My life with fissure

Dear fellow sufferers

Please come in! Start your own personal thread, tell us a bit about yourself...and your fissure, of course. Welcome!

Return to New to the forum? Introduce yourself here




My life with fissure

Postby rio » 27 Oct 2013, 05:56

Hello! I wont to thank you for this forum. I finally find a place where I can get information and some comfort. Not being able to talk about my condition and pain with family and friends because very few people realize what we are going trough.
I am not a native English speaker and I apologize in advance for mistakes.
I am female in my middle age¸and I am dealing with pain since end of march 20013. All started with a stupid urinary tract infection. Doc. gave me antibiotics wich in just 2 days burned my stomach and intestines so I stopped taking them. I got horrible stomach cramps and pain, could not eat for weeks, rapidly loosing weight, became depressed, felt generally ill and much concerned about severe, burning, knife cutting pain in my lower stomach area. Went to ER, gastro, gynecologist, GP doctor and nobody guessed what is wrong - they suggested I am still sensitive from infection and that it will pass. After few months I realised that the pain is definitely originating from my anal area and decided on my own to see a proctologist. The exam confirmed chronic anal fissure with swollen skin tag (and some internal hemorrhoids, but they are not symptomatic). The proctiologist (quite renown old man) gave me hydrocortisone/lidocaine suppositories which did nothing good to me, just increased burning. Pharmacologist sold me some preparations that supposedly cure anal problems, but they are all designed for hemmis. I just recently find out that what is good for hemorrhoids is not necessarily good for fissure and it can worsen the condition. I tried natural remedied suggested from the experiences of people:
aloe vera (fresh from the plant - soothing on the outside, helps when the inflammation is spread on outside, but not working internally)
wheat germ oil with vitamin E, extra virgin olive oil, st johns wort oil, castor oil, (just made burning slightly worse)
medicinal honey, (a little applied inside on fissure - for me the worst thing of all - incredible pain and burning for few days)
propolis without alcohol just a drop mixed with coconut oil (huge mistake, same as honey)
I find extra virgin coconut oil the least disturbing, but it has not cured me.
After six months of trying to get better I went to another proctologyst. She told me the hydrocortisone was a mistake and tried to explain the morfology of the fissure: the swollen scar tissue which is additionally constricted by spasm of the spinchter hide deep the wound so that it can not be cleaned and no potentially healing ointment can reach the wound. She adviced me to use only natural ointments for instance calendula, olive oil, butter... She sold me plastic plug, called "Dilatan" with Xylocaine jelly for lubrication and nitroglycerine ointment, to put it in the anus twice a day for 10 minutes. The aim is to dilate the anal canal with plug and with nitro to relieve spinchter and the wound could be cleaned, she told.
After using this for few days the pain and inflammation even increased and I have to stop the treatment. I tried using only nitro, but it burns even with very small amount.
So now I am going to see the third proctologyst (the expert for LIS) in few days. I am so desperate and considering to get LIS done.
I lost so much during this, cried so many hours in despair, not being able to work and earn much needed money,exercising makes it worse. I feel like a living wreck with no social and love life (even dreaming of any love act makes pain worse), not to mention money spend on doctors and remedies.
It may look like I am making a drama of it, but I am sure you, fellow sufferers, would understand me. I feel a bit more confident now I am collecting information from this forum and beginning to understand some facts. Thank you! Big hug to all.
Disabling burning, drilling pain in anal area for almost a year, started after UT infection. Small anal fissure diagnosed, turned out it is probably not the cause of pain, MRI shows no inflammation or fistula. Grateful to forum members for support.
User avatar
rio
VIP
 
Posts: 136
Topics: 12
Joined: 26 Oct 2013, 06:11
Location: Slovenia, Europe
Has thanked: 35 times
Been thanked: 23 times
Gender: Female

Re: My life with fissure

Postby Savaici » 28 Oct 2013, 18:34

Hi rio,

Welcome to the Forum.

Believe me, a lot of us know exactly where you are at! I have tried it all too, spent a fortune on specialists, medications, potions and creams, and still, nearly three years later the only time I am not in some form of pain is at night when I sleep with the help of 0.75mg Lorazepam.

In the end for me: I eat a fairly strict diet with no meat (I have not eaten meat for years anyway), fish once a week, I never overload on fibre just enough I take. I use Milk of Magnesia each night, use Vaseline on the outside of my anus, soak in a Sitz bath before pooping and after. I drink the right amount of water so that my urine is clear.

I never know how my day will be. Constipated or the other way. Recently have started to bleed a bit again after weeks of no blood, for no reason that I can find. I take a multi vitamin too. I have coffee (milky), eat an American biscuit every day (like a scone in the UK), eat cream cheese, olive oil every day. Normal basically. In the end
though, still uncomfortable/in 3/10 pain most days. I have just learned to live with it...no medical right now, so have to accept this.

So, as I said at the start of this pist, a lot of us know how you feel. :smilyhug:

So, don't feel alone.
Savaici
Administrator
 
Posts: 3833
Topics: 222
Joined: 03 Feb 2011, 17:00
Has thanked: 170 times
Been thanked: 260 times
Gender: Female

Re: My life with fissure

Postby rio » 29 Oct 2013, 13:42

Thank you so much for kind words.
3 years, oh my god! It is just not right to suffer so long. It is so bad when the pain do not allow you to sleep. I do not tolerate medications well, so I can not get help from pain killers or sedatives.
I too have a balanced and healthy diet for years. Just home prepared meals, absolutely no junk food, no sugar etc... and I am gluten free for years now. The reason I went off gluten was my iritable bowel. I had up to 10 or more loose BMs per day and other health problems. As I went off gluten the situation much improved after a couple of months to only one BM per day, much less stomach cramping, much less painfull and less bleeding monthly periods.
But I still got the fissure.
Just hoping our situation will improve and this whole fissure thing will soon become just a bad memory.
Disabling burning, drilling pain in anal area for almost a year, started after UT infection. Small anal fissure diagnosed, turned out it is probably not the cause of pain, MRI shows no inflammation or fistula. Grateful to forum members for support.
User avatar
rio
VIP
 
Posts: 136
Topics: 12
Joined: 26 Oct 2013, 06:11
Location: Slovenia, Europe
Has thanked: 35 times
Been thanked: 23 times
Gender: Female

Re: My life with fissure

Postby sugarspice » 06 Nov 2013, 14:12

Hi Rio

I completely feel your pain!!!

