Hello, I am a 28yr old male, I am in above average physical conditioning. I had a Thrombosed Hemorrhoid removed 3 days ago. So far the pain has been a lot less than some of the other stories I have read. I can walk, sit, sleep, I have normal BMs daily without much pain. I just stopped keeping the incision covered because I felt that the pressure and contact was not helping the wound clot. So far I have had just a small amount of bleeding still but nothing like it was with the gauze on it. My questions are, I still have blood in my stool, which is expected, what is the time frame I am looking at for that to stop? I just hop right in the shower after I have a BM, is that OK as I don't have the time to sit in a bath since I haven't taken any time off from work to recover. Also, is it normal for the hemorrhoid to still be swelled up, it doesnt hurt at all, Im just worried I will have to go back to the Doc again. Also, when can I expect to return to heavy physical activity, I have 2 Jiu Jitsu competitions in 2 months, as to save money I want to know if this will take to much time to heal and should not compete. Lastly and most importantly, from my research and talk to the Doc, I am not anywhere near the normal demographic for this to happen to me i.e. I drink 72oz of water before lunch daily and another 50oz in the afternoon everyday, and fiber is a big part of my diet. Is this something I should go to a follow up to make sure that there is not something that caused this and might become a problem later on? My doctor was great at the procedure but he didnt stick around long and the nurse didnt have a lot of answers.
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I am a 52 yr. old male who had an external hemorrhoid removed 5 days ago. My Doctor told me the most painful thing about the procedure would be the anesthetic injection to the site prior to the excision / removal of the hemorrhoid. After the surgery I was given a pamphlet explaining that I should be taking sitz baths after every BM and that minor bleeding may occur for several days. I was also instructed to take stool softeners and take fiber supplements. Lastly I was given a Rx: Norco for pain...... At day 6 after surgery every BM has been so excruciating pain 9-10 scale, along with some bleeding. Just recently I got anal spasms which lasts for hours at a time. Sitz baths has not helped for pain but probably does keep the area clean. I contacted my Doctor, who prescribed me Valium for the anal spasms which has worked. In closing, I would say this has been the most painful post surgical procedure I have gone through.
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I am hoping to provide some input to persons who are looking for advice and insight into hemorrhoid surgery. I had surgery approximately 4 weeks before posting this reply. I had a large internal prolapsed hemorrhoid that started out small but got larger and larger over a 15 year period. At the time of the surgery, there was no pain from the hemorrhoid, but BM's required me to manage the hemorrhoid, by tucking it back in and hygiene was problematic. I had surgery performed under general anethesia. I had a colonoscopy the previous day. About me: I am a 49 year old physically fit male. I think that it is important to provide as much information about the person posting as circumstances differ and what worked for one might not work everyone (or anyone). I overnighted in the hospital for observation (NOTE: I was given leg pressure cuffs due to risk of DVT). I was encouraged to try to urinate during my stay which was possible, but in small amounts over time, with some difficulty in getting started and some pain. I was on percoset (oxycodone) following my surgery and during my stay in the hospital. After being discharged, I stayed in a hotel for 10 days because I live quite a distance away from the hospital. During the first two days I did not have a BM. My diet consisted of soups and water with stool softeners and fiber tablets, all suggested in my discharge instructions. The first BM on the third day was painful. There is no way to describe the amount of pain that I felt that first time. On a scale of 1-10 it was a 50. There was a lot of blood in the stool and bleeding after. I followed the instructions for sitz baths three times per day and especially after the BM's religiously. I also added a suggestion that I saw here and that was to use a cold cloth to soothe the area during intense bouts of pain. I also bought flushable wipes and used those (carefully!) early on following surgery and find them useful even now. Eventualy the bleeding stopped, but occassionally there will be minor spotting. During the first two weeks following surgery, it really was like two steps forward and one step backward. With the one step backward occuring after BM. I followed the advice of earlier posters and did not let the pain get ahead of me during the first week. I do not like taking pain killers so I gradually weaned myself from them during weeks 2 and 3. Following my return home, I was able to go to the beach and would soak in the sea for 15 miniutes 3 times per day. My typical day would be the following: Morning: BM, Sitz Bath, Ice, Sea, Afternoon: Sitz Bath, Ice, Sea, Evening: Sea, Sitz bath Ice. Not sure if the sea helped, but the local lore is that seawater has restorative powers. . I was given 3 weeks off work by my physician and took an additional week vacation. I found that I needed the time. The first 2 weeks it was almost impossible to sit for long periods of time. Standind was OK, walking was bearable but uncomfortable. Today (four weeks on) I am back to work. There is leakage of some fluid, but I stuff an flushable wipe between my legs to control that and for hygiene. I change it as necessary. The bottom line is that I can now envision a life without hemorrhoids (as long as that lasts) and without pain. It is amazing how difficult managing the hemorrhoids had become. I not miss them (it?) and now going to the bathroom is almost a pleasure. I think that every person should evaluate the decision to have the surgery for themselves in conjunction with a caregiver because you will need one at least for the first week or so. Good Luck!
