Thanks for the encouragement Angel, it sure is a pain to be facing it again!
I had my surgery in December and I would say by about Feb I was thinking it was beginning to come back again, I think in my case the original fissure has opened again. Hindsight is a wonderful thing but I think back and I do believe things are still too tight down there, I am glad I had the first surgery and we attempted to fix things with minimal impact to the working order down there. I am very interested to see how different things are after my second procedure, I can notice the part that was cut is looser but my CRS said he did not even cut a third of the muscle so there is still plenty of nice muscle there to hack away at, and I feel in my case not enough was cut for the fissure to heal and for going forward, my bathroom experience to be a breeze
Count down is on to surgery and there is no going back now so I am just hoping for the best outcome
Thinking back to all the time I wasted and remedies I tried with my first fissure really helped me go straight to surgery this time, I dont want to be playing the game of up and downs and trying this diet and that cream and sitting this way when I can stress for a week, then go to sleep and take what I feel is going to be the most effective action in my case and hopefully finally get rid of the fissure for one, and be having nice BM's so I never worry about the return of a fissure again
I will definitely keep you posted on the second recovery and my thoughts as to how my decision plays out
C0nz

Check my story out; sounds like we were in the same boat. I'm 7 days post op and just got back from a nice 4 mile walk. I also work a full shift yesterday with no problems.
The first poop is way more mental than its worth. I was scarred as well and can tell you it was the least painful poop I've had in 17 years.
Take care

I have been lurking and reading the stories of other AF sufferers. I will relate my journey. I'm a 48 yo male.
After 6 months of intermittent pain and bleeding after BM's (which both I and my PCP attributed to hemorrhoids) I saw a CRS and he immediately diagnosed an anal fissure and strongly recommended surgery since the pain had increased substantially. I was informed he would perform a fissurectomy to close and clean the wound and an LIS which would allow the fissure to heal.
I had my initial surgery in late February 2012. My CRS told me to expect instant relief from pain and discomfort. The day of the surgery was uneventful and had a reassuring nursing staff. When I was dressing to leave the recovery room a surgical nurse handed me a bottle of 40 oxycodone. I asked why I needed these pain pills. She looked at me like I was crazy and said, "Sweetie, you're gonna need these like air." That was my first negative indication of things to come. My anal area was numb from the surgery so I had lunch with a friend, then went home to relax. The nurse told me to take a pain pill after I ate lunch, which I did. I went home and relaxed with some movies. Felt ok. At about 4:00am the next morning I awoke in agonizing pain. I ate some cereal and took a pain pill and tried to get back to sleep which was intermittent. The next 4 weeks were the worst of my life. I returned to the CRS's office a week after the surgery to complain of the pain post BM. He said it was normal and the fissure looked good. Weeks of crippling pain after every BM. I discovered on my second visit that he ONLY performed the fissurectomy and NOT the LIS. Once the sutures had dissolved the fissure reopened to twice its original size and began to ulcerate. The CRS made some remark like, "Every one is different, and perhaps I should have done the LIS on you, but I thought the fissurectomy would suffice. We'll do another surgery."
I immediately made an appointment with another highly sought after CRS, and he couldn't believe the first CRS didn't do the LIS. He scheduled me for an immediate LIS, which happened on April 26, 2012. The crippling spasms subsided and I take frequent hot baths after every BM, but the fissure will take months to heal because of the botched first surgery.
I URGE anyone contemplating an LIS or fissurectomy to ask their doctors for direct information about what will be done to them and what to expect post-surgery. Both of my CRS's seemed disinclined to answer questions about pain, possible changes in bowel habits, and post surgical healing. Don't be afraid of your doctors and have them explain the entire procedure in layman's terms if you don't understand what will be done to you.
Good luck to anyone going through the some ordeal.
I'm grateful I had the LIS, and now the horrible spasms seem to be over.

Jacksinger sorry to hear of your ordeal, that sounds like an awful time
I agree the CRS don't seem to break it down step by step and talk about the after the surgery times, I remember asking what was the best way to keep the area clean after my surgery and the nurse was quite surprised that the DR had not been through that
lucky for this forum!

