Firstly Thank you all so much for this forum. Bloody awful subject to be discussing but so great to find out that what you are going through is not just in your head.
I finally plucked up the courage after reading all the posts on here to actually allow my GP to take a look at my butt, within 1 month I had been seen by the Surgeon who has scheduled me for surgery on the 4th March. He told me to stop all the creams that the GP has prescribed as they are not doing any good at all and the steroids in them may well be aggravating it all. He told me that most GP's have no idea at all about AF and so wrongly prescribe creams.
I have put up with this pain for years, existing on pile suppositories, creams sprays and huge amounts of painkillers. I think it all started after the birth of my 2nd child, for which the GP prescribed pile cream so i has assumed that was what it was :(. I have since had 2 more children and it has never really gone away for more than a few days.
This week I had actually had a great week with no pain and was hoping that it was all kinda ok but one small BM later and I am climbing the walls! Nothing is touching the pain and I am now panicking about how I will feel after the surgery and the pain I will be in. I also stupidly did a google search and saw a few clips of the surgery and now feel basically scared S***less.
I have some questions:
1. realistically, am I going to have a nurse coming in daily to change dressings? How long does the packing need to be put in there and changed? how do you manage?
2. will the surgeon make sure that he looks beyond the small bit that I can see? He didn't want to look too far as I was in so much pain, so he said he is going to sort out the fissure and clean it up and make a small cut. I am also having the skin tag removed at the same time. The pain is so far up inside my rectum that I am sure there is something up there and that the very small visible bit at the entrance is the end of something not all of it. The pain is like someone sticking a four sided knife in there and twisting it.
3. I know everyone's pain threshold is different but can I expect to be back at my office desk within 2 weeks or longer, considering that I am barely managing to stay at work now due to the pain somedays.
4. I have a very busy schedule, 4 kids, 3 jobs and just cant be off work for too long, how can I make sure that everything heals well and boost my recovery rate?
Thanks all.

Please can someone answer my questions? I am really panicking and wondering if surgery really will make it better

I know the pain u r describing but I don't have many answers for you because I had a fissurectomy on Thursday and have absolutely no pain today. I'm not sure what your surgeon is doing, but my suggestion to you would be contact someone on this forum directly whose story and surgery description match your own. BEST OF LUCK AND HANG IN THERE!! Wish I could be more of a help!!

Hello and welcome to the forum! I'm sorry you are in pain! I have surgery scheduled for Monday for fissurectomy, LIS, and skin tag removal. I have been in pain for weeks now. I have been taking lots of sitz baths in the tub along with hydrocodone and Motrin. I just started taking Aleve as my body adjusted to the Motrin and it's helping.
Doctor said that I would get oxycodone after surgery. I am not afraid at all of having this surgery due to the long term chronic suffering that this can cause. Try not to fear the help!
There is a great post by AF Angel- "My Success Story" explaining in detail what is happening to you body and how to treat it best.
I will continue to post after my surgery and let you know how it goes.