Hemorrhoid Surgery and Recovery

Hi everyone. I wanted to share my story with all of you and maybe give ya'll some hope.

Ok so on December 15, 2010 I had 8 hemorrhoids removed. 3 external and 5 internal. I never in my life had hemorrhoids until after the birth of my daughter 3 years ago. (Price I paid for a pain free birth). I felt great right after the surgery while still in the hospital. I had surgery at 2:00 pm and was on my way home at 430 pm. While on my way home some of the feeling started coming back. I then began to really start to hurt. Before we got home my husband stopped at the rx to get my prescriptions filled.(Thank God) By the time I got home I had taken 2 Demerol and a Phenergen (The Dr said the phenergen would boost the effect of the Demerol and ease the pain better --Really worked). I then went right to bed. Sometime in the night the medication wore off and I was crying from the pain. Please dont make this mistake....make sure you set an alarm clock and take that medication just as directed. The pain is very tolerable if you take the medication exactly as they tell you to. So the next day I removed the gauze from my rear (it was not internal they just had taped gauze to my bottom). I was able to urinate with no problem other than the muscles relaxing caused a little pain. I use the sitz bath everytime I have to go to the bathroom and it really helps because the warm water relaxes the muscles. On day 4 I had not had a bowl movement so I called the doctor who told me to go ahead and do an enima very gently. I had to do this because I had extreme pressure and knew I had to go but for some reason I could not. I felt pain in my lower back and could not walk well because of the pressure.I did the enima and it was instant relief. The first bowl movement was not pain free but it was tolerable. I had become empacted and would not have been able to go without help. From then on I have really had no problem going to the bathroom. There is some pain but more of a burning pain. It does get easier. If you can get numbing cream it really helps too. I had my follow up appointment today and the doctor said that I still have a lot of swelling which he gave me analpram and I also have a tear where one of the hemorrhoids was. He said that it will heal on its own and doesnt require any additional stiches. He said that I am healing well. One problem I am having though is that I started itching. I was told that this is normal and nothing to worry about. The analpram will help with this. You will survive this surgery. I already feel much better and I am glad that I had the hemorrhoids removed. No surgery is fun but the following will make it easier....Take it from me....

Take the medication as directed even if you feel you do not need it.
Drink lots of water (8 bottles or more)
Take benefiber
Use Sitz bath 4-5 times a day
Do not strain when going to bathroom. If you cant go in 1 min. Get up and come back later.
By day 3 if no bowl movement use enima (call your doctor first)
Do not over do anything..Relax but do not stay in bed- take short walks
Eat normally but stay away from fried greasy food

I am doing a whole lot better today than yesterday so everyday it gets better. Good luck to everyone and I wish you all speedy recoveries.

Thank you all for your experiences.... I am scheduled to have this surgery tomorrow. I previously had a PPH in March 2010 and banding on the side that the PPH didn't work... I have now found out the PPH didn't work on the other side either, so I have external and internal ones to take care of.

I feel EXTREMELY prepared as far as meds, creams, sitz bath, fiber one cereal, pericolace, etc that I will need to endure this ordeal.. but I am still petrified. I had no surgeries until last year and a friend who is a nurse thinks I don't heal well.

I am 40 years old, female and got these from the birth of my first child 5 years ago. They told me not to do anything about them until I was done having children. I had my last one in Feb 2009. The first thing the nurse said as I was delivering my second son was, "Wow.. look at those hemorrhoids." UUUGGGGGHHHHHHH......

The pain I am in right now from trying to clean out a bit before tomorrow is horrible. I guess I can endure a few weeks of pain to be done with this. I am grateful my husband can take the time off to take care of me & my two little ones.

Again.. thank you for all your posts.

