This is my first post although I have been reading other people's posts for some time. Firstly, I would like to thank everyone who has taken the trouble to contribute to this forum. I cannot tell you how much it has helped me during some particularly dark pain filled AF days.


I developed an AF is at the start of July. Initially I was given GTN cream and after four weeks the nurse practitioner at my local surgery told me it had “healed”. Unfortunately because of side effects (severe headaches and skin soreness) I was advised to stop using the cream at that point. My zeal to eat sufficient fibre, however overstimulated my bowels which resulted a couple of weeks later in a re-tear. I was then given Diltiazem cream to try and whilst it didn't give me any side-effects, it never came close to healing the AF.


By the middle of November I realised that I was unlikely to get rid of the AF without surgical intervention. This was something I had wanted to avoid at all costs but the AF was now completely ruling my life.


As I live in England, I had two choices I could wait, probably months, on the NHS for treatment or I could pay to be seen privately. I decided to go down the private route, as to be honest, I was ready to give away my every last penny to be free of the AF.


I met with my consultant of choice a week later and after examination, he offered me: Botox or LIS. I knew before meeting him that I did not want to go down the Botox route. I had never had surgery of any kind in my life and the thought of a general anaesthetic really scared me. I therefore wanted the best chance of success at the first attempt. I requested LIS without hesitating. My consultant said in my situation, he would have chosen the same option. He asked me when I would like the operation carried out and I said as soon as possible! It was scheduled for the following week.


I had the operation on Friday 9th December so I am currently on day four post LIS. I will write a separate post about my experience in a few days time when the "dust has settled”.

Hi Sue,
Glad you have managed to get your fissure sorted and as a fellow Brit I can say yes you would have been waiting months and you would have had no choice other than to have had the Botox first as that was my journey on our lovely NHS. It took me 18 months in total and I'm certain resulted in my fissure being to quote my surgeon horrendous.
Yes the fissure gives us lots of dark days but like you this forum has been my saving grace...a light in a tunnel I was sure had no end.
I'm sure this time next year this will all be a dim and distant memory for you and you will be back to your normal self very soon. If your first days after LIS have been tough keep going it does get better. If you are one of the lucky ones that it helped straight away then congratulations....and yes I'm secretly jealous
I look forward to hearing your journey as I know how much it helps me and others
A very big welcome
MPB

Hi MPB
Thank you for your reply. This may seem strange but I feel as if I know you quite well as I have been following your posts since I first started reading the forum. It’s nice to get the chance to speak to you.
Yes, my LIS surgery seems to have helped me straight away. I have little pain which I am still finding hard to grasp. I keep waiting for it to kick in. I am swollen and bruised but I don’t care about that in the slightest. I am having some problems with my bowels though. I do suffer from IBS - not majorly but when my bowels get irritated, it results in multiple BMs for a few days. Since the general anaesthetic, I seem to be going quite a few times each day but producing little on each visit. This may in part be because I daren’t strain or push, so my BMs are never expelled in a single visit. I am working on my diet but trying to get a balance between not too hard and not too soft is a nightmare!

When I went to see my GP in November, he said that the next step was botox... I suspected that unless I went private I would have no chance of getting what I wanted. When my Consultant talked about LIS, I could have hugged him!

I hope you have now turned a corner in your journey and you will now make swift progress towards healing.

Best wishes
Sue

Hi that's one of the best things about this forum it helps us to connect with people who are going through the same as us. It's good to know people read my posts...I do tend to waffle sometimes as it's a way for me to vent as all my family and lots of my friends are fed up of my butt lol.
I'm so glad your one of the lucky ones Hun as it can be very mentally draining to be worse after than before...plus it really does help others to read positive experiences.
As I'm sure you know I have yet to find a happy medium of BMs so can't really offer much help there....I'm still waiting for someone to invent a magic pill that enables one smooth BM a day.
Yes I begged for LIS and got told heck no by two CRS and my GP it does still bug me that I ended up with LIS after 18 months when I wanted it after 2 months but it's taught me a lesson I'm now a member of BUPA although my very labour pro father would be turning in his grave if he knew lol.
Thanx I too am hoping that the healing continues and my colon can learn to play nice.
Take care