Hi, I'm new here. I am scheduled for Fistulotomy in 4 days. Doc won't know extent til he goes in. Am freaking out, not knowing what I will come out of surgery with terrifies me. I have read about all the down time, I'm a stay-at-home mom and am not sure how all this is going to play out. My youngest just turned 3. This has been hard for me to wrap my head around, am getting more emotional about it as it's getting closer. Any advice for before or after would be greatly appreciated.

Hi Mel,
Welcome to the Forum! There are so many people here who can relate to what you are feeling, and give you great advice.
I have not had an operation myself, so I just want to say - if you possibly can, get help with the children during the day for a few days after the op. You need to look after yourself, and as we all know, a three year old won't make that easy.

It's very natural to be afraid, but please don't get too worried. For most people, the operation, be it fistulotomy or LIS or whatever, is the beginning of healing and a return to normal life. Hang on to that - in a few weeks you will be feeling so much better. You have to get through this, and it could be very difficult, but in the end you WILL be through it.

Hang in there, stay strong for your children's sake and your own sake. Good luck!

Thank you Scientist2516 for your kind words. Hoping for the best but preparing for the worst. My husband will be caring for the children the first couple days then needs to go back to work. He needed time off over the holidays due to a head trauma. He is doing much better but I still need to clean and re-dress his wound everyday. I have been pushing back this procedure to care for him and am hoping it hasn't gotten too bad by waiting. Needless to say it's been a pretty rough few months here.

Hang in there Mel!
It'll be over before you know it and then on to recovery.. the first few days will be the worst of it.. and in about a week things will start to settle down and you'll feel better.
I've been through this a few times now :) so please reach out if you have any questions at all!

Hi Diamond2. Thank you for your words of encouragement. I have read some of your posts and am sorry you have had such an ordeal. Hoping you will heal soon and return to a "normal" life. I did want to ask you if there was anything in particular you have found that has helped you in recovery, wound cleaning, healing. I am trying to stock up on supplies as only 1 more day til surgery. I have baby wipes, a travel bidet, sitz bath, Vitamin C. Anything that you or anyone else can recommend?

Sounds like you are well prepared! I used a hand held shower (still do) to clean the area, but sounds like the travel bidet would do the same thing. I used sea salt in my sitz bath - I tried epsom salt as well but found sea salt to be more soothing and helpful with healing. I also took zinc after my first surgery as it helps with healing, but I do think it can constipate so if you may be prone to that I would avoid it. Vitamin C definitely helps. Ensure you're eating very clean - lots of fresh veggies and protein. Drink LOTS of water if you're on any pain killers - I was trying to drink 8-10 glasses a day. I still ended up constipated a couple of times but that's because I was taking percocet quite frequently. If you're taking anything similar ensure you take stool softeners and laxatives as necessary.

After the surgery you may have packing in the wound. Not sure where you live - but here the hospital sends you home with the supplies for that and a nurse visits daily - she also orders extra supplies. If it's not the same for you, you may want to purchase some sterile gauze that you'll use to catch any drainage/blood from the wound during recovery.

Post surgery I would advise you to rest lots - take it easy as much as possible. The first week will be the hardest but after day 3-4 you will notice that you'll slowly start to feel like yourself again. Keep us posted - and remember you can always come on here to vent :)

Actually after that last appointment with my surgeon and the silver nitrate application, I haven't seen any blood (this is 48 hours since) so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that maybe it's finally going to close up on its own?

Thank you so much for the info, I truly appreciate it. I'm in Maryland, I think I am on my own for wound care here. Trying to enjoy these last moments of "normalcy" as surgery is in the morning.

Good luck, Mel. We'll be thinking and rooting for you!

Hi Mel ... Fistfulas are not things that heal on their own so surgery is the first step on the road to recovery ... Just remember to chase ur pain meds with a laxative..lol keeping ur stool soft will also help making it easier to have a bm ... I had a fistolomty on dec 10 and a seton put in ... I too didn't know what would take place til the doc got in there ... This site is wonderful for knowledge and support .. It helped me so much with the mental stressing as not many people know or chat about this stuff... Keep us posted and don't be afraid to ask questions

Hey diamond so glad to hear things have settled with the bleeding ... Brighter days ahead :)

Hope all went well today Mel! As Dewlilly said these things don't heal on their own so you're doing the right thing. Update us when you can!