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Hi Daniel,
Same story here. There are slow healers around us. I am at 3 months, still not 100% back.
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I had a hemorrhoidectomy, a sphincterotomy and a fissurectomy done 12 days ago for an internal hemorrhoid and a fissure. I am 19 years old which definitely served to be a downside and an advantage! The first 3-4 days following surgery were by far the worst. I am sure everyone knows what I mean in regards to BM’s, pain management and overall discomfort. My age definitely served as a disadvantage, wherein I struggled with the pain and the psychological trauma of having surgery, as I have never experienced any sort of medical procedure. I was worried it was never going to get better! However, I am happy to say at day 12 I am feeling SO much better! I stopped taking the Percocet during the day for pain management at about day 7 post-operation and was only taking 1 pill a day after the morning BM. I am pleased to say that it has been 3 days with NO Percocet, not even after the morning BM. There is still pain during and after the BM but it is tolerable. I have made a conscious effort to eat high fiber foods and I take plenty of Metamucil and Colace. My age served as an advantage as I am young and healthy which allowed for quick healing! My goal now is to prevent any hemorrhoids or fissures from returning by eating healthy and managing stress levels. Also, I hope to have the lasting anal skin tags removed non-surgically. They are so itchy! Good luck to all :)
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I had my surgery done on June 24, 2013. I can deal with the pain as long as I can some pain meds or im sleeping, my biggest problem right now is not being able to go to the bathroom. I have tried a few times to have a BM, but each time it ends in failure. The pain is SO sharp and intense that I started crying, yelling, and making strange gasping noises, while also feeling very sick. I even feel like im about to pass out, this is just horrible. It honestly feels like it's blocked, like I won't be able to get it out...this is terrible. I don't know if it's the pain stopping me from being able to go or if I seriously just CAN'T go. Other than that, I can deal with everything else....
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KayAnn,
I don't want to scare you but the first BM is going to be horrible. My best advice to you is to employ the sitz bath like a religion. Do it as many times as necessary because the warm to hot water will make your body (particularly your sphincter muscles) relax. If you read more posts from here you will notice many folks have even went in the sitz bath itself.
I am now in my fourth week of recovery and it still is sketchy, but I can promise you that it does get better.
1. Sitz bath (like it's a religion)
2. Fiber in your diet like its going out of style
3. Milk of magnesia if you want to accelerate the first movement
Feel better and keep posting to let us know.
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Starting 17 days ago I had the beginning of an external hemorrhoid. Prior to this I only had hemorrhoids postpartum that healed fine, and rarely small flare ups when I had digestion upset. Usually they were small and grade 3 (could be pushed back inside) or small and external and would go away entirely after a few days. This time was different as there was no cause I could think of. I used Preparation H and tried to take it easy. After a weekend passed with it getting progressively worse, larger, and more painful, it ended up being one large external hemorrhoid running the entire length of my perineum. It became the size of approximately a walnut and the pain was unbearable taking the highest possible dosage of ibuprofen or acetaminophen.
