Hi all. I have been struggling with a CAF for about 4 months now. It has really affected my job negatively as a software professional. It seemed to be healing about 2 weeks back where I had minimal symptoms. As a result I decided to do some weightlifting (light deadlifting with a barbell, bodyweight lunges and upper body work). Afterwards I also mowed my lawn. I did not feel any pain, but the next day or so later I had a slighly hard stool which felt like it reopened the cut.
I take psyllium husk and have a high fiber diet with over 4 liters of water and a colace once a day before bed. My stool seems almost too soft as a result. Is that normal? Since I reinjured it the pain seems half as bad as it used to be (sharp stinging pain while sitting).

My main concern is that I am not eating enough food to help keep weight on and I am not getting enough resistance exercise to build muscle. I feel very lean but I am still losing a little weight (down from 155 to 135). I am really worried and am wondering if I am doing something wrong with my diet. I had some fat on me before but not a whole lot and I am about 5'11".

I am going to see my CRS on Tuesday to possibly discuss the next steps (botox?) so I will mention all of this to him.

I felt really good after working out but it seems like that might have aggravated it.

Thanks,
Rai

Yo man I am in the exact same boat as you for 2 years. I just weighed myself and I'm down to 139 when my normal weight was closer to 160. I too am 5'11'' and right up until these butt problems started I was weight-training 3-4 days a week and eating as much as possible because I was skinny for my whole youth and I wanted to get into good shape for once. I tried to keep up the weight training with the wounds, but I would frequently find blood when I wiped the area after getting back from the gym. I figured that's not a good sign...Also, it's not really possibly for me to eat the massive amount of food necessary to weight train without pooping a lot more, and that is also not really conducive to healing. So I stopped working out and focused all my energy on healing. My case is very complicated, however, because I had anal stricture following a hemorrhoid surgery, so if your case is a simple fissure, you hopefully you'll be back at the gym much sooner than I. It really sucks I was probably over 160 and in really good shape when I had that hemmie surgery. The doctor said I could resume working out in a month. 2 years later... Hopefully your case goes smoother than mine. Good luck.

Hey, thanks for the reply. Sorry to hear about your condition going on for that long. I also have hemorrhoids internally, but they were assessed as being medium sized and are not really an issue for me right now.
Did you continue to have anal stricture for 2 years?

My CRS mentioned that he may do something about the hemmies, but I am not sure if it would be the same procedure that you received. I can live with hemorrhoids until well after I heal the fissure and start getting my strength back. It makes sense that the hemorrhoids were brought on by constipation. I always felt a slight burning of my anus for years (probably a small fissure) when I had diarrhea from taking weightlifting supplements (nitrous oxide, protein powder, fish oil, multivitamins). Ultimately I had a really hard BM one day. I eliminated all supplements for now until I heal. Sucks, but I think the water weight was the first to go and that may be why I dropped a lot of weight. Secondly, eating tons of fiber cleared out my system.
I am trying to add in chicken into my diet along with some fish. I tried some walnuts and almonds ground up in a blender, but not sure if that is a good idea to take daily as it might actually dry up my system. Rice (brown or wild) seems to block me up a little probably because I already have a ton of fiber in my diet. It's hard to find the right balance since I was like you in that I ate a lot just to gain weight and worked out like a madman. Now, I would be happy if I could get through the car ride to work after having a bowel movement without pain and spasms.

Unfortunately, the doctor and his nurses have been very vague when it comes to what I should be eating specifically or doing as far as exercise other than walking. When I mentioned the weightlifting, the nurse said, "There are no restrictions on what you can do."... Tell that to my butt. I tried working out twice on two separate occasions where it was healing in between with no pain and it seemed to burn like hell after a couple of sets of light (135lb) deadlifts. So for now I have backed off completely.

So I had a bunch of surgeries and am better, but not totally healed and still have at least one open wound down there that I'm still trying to heal.

Nuts is questionable. For instance, right after anal surgery they tell you no nuts for a while cause they can scratch on the way out or get stuck. Corn kernels as well typically go undigested and can scratch your fissure on the way out. I personally try to avoid them just because I'm desperate, but it's your call. Rice blocks me up too for some reason so I avoid it usually. Too much fiber is just as bad as too little, it can be constipating.

Yea doctors are stupid and it's your call on continuing the working out. In my mind, I knew that it was inhibiting my healing by making me hungrier and making me put pressure on the area which would cause me to find blood right after workouts. Turns out I had monstrous wounds though. I gave up working out because I wanted to give myself every chance to heal as soon as possible. I believe many others on this board have chosen to go the same route. Deadlifts and squats are really bad though dude. I was in the same exact situation, and every time I did squats and lunges and stuff like that I would find my butt just bleeding. I think the blood pressure in the area just goes wayyyy up and bursts through the wound. It's very depressing to have to choose between healing your butt and working out. I loved going to the gym. I hope I can go back at some point.