Hi,
Sorry to sound repetitive to anyone else that has read my two other posts. However, I am wondering if anyone else experiences dull pressure like pain in the rectum that lasts all day/all night. I have experienced this weird sensation since February. I did travel 8 hours to see a pelvic floor specialist who did internal massage (yuck) but it worked - always temporarily. However, my fissure became so severe I could no longer recieve the treatment. I probably attended 8 sessions. The last time I went for therapy was in early July. That day I got my first, and hopefully my last thrombosed hemmeroid. Luckily I was only 2.5 hours away from my CRS so I traveled to see him. He lanced it and I recovered in about 9 days. The pressure sensation also left - thank god. The CRS promised me that this pressure sensation was from the fissure and orderered me to cease physical therapy. I don't understand if it is almost healed why this sensation has returned.
Now, 10 days post LIS the pressure sensation has returned (2 months later) and there is nothing that relieves it. It drives me nuts. It is not pain, just f-ing annoying, like really really annoying. I am so depressed. It compeletly occupies my thoughts. I had all my hopes on this LIS curing me. I would take the pain from a fissure any day, I just can' stand feeling like there is a watermelon up my butt. It is not so bad upon standing, but lying down and sitting are irritating. I had to take a Flexeril last night at 3 in the morning because I just couldn't sleep. I don't think it relaxed anything, just knocked me out.
I am so depressed. I have an incredibly demanding job. I have to start work on Monday!!!! I feel like I am back at square 1 (although it barely hurts to poop anymore). I also have other health problems (chronic inflammation of the pubic bone called osteitis pubis) that gave me symptoms 6 months post partum. I could only return to work half time after my mat leave was over. Everyone expects me to be better. I have to return full time. I live in a small community and have to travel 8 hours to the next major city to see a decent doctor. I have probably spent $3000.00 of my own money traveling to see doctors. My husband is tired of me complaining. No doctor knows whats wrong with me, everyone says it's all cause of this or that. No one agrees on anyhing. I am still not better. I feel trapped. I can't just go over to the CRS's office or the physio's due to distance. I am not scheduled to see the CRS until the 25th. If I went to one of the morons here they would no doubt make it worse. I think I'm going to have a breakdown of some sort. It is soo stressful not knowing what is wrong with you. It is so hard to stay positive.

Desperate,
In what part of the U.S. do you live???????

Can you get a phone consultation with the CRS who did your LIS surgery? If you explain your situation to the nurse, maybe they will allow you to speak to the doctor.
Or maybe you could get the email address for the CRS and send him an email, asking your questions.
I think you should do whatever you can to get medical advice if you do not feel that things are right.
I will say though that at 11 days post-LIS, many people are still in severe discomfort. I was able to comfortably walk around the block at that point, but was not able to drive or go to work.

Cheryl, I live in northern Canada.
Phil, Thanks for the advice, I will try calling CRS on Monday morning. Hopefully they can advise. I have horrible thoughts of abcesses/fistulas and going to the local er here. I'm not up for having someone fresh out of med school ripping open my fissure again only to tell me they don't see anything. Aghhhh... wish me luck.
Does anyone know the symptoms of abcesses/fistulas?

my whole ordeal with rectal problems started with a similar type of discomfort that you describe. It was about 10 years ago and I suddenly had this "golf ball" in the rectum feeling. Didn't hurt so much as it was just very uncomfortable to sit down. I did ok when I was standing, just couldn't sit and the feeling was very annoying. At first it was thought to be my prostate, but after many, many doctor's visits and physical therapy visits, it was diagnosed as levator ani syndrome. What I was told is that when pelvic floor muscles are in a constant state of spasm/tension, then you get this feeling of something being stuck up your butt. The treatment for this is to try and relax the pelvic floor muscles. What I've found to be the most successful treatment was, ironically, no treatment at all. I've done the internal massage treatments, but they haven't really helped much. The times where I actually saw improvement were times where I just learned how to adapt to the discomfort and very slowly I actually started to feel better. There are medications aimed at relaxing that area that can help and certainly there are physical therapy exercises that people swear by, but I think the key is that if the docs can't find an actual cause, such as abscess, fissure, hemorrhoid, fistula, etc., then try not to get to caught up in finding a cure that it ruins your life. Because, as I know all too well, it can become a very vicious cycle where your stress and anxiety can actually create more tension and not allow for healing. Just my 2 cents.

mm92599,
Thanks for your reply. I'm just wondering if all your symptoms went away eventually? If so, how long? I always seem to have relief after the physio for a couple of weeks, then it comes back. When you sit down do you feel a slight cramp all the way up to your abdomen?
Since you are on this board, do you think the pelvic floor problem caused your fissure?