Good Luck! I hope you have a fast recovery. I was scared also but it was from hearing all the horror stories (Even from my dad). As far as your recovery and healing I would not worry about that because as long as you take care of yourself and you have a good doctor doing the surgery everything should be just fine. My doctor said that there is no way for the surgery to be painfree but the pain is completely managable with the medication and proper diet. Everyone heals different so he had no real way of telling me when I would be fully recovered but I am now 17 days into recovery and I feel great. I was on the pain medication up until the 29th of December and decided to stop with them because I felt I did not need them at that point. I still use the lidocaine ointment when needed (Maybe 1 time a day) and I use benefiber (non grit formula) and 1 stool softner everyday to make sure I do not get constipated. Overall I am so glad to have this behind me and be free of that pain in my u kow what :)

You will do just fine. Keep a positive attitude. You will be in the worst pain for maybe the first 3 days but it is totally managable if you take the medication like they tell you to and dont try to skip a dose because you think you dont need it. (Oh- one thing my doctor told me - do not apply heat to that area because it will aggrivate the area and cause more swelling).

The first bowl movement for me was not all that much fun but I had become impaced and had to use a fleet enima for relief because I wasnt able to go on my own. It felt so much better afterward. Try to avoid becoming impacted. If after maybe 3 days no bowl movement call your doctor.

i wish you the best and feel free to ask any questions you may have while recovering. I have been there and done that :)

Boy am I glad I didn't read this BEFORE my surgery 48 hrs ago. I never would have done it. I haven't had the experiences shared here. I've had the pain, discomfort, lack of sleep, anxiety etc. It hasn't been a cake walk, but 48hrs in, and I'm doing great. Like everyone else, I waited until I was completely fed up with having the roids run my life before committing to the surgery. I had my first movement yesterday. It wasn't as painful as some I've had during a peak flare up. Yes, it made me cling to the wall and sweat, but I was left feeling postive about the future. With the roids, I was always left with a feeling of dispair. Many baths later, I had my second today. It wasn't any better, but still better than the alternative. I've found that Ibuprofen has helped the most. It's strictly an anti-inflammatory. Controlling the swelling and irritation around the incision is key. I've coupled that with baths to get things in line for the "main event". After, I rest for a while, and take more Ibuprofen. So far, so good. I feel for those that have really struggled. I've read a few others compare it to child birth. While I'm a man, I've seen two births. Both were completely opposite experiences for my wife. I'm pretty sure this surgery can provide similar results. One of the nurses in the hospital said a friend said it was life changing. I cling to that positive thought as is stuggle to "birth my butt babies". Everyday will be a bit easier. Hang in there folks and thanks for sharing.

Hi thank you for sharing your story..I just underwent my second surgery in two months..First I had staple  method this did not work and I landed up with prolapsed bowl and loss of muscle use of the pucker muscles and the hemorrhoid were worst ..So after two month of this agonizing way of living with my bowl prolapsing just to work to much when I pasted gas and trust me after having a bowl movement it was terrible i had to push the bowl back in all the time... When ever I would go out I would spend most of my time in the restroom pushing my bowl back in I have to then hemorrhoids   cut out.. this was just ago and I can relate to your pain...My first bowl movement was 5 days after surgery I thought I was going to die...I gave birth to 5 children with no pain med's or intervention... This surgery was the most excruciating thing I have ever evduer except for the sexual abuse I endue as a very small child on day 6 had I owned a gun trust me I would have killed myself...But at day 11 I am feeling a little better taking 17g fiber once a day this makes me go every time I eat.. I also have terrible urinating but It is much better then after the first surgery.. the past 4 1/2 months have been  awful thing. I would never wish this on my worst enemy But I am hopeful for the future..... 

I am a 27 year old male and just had my hemaerrhoid surgery (the staples kind) this Tuesday. I've had hamaerrhoids since I was 16/17 years old and also had anal fissures. Today is Friday and although I've felt much bowel movement, every time I try going, I can't get anything out beyond farts. I really hope to get over with my first poop and tell you all what it's like.

Just a recap of my experience so far:

The first day, I was pain free as I suspect I had too much anaesthesia during the surgery, although I felt like I wanted to poop real badly as the guaze was pushing up against my anus. I was basically dizzy, sleepy and nauseaus and threw up. This actually is not a big problem and I suspect most people will not go through this. The main point was because the anaesthesia, I did not feel pain on the first day. But you should be aware of the feeling of wanted to go poop because of the guaze pushed up the anus. You just have to withstand the discomfort.

