Recovering from a haemorrhoidectomy . . . warning: TMI alert . . .

[Puffykins]

Has anybody ever had a heamorrhoidectomy, and if so, please can you tell me how long recovery took? I'm on day 12 now, and am still in considerable pain - I can't walk anywhere except the bathroom for the endless baths I take, can barely sit up unless I'm on my special donut cushion and even then only last up to 45 minutes. I have two young children, and I just feel that this is so unfair on them. And I'm getting kind of depressed about my lack of progress. I need someone to give me hope. Please?!
(P.S. If anyone is considering having one: strongly consider it. I've never experienced anything more painful than the first 4 days post op, EVER. I would gladly have given birth every day rather than going through the pain I was subject to.)

@LooneyTuney1 - I stayed away from the string pain killers and have just been using paracetamol and ibuprofen. Not sure that they actually help much though!
When I was taking everything, I'd take them after breakfast and again after dinner. I soon cut the movicol down to once a day after dinner. Now I don't use any, but have introduced a fybogel after dinner to try and bring my 2 morning BMs to 1.
My thoughts are that if you take the laxatives at night, they should hopefully give you relief in the morning, whereas when I was taking morning ones I was often going late at night and in to the early hours of the morning. It's so hard to know what to do for the best, so it is trial and error to see what works for you. Liquid BMs are the most painful though as they burn, and that liquid will cost the inside too, so trying to get them soft, but not liquid is important.
We're you given any antibiotics as infection is a real risk and will only cause more pain and delay healing?

@Disneylover1 they gave me antibiotics right after the surgery. I'm nearly done with it too. Taking your advice, I'll try and take laxatives around dinner time and hopefully the bms are just in the morning. I currently cannot sleep due to some pressure on my bum, the same feeling I had when I had my banding.

@LooneyTuney1 - I really do feel for you. Hopefully you'll find the balance of food and supplements that work for you, but expect to be in pain for at least 2 weeks I'm afraid. I'd say that's best case too as pain can, and does, last longer unfortunately. It's an awful surgery to recover from 😞

Well, I've just finished my first customer meeting and feeling really pleased. It's the first time I've dressed properly (as in, not in PJs or jogging bottoms) and put make up on since my surgery. My customer was really lovely and knew exactly what she wanted, so made quick decisions, which I was really grateful for as it meant the meeting was only about 35 minutes. I then walked home, which is only about a 15 minute walk, but it was lovely to be out and back in the land of the living.
@Dizzyali77 - were you back at work today? How are you doing now? I still need to get morning BMs and pain sorted, but slowly getting there 🙏🤞

@Disneylover1 I went back to work last week but only did two days as still quiet at work but it’s definitely started to pick up. I’ve been to work today, still sore in one side when I go for a BM and still bleeding so I’m thinking I’ve got a stubborn part inside that’s being slow to heal. The pain goes off after a few hrs and I feel normal ha ha ha. And I’m using k y jelly to insert my supposteries for my colitis. I don’t see my consultant until 21st March, so won’t know more until then.
Ah so pleased you’ve got out in the fresh air it makes all the difference to be back in the land of the normal bum people 😂

@Dizzyali77 - yes, I know you went back last week. I just wasn't sure what days you were working this week. Was today easier for you as I remember that you were shattered after your first day back last week.
The bleeding must be really frustrating for you. I've not bled for about 10 days now, but just fed up of the post BM pain. I'm down to 2 per day (for the past 2 days), but they're 2 hours apart so it delays the pain subsiding. Not sure what I need to do to get to just 1 BM a day. I'm starting to eat more like I used to eat pre-surgery to see if that will help, and still doing the walking, drinking lots of water etc. Like you, I feel normal once the pain has gone too. My awful itch has finally stopped too and I can actually cope with having clothing and bedding next to my bum now. Really pleased about that as it was driving me crazy! The dermol 500 helped, but I also took Loratadine for a few days too.
Got another customer meeting tomorrow afternoon at 5pm, so a bit later than today, but that works in my favour 😊

@Disneylover1 All sounds like it’s healing really well now for you 😊 I’m working tomorrow and Wednesday then should have rest of week off, but can already see we’re starting to get busier. I didn’t feel as tired today but did have back ache today but got to remember I’m not even a year round post hysterectomy yet. If this bleeding could just stop I’d be happy. I’m still using the dermol 500 just to keep on top of it seeing as still bleeding but it’s coming from the internal wounds and I can feel it’s just one side, but until he investigates with his little periscope I’m none the wiser. Isn’t it a lovely feeling that by the time lunch time gets here your bum feels normal 😂 it’s like it aches and hurts then poof it’s gone.

