Hey Pita. Hope you are well. I'm 6 months post op now and happy to report that I haven't used the gauze or ointments or travel bidet in over a month! Still have very minor leakage from time to time after a bm (especially if I let my diet get out of whack), but it has definitely improved to where it is no longer a daily thought for me. 2-3 psyllium pills are now a staple in my morning routine. They have really helped me. Went in for a 5 month post op exam with my CRS and he said I'm fully healed now. I know some people are lucky and heal within weeks of their surgery, but it took me an entire 5 months to get there. How are you doing? Have your symptoms improved or are you still dealing with leakage? Have you found anything that has helped with your routine and management?

tight80 That is great news! I am so glad your leakage has decreased and you're fully healed!! Do you have any residual pain or soreness, or are you feeling 100% now?

I am doing better, but still not there. I'm almost 10 months out of LIS, and 8 months out of my second surgery... my leakage has decreased, but I still have it after every BM. I started pelvic floor physical therapy in January and that has helped the leakage and my sitting pain, but I still have a ways to go before I'll feel truly normal again. It's been a long road for me but I'm still fighting! I take colace daily and that has helped keep BMs soft, but I am also very strict with my diet still. I've put off trying the psyllium but your success with it makes me want to try it. Do you take a certain brand?

Hi Pita. Glad yours has decreased! I hope that you are feeling 100% very soon. I still have that little bit of leaking after bms, too, but it is much less now and I don’t have to adjust my routine to deal with it anymore which is awesome. I found a decently rated psyllium husk cap on amazon. Now 500 mg capsules. First I tried mixing the loose husks in water first and it bloated and caused stomach discomfort so that’s why I switched to trying a capsule. And my issue was needing to firm up chronic loose/liquid stools so if you already have a former stool then start well below the recommended dosage and slowly increase to see if it works for you.

As for feeling 100% - I’d say I’m pretty close. I still have some discomfort with bms and occasionally soreness afterwards, but I think that’s more related to 25 years of problems with digestion and existing hems than post surgery stuff. My doc said that the surgery should buy me a lot of good years and he doesn’t expect to see me back with fissures, but I need to keep my digestive system happy to avoid other problems in the future. Please keep me posted on your recovery. Best wishes for you feeling great again very soon!