Unfortunately my symptoms did not go away, however, I have had periods of time where I have had a decrease in symptoms. I actually had a period of almost a year where my symptoms gradually decreased (very slowly) to where I was at about 80% or so. To be honest, I deal much, much better with the levator/pelvic floor issues than I do with the fissure issues. I didn't develop my first fissure until about 5 years ago, so I had the pelvic floor discomfort for over 5 years before the fissures ever developed. I actually started getting external hemorrhoids about 2 or 3 years into my problems and then the fissures came a few years after that, so I do believe that it was the pelvic floor problems that led to my other issues. I really just want to get to a place where I can JUST have the pelvic floor issues again, because at least at that time, I could function. My main problem in all of this is inability to have easy bm's. Even when I'm regular and everything is soft, I still have issues because my rectal muscles are too tight to allow for easy passage. Not sure how to fix that.

mm9,
Sorry to hear you are suffering so much, I know exactly how you feel! Just wondering if you had the LIS already? If you did, did it help somewhat? I am worried that because I'm spasiming so much it is going to undue the surgery. I've had a few painless ones and today it was about a 3 out of ten which is still a huge improvement fo before. I also was advised by my CRS to have a tablespoon of metamucil twice daily. That is different instructions than on the label. It makes it soft and bulky. With your pelvic floor pain when it was bad, was it all day and night, like 100% of your day? I've looked online at levetor ani syndrome and they say it is intermittent at around 20 minute episodes. I have to take meds to sleep as it bothers me so much I can no longer fall asleep on my own.

I have not had LIS. I've had three diagnosed anal fissures since 2006 and each of them had healed by the time I went for my follow up appointments 4 to 6 weeks later with just very conservative treatment. My local CRS will not advise LIS, so I have looked outside of my state for a CRS who will do the procedure on me. I have found one in the Dallas area and I can also go to Mayo Clinic in Phoenix, but I think that the Mayo Clinic will probably advise tring botox first. I'd prefer to avoid botox and LIS, if possible. My discomfort is constant, although much of the time, it calms down enough at night where I am able to sleep. I have also been taking the medication Neurontin for the past several years and that actually seems to help things calm down at night so I can sleep. It is a nerve pain medication, not a muscle relaxant, so it doesn't make me feel drugged in the morning. Most websites confuse proctalgia fugax for levator ani syndrome. proctalgia fugax is intense rectal pain that lasts for a few minutes to about 30 minutes and usually happens at night. Levator ani syndrome is something that causes chronic discomfort that does not come and go. I ran into the same misinformation when I first started researching this stuff. How was your experience with LIS? How was your recovery? Do you feel that it has helped with bm's to make them easier to pass?

My experience with LIS was good. I am 14 days post op today. The first two day were rough, but I was expecting that. I only took T2's for the first two days, alternating with IBprofen. For the next three I took IB profen as needed. I really thought I was on the mend. Day 6-9 were really good. I actually felt normal (with mild discomfort but nothing I couldn't live with if I had too.)Had some BM's with absolutely no pain (for the first time I can ever remember). However this damn watermelon in the butt has thrown me for a loop. I can't stand it!!!!!!!!!!!!! I think it is making my muscles tight upon going bm. Today it hurt a tiny bit, but no lingering pain as I was used to. I'm focussed on the water and metamucil. I wonder if this pelvic floor thing is going to undo the surgery. However, that being said, I say go for it. The risk of incontinence is so low and the worst that will happen is that you will hurt for a few days. I'm phoning my CRS tomorrow to see what he says. He had initially told me the pressure was from the fissure. I also wonder if your CRS missed your fissure? Mine missed 1 of them. I was adamant and made him look again and voila he saw it. It is worth a try getting a second opinion.