@Dizzyali77 - yeah, I'm starting to get there. I've pretty much written off the first 2 weeks of my recovery as I had such a dreadful time I don't think I actually did much healing, if any😞 I went to the doctors about the infection 2 weeks tomorrow, so I'm thinking of that as the real start of my recovery as that's when I changed the diet, supplements, laxatives etc.

Glad to hear that you weren't as tired today after work, and nice that you've got tomorrow off too. Any plans, or just resting? Shame about the back ache though - you're really recovering from 2 surgeries still, so I'm really impressed at everything you're managing.

My big concern at the moment is this Saturday as we have a wedding to decorate, and normally get to the venue around 10.30am, but at the moment my BMs are around 8am and 10am, and then I'm in a degree of pain (how much depends on the BM) until around 1-2pm. I'm wondering if getting up earlier will trigger the BMs earlier? Really worried about it 😞

I'm also really hoping that my consultant doesn't want to do an internal exam. I didn't have anything removed internally, that I'm aware of, so I really hope not. The sheer thought makes me break out in a cold sweat 😰

@Disneylover1 Well I’ve found that getting up a bit earlier everything starts moving through earlier, so I’ve been getting up earlier for work as to get the BM out of the way before work. So might be worth giving it a try for you.

@Dizzyali77 - what time do you get up? I'm awake at 7am, but bowels don't move until around 8am. Maybe if I got up and started moving around it would help 🤔

@DisneyLover1 I get up at 6.45am and straight up and moving about but with me to be fair I need to go as soon as I wake up, that’s just how my bowels work, but moving around means BM 2 and 3 are all done before half eight. Blimey what a conversation 😂

@Dizzyali77 😂 I know - the conversations we've had about bums, bleeding and BMs! I'll start getting up and moving around earlier to see if it helps. I've just been speaking to my son (15) about my concerns for Saturday and he's offered to help my husband with the wedding set up, bless him 😍

@Disneylover1 that sounds so great! Being able to just get out and about! I'm trying to stand and walk around the house just for a bit of exercise. Hopefully I'll be able to walk around the block soon. It feels like ages since I saw the outside world! But going on Day 6, I'm hoping it just gets better. It would be swell if anyone here who has made a full recovery can maybe let us know their story and how they are now!
I'm actually trying to limit the panadols I'm taking. I might just take them after bms.
I forgot to mention as well that I listen to some guided meditation on youtube when I'm trying to relax and forget the pain. Not going to say it works all the time but it does help sometimes. It helps you take away the focus on the pain so the pain kind of subsides a bit.

@LooneyTuney1 - it is lovely to be able to get out and about a bit in to the land of the living, but I couldn't have done it in the first couple of weeks post surgery. Be careful not to try to push yourself too much so early on as you don't want to set yourself back.

This is my second surgery, the first was in 2012, so I have recovered from it before. What I have learnt is that recovery varies - a lot! My first surgery was much more extensive with 3 large external hemmies removed, yet I was 100% recovered, pain free and back to life and full time work by day 25, and flying to Florida on holiday on day 37. However, this time I just had 1 hemmie and a skin tag removed, but due to various set backs I'm at day 32, still having pain with BMs and for hours after and just slowly easing myself back in to work and life. The first surgery was totally worth it as my hemmies were grade 4 prolapsed which caused me pain all day, every day and were really affecting my quality of life. I felt like a new person after I'd recovered. I always knew I had a second surgery in my future though as they were unable to remove everything during the first op due to the risk of stenosis. I went as long as I could before having the final one removed on 1st Feb. I thought this recovery would be so much easier as less was done, but I was very wrong about that unfortunately 😞. At present, I'm just taking it a day at a time and praying that eventually the BM pain and post BM pain goes and I can go to the toilet without anxiety or stress. If I feel like I did once I'd recovered from the first op, then I'll be delighted.

Distraction is definitely something I used too. I downloaded games to my phone and played them. My husband suggested guided meditation, but I think he did it at the wrong time as I was going through a particularly painful phase and just bit his head off and dismissed it I'm glad that it helps you though. Anything that helps, even a little bit, is worth it.

Hang in there as it does get better. It just feels like a long dark tunnel before you start to see light at the end, but you will.

@Disneylover1 I'm starting to feel better apart from the bms. Bms still hurt and I just dread how I have to go multiple times everyday. I'm trying to just focus on positive things for now. I mean a little progress is still progress right?
My bum still feels raw and tender, but other than that I feel a bit better. There's not much blood (or if any at all) when I go toilet but there are some on the pads I wear. If I can only make it so that I only have 1 bm a day I would be so happy. But like I said, I'm happy with just seeing/feeling a bit better and I'm starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel!

