Hello. I just found out this week that I have an AF with skin tag. I had thought I had a bad case of hemorrhoids since I just had a baby and kept waiting for them to get better. I wish I had gone to the doctor sooner. I am having intense burning and pain when I have a bowel movement, with spasms for hours afterward. (I didn't realize that's what they were until reading this forum.) I was prescribed analpram and nifedipine, as well as sitz baths, colace, and metamucil. I go back in two weeks at which point if I'm not healing, we will discuss surgery.
I have a question - right now I have the urge to have a bm, but when I try to go the pain is too intense and I can't 'force' myself to go through it. I've tried several times. So what do I do? Find a way to make myself go? Or will that make things worse? My fear is that if I don't go it will get drier and harder and be even worse. Should I try an enema? Thank you so much for your help. I am so glad this forum is here, it has already helped a ton to know I'm not alone. Although I wish none of us had to deal with this.

Take a deep breathe and clutch on to something hard...that's basically how I did it for the past 3 years. Once you get the first one out the rest are cake, will hurt and burn but you gotta go. Holding it in makes it a lot worse.

Welcome, and sorry that you had to come here :)
What I do when it feels like something dry and hard is about to pass, I fill a bulb syringe with warm water, shoot about 3-6 ounces up there and wait for at least 20 minutes for the stool to soften. Works well for me. Make sure you squeeze all the air out of the bulb or it will put gas in the rectum which makes is hard to hold for 20 min. After the BM I use the bulb syringe to rinse out the anus with salt water. That rinsing seemed to make the spasms less severe.
BTW, a squatting position is also helpful.

Hi new mom,
As if childbirth weren't hard enough!
So sorry you are going through this.
Baba's suggestions are great!
I had a nurse tell me to start drinking lots and lots of water. That helped too, but I think I would do Baba's suggestion as well if it was me.
There are quite a few women past and present on the forum who got their AFs after childbirth.
I like that your doc is so proactive!
Hope it heals soon!
Welcome to the forum.
-Tanya

Thanks for the suggestions and support. I'll try to muster some courage and try the syringe thing. (I'm squeamish so this is extra awkward for me. Guess I need to get over it. )

I'm so very squeamish too. I can't even bring myself to look at my own butt!
I looked once last summer when the fissure was at it's worst and figured I'd deal with it better by feel and touch alone. Sure am tired of touching my anus! lol! :)
These things get so much easier after the first couple times though.
You can do it!
Drink lots of water too. It can't hurt!
-Tanya

Update - Baba, I tried your suggestion. Unfortunately it didn't work for me, I probably didn't do it quite right. I ended up buying an enema and now a few hours later I'm feeling much better, aside from the spasms. Thank you so much for your help!
(I will have to check off "enema" from my "things I will never do" list. ha.)

I'm sorry that didn't work for you - and went to the expense of buying enema equipment too. I suppose we're all different and have to work with our own bodies to find what works best for us.