Hi fellow sufferers,
I last came onto this site in March 2012 when I had my first experience of AF; such a delight! The descriptions of someone pulling barbed wire out of my jacksey says it all! Anyway, to cut a long story short, I realised after visiting this great forum I had a battle on my hands so made so many changes to my diet to keep things soft. I went to a bum consultant, who looking back was quite useless! I eventually healed after around 8 weeks after diet control and using nitro cream and I asked the bum consultant will I always be susceptible to AF in the future. He shrugged it off and said when you get a cut, it heals, it scars and the scar tissue becomes stronger so no. It kinda made sense, but I didn't really like him, so decided to continue with a good diet ever since. The single most worst "illness" I have ever had! I have flaxseed every day, I eat good foods, Quinoi, cous cous, wholegrain rice etc. I told myself I would be "safe" with food until Xmas 2012 at which point my AF should be well and truly out of the picture! I do indulge every now and then since it calmed as I enjoy food and haven't any issues since.
Anyway, around 2 weeks ago, I had a BM, not particularly hard that I can recall, but it resulted in a slight spotting on the paper (very slight, but I felt that sensation once again). My heart sank! Is this damn thing back? The first week after this movement wasn't so bad, yes I could "feel" the BM more, but absolutely nothing like last year. Then these last 3 days, it seems to be getting worse. The razor blade feeling is coming back a little more when passing, but I have not had blood since that first event (I saw that as a good sign?). The last 3 days I have also had the lingering burning for a few hours after. Today, it feels quite sore, like it's trying to tell me "hey, you have a big wound down there!".
I've quickly reverted back to AF eating mode, so fruit, veg, flaxseed, extra all bran, prune juice etc. I really thought I had seen the end of this thing!
So, my question, as this seems to be my first relapse. Would it be the same AF opening up again? Was the bum consultant talking rubbish about it being stronger once healed. Is it a new one, I am just built this was to be susceptible to them? I have to admit, it is not causing me as much grief as last year and is bearable for now. I haven't bothered to go to the docs to get more nitro cream, or is this a mistake? I don't seem to have spasms as many folks have on here. My aim now is to keep it soft, relax on the loo and let it work itself better. Are there any "relapsers" out there who have advice for this? So, I'm trying to deal with this myself - is this the right strategy?
So annoying, I am a keen triathlete (even did an event on Sunday, didn't really affect me too much at that point) and don't like the thought of not being able to train. I'm due a long bike ride tomorrow, but not sure if I should to "rest" the butt area.
I love all the stories on here, makes me feel I'm not alone. I am resigned to the fact I need at least another 6 weeks before I heal, then will have to "play safe" for months after to fully heal. My difficulty will be not training.
Thanks for listening...