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.)

[Dizzyali77]

@Disneylover @OMGimscared
Ah it’s good that you’re having a cry and just letting it all out, anyone that goes through this surgery once let alone twice is incredibly brave. It’s the worst thing I’ve ever experienced, the first 8 days were the worst and I had my share of tears and regrets. I need to get back to work as hubby only in min wage and I’ve used up my holiday now but just need to be back doing what I normally do and eating the money, especially after three months off after hysterectomy. The hemmies made me aneamic twice and had three IV iron infusions and I’m worried with still bleeding it’s going to happen again. Unable to to take iron tablets so it’s IV infusions.
I can feel uncomfortable down there until I feel like I’ve finally emptied out and for a while afterwards normally by bedtime it feels more like normal only to start again the next day. I’m glad I stopped the lactulose as I couldn’t stand going five times a day and being up in the night, but just making sure I’ve got fibre in diet. Luckily the gluten free bread I use is high in fibre as they put pyshulium husk in it which is what bascailly fibogel is. Feel like going to sleep for few hours this afternoon and letting my 15 yr old take charge for a bit, which she will but I’m terrible at doing as I’m told and resting and just get on with it, no doubt I’ll get told off for it. Thank heavens for you guys on here x

[Disneylover1]

@Dizzyali77 - gosh, I can imagine that things will be financially stressful for you, especially if you've already used up your sick pay with time of for your hysterectomy. Is there any way you can work from home so you can place yourself, rather than sitting in an office all day? I've got customer appointments booked for 1st March, so pray that I'll be ready for them. I really need to get back to email next week though. Unfortunately I've only got a desktop, not a laptop, and can't view emails from other computers, so I'm going to need to be able to sit for a while. I've got a thick piece of memory foam for my desk chair that I bought last time, so hopefully that will help.
Your anaemia sounds awful, so you definitely don't want that on top of everything. How much are you bleeding now? Is it still dripping? I've just got a slight smear of blood when I go, and I'm convinced that if I went less often, that would soon clear up, as would the pain of going.
My discomfort/ache is pretty much constant now, which is why I'm worried about other complications. However, it could also be part of healing. God, I wish I had a diary from last time to compare to! It's such a blurry memory - brain has blanked it out!
You should definitely rest and let your 15 year old look after you a bit. Kids are really good at stepping up when they need to, and sometimes we have to let them.
I'm feeling better after having a good cry and soak in the bath. I've made a few decisions:

1. I'm going to stop the fybogel and movicol. I've never had trouble going before and everything I'm eating is basically fibre, so I don't need the extra mass to pass. If I struggle, I have a different fibre supplement that I used pre-op called benefiber, and I'll add a bit of that.
2. I am going to wash my hair today. Hopefully that will help me feel a bit more human.
3. I'm going to walk about the house later once my bum's feeling a bit less sensitive.
4. I'm going to spend more time downstairs in the land of the living. Just a change if scenery and seeing people and the dig will hopefully help with my spirits.
5. I'm going to stop using baby wipes as I think my itching is a bit of contact dermatitis from them. They're the ones that are 99.5% the same as using cotton wool and water, but because I'm going so much and using so many, I think I've developed a sensitivity. When I use them now my whole bum fires up with the most unbearable itching. So, I'll be using cotton wool and water and hoping that helps.

Hope these will all be positive steps towards recovery 🤞

[Dizzyali77]

@Disneylover
That’s sounds like a good plan to me, and I think just easing yourself to be up and about will make you feel better. We’re going to in laws tomorrow for roast dinner so I’m looking forward to a change of scenery.
Unfortunately I have a manual job so I stand for 6 hrs a day going to ten hour shifts in spring, summer and autumn as I work for a event hire company doing all the linen, tablecloths, napkins, bedding etc etc so it’s a on a feet all day job. One thing having the op now means work hours are drastically reduced anyway but I miss going and being with my work colleagues as much as the money. Was awful last year as my hysterectomy was cancelled in Feb last year due to the anemia and by the time I got op date it was July so I missed all the busy period last year when the chance is there to make the money. But I couldn’t delay the op any longer as I’d been waiting over a year for it. I was carrying around a dinner sized plate uterus that had a 16cm fibroid in it which I blame for the hemmies getting bigger and bleeding as before that came along I could control hemmies with cream etc. I’m hoping that the surgeon will agree that I can start using my colitis med which is a suppository 🤦‍♀️ as who knows if that’s playing up even though I’m dreading putting it up there. Shame they can’t give us some magic cream so we heal quicker. X