I saw a surgical specialist in the morning 14 days ago, he said it was not thrombosed and there was nothing he could do. He prescribed 2.5% hydrocortisone cream with the advice that surgery later is an option. That night the pain became even greater than I thought was possible...I was writhing on my bed crying and my husband took me to the ER. They too examined me and said it was not thrombosed and that there was nothing they could do. They gave me a Tylenol3 so I could sleep that night and it worked...sort of. By the wee hours of the morning I was in the worst pain yet, and I figured moving into the bathtub permanently wouldn't hurt.
So, in those early morning hours 13 days ago my husband took off of work and I spent literally 3+ hours soaking in the bathtub--the only moderate relief I had been able to find. After I got out I put on more of the 2.5% cream and laid on the couch unmoving. When I got up next to use the bathroom I discovered the hemorrhoid had started "leaking" (for lack of a better word) a mostly clear, slightly pink fluid. It didn't feel as full, and touching it didn't send me through the roof any more. I soaked in the tub some more on and off that day, kept applying the 2.5% hydrocortisone cream, and by the next day it was no longer painful to the touch. Sweet relief!
By 10 days ago I had begun to return to normal function--the hemorrhoid was still there, but about half the size of the full walnut it was at its worst, and I could touch and clean and apply cream without pain. Over the course of that week it continued to shrink in size and get softer.
Then 2 days ago I had two bowel movements within an hour of each other (normal, soft, but I usually only go once a day). It is back to about half the size it was at its worst, firm and painful to the touch, and still running the entire length of my perineum--from anus to vaginal opening.
I can't live like this. I haven't been able to hike or bike or walk long distances like taking my 4 year old to the zoo. I can do moderate activity so long as there's a comfortable place to sit and rest, but that is not my lifestyle, and I'm miserable not being able to function normally. I like being active, not glued to the couch.
I'm highly considering the surgical removal of this large external hemorrhoid so that I can someday resume normal activities instead of the constant worry that it's going to return to its worst state leaving me completely laid up for a week or more relying on my husband taking off work to care for our 4 year old and me...and the chance of it happening unpredicted and repeatedly in the future is terrifying. At least if I scheduled the surgery he can plan a week or more to be home and then hopefully I will be able to keep her and me alive at home alone and then someday get back to a normal life eventually. We have a camping trip planned for two weeks from now and I plan on going, just taking it easy...sitting around the campsite or laying around the beach. Hopefully that won't screw me over too badly. And then maybe I'll schedule the surgery for just after returning from that.
Has anyone had surgery for just a large external hemorrhoid, not internal too? If I schedule the procedure for the week I'm back from camping, do you think I would heal enough to go camping again 5 weeks later? We car camp where there are flush toilets and showers and civilization not far off, but I'm worried after reading here that 5 weeks might be too soon. I have a big vacation planned for 3.5 months from now too...booked and paid for and I really don't want to risk either the hemorrhoid flaring up or alternatively complications from the surgery impairing me then too. Potentially damned if I do, damned if I don't here. We have a busy year planned and this giant painful hemorrhoid is threatening all of it.
What would you do if you were me? Surgery or no surgery? How much time would be expected for healing the surgical removal of one large external hemorrhoid? How many days post-op could I expect my husband needing to be home to take care of me and our 4 year old? How many days/weeks post-op until I'm able to walk down our house stairs to take the dog outside to potty on leash? How many days/weeks before I'm driving, running light errands, taking our 4 year old to the park? I'm so nervous and upset that this is happening at all, and the unknown of healing from surgery is terrifying.-Distressed in Illinois
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Dear Distressed,
This is a tough one. Everyone heals at different paces so your healing is all about how your body is going to handle it. I would say you should anticipate that the first week is going to be your toughest week but after that things should be easier. Five weeks is a good amount of time to heal and I do believe you'll be alright pending your doctor is really knowledgeable and is not going to make things worse. The upside is it sounds like you have done your research (which is something I DIDN'T do) and if you follow some good practices BEFORE the procedure, it should be smoother.
