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.)

I'm so sorry to hear that @Kandy88. I totally understand your feeling of depression. I felt the same way in the first 3 weeks after my surgery. I could see outside and hear outside but couldn't participate. I knew one day that I would but I couldn't see the light at the end of the tunnel. A lot of that feeling of hopelessness is from the anesthesia I was told. I used to wake up in the morning, and before I even had a thought, I always felt dread. The fistula recovery sounds worse then hemmie surgery and I really hope it gets better soon. Is there any food or drink you should steer clear of?

Hey @AusLady - sorry I've not been on for a couple of days. Been really busy with work, plus the past couple of days haven't been great either, so I've been feeling quite low and sorry for myself (jinx or another uncanny coincidence!). So, 2 days ago, I had a loose BM which meant I had the awful 'ring of 🔥' for most of the day. Then it was a bit loose yesterday too, so more burning arsehole which subsided late on. Then I had a massive BM before bed, which ended watery, so was kept awake all night by the burning, which finally subsided at about 5am. Then I woke at 8am, ready to have my first daily BM and see what that would bring. Not as loose thankfully, but it felt sore and then started itching - great! So, I went through my bag of many ointments and creams and slapped some anusol on to see if that would help. It seemed to a bit, and by 2pm I couldn't feel anything, so had a better afternoon. Tried to figure out what might have caused the recent loose BMs and I had introduced a probiotic yoghurt after my dinner, so will cut that out to see if it helps. I really don't think the honey is doing much either, so will give that to my husband to put on his porridge, and I'm moving on to egg yolk! I've read and re-read the clinical study paper numerous times and figure that I really haven't got much to lose at this point. So, I've bought some organic eggs and ordered some syringes from Amazon. The syringes arrived today and I realised I made a bit of a mistake as they're huge! More designed for tube feeding - whoops! So, have ordered some smaller ones that will arrive tomorrow and then I'll commence operation egg yolk! I'm still waiting for my referral, so might as well. From the results of the clinical trail, it looks like results start to be seen around the 12 day mark, so I'm hoping this might improve things before my glamping trip in 3 weeks🤞

I have been down and quite emotional again though. There are lots of people in the world who live with pain on a daily basis due to things like arthritis, fibromyalgia, illness - loads of things. What if this is the pain that I'll have to live with for the rest of my life? I'm trying to stay positive and recite my mantra, but boy is it hard sometimes! I could cope with painful BMs if the pain disappeared straight away once they'd finished, but it's the hours of either ache, thorny or burning pain (depending on what the day brings) that I find so hard to cope with. And the constant mental strain of worrying about everything I eat and what effect it will have the following day. It's all pretty crap really😞

Did you get your suppositories? What are they called? Hope it's not been to painful using them and that they're bringing some relief. Hope the past couple of days have been better for you than they have for me. I got you PM and will reply tomorrow as it's bedtime now xxx

Hi @NannyOggsCat - if you've got the itch from hell, sounds like recovery is going well. It is truly awful though! You could try taking an antihistamine to help a bit though. Other than the itch, how are you doing? I'm hoping your BMs are a bit easier and pain is reducing. I really do pray for the 3-4 week recovery for you as the prolonged recovery that AusLady and I are having is a bitch!

It's definitely a juggling act with the food, stool softeners etc. I wish there was a magic diet sheet of actual recipes available to help, rather than just the standard 'eat lots of fibre' advice. It's so generic and not actually that helpful. It's why both Auslady and I went to see a dietician - to get some more tailored advice to help.

Going to sleep now and hoping tomorrow is a better day🤞 xxx

Hi again @Kandy88. Just found a support group for other people with fistula. It is also current.
themighty.com/2018/02/life-with-anal-fistula/
I hope that helps

I just had my surgery done last friday. Im still at the hospital as of the moment but is due to be discharged today probably at 10 AM. They removed 2 internal hems. The size of a pea and the size of a chicken heart. I was awake the whole duration of my operation since the anaesthesia if the lower part of my body only. I had my first BM a day saturday evening. It was a bit painful (7/10)and it smelled awful. I had another 30 mins after. I had my third this morning but less painful.

