Hello! I’m exactly 8 weeks post open LIS procedure. Recovery has been rocky and now I feel as if I may never feel right again. A few episodes of terrible diarrhea caused more bleeding than usual. I still notice some blood on tissue and in bowl after BMs. It seems as if swelling has gotten worse around the area and now I’m afraid that the pressure is going to go back to pre-op state. BMs don’t hurt but they are always followed up by soreness within a half-hour. I’ve been cleared by both the surgeon and a PA (I was concerned about the bleeding).

Is this to be expected? Is it normal to experience slight bleeding and pain this far post-op? I’m starting to believe that I may never be myself again...thanks in advance!

I had LIS about 8 weeks ago as well, but I'm still not healed yet. I still have pain. So I understand where you are coming from.

I wouldn't lose hope, though. These things take a LONG time to heal, even with surgery. Some people heal faster than others. I have skin issues in the area, which is why I'm taking so long to heal, and medication that is possibly causing or at least contributing to my issues that I have to wait for to get out of my system (it was an injection). So, it just depends on the person.

I would definitely see your CRS again, though, since you still have bleeding. Having diarrhea can definitely irritate the area and make things worse. Hopefully others can chime in, as well, and offer their experiences (although the board has been rather quiet as of late).

Thank you for your reply! I hope your recovery improves as time goes on. The physician assistant assured me that the bleeding was likely caused by diarrhea irritating the incision. They assured me that the incision is almost healed (they made no mention of new fissures) and to only be concerned if I see lots of blood.

I guess I’m just worried that when I feel tightness down there that it isn’t normal and I may be slipping back into the same old spasms. Do you still experience swelling after BMs? It’s really so annoying!

Thank you. It's been really tough. I see my surgeon again in about a week. I don't think he'll be able to do a full exam, though, since the fissure pain is still there. Again, my problem is related to thin/dry skin in the area, making it hard for me to heal, which is more than likely related to a drug I'm taking that I'm waiting to get out of my system. So, don't be discouraged by my story.

My incision was almost healed when I saw my CRS a few weeks ago. My problem is just the fissures healing.

From what I've read, the tightness after LIS never returns, although you gradually get tighter as a year goes by. But the study I read was that the muscle doesn't return to that tightness you had pre-LIS. I may be wrong, so someone correct me if I am. That is something I need to discuss with my CRS next time I see him since I'm curious myself. I really don't want to get this surgery again, but I will if I need it in the future.

I experience some swelling after BMs. I agree it's annoying, but it will pass in time. Again, these things take a long time to heal, unfortunately.

Thank you for that information. Keep us posted on your office visit.

I’ve noticed pain and bleeding from the incision site and then occasional fissure pain on the other side. I’m nervous that if I’m unable to heal completely, that my muscle will go back into spasm again. Although, it sounds like based on your research, it takes quite a while for the internal pressure to increase to the point again.

I’m wondering if it’s just going to take me a bit longer to heal. I wish that I knew what the recovery period could be and when it comes to a point that the surgery was a failure. The uncertainty is driving me mad!

Hang in there, John. It will get better. The most frustrating part of healing for me was when I had days where I felt like I was 90% healed... followed by a loose bm that would set me back to 60% for an entire week so I know the frustration. Try your best to not get discouraged with the setbacks because they will happen while you are healing - even if you have perfect bms. But they will start occurring less frequently and eventually you’ll be back to hiking 6 miles or eating whatever you like without a single thought about this! Just keep working on getting your bms regular because I feel like that is what really helped me to finally heal. Chronic loose stools from ibs gave me my fissure and delayed my healing so bulking up my stools with psyllium husk corrected this. I also dealt with the painful skin issues mentioned on this thread and calmoseptine and aquaphor triple cream helped when I was dealing with that. Good luck to you and I hope you heal up fully soon!

Thank you for the reply tight80! It’s great to hear that people have dealt with setbacks during healing and still made a full recovery!!

Hey Johnny. Just checking in to see how you are doing? I hope that the setbacks have lessened and that you are recovering well.

Hey tight80. Thank you for checking in with me. I really appreciate it. Dare I say, the past few days I've felt close to "normal." I've been applying nifedipine 2x daily and started doing yoga exercises that are meant to target pelvic floor issues every morning. I really think that the exercises are making a HUGE difference. Then today, I passed a slightly larger stool and had some visible blood after I pushed to get the rest out. I need to learn NOT to push!! However, there was NO loose blood in the bowl. I'm going to make sure I take stool softeners daily to avoid this. Whenever I have an off day like I did today, I look at your replies and it helps put everything into perspective. I'm better than I was before but I'm ready to be back to my new normal...

So glad to hear you have been doing well! But I'm sorry that you are still dealing with bleeding issues - what does CRS say about this? With regard to setbacks - the good news is that the longer into recovery you are - the quicker those setbacks correct themselves. This is true even 11 months post op like where I am. Had a setback last weekend and was feeling back to 100% within two days. So my new routine when I wake up is to feel grateful when I'm feeling good... and on those rough days (which are very few now for me thankfully) I just keep reminding myself that whatever the setback is - it is temporary and will pass. And it always does! Keep up the good work with your yoga and exercises. Diet, exercise and BM regularity is the key to feeling good after this surgery. I really do feel like a new person now versus how I felt before the surgery and I hope you reach this milestone soon, too. But if your body is like mine and decides to take a super loooooong time to fully heal itself - just keep reminding yourself that you will get there! Stay healthy and safe and please keep us posted.