I have been dealing with an embarrassing issue for the past 6 months. I was having anal pain and bleeding during a bm, lots of pain immediately after that it has been disrupting my day to day living. After seeing a general surgeon he advised me that I had an anal fissure and wants to do a fissurectomy and sphincterectomy. I had hemmorhoid surgery 6 years ago and I will admit it was the most painful thing I have ever been through. Having had three children all natural with no drugs, my pain tolerance is pretty high in my opinion. I don't care to go through that type of pain again. I told him I would consider the surgery and in the meantime he has put me on diltiazem to relax the anal tissue but this also causes massive headaches. If one end isn't in pain the other is! Hoping someone out there has some experience in this area and can give me some advice. Thank you in advance!
L.,
I know my sister went through this twice...Her doctor put her on a very soft diet, although she said that she wasn't eating much at all because she knew coming out would be so painful. She also had to do Sitz baths. If I recall, those helped her a lot.
Good luck!
J. L
Hi L., I had fissures about 5 years ago now, and you will never believe what worked for me. I also had the surgery recommended but was scared by the painful surgery and started looking around. The 2 things (and only things) that worked for me were from the health food store. The first is whole flax seed, i bought an inexpensive coffee grinder and would blend a little at a time and keep it in the freezer. you can mix about 1/8 cup in juice, it tastes nutty, not bad at all. Flax seed will soften your bowel movements tremendously so you don't complicate the problem of the fissures even more.
For the pain, i used Arnica gel (it's by Boiron) but I'm sure any one would work. it helped with the pain in about a day or two! i would apply it with a q-tip right before a bowel movement. It made so much difference, i can't even tell you. the fissures went away completely in about 2 months!!! I hope this works for you. You can contact me privately if you want to for more details.
Ok, I haven't had these, but my Dad did about a year or 2 ago...and he actually talked to me about it. He was considering surgery, until he found out 1 of the side effects...not being able to control gas. He decided against it because he didn't really want to be in a meeting at work and lose control! As far as I know, he had medication that helped with the pain and he doesn't complain about them anymore. If you need a 'quick' fix for the day, take a bath. He used to do that all the time. He said it made it feel much better!
Good luck! Kim
I deal with these periodically. The best thing is to get more fiber (fiber supplements or flax seed help) along with drinking more water. You can also take colase to help soften your stool but using fiber is the best way to go... eat more fruit. As for the pain I use a hemmoriodal ointment with aloe in it. You can use it just topically or use the adapter for fissures that are more inside. Then to keep them at bay... fiber (fruits, flax seed)don't do surgery if it is not necessary. Too many doctors will point you in that direction first. Good Luck.
I haven't done surgery for an anal fissure but I've done different RX salves--some work, some don't. Suffered hemorrhoids after my daughter's birth--had an internal one fixed when I had tubes tied, but even now, seven years after that (daughter born 9 years ago), I still suffer from external hemorrhoids (I had a colonoscopy this spring in which it showed that I still have minor internal hemorrhoids.). And occasionally, the fissure will break open. But not that often.
Lifestyle affects them; eat more fiber, take fish oil, drinks lots and lots of water. It's suspected my food allergies and intolerances play a role (I just found out about them last year), and there might possibly be some genetic problems; we're still exploring.
As someone who's had an internal hemorrhoid fixed; if you can live with them--the fissures--I'd suggest that. Surgery is by no way fun, nor does it guarantee that they won't come back. Sitz baths with cornstarch are a good way to bring relief and relieve the itch. Colonix by drnatura.com is a wonderful product; it offers a lot of fiber. I find that I don't have as many problems with bm straining if I take their fiber product regularly.
Hi L.
I had dealt with hemmorhoids for 10 years and then also started having the fissures. My doctor prescribed an anal foam spray that seemed to work. Was scheduled for a colonoscopy but found out I was PG so delayed that. After the baby was born I started using Reliv. Within 3 months started noticing a difference and in 3 years of using Reliv I haven't had anymore issues with fissures or hemmorhoids. So happy to avoid the hemmorhoid surgery because my Mom went through that too and said it was the most painful thing ever so I am sorry you had to go through that. If you want more information you can email me.
Blessings,
L.
Hey L.-
I had to respond because I went through the same thing after giving birth to my daughter 4 1/2 years ago. I was constantly in pain and trying to go to the bathroom was torture. I did end up having the surgery using only a local because I was breastfeeding. After the surgery I took 800 mg of ibuprofen for pain for a few days. I have not had any problems with tearing since which is really nice. Good luck in your decision!
I had this after the birth of my second child. My doctor prescribed an anal foam spray (like Lisa mentioned) and that took care of it very quickly. I would ask for that before I had surgery. Good Luck.
My husband is a chiropractor and suggests a product they carry in his office http://pilex.com/ and acupuncture for the pain. I know i'd try this before i'd jump into surgery.
his website/email is on my profile if you want to send him an email w/ questions - he wouldn't mind.
I feel your pain my friend... i was in the same boat earlier this year... mine came right after i had my first child. Have they given you any topical cream for it? Thats what they gave me, then also had me taking stool softeners. I am not at home right now, so i don't have the name of the topical med... it was a pain in the butt to get though (no pun intended). What they ended up doing is crushing up pills, and putting it in some sort of... um kind of like petroleum jelly... but thicker i think. Anyway... good luck i know what pain it is... i couldn't bm with out basically screaming. at work... that is pretty embarrassing. Good luck to you.
I am so sorry you are going through this. Before surgery, start taking metamucil. It is easy to find and doesn't taste THAT bad. I also took Tylenol to help with the discomfort. I know that sounds wierd - but it helped me. You need to try to get your body back on track.
I tried the softeners and such and it never helped. And I really didn't want to use any harsh laxitives (SP?). The only thing that helped was the metamucil taken once or twice a day for a few months. I would try that before surgery. Good luck to you.
My hubby had these. He was also prescribed some anal foam stuff that took care of it. Good luck.
I had them after giving birth to my second...once every few years they may come back for a very short time.
You really need to deal with the CAUSE of the issue - medicines are helpful temporarily but will not end your problems.
I agree with the poster about the importance of fiber plus water - this is the best advice. I would also add Omega 3s to soften things.
Good luck - I hope you can avoid surgery!