If i am to campare the pain of BM before i had my surgery and after, i would say after operation is a lot more bearable. Before op, i could not stand and sit. I immediately lie down. Right now, i could walk and i could sit immediately after

Hi @Disneylover1, sorry to hear you've had a bad couple of days. It really is a mind fuck recovery for us!!! I was hoping no news was good news. I hope it improves soon. I really hope the egg works better.
I can't believe a probiotic yogurt would give you diarrhea, that's amazing! Had to laugh about your syringes!! Lol, I'd do the same thing, but I have a chemist nearby so it's easy to buy stuff while I'm out.

So my BMs have neither improved or gotten worse over the past couple of days. I tried using a suppository last night but no luck. Because I have that scar tissue it was poking into that and started bleeding so I threw it in the bin, got a heat pad and went to bed disappointed. I've never used them before so I don't know if I'm doing it right or if I should have some lube to help??? It's all too much!! I'll try again tonight. The suppository looks small till I have to put in in a hole that only likes things to come out!!! 🤣🤣

Hi @Kandy88 - so sorry you're going through a fistula recovery in addition to he hemmie surgery. I understand a bit of the pain you're feeling as in the early days of my hemmie recovery I had diarrhea which was basically like acid water which made me feel like I was burning from the inside out for hours. All I wanted to do was flush it out with cold water, but that just wasn't possible. It was awful pain, so I can imagine how you're feeling having it daily. Hemmie recovery is bad enough, but I'd be so depressed to have a fistula wound on top. I guess there's no much you can do except let mother nature do her thing, but the time and pain is frustrating. I hope the thread at @Auslady found for you might help x

Hi @sheryllcpa and welcome to the group. Sounds like you're doing well. I believe that recovering from external hemmies surgery is a lot more painful than internal as there are a lot more pain nerves externally. It's good that you've already noticed improvement from before having them removed though. Just wondered why they kept you in hospital? Is it standard where you are as it's just a day care in the UK normally so we go home the same day we have surgery unless there have been complications. Until reading this forum, I didn't know that it could be done without having a full general anaesthetic. The GA really messes up your natural rhythms and bowel movements, and can cause constipation, which I think makes recovery harder too.
I hope that you get home soon and your recovery continues to go well 😊

@Disneylover1 my doctor suggested for me to stay a day so that they could monitor me. Which i think is a good idea. Painrelivers are given via IV as well as antibiotics so as to avoid constipation. He also suggested for a low residue diet for the next two days.

Most hospitals here normally send their patients home on the same day.

Its not GA, i dont know why though. So as the operation is taking place, i am actually talking to them(doctors).

@Disneylover1 its SOP in our country to stay until you have your first BM or you have passed your gas.

Hi @AusLady - yes, I always hope no news is good news too. I got quite low and just wallowed in my self pity rather than coming on here. I thought the probiotic yoghurt would be good for me too. It might have been something else, but that's all I could think of. I didn't have diarrhea as such, just my BMs were a lot looser and what happens then is I don't have a 'clean' BM and little bits get caught in the crevices of the fissure and surgery area that I don't think has healed properly and that causes the burning pain. I clean as best I can - I use my mirror, damp cotton wool pads and even cotton buds to try and get everything out. It's a right palaver! I never thought I had any food intolerances, but I might get tested to see if I have any mild ones or things I should avoid which haven't been an issue before.

Did you never use suppositories for your hemmies? A bit of lubrication definitely helps ease them in. I'd normally apply my hemmie cream and then slip the suppository in afterwards. Sorry it caused you to bleed though 😞

I'm starting to get a bit stressed as I've been up for 50 minutes and no sign of my BM yet and I need to leave to work in 50 minutes. I've left home before having not done the second smaller one, but never the bigger first one. I'm going to run up and down the stairs - see if I can dislodge it!

🙏we both have a good day x

My failed syringe purchase 😂😂😂

@disneylover1 oh my god I'm sorry but it made me laugh that you've given your arse honey to your husband for his breakfast 😂😂
Good luck with the eggs though... I don't think I could do that, you're braver than me!