The second day, they started giving me pain killers and some medicene to help my bowel movement. I also started sitting in the Sitz bath so I took my guage out. Day two also gave little discomfort. The doctor and nurses mainly wanted to observe my urination to make sure that was normal.

Third day, there was more discomfort and some feeling of swelling at my anus. I also felt a bit of soreness at the site. I farted quite a lot, probably from the bowel movement medicine they gave me. I also started taking bowel softener. I tried pooping but could not. I was frustrated but as many said here, it's normal to not get this so soon after the surgery. I was a bit scared by online information that told me food usually takes 72 hours to go through the system only. Again though, as many have shared here, stool might not come until later (this is what I'm hoping as I haven't had stool yet). Third day night I started feeling pain in my anus.

Fourth day (today) the pain in my surgery site is still there and I was giving some pain-killing gel (Xylocaine gel) which does not help. I tried going a few times but only had a lot of gas let out and have had no success. Although sometimes when I am on the toilet my lower stomach (large intestines) really churn and twist as if I have diarrhea, I just couldn't get anything to come out. I'm glad to read here that I shouldn't force it and let the poop come out when it is ready.

Hope it will soon get better.

I'm currently recovering from a stapled hemarroidectomy and have found threads like these a mine of helpful information and reassurance, so I thought I'd share my experience over the last 6 days.

Background/history
I'm a 34 year old male from the UK and generally in fine health.  Since I was a child I've always spent far longer than I should sitting on the toilet completing a BM, straining away for 15-25 minutes, and even then I usually don't feel completely evacuated.  As with many guys I always take a book with me to the bathroom, and a BM has never been a quick in-and-out (I am still a little awestruck by those who can have a BM and be done in less than a minute!) process.  As a result, over the years my pelvic floor has become weakened to the extent that in recent years it looks and feels like I am pushing out some of my own rectum in the effort to empty my bowel. 

Symptoms/impact
Initially the protruding inch of pink raw flesh receded of its own accord after a BM; lately however I've been having to push everything 'back up inside' manually whilst in the shower immediately following a BM.  This has impacted on my life in many ways... the 'outie' nature of my anus means wiping is ineffectual at cleaning the area, and also painful causing chafing and frequent bleeding from the prolapsed tissue.  Therefore I have to take a shower straight away, meaning I don't like taking a BM anywhere but my own home.  Also when standing or walking for long periods the effect of gravity is such to cause partial prolapse even without a BM, so I find myself having to visit a bathroom to painfully re-insert things several times during my work day.

I can now only sleep in one position in bed due to the feeling of bloatedness in my rectal area and can no longer fall asleep with my arms wrapped around my girlfriend.  My ass causes me low background pain for much of my day; for the rest of the time I am in mere discomfort, and constantly 'aware' of my butt and its condition in a way I'd rather not be.

I go to great lengths to prevent even my g/f from seeing my prolapse and am very anxious about her even touching my butt.  I have to close my legs and clench my outer (voluntary) anal sphincter when I laugh, cough or sneeze to stop me prolapsing worse or even losing control over my bowel. I can never trust a fart and have occasional underwear soilage from my loose sphincter.

Medical intervention
So given all the above impact on my life, I finally got round to seeking medical attention around 18 months ago. After a series of highly degrading medical evaluations (eg having a BM into a little cardboard pot whilst sat in a confined X-Ray machine in a ward with 3 technicians watching and giving instructions) I was finally ushered into the anaesthesia dept at 7am last Thursday for a stapled hemarroidectomy.  I had followed a normal diet until midnight the night before, and just had some water and coffee before 6am on the day of the operation.  I took some herbal senna the night before and gave myself a laxative enema in the morning to ensure I was empty and clean as possible.  As usual, even after such a complete evacuation it still felt like I had a golf-ball-sized object lodged just inside my anus.

I was asleep by 9am and woken by 11.  It took me a while to come round from the G.A. and I wasn’t allowed to leave until I had urinated (this was a great deal more effort than expected, as the local anaesthetic in my abdomen meant my msucles and nerves weren’t responding normally, plus I didn’t want to ‘push’ given the staples etc.).  I remember feeling quite a lot of pain (or so I perceived at the time, but I was so innocent then!) on the ward and feeling the nurses weren’t taking my distress seriously.

