And I would guess by Christmas you won't even have thought about the fissure in months!

I'm so sorry that that happened to you, but am very happy that you had a spouse to get you back to the hospital in time (you could have bled so profusely that you might not even have been able to call 911 if you were alone).

I'm also glad that you posted this, because many people believe that minor surgeries (or even "procedures") pose no risk, but they all do, and even though the risk is often very low, it still exists and people should never undergo any surgery without first (very carefully) weighing the pros and cons of doing so.

Good luck with the rest of your recovery - it sounds like it is moving along very well already.

I'm so sorry you have had to go through such a horrible experience, and that's really not on for a hospital!
Thank god you are ok now and seem to be doing a lot better I'm really pleased things are improving for you and it always helps having a spouse that is supporting you I couldn't live without mine the last 2 years! :)

Wow! You have been put through the mill, haven't you, bajobuddy!?

Really pleased though to hear you were able to find out what was going wrong and get it sorted in time.

Here's hoping that things run smoother for you from now on...

Day 15:

Hi all,

Good and bad news on the LIS recovery front. Firstly, the good:

Bowel motions not too bad at all, although I am taking two sachets of Movicol every day (morning/bedtime). The bleeding has pretty much stopped except for the odd small mark which can happen with an explosive bowel motion. On the whole, though, pretty good considering. I'm going twice a day - would like only once, but there we are!

Now the bad:

I have an abscess just to the left hand side of the anus. It's about the size of a jelly bean and makes sitting pretty much out of the question unless I sit sideways with my legs up, which I'm doing. It's been seeping puss for about 5 or 6 days and I've seen my GP 2 or 3 times to check on this, my blood count (following the five pints I lost in the hospital!) and higher heart rate. Every so often the abscess semi-bursts and out comes the puss and other debris. My GP said if it gets worse or doesn't improve I need the take the antibiotics she prescribed. Naturally, I'm trying to avoid this if I can because of effects the wretched things so soon after surgery.

She didn't think it needed draining as it's already leaking puss - also cutting it open again might be risky because of my blood loss issue and the time it took to stop bleeding. I'm currently dabbing it several times again and having sitz baths on the loo with salt in (again my GPs suggestion - the salt). So if anyone has any really good ideas regarding the abscess, I'd love to hear them before I embark on a hideous week long round of antibiotics!!!

Other than this, I'm feeling a bit stronger after eating cottage pies, blueberries and the iron supplement, Spatone. It's gradual but I think my normal bloods and heart rate will gradually return to normal. Despite all of these setbacks, I don't really regret it. In the long run the abscess will go, by fair means or foul.

Those contemplating LIS, please don't be put off by my bad luck - this really doesn't happen very often.

So, again, any ideas for the abscess - I'd love to hear them.

Hey, glad your doing a bit better, sorry to hear about the abscess! I have actually booked in to see my dr this afternoon as I think I have one too, the incision site keeps bleeding even after gas and this morning I notice it was bleeding and hurts more, so I had a look and there is a tiny bump there so I'm thinking it looks like I have an infection, I'm really worried because I'm allergic to antibiotics too!

Hi banjo glad your feeling a bit better after such an awful experience.
Just a thought of maybe adding some oregano oil into your sitz baths. You can google the effectiveness of oregano oil for abscesses and fistulas.
I lived in Germany for 5 years and it is used in hospitals over there to treat infection
I really hope this improves for you as you really do deserve some luck.
So positive that your feeling stronger hope it continues well for you

Thanks MPB, I'll give that a try. I think I read about that somewhere else too. At the moment it's driving me mad. Sooo sore and tender. This has nothing to really do with the LIS, which is very frustrating.

Becka, good luck with your doctor's appointment. Might be worth trying MPB's idea as well :-) I was worried mine would keep on bleeding, but it suddenly just stopped. I also had the huge blood loss episode, so I really would imagine yours will stop very soon. I had two very loose motions today, which is sort of good and bad lol! Cleaning everything up with the abscess there is not fun. Also, if you haven't got one, get a plastic sitz bath with a squirty thingy that fits in the loo. It does help a bit - also add some salt to the water. Every little helps.

We'll get over this seriously unpleasant hump and then we'll be able to see things a LOT more positively :-)

Day 16:

Had a loose motion this morning probably due to the Movicol and fruit/veggies I'm eating. My wife's gone out this morning to get me the Oregano oil - hopefully she'll find it at Holland & Barratt. Abscess still there (no surprise!) and it bursts abd refills at regular intervals depending on how much I move.

My daughter is doing a Maypole dance tomorrow afternoon at her school fete, so I really want to be there as it's her last opportunity before junior school. I am a little fearful of walking there, even though it's a five minute walk from our house.

I had a funny turn this morning after suffering a bad bowel cramp while sitting watching the telly. I've suffered from these all my life and get them occasionally. The cure is usually to get up and walk swiftly around, which I did despite the abscess. Anyhow, with my low blood pressure/iron levels I started to feel quite dizzy and weak and ended up leaning on the kitchen cabinet till it passed, after a couple of minutes. I then went outside to get some air which really helped. About an hour later I also went for my first walk around the block - took about 7 or 8 minutes, but I managed it pretty well. My legs are a bit weak with the lack of exercise and iron issues, but it wasn't too bad. My wife will probably lecture me about not going out on my own when she's not there. I can be wilfull lol!

Boredom is setting in, along with frustration and longing to feel right again. Sorry if I'm rambling a bit - just thought I'd keep you all up to date with my progress (just an excuse for me to whinge, lol!)

Hey, so the doctor said it was infected and looked fine described it as a pimple? Not really sure what she meant by that but I keep panicking thinking she's gone it wrong!
Let me know how you get on with the oregano oil.. and I really hope you manage to make your daughters dance :)