I would like to thank each of you for graciously and generously sharing your stories.
Had it not been for this forum, I would still be walking around hopeless and frustrated.. thinking that I had the world's most painful hemorrhoid.
Over the last four years, I have had periodic episodes of intense pain. Usually lasting for a week or so and usually following strenuous physical activity. My doctor, without any type of examination, diagnosed the condition as "hemorrhoids." Given that the issue would resolve relatively quickly, I readily accepted the diagnosis... until late this past summer.
After an evening at a steak house, I awoke the next morning to a rare episode of constipation (I have always been as regular as a Swiss timepiece). After straining for what seemed like an eternity, I finally delivered. My life has not been the same since. The ensuing pain has been like nothing I have ever experienced before... migraines, broken bones, abscessed wisdom tooth... nothing!
I returned to my doctor, who as per usual, did not perform an exam. After explaining the intolerable pain I was in, he sent me on my way with yet another hemorrhoid diagnosis. After suffering through six weeks of hell and living in my bathtub, I returned to my doctor... no exam, "hemorrhoids". More steroids, more stool softeners, more sitz baths.
By now, the pain was so bad that I was forced to drop out of university, my life having came to a standstill. Frustrated that I could not get any relief from the crippling spasms that started after morning BM and lasted through the rest of the day, I started to search the internet in hope of relief. My search led me to this forum. After reading the forum, I related to the stories and decided that I may have a fissure. It was time to bypass my doctor and seek out a CRS for a second opinion.
Upon examining me, the CRS quickly dismissed my previous hemorrhoid diagnosis, instead diagnosing me with a fissure at the 12 o'clock that was exposing the muscle tissue. Additionally, he informed me that I had a large sentinel pile covering the whole mess. The CRS said that my fissure was chronic and that it appeared that it had been there for quite some time. I now know that what I had thought was a hemorrhoid for the last 4 years, was in fact a fissure. Turns out that my doctor didn't know his, or my ass from a hole in the ground!
Since being correctly diagnosed 3 weeks ago, my CRS has had me on a course of nitro, lidocaine, and a relatively new product called Analpram (I doubt that the product is marketed in the UK under this name). While I have not had headaches with the nitro, it has not helped with the unrelenting spasms. The lidocaine has provided zero pain relief, as has the Analpram. All of the unsuccessful conservative treatments, along with the CRS being upfront about them being a long shot (given the apparently chronic nature of my fissure), have led me to conclude that if I want to resume my life, surgery is the only option.
I called my CRS yesterday and moved my follow up appointment to this Friday. Given that surgery is my only life long phobia, I am more than anxious. However, the stories of success found on this forum are helping me to validate the rational decision needed to give myself and my wife our lives back; for that, I am grateful to those who have gone before.
J