My g/f Liz picked me up, opened up the Futon in our living room and made me comfortable.  I was only sent home with paracetemol and an NSAID to reduce inflammation, which together gave me a couple of hours of mild pain relief (not ideal as I had to wait 5 hours between doses).  Unfortunately my nausea from the G.A. stopped me from keeping my pills down so pain management was tricky.  Again, little did I know that later I would be begging for a return to the pain levels on the afternoon of the procedure!

All afternoon and night I felt the need for a BM but just couldn’t go – firstly as the muscles and nerves hadn’t returned to normal and I couldn’t quite co-ordinate any kind of ‘push’… but also because I was absolutely terrified of the anticipated pain – especially after reading some accounts on this board and others!  I was also conscious that I didn’t want to get constipated as this would only push the problem down the road, and I had to have a BM at some point!

I decided to sleep on the futon as it was most practical for finding different comfortable positions, along with not wanting to keep Liz up all night and the slight fear of an 'accident' in bed.

Days 2-6

Day 2 started like the afternoon of day 1 - fairly heavy pain that was only partially relieved by the paracetemol/NSAID combination.  Liz called my GP and he prescribed some Codeine (opiate based) analgesic which mostly did the trick.  I had my first BM that evening - insubstantial and pretty painful, but relief from the bloating and reassurance that things were starting to work again.  I slept on the futon again for convenience.

Having pooped a couple more times in the night, I woke at 4am on day 3 with intense pain in my rectum and pelvic floor... I downed my pain meds but an hour later I still had no relief.  I have never experienced pain quite like it... both incredibly intense and relentless.  I cried as quietly as I could for the next couple of hours until Liz awoke and found me wracked in agony on the futon.  Nothing - the meds, the sitz bath, the hot water bottle or ice packs - helped at all and I wondered how much more I could take.  For the first time in my life I understood the meaning of 'delirious with pain'... I couldn't speak coherent sentences nor focus my attention for any period; my head was filled with rushing, tumultous thoughts and semi-hallucinations; I scratched at my own flesh in an attempt to divert attention from my butt.  Liz finally called the emergency doctor who prescribed some oral morphine solution ie the 'nuclear option'.

This finally made all the difference and I was able to cope again... but ever since I've focused on avoiding a repeat of that pain! 

Now on day 6, things have begun to return to normal.  I still use a hot water bottle/ice pack and am continuing my med regimen, but background pain has much diminished and BMs are far more comfortable.  

Tips/lessons learned

Sitz bath/portable bidet – I'm incredibly grateful that I’d discovered and purchased a Sitz bath (basically a plastic bowl that sits on your toilet, that you fill with warm water and use for intimate washing).  Wiping after a BM would have been very uncomfortable; instead I would dab gently with a wet wipe, before filling the sitz bath with as warm water and using gentle soap to clean up.

It was equally valuable to provide some relief when my whole perineal area was ridden with cramps and spasms – the most painful aspect of the week.  Just sitting there with my sore butt in the hottest water I could take was absolute bliss!

Laxatives/fibre/stool softener – I often have hard, massive BMs that really stretch and scrape the inside my anal canal when I push… I can’t even imagine trying to pass one of those whilst recovering from this procedure… the pain would be unbearable.  I made sure that from day 1 I was using milk of magnesia, a powder-based stool softener, some senna tablets and lots of fibre.  

An average day’s diet consisted of: porridge oats with a handful of sultanas; bananas, dried figs, dried apricots; multi-grain wholewheat bread; lots of water & fruit juice;  Fish and chicken (no red meat).

I’ve resolved after this episode to eat more fibre and less processed food (my diet is pretty good anyway).

Hold/cold packs - I’ve been alternating between sandwiching an ice pack between my buttocks (to sooth pain and reduce inflammation) and holding a hot water bottle against the area (to promote healing and relieve painful spasms).  Couldn’t have managed without them!

