The subject header is probably already making you nervous.
For the past six months i have lived the fissure diet of soup, water, no alcohol, wholemeal breads, pasta, etc. and on a few occasions i have nearly healed but I always ended up having re-tears.
Both my GP and my CRS have always said i am being to hard on myself and to live my life as much as i can without going overboard. Well last week i got scheduled my LIS appointment which is in two weeks time so i figured what is the point in trying to keep healing my fissure when it will get re-torn during the operation in a few weeks time.
So this weekend i had two glasses of red wine both on Friday and Saturday night, Friday nights dinner was Dominos pizza and Saturday night was meatballs - We also ate out for lunch on the Sunday and do you know what?...... My BM's were exactly the same as always, providing i keep up the medication and water intake then these foods dont reallt affect me.
Over the course of the next few weeks i think i am going to try other foods which i have craved for so long (except steak!) just to see what effect these things have on me.
So the reason behind my post was just to say that you maybe dont need to be as strict as you think and a few glasses of wine or a bit of a soft treat every now and then should not cause you any problems.
Davo

Hi Davo,
A little bit of advice before your LIS procedure, make sure you talk with consultant beforehand and ask about what to do when you go home ie:BM's etc. I made the mistake of thinking I will ask when I come around from the anaesthetic, but didn't. Was handed a packet of painkillers and a card with the phone number of the ward in case of any problems. As I have said elsewhere, after 2 days and no BM's phoned the hospital ward and was told I should have been taking the laxative I was given on discharge. When I explained I was given nothing but painkillers (which had a side effect of causing constipation !!!!). I was told to go and get some Lactoluse straight away.
All the best for the op.
Tom

I totally agree with you Davo,
I mean I still do the metamucil, olive oil and prune juice, but...
I haven't altered my diet that much. I just eat less, and make a second side of veggies. I still eat meat, pizza, spaghetti. I don't do the wine as it can interact with the nifedipine.
Life like this is hard enough without tossing out all my favourite foods too!
I still eat steak, infact because of my anemia, i make sure I eat it once a week!
I would be so miserable if I couldn't have a couple cookies a day.
The only thing I miss is the coffee, and I started to have just a week bit on weekends, to noticeably bad effect.
So I guess so long as the foods don't constipate you, why not eat them???
... well I guess grapefruit is still bad as it interacts with nifedipine too. Luckilly I hate grapefruit! lol
-Tanya

I third you, Davo -
Was a bit concerned departing from my AF diet when i took a holiday to mexico a couple weeks ago, very shy about tortilla chips, mexican food - but over the course of the week there, i got braver and tried more stuff and didn't notice any worsening in my BM's - still eat less of stuff as a whole (except veggies), but i think that helped pull me out of my AF-funk-depression (in addition to the tropical sun and stuff).
Tanya - was isn't grapefruit or wine ok with the nifedipine?
My 2nd opinion CRS was surprised my first one didn't prescribe me nifedipine and so he prescribed it to me even tho i'm post botox, bcz with "nifedipine having a 60% success rate, it certainly won't hurt to try". i'm picking up the prescription tomorrow. but have been enjoying wine and citrus fruits and hope to continue to do so . . . .

Hey Sailorgal,
here's a blurb on nifedipine and grapefruit;
http://www.drugs.com/forum/need-talk/nifedipine-grapefruit-37594.html
nifedipine is a blood pressure medicine, so wine would go to your head faster. Not necessarily dangerous, but something to be aware of I guess.
-Tanya

So this weekend i was in Italy doing a food tasting for my wedding - so i couldn't really adhere to the strict fissure diet and the following is what i ate including quite a few glasses of chianti.
Parmesan Cheese Flakes
Bufala Mozzarella cherries
Olive Oil and tomatoes bruschette
Grissini rolled up with Parma ham
New potatoes souffle on Pienza pecorino fondue
Home made pasta with wild boar ragu
Sliced Chianina beef with aromatic herbs
Lamb loin cooked in Vernaccia di San Gimignano with seasame and myrtle crust
Roast beef rolled in Lardo di Colonata in a pastry crust with green pepper sauce
Pecorino cheese salad with crunchy ham and balsamic vinegar and honey sauce
Ravioli stuffed with radicchio and gorgonzola cheese on tomato and basil sauce
Risotto with pecorino cheese and radish
Wild Board Stew with Eggplant
Dark Chocolate soufflй with fresh cream and strawberries
I continued with the Movicol, magnesium and stool softeners and guess what........? No change to my BM's whatsoever - still as soft and pain free as usual.
I can't believe how harsh i have been on myself all this time!

Davo: what do you do to keep your stool soft and pain free? Are you taking fiber supplements? If so, what kind and how much daily? Are you taking Miralax? If so, how much?

Good question!
It took me a good while to figure out the best combination for me but with the help of my CRS and my doc we seemed to crack it!
(I am in the UK so brand names may differ overseas)
Firstly any tablets that i take are always taken half way through the meal - I found that if i took them after the food then my BM would always be harder at the start and finish off softer.
So at lunchtimes i take 1x Dulcoease (docusate sodium).
During evening meal i take 1x 250mg Magnesium tablet
Before i go to bed on an evening i take one sachet of Movicol (I think it is the equivalent of Miralax over here)
I dont take any other supplements or tablets. I do tend to have bran flakes or porridge for breakfast and whenever i have bread i always have wholemeal.
My CRS basically said i can have almost any food i want on an evening however I need to be careful with anything spicy and if i have steak i need to chew it well.
What i can say is that since starting the above i have never had a problem with hard or dry BM's.
Ohh and two large glasses of red has never ever caused me any problems - anymore though and i am asking for trouble!!
Davo

Hey Davo,
That all sounded delicious. I especially remember the wild boar dishes. Yum!
Interesting about the chewing the steak well.
Are you still going for the LIS?
It's pretty soon isn't it?
SO glad you are doing so well!
-Tanya

Hi Tanya,
The food is outstanding, everything is fresh and cooked to perfection and nothing like the UK variants i see in Italian restaurants in London. The fresh tomatoes and mozerella really are to die for!!
As for steak i think the problem has always been that it doesn't tend to break down in to small pieces in the mouth and so it goes down (and comes out) in large lumps. If you cut it into very small manageable pieces and chew it lots in the mouth then its not quite as bad however it can take a long time to eat!!
My LIS operation is scheduled for this Wednesday. To be honest this weekend has given me a taste of what life used to be like before my fissure and has made me even more eager to go ahead with it. So its the last day on the GTN for me tomorrow and then its onwards and hopefully upwards.
I dont suppose you have managed to re-schedule your CRS appoinment yet have you?
Davo