Good luck and I would say do it but be prepared for at least a week of incredible pain.
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Do you have any suggestions for determining if your doctor is a good one or not? The surgical practice I selected to see just turned up in Google searched for me at my local in-network hospital. They say they specialize in "bariatric surgery, colon and rectal surgery, endocrine surgery, gastroesophageal reflux disease, hemorrhoids, hernias, laparoscopic procedures, spleen surgery, and the treatment of varicose veins." Are there any more effective ways at finding the best care possible?
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I would imagine that the doctors in Illinois would be just as capable if not more than the doctors in NY. My doctor is one of the professors at NYU and he was referred by my GP, but anyone who is specializing in colon and rectal surgery is exactly who you want to see. I don't really have any suggestions as to how you would best locate the right surgeon. Find out how many procedures he/she has done and make sure the success/happiness rate of his or her patients is up there.
Good luck and keep posting
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I will update again in a week or so once I have more recovery behind me. So far so good, but I know I have some inevitable rough patches ahead (not looking forward to the dreaded first bowel movement!). Reading everyone's experiences has been very helpful and I hope that sharing mine can serve someone else as well.
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I promised that if I had this surgery I would record my experience here and I must admit that since I didn't have a horror story recovery I felt much less inclined to post. This leads me to believe that the posts here disproportionately represent slow and extremely painful recoveries. With that said I did experience pain and discomfort but not at the level I had expected from having read this and other forums. Additionally I learned many things from reading other people's posts that helped me to have a more low pain recovery.
To begin with I have been dealing with hemmorhoids for over 7 years and have had around 10 banding (rubberband ligation) treatments that would help for 6 months or so but then the painful hemmorhoids would return with profuse bleeding, particularly after aggressive exercise. Prescription steroid suppositories helped calm things down but did not change the bigger problems.
Due to my inability to go to the bathroom in under 45 minutes my hemmorhoids continued to return and cause problems. I eventually developed a fissure that would not heal on it's own despite treatment with nitroglycerin. I began taking citrucel and ducolax daily and changed my diet to include a great deal of fiber. Although I managed to decrease my time on the toilet to under 15 minutes a day and managed to have smooth BM's the fissure would not heal and the hemmorhoids, at a grade IV stage, did not improve. My doctor recommended a hemmoroidectomy and a sphincterotomy for the fissure.
Since reading that most people that don't manage to change their BM habits will have the hemmorhoids return I had always felt it would not be worth going through the surgery, however now I had now made changes and felt that if I could get rid of the hemmorhoids they would not return if I managed to continue with short bathroom visits and smooth BM's. In the process of experimenting with getting a nice smooth BM I often stepped too far over the line in one direction or the other. One day I would eat too much fiber and be on the toilet several times a day with almost diarrhea like stools, then the other extreme would occur with constipation. I think that I have a delicate GI system that requires a real balancing act to get it right. I would imagine that most people on this forum are in the same boat. If you can sort that out before the surgery it will probably make things much better.
One last thing before diving into my surgery experience, I would like to note that over the course of the last 5 years I have experienced some very painful episodes dealing with the hemmorhoids after aggresive exercise. I think that having pain that woke me up at night, pain that brought me to tears, and not being able to push hemmorhoids back in after a BM were experiences that prepared me for the type of pain following the surgery. I would estimate some of the pain I experienced before surgery to peak at 8/10. The banding treatments were sometimes low pain 2/10 and sometimes more painful, perhaps 6/10.
OK, the surgery:
Day -1: TWO DAYS BEFORE SURGERY 8 citrucel caplets, 2 ducolax caplets; I ate a light diet of soups, toast, and vegetables, drank a lot of homemade juice and water.
