We are happy to talk to you about these things. I know-I wish I had just sprained my ankle or something.

Magenesium is great for getting the smooth muscle in the rectum to relax so you can go more easily. I take it every day.
I have never found Aleve to do anything but ibuprofen seems to help. My doctor told me I could take 800 mg 3 times a day. I would seriously consider treating the pain more aggressively so you don't feel desperate and depressed.

hi rose,
sorry for your situation in that you are all around consumed with anxiety - from your fissure and starting a new job.
yes, the magnesium supplement may aid in helping things relax and get somewhat softer. i was taking 200mg x 3 daily. the average per day dose depending on the person is between 400 mg and 650 mg. i've read of people taking more than that on a daily basis.
you seem to be taking some good supplements. you may want to consider adding the following as well: flax seed oil and aloe vera juice. the aloe vera juice (it's a very basic watery form that has a little icky taste (to me) that you drink 3 times a day - about 1-2 tablespoons - before eating.). the flax seed oil capsule, is like your omega and vitamin e gel caps.
with regards to how you BM, i would highly recommend squatting on the toilet bowl or find yourself a little cat litter box to use and scoop out your poop afterwards. i found that squatting helped me very very much but at first it was hard and in a couple of days it got better and so forth.
if you have some time, read up on macrobiotics. there is a link in my signature that will get you started and it just offers another way of looking at what you eat.
i wonder if your pain may also be associated with a hemmy, a fistula, or the beginning of an abscess. have you noticed any fever, chills, uneven temperature?
with regards to washing your butt, please refrain from using any soap applied directly to the anus! simply rinse with warm water and don't insert your finger to reach in and clean. just rinse the outside of it.
with regards to toilet paper, i recommend buying some charmin baby wipes or the wonderful freshmates brand. i love them and they will be more gentle on your bum when you need to wipe.
stay away from witch hazel.
make sure your anus is very dry - use a blow dryer after showering to make sure it is dry and then add a moisturizer such as palmers cocoa butter with vitamin e. just apply a light dab and work it in gently. this will hopefully help you keep your skin elastic as you need it when you BM.
these are some of the simplest changes that you can do for now with little effort.
the other changes are diet. you'll need a good source of fiber and water.
if you are willing to try macrobiotics, it may help you out. after almost 4 years of suffering with my fissure, macrobiotics helped in a course of six months, with immediate results within a month's time for me. i was scheduled to do an LIS and fistulotomy but after one month of completely immersing myself in macrobiotics, i was able to get an OK from my CRS to cancel the surgeries and i opted to keep my colonoscopy instead.
all is well now. no fissure.
just laverne - a little skin tag that can easily ruin my day!!!! :-) she's been good lately though!

I went to see a new family doctor today. She was SO nice. I explained the problems that I was having and she told me that she developed a fissure during childbirth and said the pain from BMs was worse than the actual labour!
She took a look at my poor bum and told me that the fissure is really bad. (which did not make me feel very good!) She has referred me to a CRS but it may take 6 months to see her. Stupid Canadian health system!!
She had no experience with fissure medications and would not prescribe me nefedipine(sp?) until she had researched it. She prescribed nitro ointment. I have not filled the prescription yet but it says 2% Nitro. Should this be 0.2%??

The several sites I just visited based on a google search all spoke of the nitro cream at 0.2%.
It is confusing, because the Nefedipine & Diltiazem are at 2.0 %.
Call your pharmacist to be sure about the dosage...

Thanks Kim. Im going to do that.

I am so happy that you found a doctor who can empathize with you! I hope the nitro helps and maybe since she understands your plight she will do some research quickly on the other creams too if need be.

2% is too high!!! If it is Nitro it should be 0.2%. It has to be compounded at a compounding pharmacy. My CRS gave me a list of compounding pharmacies in my area.

I'm really pleased that you got to see a nice Dr.
Your health system in Canada sounds a bit like ours here in England, it's a bit of a wait!
I hope the crs can sort you out though, hopefully you'll beon the mend soon.