Hi everyone
Hope you don't mind me coming on here but as the partner of someone suffering with an AF Im starting to feel absolutely useless. We also seem to be getting conflicting advice from the medical profession so also feel very confused as to what to do next!
My partner was first diagnosed with an AF on the 14th november by a CRS. At this point he'd already been in pain for quite a while but we were treating him for piles as thats what the GP had originally referred him for (without even examining him may I add). At that point he was prescribed (apologies if i spell these medications wrong) Diltizem and lactulose and was advised to eat a high fibre diet. He was told to go back in 6 weeks and that the fissure should have healed by then but that if it hadnt then there were other options. As far as pain relief went he wasn;t given anything other than paracetamol and ibruprofen. The next appointment that was sent in the post was not until the end of february and day by day his pain has got continually worse to the point where he now spends most of the day either jumping in and out of baths or lying in bed alternating ice packs and hot water bottles under his bottom. BM's are an ordeal and hes scared to eat as what goes in must come out and hes lost a stone in weight in 4 weeks.
In desperation we tried a private surgeon mid december but he cant operate until the 17th january (which he is booked in for provisionally) but again, in desperation, he also saw another surgeon to hopefully do something sooner and he was strongly against the LIS surgery and told him to just keep using the Diltizem cream. Its obviously my partners decision but from where I stand this seems to just be getting steadily worse. What was a 'bad day' a fortnight ago is now becoming a 'good day'! The only reasonable time of day is first thing in the morning before he has a BM then it all goes horribly wrong.
Sorry this is going on a bit and i know there is no magic wand and his long term health is the most important thing here but how can anyone carry on like this ? It could be like this for months and still not heal! Ive been reading some of your accounts about the surgery and they sound really optimistic and encouraging but Id hate to encourage him to do something that might not be right for him but at the same time this isnt living.
Thanks for listening. Just helps writing it down really! I feel for all of you. Im finding it difficult enough and its not even me thats suffering