So I am just having a horrid day and needed to have a little rant...I have had this AF for nearly one whole year and it has definitely improved to the point where 90% of the time all is well and even when there is a little set back, it does not involve blood and usually heals really quickly. However, I am still sooooo anxious about it and feel like it will never ever really go away and that I am one dodgy poo away from disaster!!
I keep trying to rationalise that it has gotten so much better over time and that even 2 months ago there were more issues than there are now so that must be encouraging and I know that with this minimal amount of pain, I would not be a good candidate for LIS. I also know that the more I fixate on it the worse it feels etc... but I am just obsessed at the moment. My other half has had a look and says that it looks basically OK but almost as if it has healed slightly overlapping and when he pulls it, there is little white bit inside that I have assumed is some kind of scar but that the surrounding skin and everywhere looks normal skin colour so there is no angry open wound anywhere but I just don't know why it won't fully heal.
Does it just take ages or do they sometimes never really heal but rather become minor nuisances? I saw a CRS in May last year when it was really painful and he seemed to think it was 75% healed so if it hurts a million times less than then, maybe it is pretty much healed but just fragile.
I don't want to risk surgery but I am literally so scared of every little twinge or pain or anything in that area.
Sorry for the moan, I am just not feeling it today!!!

Hi Felix, I've not posted much on here before, but I hope you get some relief soon! I've been dealing with AF for about a year now too and just had one recur a few weeks ago. I totally get what you mean about being scared about every little twinge or pain.

I'm thinking that mine might become just a minor nuisance in my life, and while I know that it will heal over time that doesn't stop the discomfort and stress from being sucky right now.

I've been trying a cocoa butter formula with vitamin E the last week or so, gently applying it to the area in the hopes it will promote some level of healing and reduce scarring (also using it on a scar on my elbow from a bike accident and the skin certainly seems softer and less red).

Anyway, I hope that it doesn't cause you too many problems and I wish you a speedy recovery! I certainly have bad days and feel better after a rant as well :P

Thanks so much for the reply, it makes such a difference knowing someone feels the same! It is almost worse when they get better and then go wrong again as you get a taste of normal life!!
I hope you get well soon as well

Ugh, I know exactly what you mean. I've had my fissure for about nine months. I'll feel totally better for several days, and then that little stinging sensation during BM followed by a tiny bit of pain and irritation. Is this as bad as it's going to get, or will I be back to square one if I'm not extremely careful? If someone could just answer that for me it would be such a load off my mind, but I still have that anxiety. I'm not sure how long I'd have to be pain-free before I could just relax, but I haven't achieved it yet.

As far as I can glean from this site, everyone is different. Approaches to diet, medication, water intake, cleaning, age, AF location and size, other conditions, medications and lifestyle pretty much means everyone is going to have different levels of success and different time frames.

I remember that same feeling after my first AF a year ago, thinking 'how long will I have anxiety about it for?'. I just kept treating it, being careful and as healthy as possible until one day I must have stopped worrying. Cos honestly, I didn't even think about it for the last six months until I got another one.

I think the anxiety is just a product of when it's happening. Obviously staying healthy, happy and hydrated is important even when not suffering with a fissure, but I'm sure there will be a time when you can relax and not even think about it.

Your symptoms sound similar to mine. I started dealing with this fissure in July. Haven't seen blood in more than three months now but I got that tearing feeling during a bowel movement. That resulted in minor irritation every now and then which lasted for about 20 min. I used to be symptom free in the evening.

Last week I tried restorolax and wow it made a difference. I didnt feel anything during my bowel movement. I took restorolax for a week and that week was completely symptom free for me, like I never had a fissure. Today was my first bowel movement without restorolax and voila no pain, no discomfort. Hopefully the fissure got some good time to heal without any disturbances since I was applying diltiazem too.

I'm going to take triphala for a month now just to make sure the tissues there gain their strength!

Anyways that was my story. Hope it helps!