IBS and fissures

[WATCHOUT!]

I took Bentyl..is that a genric brand you were given? for my spastic colan when I was a kid..it helped, but it caused a lot of drowsiness for me. It has been years since I took it..but would give it a try again if need be....they didn't exam me before surgery thankfully....the way your talking about...owwww...they didn't even exam me at all....though I do think right now that I do have some aggravated internal hemeroids..I am getting such burning and throbbing..I can't figure out if its hemeroids or is it the spasms...I went quite a bit today and am a real mess...how does your spasm feel....right now I feel like the throbbing pain is following my heart beat....I am getting so disgusted with this problem..I literally had to lay down for awhile..I am that sore....does colace make you feel like you ahve to go more then once..if I could go just once then I would be better...

[chigs489]

right now I'm not spasming, but I'm getting the itchy, irritated feeling down low. That always makes me nervous, because I think I'm going to bleed during the next BM.

Yes, I think it is Bentyl. I've only taken one so far.

The Colace isn't technically a laxative, but it does seem to make me go pretty frequently. I'm not sure how good it is to be taking it for months on end. My urgency feelings didn't start until I really started pounding the Colace and taking Citrucel.

If you are constipated, I would try things like veggie burgers -there is a ton of fiber in those things, but they seem less harsh than a supplement -easier on the system. If I really need to go, I down a cup of decaf coffee, and I'm in the bathroom within the hour.

My job requires me to sit for 8-10 hours a day, so you can imagine how the butt feels at the end of the day. Then I have a 1 1/2 hour commute.

[WATCHOUT!]

How does the bentyl make you feel? I have been thinking I should try it again...I think my general practioner would give me a prescription again...since I took it for a long time about 15 years ago. It did help with the intestines, quite a bit. Do you think your incision sight is what is bleeding...if you don't have hemeroids then where do you think the blood is coming from? I was told by my DR...that we all have hemroids..she says it is like a cushion for things coming out of the rectum..but some people aren't bothered by them. She told me I don't have hemeroids the last time she checked...but because of the huge amount of blood that came out last weekend..I think I do have at least one big one that has gotten inflamed. I really think taking the fiber is what caused the inflamation..because I had such an urge to go..yet I was constipated because the BMs felt too big to pass...the fiber bulked me up too much I think. I seem to have better BMs if I eat natural fiber. The Colace...I am thinking I might stop that for now....I stopped the fiber days ago and am wondering if all this STUFF is to much for the system....I swear I am beginning to think that maybe all this stuff we are going through is normal...people with hemerdectomy surgery take a long, long time to feel better. Do you think WE, since we had surgery MIGHT be so inflamed from surgery that we are just re-aggravating ourselves.... BECAUSE it is taking time to heal....I have thought of trying the veggie burgers..I have really been starving..yet everything seems to rip through me ONCE I eat it....do you feel better TODAY since you didn't take the Colace...you might be right...maybe all this junk isn't good long term....and you are right going to the bathroom once would be great......i don't feel too bad if I go once...but multiple times....is SOOOOOO miserable, and gets increasingly painful. It will be so nice once we heal up properly...and for you...having to SIT a long time...I am in the car driving my kids back and forth to school two hours a day..I have to sit on one of my hands to take away the pressure....horrible...I know how you feel...but 8-10 hours sitting down..especially at work..its not like you can tell everyone what your going through......

[chigs489]

O.K., I'm not a doctor, but I did a little research...

Fissures can cause all sorts of problems as we know, and so can IBS. But it seems like you and me are suffering from soemthing that seems muscular in origin; spasms, tightness, a feeling of fullness down below.

Here is an explanation of something called Levator Ani Syndrome

"Levator ani syndrome is one cause of chronic pelvic pain. The typical symptoms of levator ani syndrome include rectal butt spasms, rectum pain and tightness, and a sensation of fullness. It is sometimes associated with proctalgia fugax, which is defined as a short, sharp pain in the rectum. Levator ani syndrome, on the other hand, tends to be more constant pain. The pain is located in the pelvic floor muscles in the rectum, mainly the levator ani muscle.

