I am new to this board and hoping someone will be able to provide some advice. Thanks in advance for taking the time to read this.
I’ve been through the archived posts on this site hoping to find other people who have experienced a fissure while having an active bout of Colitis (or Chrons). I’ve had Colitis for 6 years, but this is my first fissure. The combination of these two problems is making my life miserable. I’m currently having BM’s about 8-10 times a day and it is so painful. I saw my family physician who prescribed steroid and nitroglyerine creams. I’ve been using them for about a week and taking sitz baths as much as possible but things do not seem to be improving. Is this normal? How long does it take to heal on average?
Many fissure patients seem to spend a lot of time focusing on relieving constipation. This is clearly not my problem! I wonder how it will heal when I am having BM’s as frequently as I do? Should I try fasting? I’d love any advice. I have an appointment with my GI specialist, but it will not occur for 3 week (sadly, there are long waitlists here.)
Another question -- a skin tag has appeared since the fissure pain began. Does this mean that I’m more likely to have a chronic fissure that will not heal without surgery?
I’m getting married in two months and the thought of going through this on my wedding day/honeymoon makes be cry….
I have UC and I have a fissure right now...I got mine from hard stool so I added more fiber and lots of water; they can also be a problem (as in your case) when you push too hard...try exhaling when you go (even if its watery stool) to relieve the pressure. I hope you get into remission soon . * website link removed by hb-mod, moderator *
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Arabesque - I wonder if you are reading this thread 6 months later and how you are feeling. I went UC 18 months ago with a MRSA infection in my intestines tipping my condition into motion. The violent diarrhea (at its worst, 12-14 times a day, all hours) caused rectal prolapse, plus I already had a hypertrophied papilla. The explosive BMs eventually ruptured the surface tissue of my anus and I developed multiple, long fissures that I still have. So, I have to push in a papilla after every BM (always abbreviated because of the pain and prolapse of the papilla) past the inflamed fissures. I use emu and tea tree oil as well as natural baby wipes to ease the process.
I empathize so much with your post because with UC, the fissures are not about constipation. The UC sufferer has episodes of uncontrollable peristalsis (not that you should be controlling as in forcing or squeezing of course, but sheer "violent" spasms and loose if not diarrhea-like stools). This burst of a BM rips open healing wounds.
So, how did I get from a stress level of 10 down to a 3? (I did not mention this before, but what was once horrific is now tolerable).
Meditation (to manage stress)
80% Salad/20% Lean Meat and Fish/Oils (coconut and olive) w/ cultured vegetables and goat kefir
VSL3
At least 9 hours sleep nightly/sleep when tired
Occasional adrenal hormone supplements (when under lots of stress)
I believe that I am not a 1 (or 0!) mainly because I lose discipline with the first 2 items. I have a few weeks where all is cool, then a few weeks where I am miserable and thank God I am self employed and don't have to show up to a job (i.e. I cannot comfortably leave the house).
I do not take drugs for this.
I am looking to get my papilla removed but am nervous so seeking a world class surgeon for the task.
When I had my colonoscopy I had horrific fissures and rectal prolapse. The next few days were extraordinarily painful.
Please contact me or post here so we can keep the info flowing.
Hopefully your situation has turned for the better!
My girlfriend which has been suffering from colitis over the past 3 years has fallen into a somewhat similar situation you are/have been going trough!
Any advise coming from your part would be most welcome and appreciated.
Over the past six weeks, when the fissure became reality, my girlfriend is losing mental strength, while cries herself to sleep almost every night because of the pain which comes along with it.
Although it acts like a drain on me too, I’m off course far from living the drama she experiences right now, other than to support her, I looking for people who are dealing with these same issues in order find a way to find the best possible solution in order to fight and cure for the fissure.
If by any chance you could share any ideas on how to handle her case, we would be very thankful to receive whatever information to bring relief. Even negative news would be helpful in order to cut down the illusions we might have upon this situation.
To recap:
Fissure came up six weeks ago.
Seen specialist which prescribed meds which didn’t worked.
