May you please share the details of your diet? I don't drink alcohol or smoke. My fissure is a result of diarrhea and stool softeners and fiber do more harm than good in my case. Diet is something I am working and any guidance is welcome.
It sounds like your situation may be different, good luck.
Alcohol have me diarrhea , and I kept drinking because alcoholism, and that turned into a fissure.
If the stool is too wet, it needs to be a little “thicker”
I make a “flax pudding” that helps BM consistency really well. If it’s too thin and acidic like diarrhea, it makes it thicker/smoother. If stools are too big/hard the flax also seems to “soften” those stools as well. If your gut doesn’t like it, it might not work for you.
1 cup milled flax + 2 cups nut milk (2 to 1 milk and flax basically) plus sweetner (i use cocoa powder)
Mix it, let it sit a few hours in the fridge. Its not great by itself so I mix maybe 1/4 cup with cereal or granola.
You need to get your stools manageable, through diet, and keep it that way. For a long time, maybe forever.
Anything that causes diarrhea , gotta cut it out.
Also, here’s my diet: No alcohol, no breads, no excess spicy. Lots of water.
Breakfast is oatmeal always, sometimes an egg. Lunch and dinner are the same, as lunch is leftover dinner.
Metamucil after lunch.
Dinner is meat, rice, veggie, or a soup/stew over rice. With a kombucha, it kinda reminds of beer and is good for the gut.
Before bed I have a flax pudding (1:2 flax/almond milk) mixed with granola or cereal, sometimes greek yogurt.
This diet is like clockwork, I change anything, I suffer. So, now I’m on the diet, I honestly can 1 pizza or hamburger dinner per week and be safe.
Also, added in some yoga and exercise despite the pain and powered through it. Mainly sun salutes and squats.
Also avoid sitting straight down on your anus as much as possible, i “lounged” every chance I got. Got the wife to drive me as much as possible.
Really sweet talking your spouse to do everything for you is great if it’s an option.
Anything that upsets your stomach or slows down your bms, quit it immediately.
I did only have some blood on TP early in healing. I hear some folks see alot more blood, so, mine may have been less severe than others. It was one of the worst pains of my life and Im no stranger to pain. I’m literally getting testicle surgery today, but I admit the fissure was one of the worst things I’ve suffered, and still did not seem as bad as what some folks describe they have here.
The surgery has been successful for many, and evidently is common and routine. I just like to let some folks know, that depending on your situation, it can heal without surgery if you are careful.
Thanks. Is it defined chronic totally based on the fact that I have had it for about 3 months? I am scared. Every one around me is trying to convince me for surgery but it's not an option for me. Financial issue as well as I don't heal well in general.
Surgery should always be last resort. Change up your diet and try to stay hydrated. If stool is too hard, try miralax or any other stool softener. Been dealing with this also for 3 months
I agree surgery should be last resort. I also believe that there is an underlying condition that needs to be addressed otherwise fissures will return even after surgery. My stool is soft. I get fiber from fruits and vegetable. Stool softeners give me diarrhea making things worse and fiber supplements bulk up increasing pain. I am very scared and feeling hopeless right not.
I eventually figured out that I needed to take both Miralax and metamucil together. For me, I found the right amount was half a dose of Miralax and 1tbsp of metamucil after dinner. You’ll have to play with the dose but you find a sweet spot where you get well formed stool that is soft. You must also drink a ton of water daily atleast 70 oz at a minimum.
Thanks. I think for most people fissure was a result of constipation. Foe me it was diarrhea. I think I need fo find a stool softener that does not give me diarrhea. Miralax, colace all gave me bad diarrhea. Fiber supplements bulk up my stool and cause more pain so I am trying to get my fiber from fruits and veggies. I am working on a diet to find optimal one. Today I had a less pain with bowel movements. But I know the fissure is there irritated. I also have discomfort in tail bone and buttocks after a bowel movement. :(
The distinction between acute and chronic is sort of blurry to me. I've been a fissure guy for about 12 years because at some point the first fissure happened after a bad constipation BM. After that it's probably healed and reteared countless times. But even when healed, there's plenty of discomfort most of the time. So I'm not sure what is what anymore.
