What worked (& didn't) for me.

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What worked (& didn't) for me.

Postby Grateful Ed » 19 Jan 2012, 23:57

Hey all- I'm still relatively new to the forum but I wanted to give a general run-down of what has & hasn't worked for me. This has just been my experience & hopefully it'll help people. I can attest that this is seriously the worst thing I've ever been through and no one deserves the kind of pain & anxiety that an anal fissure can cause!
Basically I've had them off & on since September, 2010 when I got back from a long stay on the Utah Salt Flats. I think I got it in the first place from being dehydrated & over-tired. Since then I've seen 2 regular MDs, 2 Naturopaths, an accupuncturist, a chiropractor and a CRS. I think it's really important to make sure you like your doctor. My wife's mom is a nurse and she always says get a second opinion. My CRS (Dr Goyal in Sacramento) has been condescending and abrupt with me since the start. He insists that fissures are caused by anal sex or pregnancy- two equally unlikely causes in my case. If I see a CRS again, it'll be a different one. Also, my CRS administered my Botox shot in December that was disastrous- I got a thrombosed hemorrhoid from the shot and another hemorrhoid from the pain medication (Vicodin and Norco). If it gets bad enough to consider surgery again, I'll just go with LIS (from a different CRS).
I heard these can be brought on by food allergies so I had a food allergy test and nothing came up at all. It might be worth looking into though. What was another $200 on the credit card when I was literally sobbing in pain every day?
My chiropractor is licensed in the B.E.S.T. technique (Bio-Energetic Synchronicity Technique) and he's been very helpful in keeping my attitude positive and helping me look into what might be causing the fissure emotionally. Ask yourself what was going on in your life when it started? What are you thinking about when it starts hurting? Talk to a good psychiatrist if the pain is driving you crazy. My fissure healed up in June, 2010 when I started using Nifedipene and came back in October, 2010 when I turned 40, my cat died and I became unemployed- so yes- environmental stresses can trigger a relapse.
Meditation is very helpful. If you've never tried it, just get a guided meditation CD from the New Age section of a record store and put it on after your BMs. Dr. Andrew Weil's "8 Meditations For Optimum Health" has been my go-to disc for months & it honestly helped me when I was totally "in the red" with pain. Plus, if you're stressed at the CRS' office or even laying on the gurney waiting for your procedure, the techniques will help you calm down.
The best doctor I've seen for this is Dr Hubbard in Portland, Oregon. His clinic specializes in hemorrhoid care and they treated my fissure, hemorrhoids and enlarged papillas over a week-long visit. I was totally pain free for about a week but relapsed recently. I'm still hopeful that their work is helping me to heal and it brought the pain way down. His advice to me was to stop taking fiber since it may have been bulking up my stool too much & I wasn't particularly constipated. Also, I've found lubricating the rectum before each BM is tremendously helpful. I know it can be daunting sticking a finger up there but just take it slowly & don't force it. I still have wicked spasms even if the BM isn't painful so I take alot of Sitz baths. Also, and this is essential- wash, don't wipe. Take a shower after your BM. Showering and Nifedipene helped me beat it the first time.
Of all the supplements out there, I take magnesium and vitamins A, C & E. My diet is primarily vegetarian, 50% raw veggies, 25% cooked veggies and 25% everything else. No coffee, no caffeine, no alcohol. It makes me sad to think my old dinners of a whole frozen pizza and half a 6 pack of beer are gone forever but it's a small price to pay if I can live without ever having a fissure again!
I'm still taking it day-by-day but I believe that some day we'll ALL be done with this ordeal and we'll be able to help other people as well. I know I say it alot, but a positive attitude is paramount. The pain can be debilitating but try to do what makes you happy whether it's reading a book, watching a movie, taking a bath or drawing a picture. Just hoping and complaining isn't enough- take an active role in your recovery. I wish everyone the best in healing.
Also, I am mightily impressed by the variety of emoticons this forum offers! Image Image
Grateful Ed
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Re: What worked (& didn't) for me.

Postby Davo » 20 Jan 2012, 00:08

Hi Grateful Ed,
With regards to your comment "It makes me sad to think my old dinners of a whole frozen pizza and half a 6 pack of beer are gone forever but it's a small price to pay if I can live without ever having a fissure again!"
My understanding is that this is just during the healing stage, once the fissure has healed you just have to maintain a diet higher in fibre with an increased water intake.
Ohh and i personally can drink alcohol during the healing phase but only in moderation, 1 or 2 glasses of wine has no effect on me providing i had an adequate intake of water on the same day. Any more alcohol than this does play havoc with me mind.
Davo
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Re: What worked (& didn't) for me.

