How long should it take before I feel any relief? I am applying the ointment 4 times a day, about 4-1/2 hours apart. I cannot tell any difference at all, except I feel a little dizziness.
Also, I was not instructed on how much ointment to apply. I asked the pharmacist for a syringe. He gave me a 1/2 cc syringe and said he guessed that would be enough ointment to apply and that it depended on how large the fissure was. WTF? Sorry, but it is so frustrating trying to basically heal yourself.
I don't know what I would do without this board right now.
Thanks a million,
Jennie

It took me 4 weeks on Nitro to get any kind of relief and that's because the nitro just promotes healing. It doesn't offer any kind of "cure" or sympton relief.
I used a just over a "pea" size amount and just pushed it up there with the finger. (gross) 2 times a day.
Also, you need to find the right combo of nitro, diet and heat (baths) to fight this thing.
It will get better, but it takes times. Yes, it sucks.
What helped me was I kept a daily record of what I ate, the pain I was feeling on an hourly basis, the types of BM...etc..just everything. I would review it daily and compare it to how I felt the day before, the week before and month before. Find some small victories.

Thank you. That is a great idea of keeping a daily record.
Jennie

i also used a pea sized amount like 3-4 times a day,also after a bm.i started on .05% then went to a 2% which is a very high dose. the doc asked if i had headaches with the .05 i said hardly any,he bumped me way up and said if this gives you really bad headaches,stop using it,it gave me headaches on occasions,but not terrible,ive been using it for like 4 months and the fissure is basically healed.i have other issues i need to tend to down there,but the nitro worked well.i "shoved" it in there also with my finger,then went back to work as a food prep at the resteraunt..without washing...kidding...i always washed before and after to ensure cleanliness[spelling]...it seemed to help when i applied it as it would calm or stop the spasms almost immedetly...i got a refill and still use it i dont really need to but im just overdoing it to be safe

I am only using .02% and getting a slight headache. I have only been on it about 5 days now. Will the headaches go away?

mine came and went,like if i was tired id get a headache, during the evenings when id use it i wouldnt...seems like it was random?? they got worse with the stronger stuff,seemed the more i used it,they became less frequent...

I cannot use nitro-- It gives me terrible headaches... just a little bit causes busting headaches....
sigh-
fissures wear you out, don't they?
vampyre_girl

the nitro always gives me headaches. no matter what. so I decided to use it after every bm and at the midpoint and end of the day. after bm helps to stop the spasms sometimes.

Honetsly though, I did not have much luck with it.

I used nitroglycerin 4 years ago - ONCE! - since it caused such a ferocious headache.
My colorectal surgeon (CRS) prescribed Nifedipine ointment. It's related to a blood pressure medicine or maybe it actually is one when not in ointment form. It has to be mixed at a compounding pharmacy. Applied a pea-sized amount twice per day externally. Tried it internally about an inch - thought it relaxed the internal sphincter more that way - but caused a bad headache lasting hours. Applying it externally helped, too.

how bad were your headaches,and how long did they last? like i say,i started with headaches,but they got less and less.i remember the doc saying some people will get them worse than others...i didnt see results for weeks,then it was minimum,i kept using it till it fixed it,well..all but fixed it...