Day 0: ONE DAY BEFORE SURGERY 8 citrucel caplets, 2 ducolax caplets; At breakfast I had 1 piece of toast and part of a fig bar, at lunch I had a few pieces of watermelon, I drank a great deal of water and homemade juice from a masticating juicer (carrots, spinach, celery, sweet red and green peppers, cucumbers etc..) I was basically solid food fasting even though my doctor did not recommend it. I reasoned that since most people experience the greatest amount of pain during their first BM, the further out from the surgery the first BM, the better it will be. My final BM that night and the enema the morning of the surgery had me completely emptied out, but I lost a lot of blood in the toilet as my hemmorhoids have been relatively bad of late and bleeding a lot.
Day 1: SURGERY DAY. Enema in the morning, with lots of blood. I drank and ate nothing. Was feeling quite light headed since my surgery got bumped back to 1:30pm. Felt better once the IV got some fluids back in me. Surgery went well and woke up with pain in my butt at about a pain level of 2 out of 10 which was about the same that it was prior to the surgery. I ate 2 saltines and drank 2 kiddie juice boxes. Feeling fine, my wife drove me home. Followed doctors recommendation of 400 mg of ducosate /day and 12 citrucel tablets /day to overcome the constipating effect of the pain meds. It was now around 4pm, I took 2 ducolax, 4 citrucel, 1 percocet and ate one full piece of toast, drank homemade juice, and had mushroom pureed soup. Pain level was up to 3 or 4 , but within 30 minutes of the percocet was down to zero. Later that night I took 1 alleve, 1 percocet, 2 ducolax, 4 citrucel and had a bowl of vegetable soup with toast drinking lots of water the whole time. I did some meditation that was successful at dropping the pain to 1/10 but only while I was doing the meditation. When the meditation was over the pain came right back to a 3 or 4/10. The night was hazy, I would wake up every two hours experiencing pain around a 5/10 since the percocet had fully worn off. By 7am I wanted to take more percocet but was feeling nauseous and knew I needed to take it with food. I could not walk to the kitchen, it was too far but my wife got me a banana and toast and I took a percocet and pain was soon down to a 1/10. The rest of the day was fine, I took 2 more percoet throughout the day and continued with alleve, ducolax, and citrucel. Was getting nervous about my first BM and sat on the toilet 3 times but did not push so I guess I wasn't ready. I must also mention that from the moment I woke up from surgery to now I felt like I had the constant urge to poop, but it was all from the surgery I guess. I am glad I didn't force or push!
Day 2: Not a bad day, took one percocet through the night and did some meditation and part of a pain management workbook. Breakfast soup and toast, lunch had cooked carrots, green beans, zucchini, and a bit of skinless chicken. Dinner was kidney beans, mashed potatoes, more pureed mushroom soup, and toast. I drank homemade veggie juice at every meal and lots of water, and continued with ducolax, alleve, citrucel. I backed off the percocet and fluctuated between a 0 and 4 for pain all day. Really not bad at all!
Day 3: Slept through the night without percocet! Felt pretty good, pain steady at a 3 but I felt I would have to have my first BM. Filled the tub with hot water, sat down but it wasn't coming out without pushing, so I waited. Around 11am I was back on toilet, and I let it come out on it's own, basically no pushing. It was smooth and barely hurt at all(3/10 max)! I got right in the tub and felt a burning that hovered at around a 5 or 6 pain level for 30 minutes. Took 1 percocet, pain dropped to 1 or 2/10.
So that's all I am going to record because I think from here on out I am fine, I just need to take it easy, avoid walking or lifting for a few more days and continue with the diet. As I am decreasing the percocet I will also decrease down to 2 ducolax/day and 6 citrucel/day to avoid things from getting to soft.
Conclusions:
If you have experienced severe pain from hemmorhoids in the past the recovery from this surgery will be reasonable assuming you eat light high fiber meals, take the pain meds, and take the stool softeners and bulking caplets.
