Months ago I would have never thought that I would be writing this. I spent the last six months with 6-8 hours per day in terrible pain. I adjusted my diet, took vitamins, ate super foods, used Vaseline before I would go #2, used Balneol to wipe, sitz baths 4-8/day, 3,000mg Ibuprofen daily, 3,000mg Tylenol daily, nifedipine 3 times daily... did I mention that it was terrible. The long sleepless nights gave me a chance to read forums like this one and educate myself on possible solutions.
In the end, I went back to my CRS and she suggested LIS. At this point, I would have taken a bullet if she would have suggested it. Going in to the surgery was nerve racking, I hate going under and I had never had surgery before. I also want to premise this with one fact: I am a big wuss with very little pain tolerance! If I can go through with this, then you can to- and you DO deserve your life back!
Here are some points that I feel need to be addressed about surgery:
- it will hurt, but they make good drugs for that.
- start taking your pain medicine as soon as possible once your surgery is complete.
- start taking Miralax three(3) days prior to your surgery. The narcotics that they give you will constipated you and cause unnecessary pain and delay in healing.
- keep ice packs, frozen peas or whatever you prefer on hand and ready to go. This is an essential part of mitigating the swelling from your surgery.
- plan on staying home for seven(7) days after the surgery. You are dealing with a part of your body that is stressed by every move that you make. You need to give it time to heal properly. If you don't, then chances are the surgery will be a waist of time.
- don't go overboard with laxatives, fibers and greens. You do not want diarrhea! Speak with your CRS and most of the time if you are on Miralax three days in advance and you have a normal, healthy diet then you will not need anything else.
- take sitz baths 5-8 times per day. This is an essential part of keeping your bottom clean after #2s, stimulating blood flow through that part of your body and aid in your ability to urinate after surgery.
- Men! One in five men cannot urinate after surgery due to the anesthetics and prostate swelling. If you have a hard time going, sit in a warm bath or shower. Try to relax and take deep breaths. Do not drink a lot of fluids if you are unable to go. Contact your CRS if you cannot go and be ready for a catheter. It is not that bad, I was scared to death by it, and then realized that it is just for two days and no painful or even uncomfortable once in.
- when I went to do #2 I realized that they had inserted a bandage material internally as part of the surgery. This will come out when you #2. I had a thrombose hemmy show up after surgery. So between the hemmy and bandage, I was closed shut. It had been two days since the surgery and I had not gone. I pulled mine out slowly in the bathtub with very little pain. Shortly after I had my first #2
! - when it comes time to #2, have a sitz bath ready to go. The pain will be different from the fissure. It is more of a short term burning, rather than a knife like the fissure. The bath will really help the initial pain. I alternate my sitz baths with ice packs laying on the bed.
This is my third day, and I have seen a consistent improvement. I know that a lot of folks are different and even have multiple surgeries at once. These are just tips that I have stolen from the web, and used them successfully as a system. This condition is by far one of the most painful to deal with. Take your time and know that investing in the right approach upfront, utilizing the right tools to heal and giving yourself plenty of time will be essential to success. Make a plan and stick to it.