Keep us posted COnz, I'm glad I found this thread.
I had LIS mid-April and the surgeon said I'd be back to normal within no time and had my last follow up 3 weeks post op. At about 5 weeks my original fissure re-tore, which has improved with GTN prescribed by my GP (surgeon went on holiday for 6 weeks so can't see him) and at 8 weeks I got a new fissure next to the incision I think, but this one feels like a tiny superficial paper cut compared to my original nasty deep one caused by childbirth.
So I'd be keen to hear how surgery number 2 goes for you - here's hoping it will do the trick and you can get on with life! What was your pain level and duration pre-LIS? And did it go back to that level post-LIS, if so, how many months did that take? Angel, how about you, I have read about your re-tear, is the pain level the same as it was previously?
My surgeon gets back next week so I'm looking forward to getting his opinion, but if I stay like this, I can live like this, I'd only go under the knife again if the pain goes back to it's pre surgery level. But it's the psychological side of things that is tricky - every day you wonder if it's going to get worse or better!!
Anyway, good luck for surgery COnz, fingers crossed this does the job :)

Hi Tori-Tore,
I would say that my pain level is less then it was before surgery, of course now that surgery is tomorrow my fissure is the best it has ever been and you start thinking do I really need to go through this again, but tomorrow my CRS will be deciding when he looks whether he will cut or strech depending on what he thinks will allow me to heal better but not affect my control.
I would say that things feel exactly the same as they did prior to my surgery so he must have only cut a very small amount.
It is such a pain to have it return and the pain is manageable, even tolerable, but I know I would rather life without it and the relief the first surgery gave me I feel like I am taking the right step.
Tomorrow I go at 1.15 to the Hospital so it will be the longest morning, at this point, I want to run and hide!
I will let you know how it goes and if I feel it was worth it :D

Best wishes for a peaceful and relaxed day today Conz..and a smooth transition from surgery to recovery to HEALED
Tori,
Sorry that you had a set-back...it's a tough hit after going through surgery. When I got the new tear I was in pain that peaked at about an 8...before surgery I was at a 10 most days. 8 weeks later, now, what I feel is no longer pain...I describe this as a tolerable discomfort. Most days I'm at a level of 1-2, meaning I'm aware somethings wrong with my butt. When it gets to it's worst, on occasion, the level is about a 4-5...and that is a very tight isolated clenching feeling in my butt. 3 advil will knock that down to the 1-2 level. I too feel I could actually live with this....but I can't live with the paranoia that's always lurking in my mind...I don't like being as cautious as I am about how I bend, sit, is this too heavy for me to pick up. I have a timeframe in my mind, and marked on my calendar, of the limit I'm willing to wait for something to give with this thing. If it remains this way at that point, I have to move on with a 2nd procedure. Mentally, I won't be able to proceed this way, and gratefully I feel confident and positive that proceeding with medical intervention will resolve this issue once and for all. I just wish my body would cut me some slack and fully heal already
Best Wishes for healing Tori...keeping you in my thoughts and prayers
Angel

It's so frustrating isn't it?! But really the only way to deal with it is to look forward, and both of you are very strong in making your decisions and taking the steps you need to get you on the right track to being back to normal. Angel, your strategy is a good one, having a cutoff point, otherwise I can see how you'd go on like this for such a long time hoping the full recovery was near but never knowing if a re-tear was just around the corner.
Thanks for your feedback guys. Thinking of you COnz, today and over the weekend.

Hi all
Update time! sorry I have been slack with this but I was a bit dis en heartened by my procedure.
This time was different, I had to have an enema, a shower, wipe down with antibacterial wipes and then wait for a couple of hours till surgery time, new op ward it was really flash, I digress, woke up and the DR said to me that he had a look and decided to do the Dilation to allow things to relax and to heal up.
I was hoping for surgery of course but then He is the one who went to medical school and preforms these operations on a weekly basis so I guess I have to trust what he did for now, I don't feel different really, I could feel the fissure was nice and open after the OP but it was not painful and I did not feel like I was stretched at all, felt more like after an awful BM
Now the lump has swollen that sits outside the fissure, I guess it is a sentinel? and is tender but no pain from my fissure any more at the moment
Today I was thinking that my BMs are a bit more relaxed and I have come to appreciate my DR's conservative approach upon thinking of the years ahead of me could be in nappies if he went it hacking away like I had decided I would like in my mind!
So again it is a waiting game, I will not be on egg shells however, it will either heal or it wont and from there on is to be written so to speak

Well COnz at least you're on the right side of the procedure now - I agree, it can be hard to trust the doctors sometimes, but you've got the right attitude about not walking on egg shells. You've done everything you can to get it sorted and here's hoping it will heal now! Stay positive :)