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I had the occasional flare up of stage II or stage III hemorrhoids after the vaginal birth of my daughter in early 2009. These flare ups were rare, maybe once or twice a year, and I simply dealt with them and they resolved on their own. In June 2013 I suffered from a very large, extremely painful external hemorrhoid the entire length of my perineum, and it took a week to get back to functioning with any semblance of normalcy after it started to shrink. In the weeks following the recovery I still was living a life far from what I considered normal so I decided to seek out surgery with a colorectal surgeon who used the Harmonic Scalpel method for a traditional hemorrhoidectomy.
The surgery was on July 15, 2013 and went as expected with no complications. I prepped for surgery the day before by consuming a clear-liquid-only diet and two rounds of Suprep bowel prep. The day of surgery the external hemorrhoid was removed leaving sutures the entire length of my perineum, and internal hemorrhoids were removed as well, all under general anesthesia. I was injected with so much local anesthetic that I didn't feel ANYTHING down there upon waking and it took many hours to even feel any discomfort at all. I began the prescribed Lortab (hydrocodone/acetaminophen) for pain and Colace stool softener along with lots of fiber added into my diet by way of prune juice and Citrucel. I drank lots of water too.
Day 1 after surgery passing gas was the most discomfort I experienced, and no bowel movement happened. I continued the medication as prescribed, though the pain was really more just a discomfort. I could move around the house just fine--no issues sitting, standing, laying down, or getting comfortable. Day 2 after surgery there was still no bowel movement and I switched to plain Tylenol during the day and only took the Lortab at night to help me sleep.
Day 3 after surgery I had my first bowel movement--small amounts, though soft....uncomfortable while they were passing but a soak in the tub relieved the discomfort. I thought I was doing well by taking the prescribed medications and continued with Tylenol during the day and Lortab at night. I was still able to function around the house just fine with light chores and such.
Day 4 after surgery I realized I was actually constipated and painfully so. I could feel a large hard amount of stool that was unable to pass and I was pretty miserable all day long from the pressure and unending stomach cramps. I tried a dose of epsom salt as a laxative but it was unsuccessful in relieving the issue. I essentially spent all day in the bathtub trying to cope with the discomfort. I then used a Fleet brand saline enema in the evening which must have lubricated things enough to pass what was blocking me up, and though I felt exhausted after dealing with that all day, I was much better after I went.
Day 5 the epsom salt laxative must have caught up with me and I spent the first half of the day on and off of the toilet and in and out of soaking in the bathtub, suffering from diarrhea. I spent the second half of my day exhausted with a small appetite and very low energy. Day 6 the diarrhea had resolved and my bowel movements were normal and soft, though stomach cramps and the feeling that something was "leftover" after going persisted all morning and I ended up once again on and off the toilet and in and out of the bathtub all morning. After resting for a little while once those feelings passed I was able to have a pretty normal afternoon puttering around the house, doing light chores, playing with my daughter.
I ceased all medications at that point--no more Tylenol or Advil, certainly no more constipating Lortab, and no more Colace or fiber supplements. I had been having normal soft bowel movements prior to surgery with no help and I wanted to go back to that normal once--a-day predictability again. I could move around just fine with no discomfort so long as I didn't have that "leftover" feeling after a bowel movement, and physically I was able to do just about anything I needed to.
Today is day 8, three days after ceasing ALL medications (though I did take a probiotic last night) and I think my gut flora is finally getting back in check after all the upset required for this surgery. I had one normal bowel movement this morning and proceeded with my day normally with an average amount of activity--no pain or discomfort on the toilet or while up and about. Other than the physical appearance of the surgery site and wiping a bit more delicately, things are now pretty normal. I know it'll be a few more weeks/months before things look normal too, but all in good time. Overall the recovery wasn't awful; the worst parts were the constipation from the medication and getting my gut flora back to regular after clearing out completely and then taking all the medications. Pain overall after the surgery maybe peaked at a 4...maybe a 7 during the first few seconds on the first few trips to the toilet. Looking back from this point I would choose to do the surgery again, so long as they don't reoccur!
-No Longer Distressed in Illinois
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