Someone to look after you - I would have had real difficulties coping by myself for the first three days, and even on days 4-6 it was helpful having Liz around to fetch things rather than get up myself.  Whether it was to collect the extra meds from the pharmacy, or merely hold my hand as I cried through the pain... well, the word 'thank you' lost all meaning

Overall I'm pretty satisfied with how things are going, and everything will hopefully be back to normal in a couple of weeks.  My BMs are becoming more regular and normal in quantity and consistency.  I am having BMs without great pain and without the help of enemas.  I am sleeping for longer periods at night, and feel more able to move around the house etc.  My diet is pretty much normal and pain slowly subsiding - I'm not counting down the minutes until my next pain meds any longer!  And finally my anus looks 'normal' again, the typical 'puckered starfish' with no protusions or raw chafed areas.

I wish the hospital had prepared me better for the pain (but then again might have decided against the surgery) and also sent me home with the pain meds I needed rather than the ineffectual paracetemol.

Hope this is helpful to someone!

I have one major remaining concern: I have unusual & slightly unpleasant sensations in my penis, as if nerve endings from my penis and butt have somehow been swapped around.  I haven't experienced an erection in the 6 days since the op - although sex has been the last things on my mind.  Hopefully I'll be more in the mood in the next few days and things will respond as usual!

Today is October 22, I had the surgry on the 20th, came home on the 21st.  After reading all the review's on here, I honestly almost cancelled I was so scared.  I could not find ONE positive about this surgery.  I have had none of the extreme pain, since the surgery.  I had huge varicose veins with the hemrrhoids mixed in with them, and the Dr. said this was by far a easy surgery.  I also had a lot of bleeding during surgery.  I went in with a open mind that I wasn't going to be scared and really had no reason to be.  I have not yet had a BM, but have been up on my feet walking for a few minutes, went for coffee this morning with my husband.  I am very sore, but that's it.  Today I cut back to Tylenol and Ibuprofin together and stopped the stronger drugs.  My advice is don't be scared, not everyone has a horror story to tell.

Good luck to you, but you said you haven't ha a bm yet, thats not a pleasant experience.  I hope for your sake you stay as well as you are now.
People don't write horror stories on here, they write their personal experiences, and Hemarroidectomy is not an easy recovery for most, it might be an easy surgery for the surgeon, but its not easy to deal with.

I just had surgery yeserday and am feeling the pain today. I read your article and laughed and laughed. Did you know that you feel the pain of laughter in your rectum if you have just undergone a hemorrhoidectomy? I wanted you to know that your article made me feel much better. Now I know that how I am feeling (like a grenade exploded in my rectum) has been felt by others. MISERY LOVES COMPANY! Thank you so much for making me laugh.

