by Deleted User 579 » 21 Feb 2012, 16:27
Hi Melissa - I had an LIS in May, and, yes, I would absolutely do it again. I say that even though I actually developed a complication. Three weeks after my LIS I developed a small abscess at the incision site, which developed into a small, superficial fistula. That really sucked, I'll admit. I was completely freaked out because I thought that a fistula was the worst possible thing in the world that could happen. It turned out that a very minor surgery (a fistulotomy) fixed it up.
I don't want to mislead you. The LIS and the fistulotomy were not fun. But even so, I'm still glad I got the surgery. The pain of the fissure was beyond toleration and my health was suffering. I was also on anti-anxiety and anti-depression meds after a year of trying to cope with the agony. After the LIS, even with the complication, the pain was nowhere close to the pain from the fissure.
The first week post-LIS was painful, but not as painful as before the surgery. After the first week post-LIS, I could feel things improving and by week two I was getting back to my life. If I hadn't developed the complication, I would have been back in business after about three weeks.
I agree with everything Layla and JR said. And it is important to know that there are possible complications with any surgery. The stats I read say that LIS is 95% successful. The rate of incontinence is 6% for gas, 8% for liquid stool (minor soiling) and 1% for stool. So you may toot accidently a bit more, and some folks here have had minor leakage (but that seems to improve over time, and even many of these folks don't regret getting the surgery). The chances of pooping your pants are extremely slim. Of course, you should do your own research on this too, and definitely ask your surgeon what his/her own personal stats are. I think developing an infection at the incision site is the most likely complication. But, as I've said, even with that, I still don't regret the surgery. It did take a while to heal, but I got my life back while I was healing, and now I'm back in the world and having fun. (Which is why I'm not around so much anymore - it's true that when we heal, we tend to leave.)
Well, that's my story in a nutshell. There are actually many success stories on this forum. Many of us had to put up a helluva fight to get our lives back, but we are glad we did it. Definitely read the posts - they are very informative. You can also look at posts by Dawn, Elphie, Sue1965 for details about positive experiences.
I'm very glad I had the LIS, but we are all different. I really had no choice. My health and my life were deteriorating too much. Surgery is a very personal decision. You will know if it is right for you.
I hope this helps! Good luck. :D