Two weeks ago she had a Botox treatment which at first seemed to relief the
pain a bit, but after 7 days things got back on the downfall.
She will see her doctor again in 6 days, which is a long time considering the circumstances.
The biggest problem off all we assume to be the colitis off course, although she cleans the wound after every bathroom visit, which are approximately between 7 and 12 visits a day, the pain is becoming less and less bearably while it affects her mind state.
I can but witness she is struggling to keep her hoops up.
Anyone, any help please!
Other than that I wish you all the best and recovery!
I'm sorry to hear about your girlfriend -- it's such a difficult thing to go through.
Thankfully, my fissure did eventually heal. After seeing a specialist, he recommended a different topical medication. I forget the name of the drug right now, but it was much more effective than the nitro (and it didn't cause headaches.) I'll look for the prescription and post of the name of the drug if I find it.
It look about 8-10 weeks to fully heal once I started on the second medication. During that time, I look a lot of warm baths to relax the muscles and soothe the pain. If I was at home, I took a bath after every bowel movement. I also tried to take deep breaths and relax as much as possible during a bowel movement -- exhaling deeply helped with this. I was so tense in anticipation of the pain that I think it made things much worse. Knowing that I could jump into a warm bath afterwards made it easier to relax as well.
A few weeks after I started on the second medication I received a blood transfusion as my iron and hemoglobin levels were very low. I really believe this helped my fissure heal as iron plays a role in wound healing. If your girlfriend is anemic (which is common among collitis patients), she may want to consider taking supplements.
I hope that helps a bit. I also spent many nights crying because of the pain and got quite depressed. I really hope things improve for her soon.
First of all I would like to thank you for the reply you send me, it’s much appreciated!
I believe my girlfriend is taking the nitro, the doctor told her she would probably suffer from headaches, surprisingly she didn’t suffer from any until now. It would be cool if you could find out about the other drug you have used, maybe it has the same effect which could result in curing the fissure.
Until one year ago my girlfriend was seeing one doctor, to be honest, he really messed her up big time, at one certain point she became so weak she had to stop working. Because of coincidence she got in touch with another doctor who checked her levels, after reading the blood results he was a bit stunned she could still move around.
Everything she was missing, she is now receiving on a monthly basis (I don’t know the correct word, but we call it baxter, these plastic bags filled with liquid ;-) to restore her (overall) levels which have quickly come back to balance.
She has gained no success upon solving the colitis but regardless of that she was feeling way better than with the treatment of the other doctor. Which is already a good thing.
The fact she has to face a new challenge into curing this fissure is a sad situation within an already difficult living. I will explain her about the breathing when she needs to visit the bathroom, any tips like the one you brought up are welcome in this stage, so thanks again for taking the time to write me!
My girlfriend doesn’t like to go to site’s or forums where they discuss the illness she is suffering from, she told me it puts her down to read about people who are in a same situation, I understand her reasoning behind this, that’s why I’m doing all the surfing around.
It's my pleasure. When I had my fissure I did so much research on fissures and ulcerative colitis, and I couldn't really find anything. I'm happy to answer any questions you have.
I found my second prescription, it is "2% Diltiazem in vaseline". This one was much better for me. I hope it is available where you are.
I'm glad your girlfriend has found a better doctor. I have good doctors, but unfortunately I've never really been able to get my colitis under control. Because I've been living with it for over 10 years now, I've found some ways to cope though. For example, having good iron levels are key, finding what foods are easier for you to digest help (and stay away from coffee!), and I try to eat yogurt with probiotics everyday.
Also, when things are bad and I can't afford to stay home all day, I'll take a Tylenol 1 (which contains codeine). We can purchase T1's without a prescription where I live. The codeine slows down your system, so I'll get over 5-6 hours without a bowel movement. While I'd rather not take more drugs, sometimes this is the only way I can cope. My doctors know that I do this and they are fine with it (as long as I'm not abusing them.)
I really hope things improve for her soon. Feel free to ask as many questions as you like -- I'm happy to provide my perspective. Please let me know how things work out for her.
