I am a constantly worrying too.
My problem is i have fissures and the fistula combo but one had nothing to do with the other.
So on top of worrying about my fistula healing ...im always worried about my fissures ripping again.
My surgeon did tell me that he had to cut my sphinctor a bit during the fistulotomy...so it will lower the recurrence of my fissures. But only time will tell.
And through the stress of all this ..i went from having 1 bowel movement a day to 3 .with a bit of cramping... i have always been a the type to have hyperactive intestines when im stressed. So worried about going to the bathroom makes me wanna go to the bathroom vicious cycle ! So i have to work on the psychological part of all this too....
I tell myself that i do have a good CRS and that i am in good hands ....so all should be well i guess.

I know may be its too late to respond but i have had a simple superficial fistulotomy with skin tag excision done this week, its my 3rd day now and i do see yellowish staff on the wound and i see the pinkish, yellowish discharge on the gauze. I also think its a little bit swollen there but trying to examine too much for the sake of my sanity at the moment. I just wanted to let you know guys that there are no right or wrong decision re the surgery, everyone is different and everyones pain limits are different. Pls share your worst and best moments, be informed but listen to your heart when it comes to decisions. I just had my first bm ... Which i was dreading of!!! in the hot water sitz bath... I thought im gonna faint as i had so much pressure and spasm! But i survived, the pain right away was sharp and excrutiating but different from my fissure/ fistula pain that i dealt with for 2 years...i called my bf asking to prepare a bath for me and started crying... He told me you should be happy on the first bm and not crying, i think he already thinks i went nuts. But still very supportive. I didnt not have any spasm after bm and I took a pk and now sitting in hot bath again. Im 28 yo female, healthy and who used to work out everyday, and i dont even want to ask myself why me....

No is not too late to respond :) .

So I am one month post fistulotomy. I had my 2 weeks post surgery check up and the doc said the yellow stuff always stuck to the surface of my wound is fibrine and i need not to worry and a couple of days after i saw him ..the yellow mucus started to come off of the wound. I still have yellow discharge and a bit of blood after BM depending of the consistency.

So in general ...i would say the first week was the hardest pain wise.

Second week was still painful but i definately notice and improvement.

Third week ( which was last week ) : was pretty much painless.

Fourth week : so since two days ago..bowel movement was a started to be painful ...i think its because the wound is healing closer ...so when stool passes it scratches it. After BW ..im pain free ...

So hang in there ... you will feel better soon ! :)
PS : i gave up going in sitz bath after 2 days .... i found it easier to go without and didnt make a difference pain wise for me.

Thank you so much for your quick response:) and your positive input! Im very happy to hear that you are doing better and i wish you more and more pain free, "back to normal life" days:) My CRS is very good too, but i cant call him obviously with every little question... My life know can be described as awaiting my next BM as i dont know what to expect with every new one coming:) i took 4 days of work for some "mystery" surgery and now dont know how to explain ppl that i cant quiet sit on my ass...to be honest im about to start telling everyone i know "btw you know i have AF:)" just to stop making the stuff up and suffer inside:( i also have a trip coming up, planned few months ago, which i will be def delaying... Thanks again for your sharing, please keep us updated or please pm me. After what every one of us here has went through, we all deserve forgetting about this pain forever!!!

Only 4 days off ? My CRS gave me paper to allow 2 weeks off work ( but i didnt need it anyways because i am on maternity leave ) .
So in a way i didnt have to go through the process of telling my boss/coworkers "the story" .

Only 4 days off work is rough ....there is no other way for you to take more ?.I cant imagine going in any toilet other than mine.

Ill see how i feel, i definitely can ask for more days but nowadays you know how it is... i dont want to loose my job as it pays my insurance:) my CRS promised me quick recovery lol. I know a lot of them do... Im the same like you, i can only use my toilet:) i have my squat potty also as well as before and after care hygiene stuff, its a whole ritual...

Hope you both are recovering well still. Mdeegan, message me about going back to work and I can give you some advice on what I did to stay normal, sane and deal with it. For that matter, anyone may message me. I'm happy to provide support, even by gmail chat or something. I definitely get how stressful this is, but know you are supported. Hang in there!!

Same goes for me ! Since i am a month of healing ahead for you ..feel free to ask me questions ! :)

Yraine, Manitourose, i cant thank you enough for offering your support! i did start to work 2 days ago, so far it went well, i am on a very strict diet right now only fruits, plums juice, yogurt with bran cereal ( not sure if its good but i need protein). I sit not more then 2 hours and go for short walks. Noone really knows what exactly im going through but they know i had a surgery and Being understanding for the most part. I think if i had a cut on my hand, the post op life would be so much easier:)
The most concerning part is ofcourse BM's. Thank god none of them happened when i was at work! I had 4 so far. The first 3 was like a complete hell, the spasm that i was going through even though doing it in the water was like there is no tomorrow... I had to have my bf close by to right away make me hot bath and bring me Percocet. My eyes were coming out!! I was thinking of putting Rectiv that i had left over, but wasnt sure if it was good for the wound...hot bath would slowly bring me back to reality and Percocet would make me relax . I still would have pain, not the same as before, but pretty prominent. Today was my # 4 in the water and it was much better. Still very tense and still pain, but MUCH less. Thank god! The conclusion i made it: diet is most important. I stopped taking Miralax and instead the day before i ate cooked beat salad with olive oil. Whoever is breaking their head what to eat post surgery, beats is the answer.
My question to you guys: what happen when you need to go when you are at work? I had to leave work early today to make it home to my toilet and my sitz bath and then to hot bath...
The other question: are you putting any medications like Rectiv or Diltiazem? As far as i know my fistula was superficial and no cutting of the sphincter was done. Ill double check with my CRS next week on my follow up, but i was pretty clear with him before the procedure that i dont want that. So i do still experience the spasm. Is it normal?
Any input would be appreciated! Thank you guys again, i do feel supported and i know there are so many people who are looking for this information!! If 2 years ago on the those bs doctors could diagnose me right and explain me what im going through .. my situation would be different. But it is what it is and It definetely made me stronger:))

Cant really answer you for spasm because i dont think i am experiencing them ...the only thing i put on my wound is polysporin after BM ( it is one of the post-op directions)..

Diet wise : i have resumed to my regular diet and one dose of metamucil per day. I found that if worry too much about what i eat and obsess about getting enough fiber makes me more depressed than anything, because every meal would remind me that i am not "normal". So now if i feel like eating mac and cheese ....then so be it ! My butthole is huge now anyhoo ( thats what i tell myself ) ..