Hey all! I'm back.
I had my first AF in Feb. 2013, but wasn't diagnosed until July 2013, at which point, it was a little too late. I had Botox in October 2013, along with a skin tag removal, and again in December 2013. Finally, in March 2014, I had a successful spinchterotomy! Since then, I haven't had a repeat fissure, but I have had several other health issues, which I believe to be somewhat related.
I saw several doctors post-AF for residual rectal pain/low back pain, I heard everything from internal hem (which shouldn't hurt) to muscle strain along the lower back spine, which put me in PT for eight weeks or so... After that, I developed bladder pain that felt like knives in my urethra. I had two UTIs, which left me with symptoms worse than the UTI. My urination frequency increased, which I chalked up to drinking more water post-AF, and my BMs were rather urgent, which I chalked up to increased fiber. I still had bouts with constipation, which I blamed on IBS.
Because of all of this, I saw a urologist who diagnosed me with pelvic floor dysfunction (PFD). After hearing my symptoms, she told me this could all be related. I went to a physiotherapist and also an OBGYN - both who told me to get off hormonal birth control and that I had PFD (which can both exacerbate fissures, I've been told).
I'm not sure if the PFD caused the AF, or if the AF caused the PFD. My best guess would be on the latter after my recent experience with the OBGYN. She poked with just a Qtip and placed pressure on parts of the back of the vagina and the pressure in my rectum was quite awful and painful. She commented on how tight those pelvic floor muscles were. After I left, the same exact spasms I had with the fissure returned for the rest of the day. I'm going on diazpam for pelvic floor relaxation, physiotherapy, and also an ET gel to combat the damage done by HBC.
I'm really hoping this does the trick. This AF has been a pain in my arse for 2.5 years now! It's just amazing that the pelvic floor can be so tight after a spinchterotomy, but I suppose these are different muscles, and if the spinchter had a lot of pain, the pelvic floor might be over-compensating?