[Disneylover1]

@Dizzyali77 - I completely understand what you mean about work. I'm a wedding decorator, so had to plan this in during our quiet time. If I didn't do it now, then I'd have to wait another year and the daily prolapse and pain was just taking over. If I feel as good once I'm healed, as I did after the first one, I'll be delighted. It really was life changing. Just trying to stay positive that I'll get there.
Your previous problem sounds awful and I can imagine the impact that would have had one you, coupled with the hemmies. You poor thing - you've really gone through it.
A magic cream would be wonderful. Or an induced coma for 4 weeks!
Hope you cope with lunch out tomorrow. I'm definitely not there yet - haven't even tried sitting normally yet.
Laying downstairs now binge watching My Crazy Ex Girlfriend on Netflix - easy and amusing 😊

[CareBear50]

I am day five post op. Thought I was doing really well but I noticed an .... aroma.....from the wound and just feels v v raw (funny that!!)

Anyhow...thanks to the advice on here I went to out of hours doc today who had a look......I'm sure that's an experience they relished lol!

So.....she said it was a bit weepy and red. Now on amoxicillin.........I hope it clears up soon as it's Def feeling a bit 'moist' down there.

Sending 💓 to those of you going through a hard time x

[Disneylover1]

@CareBear50 - so pleased that you got it looked at. Hopefully the antibiotics will kick in soon and you'll carry on having a good recovery 😊

[OMGimscared]

@CareBear50 omg so glad you had it checked out, I hope it clears up fast. @Disneylover1 you are so funny, induced coma lmao 😹😹😹 so glad you are downstairs it gets so lonely and boring in bed. Am am on the sofa now watching a teenage film with my girl. We love watching all of these rubbishy American things. I can't get over the fact that you had to use your holiday for this @DizzyAli77 that makes me so sad, I am so lucky with my company and sick pay.

[CareBear50]

Really feeling like crap. Lying in bed crying from pain. Day five post op. Up to today have been pretty good. Only bled on day one. I now have infection in wound and have just had BM.....bleeding!! So so painful 😓😓😓

[Disneylover1]

@CareBear50 - oh dear, I do feel for you. At least you caught the infection early. Hopefully you'll bounce back quickly x

[Disneylover1]

They should send everyone home with antibiotics case standard. It's crazy that they don't! 😠

[CareBear50]

Yes I just don't understand it..... Open wound and pooh - recipe for dASSaster lol!!!

[OMGimscared]

@CareBear50 my heart goes out to you, bear with it it does start to get better, trust me I know. One thing I found helps is get a cotton wool pad fold it in half and stick between bum cheeks as close to infected wound. The pus will automatically stick to it making you feel dryer and it masks the smell a bit. Also means your pad isn't quite so disgusting, sorry for the detail but try it. Xx

[CareBear50]

Thank you @omgimscared

I will try that. I've just had a bath which has maybe helped somewhat.

So so so glad to have this forum to chat on. I'm a really private person and I've only told two people about procedure I went in for. Widowed many years ago so in some ways would be nice to have s significant other to share with - but at least I have you guys to share with. So thanks. My daughters are 21 and 18.... They know I've gone in for an op.....but I've spared them the trauma if knowing what the op was for lol......I'm sure they wouldn't want to know!

