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new here, just saying hi

Postby whoknew » 04 Dec 2013, 15:02

Hello everyone!

I've been lurking here as a guest for almost a month now, finally got diagnosed yesterday, so I can officially join the club. I don't really want to join this club, but since I don't have a choice, I'm just going to embrace and go with it.

This all started for me in early November. I was taking antibiotics and eating a soft food diet because I'd just had my wisdom teeth extracted. One day, which turned into a stretch of days, some soup, combined with coffee, but really just the soup alone would have done it - diarrhea, burning bottom, etc. As the week(s) went on I thought maybe I had a hemorrhoid. I tried all the over-the-counter stuff: witch hazel, Prep H, Aleve, coconut oil, and an herbal comfrey salve. As time went on it just got worse and worse. I would try to go on rounds at work, and 5 minutes in it felt like my butt was on fire. The pain was intense and by the time the 40 minutes was over I was desperate to sit or lie down.

Then, last week on Wednesday, I had a particularly hard BM and it set off spasms that were breathtakingly painful. I couldn't sit or stand without incredible pain, and I had to leave work early. I spent all day Thursday in bed. Happy Thanksgiving! On Friday I didn't have a BM in the morning so I had no pain, and went and did some errands. I was ready to sit by the time those errands were through! All day Saturday was in the bed, and on Sunday I had to go to work. I was in so much pain all day, I kept trying to arrange my big puffy coat in a way that would cushion me in a way that stopped the pain, but I couldn't find it. I wanted to cry and go home, but I am a manager at an animal shelter and I really needed to be at work.

I still do need to be at work - I have almost no PTO left, and as I've started to realize, a lot of "who I am" is tied up in what I do at work. There's a lot to be done and I feel guilty not doing it. I've been at home in bed all week.

On Tuesday I had an appointment to see my primary doc. He examined me and told me to see a CRS ASAP. He referred me to one and I don't know what the person on the phone said to the person on the phone at the other office, but I was told to go to the CRS immediately. CRS is recommending sphincterotomy, but gave me an ointment with lidocaine and difedepine(?) to try for a few days first.

So today is the first day in a long time that I haven't cried in pain, thanks to the ointment and the sitz baths. I mentioned I was lurking before, and I learned so much practical advice from this forum. I am extremely grateful to those of you who have shared your successes and failures. I'll be keeping a diary in the other section of the forum as I make my way toward healing.

Cheers from the sitz bath,
Beatrix
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Re: new here, just saying hi

Postby Scientist2516 » 04 Dec 2013, 15:11

Hi Whoknew!
Great name. Whoknew indeed how much a pain in the butt could take over your life.
It sounds as though you are in good hands. Nifedipine and lidocaine were what I was first prescribed. It may take a few weeks to heal, but you seem to be on the way, so congratulations.
As you probably know from reading here, healing an anal fissure can be a roller coaster, so hang on tight, and don't be discouraged by any bad days, because we all have bad days, the important thing is that we are making progress over the days and weeks. Lots of us here have healed, and you will too!
Keeping a diary is a great idea - you can track your progress and get great feedback.
Yeah, welcome to the club nobody wants to belong to! There are some fantastic people here. Glad to have you on board, and best of luck in healing!
Nifedipine/lidocaine, no help
Diltiazem, effective, but caused major rash
Nitroglycerine, effective.
Topical estrogen for final healing.
Gentle heat to bottom - pain relief, muscle relaxant
Kondremul mineral oil
Time - lots of time.
Status - Healed!
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Re: new here, just saying hi

Postby Deleted User 2950 » 05 Dec 2013, 10:01

Welcome whoknew

Thanks for joining and sharing your story. The moral of your, our
story and those diaries are, now we must find ways to keep our
stools nice and soft.

So, as your journey begins, keep perusing this site for more tips and
tricks and you too will one day be pain-free down there.

GL to you....
Deleted User 2950
 

Re: new here, just saying hi

Postby sugarspice » 05 Dec 2013, 16:08

Hi Whoknew, and welcome to this lovely friendly forum :-) Your job sounds so lovely! Do you enjoy it? So sorry to hear of your terrible pain, I have been there and found relief with botox, LIS has an even higher success rate so I am sure you will be well soon. All the very best, SS
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Re: new here, just saying hi

Postby whoknew » 05 Dec 2013, 16:15

Thanks everyone for the welcome! Today is definitely not a good day like yesterday was, but I'm hanging in there!

In answer to your question, sugarspice, I do enjoy my job immensely. I'm more on the customer service side of things, so I don't have to clean kennels and stuff, but dealing with the people is interesting to say the least! It has its challenging moments - lots of them - but I wouldn't trade it for anything. The best part is when a lost pet is reunited with his owner. Makes you cry every time to see how happy the animal is to see a familiar face.
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Re: new here, just saying hi

Postby Ever the Optimist » 05 Dec 2013, 16:51

Hi Whoknew & :wel:

It really does help to be here when you are dealing with so much pain, but it's good to hear that you are already finding methods of pain relief to help you through.
The key thing is just to stay strong and remind yourself that this is a temporary issue and it will go away. As Scientist says, a healing fissure really is a roller coaster and some days feel great and then you might have a few down days that make you feel totally fed-up again like it's never going to end, but it will! You just have to reinforce that belief as often as you can.
A hot water bottle & heat on the area really helps a lot, so if you're not using these, definitely try them.......
Keep up with the creams for as long as you are prescribed them and hopefully, they may assist the healing process big time, so you may not get as far as a sphincterotomy. You are still in the stages of an acute (as opposed to a chronic sufferer) so your chances of a quicker recovery are much higher.
If a sphincterotomy is your course of action, don't be scared of the surgery - It's a procedure that can produce fantastic results & people wish they hadn't had it sooner (There are so many accounts on here, so really worth further googling)
Wishing you a quick recovery from all this & whatever your journey, just be assured that people do get through it! :D
Chronic Fissure diagnosed December 2011
Healed by Diltiazem around Feb 2013
Anal Fistula followed burst abscess in June 2012
2 internal troublesome piles remain & suspected, but undiagnosed, ongoing Levator Ani type symptoms & flare-ups
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Re: new here, just saying hi

Postby sugarspice » 06 Dec 2013, 04:18

Ahh that sounds great! What a lovely job!
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