@Disneylover1 btw did you remember the things you did the first time you got the operation? Or was it just a different experience all together like whatever you did back then didn't work this time around?

@LooneyTuney1 - that's great that you're starting to feel a bit brighter. BMs are the worst, and trying to get to just 1 a day is like the holy grail of BMs 😂 Not only does having a general anaesthetic messes up your body's natural rhythms, but then they give you all these laxative and fibre supplements and tell you to eat a high fibre diet. I was going a lot every day which wasn't giving my poor bum time to heal, and it only got better once I stopped the laxatives and fibre supplements and just had a good diet, lots of water and a magnesium tablet if needed. That reduced the number of BMs right down, and I'm now down to just 2 in the morning, but doing everything I can think of to try and get them to 1. I think it will come eventually.
Post op this time for me was quite different. I wish I'd kept a diary of what I did last time, but I didn't and can't remember too much (brain blocking out traumatic experiences!). This time I was given antibiotics that made me sick, so then got given anti sickness tablets, which I then discovered could cause constipation. Between them and the movicol, fybogel and not really eating a great deal to start with, I swung between loose fire water BMs and then more solid small BMs that came every hour which was so painful as my bum didn't get chance to recover it heal at all. I was also given some numbing gel for my bum which worked well, but then had a reaction to it which caused all my skin to blister, peel and become hyper sensitive and itchy. Asked hospital for advice and was told to take piriton, which worked, but caused constipation again! Honestly, I cannot tell you how bad this itch was and I couldn't have anything touching my bum at all. Then I got an infection at about day 18, so went to the doctors and got a different antibiotic that I knew didn't make me sick, and that's when I also cut out the movicol and fybogel and just focussed on having a good diet (the one I wrote in an earlier post). So, I really didn't start to heal this time until day 18, and I think that's what's made such a difference from the first time. First time round I didn't have the antibiotics, so wasn't sick and had a better appetite. The movicol and fybogel seemed to suit me better then too. It was 2012, so I'm not sure if being a bit younger made a difference either. They've just been 2 completely different experiences. I'm at day 32 now, but only 14 days since I think I really started to heal and making good progress. I just need to sort morning BMs and for the pain to go and I'll feel so much better. I'd say I'm 80% there.
Any progress lifts your spirits and you start to feel that there's light at the end of the tunnel. No, or very little, blood is good. Hopefully you'll continue to progress and each day will get a little easier until you eventually feel like your old self again 😊

Hi Everyone, I’m 8 weeks post op still not completely healed. My pain has jumped back to where I was 3/4 weeks ago. Burning achy pain, mainly on one side. BM are not as easy as 5 weeks ago, stopped taking the lactulose/softeners as not ideal long term. Anyone else so far in and still suffering? I can drive ok now and walk short distances. Not had my check up yet.

@Bradle Hi I’m five weeks post op tomorrow and still got a sore area when going and bleeding, you’re few more weeks ahead of me though. My check up isn’t till I’m 7 weeks post op.

Hi @Dizzyali77 I’ve been amazed at how painful and slow the recovery is. I honestly felt better 3 weeks ago 😢.

@Bradle - sorry to hear that you're not fully recovered and have had a set back. Once I recovered from my first op (4 weeks) I was absolutely fine, but I did continue taking Fybogel. No laxatives or softeners, by Fybogel is a fibre supplement do okay to take long term. Sounds like you might need to keep things softer for a bit longer. Did you have internal or external ones removed?

Internal, some bandied and some were cut out. Fybogel bloats me up so stopped using it. I think my surgeon would like me to go back in, not sure I could go through all this again

@Bradle - it does sound like you need to maybe keep things softer. Magnesium supplements can help with this as it draws water in to the stool making them softer. I just use Wilko's own brand. Start with 1 after dinner, and try 2 if you feel you need a bit more.
All the ones I've had removed have been grade 4 prolapsed, so more external than internal. However, I'm not sure if my surgeon came across something internal this time as I do have the internal ache following BMs. I'm seeing him on Friday (5 weeks post op) so will find out more then.

@Disneylover1 Thanks for the advice. Good to know we’re not alone in this never ending saga of BM & pain! Hope you’re soon recovered.

@Bradle - thank you. I think I'm about 80% now. I just need to get down to 1 BM a day and for the post BM pain to subside. I feel fine after the first one, but pain seems to develop if I have 2 or 3, and it takes about 3-4 hours to subside.

I've got an appointment with a dietician to get some advice, so hopefully that will help🤞

After going through this twice, I can honestly say that I'll never do it again, especially after this recovery as it's been awful compared to the first time.