Had a couple of days feeling quite good, and my arse doesn't look like the butchered lovechild of cthulhu and Dr zoidberg anymore but this afternoon my stomach has decided to punish me for thinking I was on the mend by giving me the runs.... 😭😭 Although not as painful as I expected, still uncomfortable and has set off the itch something rotten 🤪

I'm so glad I asked for another week off sick next week, I'm no where near ready to sit in an office all day... Or drive for that matter!

I hope you are OK, hang in there! Your body will eventually heal and you won't be in pain forever ❤️ same to @auslady and everyone else going through this!

HI @NannyOggsCat - how are you doing today? Hopefully the runs have stopped, the itch is subsiding and you're starting to see light at the end of the tunnel.

Too right I gave my husband my arse honey. At £35 per pot, I wasn't going to let it go to waste! I did decant some in to a small pot to use on my bum, so the main pot has never been near it. Certainly wouldn't have given it if there had been any double dipping

So, operation egg yolk started last night. My what a messy thing to do! I think the nozzle on the new, MUCH smaller syringes isn't really long enough to get the yolk inside properly. As I was squeezing, it was just coming out all over my mirror and the toilet seat! I did get the areas I'm concerned about thoroughly coated though, and used a cotton bud to get some inside too. Felt no pain, discomfort or irritation, and all seemed okay this morning. I've also ordered some syringes with longer nozzles! TBH, there's no way I would even contemplate trying this if it was just an anecdotal thing I'd read on sites (like honey, coconut oil etc), but as there's been a full clinical trial, I feel much happier to. Also, if you think about it, the yolk of an egg is like a placenta for a growing chicken, so it's full of so much goodness and things to support cell growth. I'm not sure when I'll eat an egg next though!

How are things with you @ Auslady?

HI @sheryllcpa - I wish it was SOP here too! A few days with IV antibiotics and pain relief sounds like a great idea. Considering how painful this operation is and the high risk of infection, it does baffle me that it's a day case in most places.

Are you home now? Hope you're doing well x

Hi @sheryllcpa. That is great for you to already notice an improvement from your op. 😁 how are you feeling now that it's a couple of days later?
My phone's not updating this forum properly. Cause it's not showing everyone's posts straight away, yours @sheryllcpa didn't show up for a day?
Are you in Aus? Cause I stayed in hospital overnight but was able to leave before my first BM.
@Kandy88 how are you? I'm thinking about you all the time and hoping you have an improvement from the burning pain of the fistula? 😘
I have nothing new to report. I'm no better and no worse atm. I'm in limbo.
So @Disneylover1, how's the egg treatment. Eggscellent? Sounds bloody messy, but I'd still do it if it's going to help. Lol. Those first lot of syringes are huge!!! 😂 did you get the new ones yet?
I still haven't tried the scheriproct suppositories again. I'm just not sure if the bloody trauma to my mental health and my butt hole is worth it??? I've never used suppositories and I could never put the nozzle of the cream in either....
I've decided to use the cream the naturopath made as it's basically the same as the suppositories. I just use a ear bud to get it inside.
So I still don't have a new referral yet for a surgeon, but that's ok cause I've got my big holiday coming up in 4 weeks or so.
Yeah it's bloody horrible when you don't have a BM at the normal time. Or you only have one. And you start second guessing what you ate the day before, or if you drank enough water etc. Its a constant mind fuck. So I've only had 1 for the past 3 days, so today I had 3! Lol. And you're right too @Disneylover1 about how our situation could be worse. Our sore bums are NOT a permanent problem that we'll suffer the rest of our lives. 😘

I must say that I too laughed about the butt honey!! But I knew it was expensive cause I've seen it at the chemist.

So @NannyOggsCat how are you today? Hoping you're feeling better again? I'm glad you've got an extra week off, cause I felt it was difficult to sit at a computer all day when I returned. I'd stand up, sit down, stand up etc. Lol. And make some kind of excuse to walk around the office as well. But I must admit it was really exhausting!! Make sure you have some baby wipes or whatever you use in a zip lock bag in your pocket when you return to work. And spares in your bag just in case. I just didn't want to take my bag into the toilet every time I went. But I w a s still having 4 BMs a day back then. Fork it was hard work!!! Lol. Good luck. 😘

@AusLady1 - this is tooooo strange! For the past 3 days I've only had 1 BM a day too! I've only had 1 so far today, but it's still early (10.15am), but I'm praying that I don't have any more. Having just 1 BM makes the world of difference to my daily pain/discomfort as I think the additional ones just aggravate the fissure/wound more which cause the more intense and prolonged pain. I'm praying that my body has finally decided to settle back in to its natural rhythm.