I too had the cream you were perscribed and it made the pain even worse! I went to see at rectal surgeon and he said that he would put me under anaesthetic and either do botox injections or the Anal sphincterotomy surgery which you have described. I was praying for the surgery as it has a 90% success rate....or so he told me. Unfortunately he couldn't give me the surgery as although my muscle was long my fissure was too :-( So I had the botox, which has a 60% success rate. I am in the healing period at the moment, I have just finished week 1 and still struggling, but everyone on here has told me it gets better :-)

HOWEVER, had I been offered the surgery like yourself I wouldnt have hesitated! I have only heard good things about it. The very big down side is that if you have a 'not so good' surgeon it could make you incontinent! That terrified me so I researched the best surgeons and found him. I paid a lot for it, but couldn't take the risk not to.

Just to reiterate, you are definitely not alone now you have found this forum, we TOTALLY understand!!!

SS x
User avatar
sugarspice
Proctosphincteranalogist
 
Posts: 196
Topics: 17
Joined: 31 Oct 2013, 12:16
Has thanked: 32 times
Been thanked: 18 times
Gender: None specified

Re: My life with fissure

Postby rio » 06 Nov 2013, 16:11

Hy Sugarspice. :afsmile: I received so much comfort, support and advice from you. I am sorry to hear that your fissure is so long. But it is good that you have a good CRS who knows what should and what should not to do in such case. Hope it will heal with botox and that the pain will subside soon. I am using only chamomile coconut oil for two days now because I can tolerate natural stuff only and I will make calendula oil the same way and try it because the nurse at the CRS told me that they had some success with it.

I want to tell that I went to see the third doctor CRS. This guy is young, but known as the best in our small country (Slovenia has only a bit over 2 million citizens). I was prepared to the pain during the examination but he did it without causing me any pain. He told me, that he uses only his pinky finger and small instrument for children so he would not tear the patient. He was compassionate, explained me a lot and he was not in the white uniform but in T shirt and jeans. I got the impression that not only he is an expert, but also a kind person. I hope I can manage to get him to operate me when It comes to that.
Disabling burning, drilling pain in anal area for almost a year, started after UT infection. Small anal fissure diagnosed, turned out it is probably not the cause of pain, MRI shows no inflammation or fistula. Grateful to forum members for support.
User avatar
rio
VIP
 
Posts: 136
Topics: 12
Joined: 26 Oct 2013, 06:11
Location: Slovenia, Europe
Has thanked: 35 times
Been thanked: 23 times
Gender: Female

Re: My life with fissure

Postby sugarspice » 06 Nov 2013, 16:55

That's great that you have found a good surgeon :-) And like you say if you decide to have it done you have the right man :-)

I forgot to say the reason botox has a lower success rate is because it only lasts 6 weeks, so you have that time to heal before it wears off (you can have it done again though which raises the success rate!) but the sphictorotomy is permanant and I 'think' that's why it has the higher success rate. Saying that there are a lot of people on here with more knowledge than me so I could well be wrong!

Good luck with your natural healing and remember if you ever need a shoulder to cry on just come on here or message me. I don't know how I would have survived without the people on here! No one truly understand unless they have been through it.

SS xx

:smilyhug:
User avatar
sugarspice
Proctosphincteranalogist
 
Posts: 196
Topics: 17
Joined: 31 Oct 2013, 12:16
Has thanked: 32 times
Been thanked: 18 times
Gender: None specified

Re: My life with fissure

Postby rio » 07 Nov 2013, 06:55

Thanks again SS. Wish you and all of us will soon be posting our "Success story". :grouphugs:

By the way, completely off topic, but can someone tell me how to "thank for the post". I see this is nice possibility, but I just can not find out how to do it.
Disabling burning, drilling pain in anal area for almost a year, started after UT infection. Small anal fissure diagnosed, turned out it is probably not the cause of pain, MRI shows no inflammation or fistula. Grateful to forum members for support.
User avatar
rio
VIP
 
Posts: 136
Topics: 12
Joined: 26 Oct 2013, 06:11
Location: Slovenia, Europe
Has thanked: 35 times
Been thanked: 23 times
Gender: Female

Re: My life with fissure

Postby JHH » 07 Nov 2013, 07:08

Rio, look at the little thumbs up icon in the upper right corner of each post.
- Fissure developed in Jan '13
- Started rectogesic in Feb '13 and diltiazem Apr '13.
- Got botox Jun '13
- Healed by Okt '13, although I still had some irritation for about a year.
- New fissure April '22, healed June 2022
- New fissure 24. December 2023
User avatar
JHH
Moderator
 
Posts: 785
Topics: 16
Joined: 22 Feb 2013, 17:00
Location: 6 o'clock
Has thanked: 48 times
Been thanked: 69 times
Gender: Male


  • Similar Topics
    Replies
    Views
    Last post

Return to New to the forum? Introduce yourself here



Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 25 guests