Postby alpinestrawberry » 20 Jan 2012, 07:25

Hi Ed--
I'm so sorry for your bad experience with the CRS. I can't believe they're so arrogant sometimes--you're not the first one on this board who's had a CRS insinuate that anal sex was the cause when it wasn't. Definitely a 2nd opinion is well worth it, and don't feel like a failure if you decide to do the surgery. These things just happen and sometimes it takes drastic measures to get you out of the heal/tear cycle. I don't regret doing the surgery at all, even though I still have little irritations and other minor issues from time to time--they are just that--minor.
One thing to be aware of, that I didn't know at all when I was really battling my fissure, is that raw veggies can irritate it because they can be hard (think carrots) and if you don't chew really well then they don't break down on their own and tend to come out in big pieces. Apple skins are supposedly irritating as well.
I don't know if you're opposed to Miralax. I do find it revolting (it's plastic! for God's sake) but it was the only thing that kept me out of pain while I was waiting for surgery, and I no longer need it now.
I don't doubt that anxiety is a contributing factor to fissures. Maybe a nice massage would help, in that case?
Just know that all of us who've been through it or are going through it now are here with you and we totally get it. It is rough. Personally I could have gone ten lifetimes without this ever happening to me. I know it's common and other people have worse situations but I feel like the fissure stole a chunk of my life--from the time I was 28 until 33 and those should have been prime years. Not that I'm really bitter now, although it probably sounds that way. It's just in retrospect, I really would have done the surgery sooner so I could move on. I can't help but encourage others to do the same.
Jess
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Re: What worked (& didn't) for me.

Postby Sue1962 » 20 Jan 2012, 07:58

Hi Ed
I totally agree with what Alpine is saying!!! Some CRS's are so arrogant. I have never had anal sex (sorry if TMI) and my babies were born over 28 years ago, and I never even got a hemorrhoid let alone a fissure from childbirth.
Mine started after a bought of constipation during the holiday's in 2008. It healed and came back several times, then 2 days before a 5 hour flight to Vegas in 5/09, it came back along with a thrombosed hemorroid. The general surgeon I went to totally missed the fissure but did evacuate the TH. Thus the impotance of going to a CRS. I was in Vegas for 10 days riding a Harley!!! Talk about a miserable vacation.
Things healed again and came back 10x worse this past May. I tried everything to heal it, but I was under a ton of stress. I was in a car accident 4/10 and out of work for 5 months because of it. I ended up losing my job b/c of not being able to work. My husband broke his ankle, 5/11 was out of work for 3 months. The list goes on and on, and also the stress of having a fissure. Thankfully, we are both better, working, and now that I have had LIS, that aspect is better also. Stress level is way down!! I too, would have had the surgery sooner so I could move on. 3 years was way too long to suffer on/off. I also would encourage others to do the same. A few days of discomfort vs searing continuous pain is a walk in the park.
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Re: What worked (& didn't) for me.

Postby workingonit » 20 Jan 2012, 11:28

Hey Ed,
When i have a tough decision to make I write up a pros and cons table to help me decide. It often illuminates how I truly feel about something, and can even be contrary to how I thought I felt about it. But I always know it to be true when I see it in writing.
Make a top row of the different procedures/options. two columns for each (one for pro and one for con).
Along the side, make a column that has a list of fears and hopes and facts that you know. (Ex. how long is healing time, what are the percentages of it not working. what are the problems that could come up down the road).
Then give each a value of 0 to 5 for importance. Under each procedure/option put in the value in the rows for each fact/fear. Then add up the Cons and subtract from the pros. The left over numbers will tell which way your mind and heart are leading you. Sometimes the end result is too close to tell. But often it helps to clarify your thoughts.
I've had a ton of anxiety over the last year from recovering from Ativan/lorazepam and moving from the US to Canada before I was fully recovered. It was hard, and I wonder if I didn't tighten up those anal muscles in response. I know mucsle tension is a common side effect to stress and anxiety.
I like Dr. Weil too. I have an audio book he did with Dr. Naimen for Insomnia (another side effect of ativan recovery). I've been pulling out all the meditation MP3s I used to help me last year and it does help.
The only doctor I ever liked was the one I had when I was living in Portland. Same for my husband. You are lucky to be living there! If it weren't for the 'great recession' we'd be living there still. Oh well. Image
Don't miss the American health insurance system though!
:)
Take Care,
-woi
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