[Janice2019]

I had the procedure done on 2/12/2019. I had BW in the morning before the procedure. The doc didn’t remove all hemorrhoids/skin tags because removing all would make the skin too tight and extremely painful. I can feel something still stick out my bum so I’m actually very worried the hemorrhoid would come back.
Day 1(2/12) : I felt very dizzzy/fatigue and nauseas from the drug. The doc said she applied something that I shouldn’t feel much pain in the next two days. But it’s very hard to pass gas.
Day 2 (2/13): no BW. I used miralax, stool softener, high fiber diet trying to avoid constipation. Not much pain. I was able to pass gas when on a toilet.
Day 3 (2/14): start to feel a little bit uncomfortable. I was determined to have BM. I took laxative and pain killer (oxycodine) in the morning and laxative again around noon. And of course stool softener and miralax. In the evening, I had diarrhea and so painful that I took the oxycodine while having the diarrhea. Of course, it’s too late. I took a bath but had several BW. In the end, I gave up the bath. The oxycodine made me so fatigue and nauseas that I could only lie on the carpet floor. The spasm lasted almost whole night.
Day 4: had a BW/diarrhea in the morning before I ate breakfast or med. not as painful as yesterday. I used the sitz bath on the toilet right after BW and it seemed to ease the spasm. I had some aspirin after the morning BW instead of oxycodine. I felt much better except when passing gas.
My pharmacist friend suggested taking Tylenol and Advil for pain mgmt. so I took them and one tablet of laxative instead of two after lunch. I feel much much better until the painful BW in the middle of night. (I didn’t take any med before bed because I felt very good) But probably the sitz bath, I didn’t have the spasm though still felt some manageable pain.
Day 5: continue with Tylenol, Advil, MiraLax, Metamucil, stool softener. Had BW in the morning and afternoon. The BW/gas still hurt a lot but the immediate sitz bath and painkiller ease the pain.

[Janice2019]

@Disneylover1 :I just read your first post. I’m very curious about the reason you chose the 2nd after 6 years. Was the 4th hemorrhoid bothering you much after sometime?

[TheQueef]

Can i just place mark to read later.

[Disneylover1]

Hi @Janice2019 and welcome to our little group, although it's not a group anyone really wants to be part of! I had a really bad case the first time, and Luke you the surgeon couldn't take everything due to risk of tightening (stenosis). The 4th one that I've had removed this time had become a daily pain. Constantly prolapsing, painful, swollen and unable to manage with creams, diet etc. I must have mentally blocked out recovery from the first time, and decided it was time to go under the knife again. Part of me wishes I'd just learnt to live with it, but I also know that once fully healed and recovered, I should feel great, as I did after my first op. I'm just hoping I heal as well as I did that time. Logically, I should as there was less done (1 hemmie and 1 tag rather than 3 large hemmies), but getting to that stage is a roller coaster of pain and emotion.
Hopefully you'll have a good recovery without too many set backs

[Disneylover1]

Morning all! Hows the infection today @CareBear50 and @omgimscared? I hope they're coming under control now for you both.
Well, after yesterday mornings emotional breakdowns, the rest of the day was much better. I only had 2 BMs in the morning, and then another one around 9.30pm. That period of rest between them allowed for my wound to rest and it stopped being swollen and painful. I guess it had become permanently like that the previous couple of days as I'd been going so much.
I washed my hair! Yay! After 15 days it was so disgusting, and it feels wonderful to have clean hair again. I spent most of the day downstairs and having people around, being able to look out if the window etc, really helped my spirits.
No BMs in the night but still didn't sleep well as I was up and down for a wee every 1-2 hours. Not sure what's going on with my bladder at night at the moment. I'm going to stop drinking water at 8pm tonight and see if that helps. Don't think I've got a UTI as no pain, burning etc.
I've had 2 BMs this morning and they went well. A bit of bleeding still, and the second was a bit loose and watery, so think I might have overdone it with my magnesium last night. I took 2, so will try just 1 today. Magnesium helps draw water in to the stools to keep them soft and is something I use normally.
The thing that's doing me in at the moment is the itch! I honestly can't explain how bad it is. It's like it starts deep inside my bum and radiates out. It makes me jump, shiver, sweat! It's crazy! I've taken a Loratadine this morning to see if that helps and hopefully it won't cause the constipation of the piriton🤞I just need to get this itch under control. I spend all day and night with my bum exposed to the air and I don't know what else to do. I'm going to see if I can get an appointment for a Dr to have a look at my bum tomorrow as maybe I can get a more targeted treatment if they can see it. I'm also going to take a tablet for thrush, just in case it's a bit of that too. Anything to try to help! Open to any suggestions too. Honestly, it's sooooo bad!