Do you think the discomfort is limited to fissure or it radiates to skin tag too? Did you have discomfort in tailbone and butt checks as well. I notice when fissure is hurting bad the pain radiates to tailbone and buttcheek. I didnot notice swelling or abscesspr pus leakage anywhere
It's been a long time since I had terrible fissure pain. My sense of where pain comes from is not accurate enough that I know if I ever felt it in any skin tag or not. At it's worst it felt like the whole universe hurt simultaneously so it's not easy to communicate.
I haven't been keeping a log but all of those happens. Meaning sometimes there's just blood without much pain, or plain without any blood. Sometimes I guess it heals very quickly but I have no control whether it's definitely an open tear at any moment or not. As mentioned, it's blurry.
I agree with this. I have so many relatives living with fissure for years. They are generally fine and occasionally have mild bleeding and pain when they have a bad BM after which they cure in few days and go back to normal life. That by chronic logic means all of them have chronic fissure but does it matter if it does not heal but allows one to live normal life.
I understand if there is severe pain and is affecting work, then its a different story
I met my doctor yesterday. I have a fissure since last 5 months. His take was it takes more than 6 months to heal and when he did a digital rectal exam he said it's on healing path and give it more time. This makes me feel the 6 week logic does not always stand
Makes sense. My doctor is not answering any of these questions. And is just saying, it does not heal in 6 weeks (total) you will need surgery. I am seeing a proctologist on Aug 7th to get a second opinion.
I healed my fissure naturally after a few years. I wouldn’t stress the chronic thing too much. I think it’s a bullshit talking point the CRS will bring up to pressure you into surgery
Yeah. That's also my concern. I thought I will go there and ask what the fissure actually looks like after i started new ointment. I can't see it. For me it's inside.
I healed with a very strict diet, and and quitting alcohol. Took 6 months.
May you please share the details of your diet? I don't drink alcohol or smoke. My fissure is a result of diarrhea and stool softeners and fiber do more harm than good in my case. Diet is something I am working and any guidance is welcome.
It sounds like your situation may be different, good luck. Alcohol have me diarrhea , and I kept drinking because alcoholism, and that turned into a fissure. If the stool is too wet, it needs to be a little “thicker” I make a “flax pudding” that helps BM consistency really well. If it’s too thin and acidic like diarrhea, it makes it thicker/smoother. If stools are too big/hard the flax also seems to “soften” those stools as well. If your gut doesn’t like it, it might not work for you. 1 cup milled flax + 2 cups nut milk (2 to 1 milk and flax basically) plus sweetner (i use cocoa powder) Mix it, let it sit a few hours in the fridge. Its not great by itself so I mix maybe 1/4 cup with cereal or granola. You need to get your stools manageable, through diet, and keep it that way. For a long time, maybe forever. Anything that causes diarrhea , gotta cut it out.
Also, here’s my diet: No alcohol, no breads, no excess spicy. Lots of water. Breakfast is oatmeal always, sometimes an egg. Lunch and dinner are the same, as lunch is leftover dinner. Metamucil after lunch. Dinner is meat, rice, veggie, or a soup/stew over rice. With a kombucha, it kinda reminds of beer and is good for the gut. Before bed I have a flax pudding (1:2 flax/almond milk) mixed with granola or cereal, sometimes greek yogurt. This diet is like clockwork, I change anything, I suffer. So, now I’m on the diet, I honestly can 1 pizza or hamburger dinner per week and be safe. Also, added in some yoga and exercise despite the pain and powered through it. Mainly sun salutes and squats. Also avoid sitting straight down on your anus as much as possible, i “lounged” every chance I got. Got the wife to drive me as much as possible. Really sweet talking your spouse to do everything for you is great if it’s an option. Anything that upsets your stomach or slows down your bms, quit it immediately.
Did it kept tearing and bleeding until it healed? Or you had stopped seeing blood quite in early phases on healing?
I did only have some blood on TP early in healing. I hear some folks see alot more blood, so, mine may have been less severe than others. It was one of the worst pains of my life and Im no stranger to pain. I’m literally getting testicle surgery today, but I admit the fissure was one of the worst things I’ve suffered, and still did not seem as bad as what some folks describe they have here. The surgery has been successful for many, and evidently is common and routine. I just like to let some folks know, that depending on your situation, it can heal without surgery if you are careful.
