.

Sue

5

I had anal fissure and fistula and hemmorids all same time!!best $1000 bucks i spent was fly to Korea and get it done..surgery cost $1200 with no insurance in and out 1day rest 2weeks fly back to USA "best health care in world".. lol

6

Hi Nicole

When I was referred for surgery at the beginning of the year, the surgeon wasn't aware I had a fissure (I was referred for a different problem) but immediately before the op I was warned I might need a lateral anal sphincterotomy.  I really wasn't keen because I dreaded the possibility of losing bowel control, but accepted I might need the procedure.  Once the fissure was discovered, he went ahead with the procedure.  Despite my very real reservations, I have to say the procedure itself went well - bleeding for a couple of days, soreness and very slight leakage for no more than 2 weeks (I only needed pain killers on day 1 post-op)  .

My GP had been prescribing Movicol to ease my symptoms and I was also given this when I was discharged from hospital.  Don't know how it works but it certainly makes bm a lot easier, even if compacted.

After the op I found a website that gave some very reassuring information ( I googled "lateral anal sphincterotomy" and found this site :   www.acpgbi.org.uk › Patients & public › Treatments & procedures).  I think it would be really helpful if this sort of information was more readily available to anyone who might need this procedure.

Unfortunately for me, I didn't get the post-op advice I needed and finished up needing further surgery which has been pretty grim.

Hopefully you won't need this procedure but if you do, remember it isn't all bad news.

Good luck

7

Hey Nicole, so sorry for you, i can only suggest carrying on with the high fibre and water diet, don't over do the ducolax (more than 7 days in row), go for walks as that helps getting blood flow to area, eat smaller portions. try not to worry about how long it is taking just focus on one day at a time.

Bless you and best of luck...but stick with it

8

Hi Nicole,

I am so sorry that you have to go through something as horrendous as this. I went through what you are going through now last summer for about 50 days. I tried to wait it out, and after waiting a long time, I gave up and had the surgery. First of all though, as far as the laxatives you are taking, make sure you are not taking too much of them becuase diarreah can actually do worse on your fissure (becuase of its acidity) than a semi soft poop will do. As far as the surgery, I would definately go for it. I had the surgery done last summer, and I do not regret it at all. I will not tell you that the pain went away instantly after the surgery, because it didn't and then you have to deal with the pain of the surgery itself, but the surgery was one of the best decisions of my life. You are probably like I was, laying in bed, maybe with a wash cloth in your teeth to try to prevent yourself from screaming from the tremendous amount of pain from the fissure (which the wash cloth helps too because the tension in your body in going into your jaw, rather than your butt. I feel really bad for you and can recommend some other things to do besides just the surgery that can help make you feel a bit better.

1. Try calmoseptine cream. It has menthol in it and may numb the area. I use it almost every day now as it prevents sweat from builidng up in your butt that can make you feel even worse around that area. You can buy it at a local drugstore or on amazon. 

2. Instead of sitting when pooping, try to squat. If you look up on google images: squatting to poop, you will see an image of a guy pooping that is not only healthier for you, but does not have you strain at all when you are trying to go poop at all. I do this everyday now as it helps make pooping less strainful.

3. Try to watch a movie or a really long tv show right after pooping to distract yourself from the pain.

Again, I am really sorry you have to go through this Nicole. It really does suck and people who have never had one have no idea how painful it really is. However, I want to leave off this comment by saying that you should get the surgery. Getting botox or doing the diltazem cream for a chronic fissure will not help. If it is chronic, which your doctor said it was, I would get the surgery. The percentage of inconstinence is very low and to be honest, from my surgery, the only thing that changed is it is a little bit harder to hold in farts in public. But frankly, I think I will let other people smell my farts a bit in exchange for getting out of a hellful of pain in my butt.

I hope this advice helps and I would like to know how you are doing later to see if you did the surgery and if there is anything I can do to help you.

Good Luck and Stay Strong!!! 

Myles

9

I have to disagree with the last post about botox.  Diltiazem and Rectogesic did not work for me, but the Botox did and I had endured my fissure for nearly 5 months.  You still have a rough week after the procedure, but after that you start to understand the role the sphincter muscle plays in the pain.  You can feel intially that the fissure is still there, but you don't get the 5/6 hours of agony after each and every bowel movement.  The botox does make it harder to hold wind in, but it wears off after 6 weeks and that aspect at least is back to normal !

Best of luck with whatever you decide to do, and may you find relief !

 

10

Hi there

What type of surjury did you have? An injection or the Sphintorectomy?

11

Hi Nicro

Thanks for your help. Im desperately trying to heal myself and want to be able to do this by myself as I have had 3 operations in the last 2 years because I think I have vitamin defficiency due to the laxatives - because I cant eat certain foods.

So, it takes me a long time to heal - hence surjury is the worst option for me.

Im now on supplements and trying to have more fibre and just try and right a few wrongs.

12

Hey,I was in so much pain,then I bought rectacare,it took the pain away,it's a Anesthetic