Yes, those first syringes were HUGE! However, the nozzle on the second set was too short, so I wasn't really able to get much inside. So, I bought a third set that seem to be just right - like Goldilocks and her porridge lol! A nice size, but with a long nozzle. It's definitely a messy thing to do, but doesn't cause any pain and is all natural, so I'll keep on going and keep you updated. I figure that I haven't really got much to lose at the moment and if it works, I'll be eggstatic

Suppositories can be tricky, especially if you're not used to using them and you're a bit tense down there due to all the worry/anxiety. Hopefully the cream from the naturopath will help and using a cotton bud is a good way of getting some inside. I use cotton buds with the egg too, just to make sure the areas I want are definitely covered, and also used them with the honey.

Hope everyone else is doing well and improving x

Hey @Disneylover1, lol. We seem to mirror each other's lives!! It's uncanny. It doesn't seem to make any difference to my day though. I have a bit of an ache till around lunch time regardless. Mine were also a bit more bulkier too. Which I must say made me happier only because I was worried my anus might have been too tight?
I've read your PM and will respond tomorrow. I have a long day at work tomorrow, have to leave home around 7.30 am and travel for 3 hours as I need to go to one of our other offices. Hopefully I don't get stuck their too long and get home at a reasonable hour. And fingers crossed my BMs behave!!!! Have a wonderful day. 😎😘

@Disneylover1 Thanks for the reply I really can’t believe either of us are still on this thread. I’m having a set back today throbbing discomfort that I’d have expected to be gone after month 3!! It’s all too depressing and there’s something about the nature of this operation that’s unlike anything else. I will be ringing the hosp as GP is rather annoyed I’ve not had my 3 month post op check after 6 months. That’s not helping my recovery at all. All in all I can say I’ve been in continuous pain/discomfort since I came to in the recovery room. Although it is mild in comparison 😢😢

@Bradle - yeah, this really is crap for those of us who haven't had a straight forward recovery. My first recovery was great and I was so pleased I'd had the op, but can honestly say that I wish I hadn't had the second one as things haven't been right since, and definitely worse than my pre-op state as at least I knew how to handle that. I'm waiting for an NHS referral as can't afford continuous private fees, but think it's outrageous that you haven't been seen at all after 6 months, especially as there's still obviously an issue. Is it just pain or do you still have bleeding too?

@Disneylover1, hello. 5 days post op, i have already stopped taking my pain meds. Im only taking antibiotics 3 times right now. I am having 1 BM per day. Not watery but loose enough to pass without straining. Pain after BM is tolerable, i jump immediately to my sitz bath after.
I hope all of you are doing fine.

@AusLady1 i stayed in the hospital for two days. And check-up is after every 3 days. After leaving the hospital, the doctor suggested that i avoid eating eggs during the entire duration of my recovery. He also suggested to boil guava leaves and use it to wash my anal area. Guava leaves are proven to contain high concentration of anti inflamatory and antibacterial properties.

Before i actually had the surgery, i was already in constant pain because of my hems. I have suffered for three months from severe pain because of my hems. I was depressed, i lost weight because i was afraid of eating.

This pain prompted me to undergo surgery. I think the reason why i am not feeling that so much pain right now after surgery is because i have gotten too used to it that the pain im feeling right now is nothing compared to what i have felt in the past 3 months

Hi @sheryllcpa. Yeah id have really bad pain on and off for years but it was never constant for months. Sometimes only a week then id be fine for 6 weeks. Etc.So what country are you in and why did your surgeon tell you not to eat eggs? I wouldn't even know where to buy guava leaves!! Lol.
So glad you are feeling much better already. It must be a blessing after 3 months of pain. Its funny how everyone's healing is different which depends on what surgery you had etc. Wish mine was like yours! 😁

@AusLady Hongkong.

Eggs were prohibited to avoid eruption of allergy. I told my doctor i dont have allergies eith eggs, but he insisted that i should still avoid it. Since our body are more sensitive during healing process