Hi tfckmb!
So glad to hear your fissure is at least healed, but also so sorry you're continuing to have severe anorectal pain. I'm so glad to hear the dilation so far seems to be adding some benefits to your physical therapy program, and it's really encouraging to hear you are able to start at a 1-inch dilator. It's been such a slow process for us here!
It will be nice to have the additional input as you feel up to sharing since you're also seeing a PT. Are there specific types of yoga poses you are focusing on, or is it just general yoga for your overall health and to reduce tension?

Hi jr2!
Here is the DVD my PT recommended:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00429C1W0/ref=mp_s_a_1?qid=1362507686&sr=8-3&pi=SL75
You can also find it at Target for around $10.
This DVD is specifically for stress relief (relaxation) and flexibility (both of which help me relax my pelvic floor muscles). It's low impact, and is a great way to start yoga if your doctor approves.
I also do some more advanced (flow) yoga, which is much more intense but is great for releasing any pent up emotions. I am brand new to yoga, so I still have a lot to learn!
My PT said yoga is all about breathing and balance and being completely in the moment. So far, so good!

oh, great! I'll check that link out!
Yes, that's what I love about yoga... that it isn't limited to just what I practice on the mat, but as a life practice off the mat as well. Staying grounded in the moment, breathing, being flexible, adaptable, and finding balance in anything.

but wont dialation cause more harm tearing it?
im comfused...my fissure is inside my ass so i dont know if its healed or not im thinking its not cause of the thin stools and itching..or maybe i have to dialate it to get wider stools again but scared ill make fissure worse.

In theory, sure, anything is possible.
But in practice, it hasn't been my experience that dilating has caused worsening. It's actually only been helpful. A big part of it is starting out with very small dilators, just to get the muscle to let go a little bit at a time from the spasm. You take things very slowly and at the sign of any discomfort you stop. You also learn to insert them in a way that avoids putting pressure on the side of the anus that has the fissure, and concentrate the pressure away from that area. Beginning with gentle massage around the outside to get increased blood flow and to get things to begin to relax is helpful.
Of the 10 or so people I know who used dilation at home I don't know any of them who made things worse with dilation. One person had surgery scheduled for a fissure he was told would never heal without surgery because of the amount of scar tissue he had built up, started dilating since he figured he had nothing to lose, and years later remains healed without surgery. He still dilates weekly to keep the muscle relaxed and to keep the scar tissue as flexible as possible.
It isn't for everyone. It takes a lot of patience and it takes really getting to know your body in subtle ways. It also takes going in with the understanding that sure, it is possible to cause harm to the fissure.

I am doing so well with the dilation, and am just so happy that I started it. I never take anyhing for granted, however, and days come along when I am in pain, but a soak on the sitz bath relieves that (sometimes it is trapped air...).
I take a very small amount of Lorazepam in the early morning, and that helps to relax the sphincter. It makes a tremendous difference for me.
Still on the 14mm, but planning an 'upgrade' soon to the 15mm. Only do it every other day, but am so glad that I started this. When I think back to all that I have gone through with this, all the money I have spent.
I really don't know why more doctors do not recommend self dilation. It is like there is some sort of taboo to us doing anything with the exit part of what goes in our mouths.
All for now...just a quick update

jr2:
I hope you are doing well! Have you ever heard of someone dilating too much, causing incontinence by permanently overstreching the sphincter muscles?

tf.
not from the people i know of. The maximum diameter I've heard of a guy using is a 2-inch (50 mm) dilator, and he says after years of doing dilation (he's in his 50s now), he has had no problems with continence or fissures or hemorrhoids. In my opinion, 50 mm sounds kind of excessive for most people, and especially women, but it could just be that it looks so huge to me (i'm still on 15 to 18 mm). When standardized anal dilation is done by a physician under anesthesia it doesn't exceed 40 mm, and is probably closer to 35 mm for women.
As with anything, common sense is best applied, and listening to one's own anatomy is always the wisest choice. The idea being to get better circulation and release of muscle tension and spasms, and in the case of those suffering stenosis to get the actual canal opening to widen over time.
While there aren't any official studies I can point to, from what I've been able to gather, the key is patience, with gradual dilation over time, and that if anything, the muscle being slowly and gently dilated regularly probably gives it greater elasticity and flexibility and strength, like any other muscle in the body. Kind of like a form of yoga for the anus. The damage could conceivably be done, as in any exercise of any muscle, if the sphincter is required to stretch too much too quickly, without enough lubrication, and even some "warm up", which is why I do some massage first.

Thanks for the information.
Happy dilating!

tf.
are you taking Miralax or any kind of softener at this point now that your fissure is healed?