Hi all,
I'm relatively new to anal fissures (have only had mine for about a month) and was just wondering if it's normal for fissures, especially after a couple of rough bowel movements (in my case repeated episodes of watery diarrhea throughout a day) to cause all kinds of discomfort. For example: nearly constant throbbing pain that takes all day to decrease, pain when sitting or lying down and even when walking (especially down stairs), and feeling like I want to have a bowel movement even when there's no stool.
I also have internal and external hemorrhoids but my doctor says they aren't thrombosed and are just bleeding a little bit. So supposedly all of the discomfort is related to the fissure. However he doesn't seem too knowledgeable about fissures in general, so I wanted to run this by you guys and see what you think. This thing is uncomfortable as anything I can imagine (I know I'm preaching to the choir here) but it would at least give me some peace of mind if I at least know that it's normal to experience from a fissure.
Thank you so much, here's hoping for better times for all of us.

One other thing I was wondering: is it normal for the throbbing pain to be worse when urinating? When I'm urinating, it feels like I'm pushing using the anal muscles as well, thus causing the throbbing pain from the fissure to become worse. Basically, it feels like there is stool that needs to come out, yet there isn't.
Does that seem normal for a fissure? I can't find much in the literature describing this sensation and am curious as to whether it's a normal fissure symptom or if it suggests yet something else to worry about.

I don't recall having that problem before surgery -- immediately after surgery my bladder didnt want o wake up from the anesthesia and I had some "wires crossed" issues when trying to urinate, that quickly resolved itself in a few days. I am really not familiar with urgency being a symptom of AF, however.

I learned at Mayos recently that Pelvic Floor Dysfunction (like I had) can also cause pain.

Hello and welcome!
Yes it is normal for some. I too had pain while peeing and pretty much all day before surgery. And yes sometimes I felt like I had to go to the bathroom when I didn't.

Thank you guys, you guys ROCK! If I could trouble you all for one more: is it normal for the anal region to feel very tender with a fissure? It feels like the anus and immediate vicinity are extremely tender, sore, and sensitive to being touched by anything, whether it be my fingers, the chair I'm sitting on, or even movement such as when walking down stairs.
Lately I've been having this extreme tenderness for hours upon hours after each bowel movement, and I'm worried it might be a sign of some kind of infection. It does eventually subside for the most part, but that takes maybe 12+ hours, or even overnight in some cases.
Whomever is responsible for setting up this message board: THANKS SO MUCH! This is one excellent resource!

Yes its normal to feel sore. I wouldn't worry a lot about infection unless you see some discharge...are you taking baths? Are you still having watery stools? That can cause really bad burning that can last all day.

I agree with Macymae on the loose stools -- they can sure burn if they get too mushy/watery.
Your fissure is right near the anal opening, and may be inflamed (not unusual) and that should explain why it feels so sore and tender there. Yes, even inserting a suppository was a task for me!

Haha I know what you mean about the suppositories. I was originally trying some hydrocortisone suppositories, and they hurt like heck! Getting them in wasn't the hard part; it was when they "popped" into position after insertion that made me want to scream.
I know firsthand about the loose stools too. The loose stools are a double edged sword for me, they come out without much resistance and initially don't cause much discomfort (they feel nice during the bowel movement actually), but a few moments afterward, the burning and spasming hits with a vengeance.
About the discharge and infection... First, I apologize in advance for possible TMI. I don't think I have what I'd consider discharge of pus or anything, but here's what I do have. Remember what I mentioned about sometimes feeling I have to take a poop (I feel a pushing sensation down there which may be the sphincter spasm) for hours after a bowel movement? Well, sometimes I notice a tiny amount of watery "streaks" in my underwear.
For instance I noticed a little bit this morning. I woke up, had a bowel movement, applied some nitro ointment using an applicator tip, and then went to work. After I arrived, I looked in my underwear and saw some minor brownish-tan streaks in my underwear. So it looks like maybe I have some minor leakage of loose stool at times? I don't know if that means anything.

Oh, as for baths, no, I haven't been taking those lately. I picked up a sitz bath and some epsom salt over the weekend, but have only tried it once so far. It did provide a bit of soothing, but the effect seemed short lived.
Right now I'm trying to figure out what to eat. I skipped all food for 48 hours this weekend, but had to resume because I felt so weak. When I started eating again, all I had was some bran cereal and smoked salmon. That produced a semi-hard bowel movement. Today I'm going to try to get by all day on just cereal, and may try to work in a 1/4 dose of Miralax. It seems that I have very little middle ground between very hard and very watery stools, and either way I have to go at least 4 times a day, which annoys the heck out of the fissure.
I do need to have more discipline with regard to the sitz baths, though, it's just been hard since I'm at work most of the day. I may have to take a week off just to focus on this, but have been trying to avoid doing so since I'll need my vacation time when my wife gives birth in a month or two.
I've also got some Vicodin leftover from a leg injury years ago that I may take if the pain gets bad enough, but I've been trying to hold out due to the constipatory side effects.