Thanks for the tip erbear - I'll certainly check it out.
So quick update. Have been working on my new plan since the 5th of November. It's now the 18th of December, so about six weeks in. In terms of pain, I'm in a better place but not completely out of pain. Having taken diltiazem before I was out of pain by this stage, so possibly combining this with Medihoney isn't working quite as well as I had hoped. I'm going to stick to this plan for another six weeks to see what happens, but to be honest I'm thinking botox is the next step for me.
There is something I have noticed in the last few weeks more than previously. I call it the daily "twinge" - basically some point in the day I will get a short sharp pain. I guess it feels like a tear. I kind of feel like it wants to heal, but daily life isn't giving it the opportunity to properly stick together - if that makes sense.
The last time I saw my consultant he said he thought I had been 'treating the symptoms'. I wish I knew what he meant by this. Diltiazem gets you out of pain after around 6 weeks normally - but if you are not healing, what exactly is happening?? Without understanding the answer to that question I can only surmise that I am in fact healing, but maybe not sufficiently to stop a recurrence? The other question I have is why not take Diltiazem for, say, as year? All the research I've seen has been for between 6 to 12 weeks. Apart from the itchiness some people get, I wonder why you just wouldn't keep using it indefinitely for a chronic condition... What's the major side effect I am missing I wonder?
I've also been trying to see my fissure. I believe I can feel it, but it's practically impossible it to see it. That might sound strange to some, but I believe my fissure is fairly deep inside the sphincter. I thought I had spotted it a few days back, but a day later I couldn't see it again. I feel if I could see it properly I would have a better understanding of whether it was healing or not. My surgeon seems to be able to spot it almost straight away - it's so annoying lol
Now for Medihoney. Well my experience is I feel it has definitely been cleaning out the fissure at least, and for that reason I am going to continue to use it for now. One of the dangers of fissures is they can eventually develop into an abscess due to local bacteria, and the Medihoney does have antibacterial properties that I believe help. It also seems to help with the pain a little. Just to be clear this is general pain associated with a chronic fissure - not spasms. It's not the miracle cure I was hoping for though, but seems to have worked for a few people here (unless this is just marketing - gosh I hope not).
Oh well, not much can be done except to struggle on. Hopefully in the new year I'll get my NHS referral and 2017 will be a better year. I think most people agree it hasn't been the best for many reasons. But chin up, things are better than six weeks ago. Maybe in six weeks time... :-)
LemonMan