My LIS journey

To hell and back (hopefully)

Are you having, or have you had a Lateral Internal Sphincterotomy (LIS)? Please share your experiences here, or ask any questions.

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Re: My LIS journey

Postby brokenbottom » 10 May 2016, 17:50

Hello there Ahoos26! It's so helpful this board isn't it - just helps to know you're not alone with your stupid fissure!

I quite agree about wanting this thing gone. I can't believe how long my life has been on hold - I've been off work for months now and have lost touch with normal life and my friends. It's hard to be sociable with this on your mind all the time, so it's such a comfort to be able to chat to people who know what it's like.

Since the operation I've had good and bad days, but generally I guess there has been week by week improvement. Although today I've had quite a bit of pain and that's really scary. I'm just praying tomorrow I'll be back on the right track again.

Interesting to hear you have the same "gotta go" feeling. I didn't get that before the operation and I was taking the same potions more or less. But at least it means I don't have time to get in pre-BM panic mode, which is what I have done in the past. It's ridiculous to end up scared of your own body!

So here's to good bottom health for us all. Let me know how you're getting on. BB x
Suffered acute AFs since about 2010
2015 Chronic AF diagnosed
18/2/16 Botox (unsuccessful)
12/4/16 Lateral anal sphincterotomy and removal of polyp and two tags
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Re: My LIS journey

Postby dmcff » 11 May 2016, 10:19

BB, the "batches" are apparently just batches of clinic appointments which the hospital issues periodically to the Choose & Book service. So basically I'm waiting for the new batch of appointments. "Waiting" is the operative word here, I guess...

I could have got an appointment sooner if I had chosen a hospital that had vacant slots, but I chose my local hospital, as I don't really want to travel longish distances to and from, and my local hospital doesn't have any slots that are free yet.

Also, I suppose I'm still trying to weigh up the pros and cons of surgical intervention. While I have pain almost every day and/or night, I'm also able to function fairly normally - go shopping, drive the car, visit the swimming pool, take a short walk in my neighbourhood, etc., and I don't want to do anything that might jeopardize that.
2014 Anal fissure
2015 CAT, EUA, sigmoidoscopy, 2 MRI
2016 Pain severe then moderate to low
2017 Moderate pain
2018 Physical therapy, pain management
2019-20 Living with it
2021 Still AF
2022 Therapy, meditation
2023 Pneumonia
2024 CT scan, MRI, ERCP
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Re: My LIS journey

Postby brokenbottom » 11 May 2016, 11:57

Hi Dave!

Well I hope that the batches are released soon. This really isn't a condition you want to be travelling with if you can help it!

Also I would say that if you are still having some decent quality of life, LIS isn't something to stumble into. As my surgeon said - it gets worse before it gets better. And the recovery takes a long old time. Good luck and keep me posted. BB x
Suffered acute AFs since about 2010
2015 Chronic AF diagnosed
18/2/16 Botox (unsuccessful)
12/4/16 Lateral anal sphincterotomy and removal of polyp and two tags
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Re: My LIS journey

Postby dmcff » 11 May 2016, 12:08

Yes - apart from anything else, and outside any commitment to surgery, I'd just like to talk to a CRS for once, instead of an often harassed and overworked GP.

I hope that your recovery continues to bring about an improvement in your life, and that AF pain will soon be a thing of the past for you. We don't deserve to be held hostage by our bodies in this way.
2014 Anal fissure
2015 CAT, EUA, sigmoidoscopy, 2 MRI
2016 Pain severe then moderate to low
2017 Moderate pain
2018 Physical therapy, pain management
2019-20 Living with it
2021 Still AF
2022 Therapy, meditation
2023 Pneumonia
2024 CT scan, MRI, ERCP
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Re: My LIS journey

Postby Canadabum » 11 May 2016, 15:25

BB - very glad to hear that things are better than before. Progress is great...even if it is sloooooow. You've been through quite an ordeal and you are slowly but surely making it to the other side....excellent news.

All my best - CB
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Re: My LIS journey

Postby brokenbottom » 25 May 2016, 05:18

It's six weeks now since my surgery so time for a little update.

I suppose I had hoped that I'd be 100 percent cured by now but that was rather fanciful. Generally though things are moving in the right direction but the progress is a wavy line rather than a straight upwards slope. I have days that for much of the time I almost don't think about my rear end (as compared to thinking about it the whole damn time before the op) but there are days when I'm quite sore and sitting for any length of time is uncomfortable.

But it's all relative; the pain is different. More like a dull ache (think I've seen people on here refer to a "kicked in the butt" feeling) compared to the intense medieval-torture style pain of the fissure before the op.

I'm back at work but not going in in the mornings as I still feel a whole day sitting at a desk would be too much. I still get quite wiped out easily and get depressed from time to time which I think is almost like post-traumatic stress disorder. But then I'm an old biddy going through the menopause too so it's hard to separate things out!

