Hello all,
I'm new to this board but have been reading various posts before I had my surgery three days ago..
So far I have to say that I'm extremely pleased with the small amount of pain that I've experienced. My surgery consisted of removing the fissure, a LIS, removal of an enlarged papilla, and banding of four internal hems (already noticed a band or two following bowel movements!)
Compared to the pain I experienced pre-op this is wonderful, my only negative would be the amount of gas I've experienced in the evenings that I cannot easily pass (no incontinence, I can tell it's gas). I have discharge throughout the day, but I expect that for the first week or two. I just have to think that my CRS has samurai skills with that scapel!
Oh, and I'm a 25 year old male in good health that has been dealing with fissures (anterior and posterior, although one healed before surgery) for prob 5 months or so. Initally tried a nifidepine/lidocaine/bethanechol (1/4/.5%) ointment for approx five weeks before my CRS said I needed surgery. So far I'm very happy I got it done, and cannot wait for the post-op pain and tenderness to be gone so I can feel like a new man again!

Congratulatins jtb!! I'm so happy that your surgery went so well and that you are not in very much pain. That's really great, especially considering what you had done! Remember to keep the stools nice and soft and keep the area nice and clean (very gently!). Don't get too discouargaed if you don't bounce back immediately, though. I don't want to be a downer, and I hope you are one of the lucky ones who enjoys a pain-free recovery. But I'll just say don't get too worried or discouraged if you aren't 100% within a week or two. For some people, recovery has its ups and downs and can take a bit longer than expected. Be patient, be very good to yourself, and take things easy for a while - you deserve it!
That said, it does sound like you are all set for a wonderful and rapid recovery and I really hope you are a new man again very soon! :D

Thank you so much for your kind thoughts.
I think the metamucil is causing me gas in the evenings so I'm going to back away from it a little. I had been using it for a while pre-op but if I had gas I didn't notice bc back then I could pass it pretty easily without thinking about it. Right now I'm eating fruits and veggies, light soups, and whole grain toast. I think this should be providing a good amount of fiber on its own. I'm also taking colace 2x a day with plenty of water. I've found that Im only passing very small (loose) stools the past couple days, and not sure if it's just from my reduced intake foodwise, or that I can't push at all yet. What do you think about trying miralax to help the stool basically "slide" right out? It seems that many on here have deemed it a miracle supplement.
I'm ready to battle the recovery as long as it takes, and I just hope to get a tiny bit better each day. I just graduated from law school, and had to fight the pain through class and finals so I could have the operation done before I start studying for the bar. Nothing can be worse than the pain I had before!
Again, thanks so much for your kind words, and I look forward to sharing my recovery with everyone on the board!

Congratulations on graduating from law school! Way to go! And to go to class and pass your exams with AF pain on top of it all ... they should have a "passed with exceptional distinction" award for that kind of feat! Law school and a new butt - good for you!
Metamucil can definitely give you gas, and it can make poops very big and bulky. Doctors tend to swear by it, but it isn't so nice for everyone, so I think you should listen to your own body. I was using metamucil for a while, but went off it because it was making a mess of my digestive system.
Your diet actually sounds great, so if it's working I would keep that up. I also try to handle things through diet as much as possible too. One thing to remember is that there are two kinds of fibre, soluable and insoluable. Soluable fiber helps keep you regular, but also bulks up stool (psyllium husk in metamucil is soluable fiber, which is why metamucil will bulk things up). I eat mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, squash, peas, and bananas, all good sources of soluable fiber, if I'm having too many loose stools. Unripe bananas can constipate, so be careful! Insoluable fiber isn't as easily digested and so helps things move faster. Good sources of insoluable fiber are most fruits and veggies, but especially leafy greens (spinach is often a good natural laxative - broccoli is notorious for producing gas!). I try to strike a balance between soluable and insoluable to so that I create the "Goldilocks poo" - that is, not too hard, not too soft or loose ... but just right :D
I used to get the many small loose stools too, but those have been less frequent about a week after my LIS (pre-LIS they were my normal pattern). I think some of it has to do with not being able to push everything out at once and the rest had to do with diet and anxiety (for me at least). I am managing to produce much better BMs now through diet, LOTS of water and mirilax/movicol - or Restoralax, as it's called in Canada. I highly recommend it. It has worked very well for me and I like that it comes in sachets so I can determine my own dose. It might take about a day or two to work and you may have to experiment with the dosage, but I think you may find it is a gentle way to achieve those lovely fluffy turds we've all come to love. (And it doesn't give me gas!)
I hope this helps - do keep us posted about your recovery, ask any question you want (the folks here are very supportive and helpful!) and let us know how you are doing.