The root cause is pelvic floor muscle tension or myalgia. In simple terms, it is muscle knots in the internal walls of the rectum. These "knots" are usually referred to as trigger points. When these tiny knots are active, they can cause great pain and a sensation of tightness and burning in the rectal area. This is typical of levator ani syndrome.

Common Levator Ani Syndrome Symptoms

*Rectal Pain and Burning
*Rectal tightness and muscle spasm

Now this is interesting, because I also had some urinary problems a couple years ago that seemed muscle related. This was corrected through a drug called Flomax, which is an alpha-blocker (muscle relaxant).

When my surgeon did the exam when I was under, he said everything looked great -not even hemmroids. Just the fissure(s) and a sentinal skin tag, which he removed. I would imagine that something like Proctitis would he been easily seen. Last Summer, I had a blood test done for something else, but that is also used to detect inflammatory bowel disease. that came back negative. The surgeon was a little bit baffled at all the spasms and problems I had after surgery. He said "fissures are healed, you can eat anything you want, just keep taking fiber." Ah No. I have to seriously watch what I eat, or I will have big problems.

[WATCHOUT!]

Hey....
Sorry I didn't respond earlier...I have been in bed much of the day...with you know what..the pain, burning and tightness....I couldn't even sit today at all.. I had to make a trip in the car and OWWW that was a disaster....But after reading what you said...I think YOU could be right....though neither of us are DRs, me either..that is a good thing...from what I have learned over the years....WE, mere NORMAL people have more info then the DRS. This is not to say that they don't know THEIR stuff..but WE are the ones in pain and do the necesary foot work to find out what the problem is....BECAUSE we obvioulsy have a vested interest in things....this syndrome...do you think if we indeed have this problem..do you think surgery caused it? I mean, once we were cut..maybe things just aren't the same..or is THIS what CAUSED the fissures to begin with? I have always have a spastic colon since a teenager but NEVER had problems with fissures and the spasms....this just seemed to start the last couple years...I decided last night to stop the stool softeners and today after many trips to the bathroom..I swear my BM's looked like foam as if the stool softners were working its way OUT...I am starting to think with the tight spinchter muscles we have..do you think its possible that WE both can't tolerate all this manmade fiber and Colace? Since I began taking fiber last fall....It seems like my intestines haven't worked properly! Normally, I can HEAR sounds from the intestines BEFORE I have to go....but since last year....things never seemed to MOVE the way they used too..almost as if the fiber solidfied in the intestines and backed up all the way down to the rectum. I am eating light right now..I, like you can't tolerate meat, dairy or anything spicey, etc.... this is no way to live...but again if I don't watch things I have big problems too...did you ever think any area could give you so many problems...I know my family is so fed up with me being sick...especially over something seemingly stupid.....but real, nevertheless!!!! And I am beginning to think that I DID indeed burst a hemeroid too....as I said before my DR. said we all have them, but a lot of people NEVER even know their there unless they have problems later in life. When I had my surgery in Ocotober...the DR. said I had no problems with hemeroids, that everything looked good. But I know I had to have broken one, bigtime...because of the pain and the blood after a BM..too much for something else...but I am starting to think..that taking the fiber might have caused this to happen....the BMs were getting too big and stupid me..I was told that I could eat whatever I wanted and though I still kept it lighter...I went back to a regular diet...BIG< BIG MISTAKE...so I am thinking..Ok..I ate meat (not good), took fiber (which obviously doesn't work well for me) and PLUS if I have this syndrome you mentioned...no wonder I am a mess.....I am going to look this syndrome up....I am really grateful you did some research...any help from you has been a God send! It has been really discouaraging to THINK I am better only to be back down this road months later. Thank GOD for this board..I am hoping that something you or I read will end this problem for both of us, permanently....We DO DESERVE TO BE HEALTHY and our lives should be back to normal by now!!!!! Thanks again for the info..I am going to look into it!