[Dizzyali77]

@Disneylover so glad you’re feeling brighter, it’s amazing what a hairwash can do. I’m using the water wipes which I find quite cooling and relives the itch somewhat. Still sore when going for a bm and now day 17 but can sit on my bum now although it aches after a while so still prefer to sit to the side. And of course still dripping blood when going but off to see consultant tomorrow although I’m dreading him looking up there. But I guess I’ll know what’s going on.
Hope everyone is feeling a little less sore today

[Disneylover1]

@Dizzyali77 - unfortunately, anything on my bum sets the itch off, even cotton wool and water. It's honestly crazy!
Feeling very sore right now. I think my second loose watery BM came out a bit fast and has inflamed everything inside again. It's giving me the horrible period dragging pain too. Trying to find the balance to keep BMs soft, but not loose is tricky. I feel like golilocks - not to hard, not to loos, just right! I know it will ease but right now it feels horrible and I can't wee as it's all swollen 😞
Hopefully I'm empty though and once it's passed I'll have a good day.
You seem to be doing well and great that you can sit for a while too. Hopefully your appointment tomorrow won't be too painful and you'll get some answers to reassure you🤞
Going to try to eat my porridge now, but it's so hard to eat when you're in pain!
PS - don't forget the 1 at the end of my user name. At the moment some random person is getting email alerts from you 😄

[Dizzyali77]

@Disneylover1 whoops ha ha ha that’s about right for me 😂 . Oh no that’s horrible even if cotton wool is setting it off. I’m going to request a new bum tomorrow 😂 if only hey!
Hope you’ve managed to eat your porridge, and hope your day gets better.

[Disneylover1]

@Dizzyali77 😂😂😂 I can just imagine some person be delighted to read all about our bums!
Oh, wouldn't a new bum be nice. I ask for that every time my husband asks if he can get me anything or help. I wish we could change bums like Wurzel Gummidge could change heads 😂
Currently laying with a hot water bottle between my legs to try and help the drag and just waiting for the internal bum inflammation to die down. I've been laying on the bed moaning like I'm in labour! Seems to be reading a bit though.
The itch seems to have stopped so maybe the Loratadine vhas worked. God I hope it doesn't constipate. Recovery goes much slower when you have set backs. You seem to be doing well though and hopefully you'll keep improving daily.

[Disneylover1]

@CareBear50 - I can't believe you're going through this alone. Hats off to you! Are your daughters still at home to help? I told both of my children (15 year old son and 17 year old daughter) exactly what I've had done, what the problem was and the cause. I don't want them to ever have to go through this, so I'm hoping that by being honest and them seeing what I'm going through, that they'll really look after their bums. My daughter has now decided that there's no way she's having a natural birth if that's what caused the problems to start with - whoops! She's said that she wants to keep her nether regions as they are and will have a C-section and recover from that instead. I have to say, in hind sight, I wish I'd done that as then I wouldn't have had 27 years of on/off problems and 2 excruciating surgeries.
Hope you had a good night and the infection is healing up x

[Disneylover1]

Edit - 17 years of problems, not 27! I can't see how to edit posts. Is it possible?

[Disneylover1]

Wow, the burning swollen pain from a loose watery BM definitely takes longer to subside than the pain from a soft BM. Been over 3 hours now and I'm still in pain. It's a bit like having a period pain in my bum, buttocks and coccyx 😞