I feel able to do most things except travel or go to a theatre-style show - anything that requires extended periods of compulsory sitting. After sitting for a while I get quite uncomfortable - a sort of bruised, tweaky feeling. Sometimes I don't feel the pain until I stand up.

I'm still taking Fibogel, a pro-biotic with fibre in it, 3 x Dulcoease and a small dose of Lactulose before bed. This moves things along well, almost too well. I generally have a BM pretty soon after I get up in the mornings. I'm concerned that the time between thinking maybe I need to go and having to go NOW is only a couple of minutes or so. I worry that if this happens away from home I could be in some serious difficulties! However I raised this with my GP yesterday and she thinks that will improve with time and once I come off the Lactulose. I hope so as it does prey on my mind.

The other thing is passing wind - I don't have the control I used to have before the op. But maybe I had too much and that was the problem! I've had a few awkward moments with unexpected passing of wind but they do seem to be getting fewer as time goes by thank goodness.

So all in all I feel on the verge of being fully integrated back into society, but with a few extra hang-ups I didn't have before. And overall I don't regret for a minute having the op - things are 100 times better than they were before I had it.

Hope everyone else is coping and moving towards good bottom health. BB x
Suffered acute AFs since about 2010
2015 Chronic AF diagnosed
18/2/16 Botox (unsuccessful)
12/4/16 Lateral anal sphincterotomy and removal of polyp and two tags
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Re: My LIS journey

Postby dmcff » 25 May 2016, 06:51

Thanks for the update, BB. It sounds as though the LIS did the trick, even if there are some bad days along with the good ones. I'm glad you are coping with the recovery, and that your life is gradually returning to normal.

I now have a 15-minute appointment with a CRS booked for 16th June at a local hospital (a private one, but on the NHS). Am viewing it with mixed feelings - I guess what I want is an objective appraisal of my condition from a specialist, and an indication of what might be the best way forward for me. I still have some rectal pain every day, and some days are better than others - but there's also a sense that this has been going on for too long (18 months already). I can do most daily tasks without problem, though there is an added price of discomfort. I balk at the idea of travel, and in general don't want to venture far from home.
2014 Anal fissure
2015 CAT, EUA, sigmoidoscopy, 2 MRI
2016 Pain severe then moderate to low
2017 Moderate pain
2018 Physical therapy, pain management
2019-20 Living with it
2021 Still AF
2022 Therapy, meditation
2023 Pneumonia
2024 CT scan, MRI, ERCP
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Re: My LIS journey

Postby brokenbottom » 26 May 2016, 04:23

Thanks Dave. I hope that your appointment yields some answers and some hope. Living a sort of half life for all that time is not right. Come back and let us know how you get on.
BB x
Suffered acute AFs since about 2010
2015 Chronic AF diagnosed
18/2/16 Botox (unsuccessful)
12/4/16 Lateral anal sphincterotomy and removal of polyp and two tags
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Re: My LIS journey

Postby Hopeful1 » 27 May 2016, 09:44

Hi BB!

Glad to hear you're still on the road to a complete recovery. Your update sounds identical to where I am right now too, and I'm a few weeks ahead of you.

I did something very stupid and experimented (too optimistically) with fibre supplements. As a result, a couple of bulkier/firmer stools resulted in stretching and my fissure is now pretty angry! So I feel like I've set myself back a few weeks - my own fault of course. I'm upset and feel like a ****ing idiot :~!@:

I only did this because I was going to the toilet too often. It wasn't painful but I thought "hmm well maybe if I go less often it'll make things heal quicker. Yeah! 8) "

No more experimenting. Just gonna put up with the frequency and not do anything stupid!!!

Good luck xxx
Haemorrhoids: for about 8 years - lived with it
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Re: My LIS journey

Postby brokenbottom » 27 May 2016, 10:18

Hello Hopeful1!

Ooh nooo! Poor you - that's really annoying and upsetting. It's hard to resist tweaking your potions to try to make things better but it doesn't always have the right results.

I'm suffering in a similar way today; in more pain that I've had for a few weeks. Not entirely sure what went wrong but having eaten a variety of tried-and-tested home-made dinners over the past weeks, last night we had supermarket ravioli before heading out for the evening, because it was quicker. I think the combination of lower fibre content plus sitting down for too long while we were out made my system cross and so I've ended up with pain for most of the day today following a BM.

Horrible to feel like you've been setback isn't it? Everything crossed that we're both just having a small blip on the onwards and upwards chart.

BB x
Suffered acute AFs since about 2010
2015 Chronic AF diagnosed
18/2/16 Botox (unsuccessful)
12/4/16 Lateral anal sphincterotomy and removal of polyp and two tags
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