My desperate google search "prolonged excruciating pain after hemmeroidectomy surgery" brought me to this forum. My quest for relief Is so great I would probably join a cult and shave my head and ask for donations in the airport if it meant I could go peacefully to the toilet in th next few hours. I am a 52 year old very fit female, who eats a vegetarian diet, and practices yoga 5 times a week, living in Puerto Rico...what me have a hemmeroidectomy? I never thought, then along comes a lesson in Karma, only two months ago my husband who suffered from hemorrhoids nearly all his life decided to have the surgery, and I endured long drives to San Juan and his 3 night miserable stay in the hospital after surgery, at his side every minute in a private room, he was catheterized as he could not urinate, and sent home with foley, and an arsenal of pain medication, on day 5 when he still had not defacated, I started him on all the stool softeners you could imagine, and a virtual explosion ensued the following day, after this he developed the scarry ass "culus asustados" as he called it and clamped up for another 5 days, he remained in narcotic semi coma state for 2 Weeks, every time he gained consciousness he screamed for me to phone the Doctor, I was texting him all hours of the night and day, while I kept him iced and irrigated, he was pitiful, on day 10 we returned to San Juan to the urologist to have the foley removed and revisit the surgeon, they embraced each other like old friends, I was in a state of exhaustion, referring to him as the a hole who got a new one, and he got another bottle of pills. One month later he was shopping for new bikini underware, he was 2 weeks in bed, and over that period went through every narcotic pain reliever and 30 Xanax...fast forward 2 months later I wake up with a hemorrhoid so swollen by the 3rd day I could not sit, I adjusted my diet, used over the counter products to no avail, and suffered silently, after a week I experienced abnormal vaginal bleeding that went on for days, and finally after celebrating Halloween, with costumes planned for months the next morning I went to my Gyenocologist who immediately checked me in to the hospital for an emergency D&C, while performing this surgery he had a surgeon who examined my hemorrhoid and the next morning I was on my way back to the operating room, my hemerroid had thrombosed and needed immediate surgery. I was petrified, having just seen my husband misery, but desperate for relief, I also felt, more stoic, more capable of handling the pain, after all I practice Ashtanga, yoga for jocks...I am pitiful, after one day in the hospital I was sent home with 30 Ultracepts which are worthless, even if I take 2, one week to the day post surgery, I have had 2 BMs which my family and neighbors refer to as the "please help me God" moments, as everyone can hear the screams, I am scarred to death to go to the bathroom. I've had 3 children and a few surgeries, I've taken care of both parents after open heart surgery, God bless them for being so strong and feel like nothing compares to this, and my response to the pain, I've tried the sitz bath, creams, ice, hot showers, prunes, cereals, juices, Mira lax, nothing is helping. I feel like I have Cinderellas glass slipper up my ass, broomstick with razor blades, I've been pacing, sweating, and in an absolute panic. After my first BM my husband gave me Ice, 2 xanax, and my pain pill, no relief, I don't know how I finally fell asleep. I saw the Doctor yesterday who said I was healing well, and should be fine soon, I can't sit, dread, absolutely scarred to death to go to the bathroom, I've already had the curious look in the mirror, and my bottom and cheeks are black and blue, swollen, the only relief thus far has been the community of this forum, I laughed until I cried at the honesty shared here, tomorrow I'm going to load up on fiber, but I am wondering if I should be taking a stronger pain pill, I am only taking them at night because I am afraid of the constipation, my doctor did not prescribe any creams, Valium, or special diet, this forum is the first place I've heard about some of these suggestions and my husband and I have now both had the surgery! No one comes to see you after hemorrhoid surgery, as if it's taboo topic, not the kind of status you post on Facebook, thank you to all your frank stories, and to anyone considering the surgery, I would advise not eating, and emptying your colon prior to surgery if possible, and then slowly, very slowly adding soft foods high fiber back to your diet, also plan on at least 2 weeks off, I can't imagine going back to work yet, and I can usually put in a 12 hour day no complaints.

Painkillers every 4 hours on the dot, Tylenol Extra strength worked for me, stopped the percocet after 2 days and took Tylenol instead.  The panic feeling was horrendous, i was insane when i wanted to go for bm, everyone was banned from the bathroom with the bath in it, because i lived in the bath like a mermaid. The only thing that took care of the pain really and eased the throbbing, (Feels like a heartbeat in your ass 24 /7), for me was permanent heat on my butt.  If i wasn't in the bath, or in a sitz bath, i had a hot water bottle filled with boiling hot water on my butt.    You become a genius at invention after this surgery, whatever works.
I walked around a lot, just to push myself and make myself do things to get better sooner.  Two weeks i was back at work but dreading the bm, but i managed without screaming and scaring the whole office building. 

Thanks for your post. I hope you're feeling better now that a couple of days have passed. I have surgery scheduled in 4 days and am reading up on how to get ready for it. Obviously, these kinds of forums help a long they freak you out all at the same time! Obviously, I figure it's best to die once and not every day and so I'm going through with it (hopefully I'm right about this one!) But I was just wondering what do you do to kill the time for the first 3 days? I know one's in a narcotic stupor but are you in bed the whole time? Can you walk around during those days? Are you inside the whole time or could you even go outside for a walk around the block? I'm thinking of taking a muscle relaxant around the clock for those times and hope that it helps. I'll post here my experiences too so I can hopefully help others.

Do you have any updates about how you're doing now that more than three weeks has past your surgery? I hope all is well. :)

Thank you Alex for this very helpful and detail post. I hope you're back to your old self and doing well. :)