Recovery is still coming along ok, taking one day at a time. The general area is still fairly sore, although I managed my first driving experience to the store to pick up some miralax. I made sure to go extra slow over the bumps.
As far as the discharge is concerned, what's a reasonable expectation for it to stop? Two weeks? Maybe longer? This is really my biggest (not really concerned yet) concern now, just to make sure I'm on track.

re: discharge.
i think over a month period is ok as long as the discharge is getting smaller and smaller with each passing day. you did have a lot of work done.
the only thing with regards to discharge is that if it changes colors to like yellow, green, or non-blood like colors, and you have pain and if it becomes smelly, then that would be a concern.
it sounds like you are doing great jtb216! keep up the good work and positive attitude.

Congratulations on getting thru surgery! It can only get better for you now. I'm at 3.5 weeks post LIS and I still have some discharge, seems to be clear and I only notice it in the morning or if I get in alot of activity that day. Yesterday I worked in my flower beds, had discharge last night and this morning, also having some severe itching at my fissure site, thinking I overdid it yesterday. Today I'm back to taking it easy but the rain is returning anyway. I've also had the flu raging thru my family of five so lack of sleep will catch up to me soon. At least the dragon doesn't breathe fire anymore so I'm not angry all the time! Life after LIS is definitely better, but anxiety and fear still sits on my shoulder reminding me who's boss. I'm just glad it's not the dragon anymore! Happy healing!

I will not stop using miralax anytime soon, it does keep things soft and fluffy and the do slide right out and with very minimal mess! Much better than docusate sodium which stopped working for me after about 6 weeks. It really turned things around and prevented bleeding and retearing within 24 hrs of my first dose. GP says it's safe to use long term but that when getting of it I would have to gradually decrease it over months, not weeks. Hope this helps!

I also still have a bit of discharge 12 days post-LIS. It's mostly clear and has slowed down considerably over the last few days. I still keep an eye on things, though, to make sure that there are no odd colours or bad smells.
I also have had some itching. In fact I woke up this morning with a crazy itch at the fissure site that was driving me nuts ... but then it settled down. I wonder if that indicates healing???
The fissure site itself is still pretty tender too. I have to be very gentle cleaning after a BM, and I have to watch how I sit.
I am also a big fan of Miralax - it definitely makes stools nice and fluffy - and no straining with BM! Now, however, I have to modify/descrease the amount to 1/2 dose because it has started to give me loose/watery stools. Oh well, time to experiment!
I think discharge is pretty normal for a while, especially with all you had done, jtb. It sounds like you are healing well. Hang in there! I'm struggling a bit to stay positive too - there's more anxiety to the recovery than I expected. But I keep telling myself that things are much better than before and I will improve, week by week!

Thanks for all the kind wishes, it really helps recovery knowing there are others going through the exact same thing, and I wish you all the best possible recovery as well!
I tried my first dose of miralax last night, prob about 2/3 of the 17g cupfull. I woke this morning with a strong urge to go (which I typically have as I am very morning-regular). I decided to go right to the toilet w/o Vaseline bc I thought it would come right out. NOT my brightest idea. Unfortunately my stool seemed hard and I had to strain with a bit of blinding pain to pass it. At least there didn't seem to be much blood (like straining used to do with the fissure) so that made me feel a little better. I was a bit upset though bc I didn't eat anything crazy or unusual yesterday (yogurt, whole wheat toast, homemade chicken soup with just a little chicken chewed to a pulp, small salad, fresh melon, and a Popsicle for desert) and I drank plenty of water, with some Gatorade and clear juice mixed in. Tonight I'm considering taking some mineral oil bc I know that works from pre-surgery days. I might decide to do a full dose of miralax instead and try to eat very light today.
Tomorrow is a BIG day for me as I start my bar review course and will be sitting on a hard chair from 9-12:30. Do you guys have any suggestions for a discreet cushion or pad? I have a donut they gave me upon release post-op, but even after dealing with this for months and telling most of my friends, I still have too much pride to bring it to class. Thanks for all your help and suggestions!