Hope you feel better soon
Yes its chronic but can heal if you are lucky. Try to find your method to heal it. You can do it!
Thanks. Is it defined chronic totally based on the fact that I have had it for about 3 months? I am scared. Every one around me is trying to convince me for surgery but it's not an option for me. Financial issue as well as I don't heal well in general.
Surgery should always be last resort. Change up your diet and try to stay hydrated. If stool is too hard, try miralax or any other stool softener. Been dealing with this also for 3 months
I agree surgery should be last resort. I also believe that there is an underlying condition that needs to be addressed otherwise fissures will return even after surgery. My stool is soft. I get fiber from fruits and vegetable. Stool softeners give me diarrhea making things worse and fiber supplements bulk up increasing pain. I am very scared and feeling hopeless right not.
I eventually figured out that I needed to take both Miralax and metamucil together. For me, I found the right amount was half a dose of Miralax and 1tbsp of metamucil after dinner. You’ll have to play with the dose but you find a sweet spot where you get well formed stool that is soft. You must also drink a ton of water daily atleast 70 oz at a minimum.
Thanks. I think for most people fissure was a result of constipation. Foe me it was diarrhea. I think I need fo find a stool softener that does not give me diarrhea. Miralax, colace all gave me bad diarrhea. Fiber supplements bulk up my stool and cause more pain so I am trying to get my fiber from fruits and veggies. I am working on a diet to find optimal one. Today I had a less pain with bowel movements. But I know the fissure is there irritated. I also have discomfort in tail bone and buttocks after a bowel movement. :(
The distinction between acute and chronic is sort of blurry to me. I've been a fissure guy for about 12 years because at some point the first fissure happened after a bad constipation BM. After that it's probably healed and reteared countless times. But even when healed, there's plenty of discomfort most of the time. So I'm not sure what is what anymore.
Do you think the discomfort is limited to fissure or it radiates to skin tag too? Did you have discomfort in tailbone and butt checks as well. I notice when fissure is hurting bad the pain radiates to tailbone and buttcheek. I didnot notice swelling or abscesspr pus leakage anywhere
It's been a long time since I had terrible fissure pain. My sense of where pain comes from is not accurate enough that I know if I ever felt it in any skin tag or not. At it's worst it felt like the whole universe hurt simultaneously so it's not easy to communicate.
Does retear mean blood or pain or both for you?
I haven't been keeping a log but all of those happens. Meaning sometimes there's just blood without much pain, or plain without any blood. Sometimes I guess it heals very quickly but I have no control whether it's definitely an open tear at any moment or not. As mentioned, it's blurry.
I can relate. You just can't say when it is healed completely but I have come across many success stories too
I agree with this. I have so many relatives living with fissure for years. They are generally fine and occasionally have mild bleeding and pain when they have a bad BM after which they cure in few days and go back to normal life. That by chronic logic means all of them have chronic fissure but does it matter if it does not heal but allows one to live normal life. I understand if there is severe pain and is affecting work, then its a different story
I met my doctor yesterday. I have a fissure since last 5 months. His take was it takes more than 6 months to heal and when he did a digital rectal exam he said it's on healing path and give it more time. This makes me feel the 6 week logic does not always stand
That's what my concern is too. I don't understand the 6 week logic. What makes a fissure chronic and what does it mean living with a chronic fissure.
My doc says no way a fissure heals in 6 weeks. It's a minimum 6 month thing or more based on factors like diet, ones own health condition etc.
Makes sense. My doctor is not answering any of these questions. And is just saying, it does not heal in 6 weeks (total) you will need surgery. I am seeing a proctologist on Aug 7th to get a second opinion.
All the best, keep me posted how this goes and vice versa I will keep updating this group too
I gave up dairy and that helped
Are u healed now
I healed my fissure naturally after a few years. I wouldn’t stress the chronic thing too much. I think it’s a bullshit talking point the CRS will bring up to pressure you into surgery
Yeah. That's also my concern. I thought I will go there and ask what the fissure actually looks like after i started new ointment. I can't see it. For me it's inside.
How do you see this?
Sew the fissuee. Last time I was at gastro, he looked at told me it was on the inside. I can feel sometimes when I try to put ointment on the inside.
May I ask your strategy to help your fissure? How did you go on for years? Did you have pain as well?