Hemorrhoidectomy

Hi all,

I underwent a hemorrhoidectomy 18 days ago and promised myself I would share my experience for others. I have been reading other posts on here religiously over the past month or so. Some posts scared me to the point I almost pulled out of surgery!! But I believe I have a happy ending, so want to share a positive story.

Quick background - I am in my mid-20s, female from the UK, I haven't had children and never suffered from chronic constipation. My consultant deemed me as a very healthy individual, therefore it came as a huge surprise to us both when he found 2 large internal haemaroids and a large skin tag. Luckily, I have private healthcare through work - I didn't have to go through the NHS and this considerably sped up the process. But I am frustrated that there is still a taboo on haemaroids. If only I plucked up the courage to be seen sooner, I could have avoided surgery. Nevertheless, I had all of the above removed under General anaesthetic.

In terms of recovery, my consultant told me that I would be back to myself within a week. However, I know someone who had been through this before and said that timescale was optimistic. It's also important to add that my haemaroids had not 'clot'. I was in no pain whatsoever beforehand. Some would say I'm crazy to undergo surgery.. but my consultant said due to the size, they were not going away.. and they would bleed and clot in the future, it was just a matter of time. I do agree with other posts on here, it's important to find yourself a surgeon who specialises in this type of surgery, maintain a fibre diet, rest and drink plenty of water whilst recovering and thereafter to prevent reoccurance. My recovery can be summarised below:

Day 1 - 2: I had to stay in hospital overnight due to low blood pressure. Upon waking up, I was in extreme sharp pain (this was unbearable for me but mainly because I was in no pain beforehand). However I was dosed up on morphine, ibuprofen, paracetamol and tramadol. This all took the edge off and I managed to lie down in relative comfort.

Day 3 - 7: In summary, these days were the worst. The morphine had worn off and it was time to open my bowels. The hospital discharged me with ibuprofen, paracetamol, tramadol and laxitives/stool softners which I took religiously. Opening my bowels for the first time was excruciating. I had some padding put up there after surgery and had to force that out. It honestly felt like pushing out razor blades. When I looked down the toilet after, I couldn't believe the small quantity of stools in comparison to the pain I had experienced. During these days, the bath is your only friend!! Especially after bowel movement. I did not wipe for 2 weeks, down there was so swollen and sensitive that I couldn't bear it. My consultant said the anus is remarkably self cleaning, therefore sitting in a sitz bath after BM is sufficient to clean the area. When passing stools, I would recommend hovering over the seat. Do not sit, the pain is multiplied. Just simply stand and hover, try not to strain. If it's not coming, get in the bath and try again later. I read so many books whilst lying in the bath. Some days I had around 8 hot baths, they were the only place my anal muscles would relax. Around day 5 I experienced the most intense muscle spasms in my bottom. Apologies for the graphic details but it felt like my bum was behind sucked upwards. The pain was unbearable and unpredictable. Again, baths helped. At the time, I couldn't see the light at the end of the tunnel. Luckily, these spasms at that intensity only lasted 3 days maximum. I didn't get much sleep during these days, but spent my days lying in bed watching Netflix! This provided some comfort during a very dark time. I should also add, I think it's important to have someone around for at least the first few days. I couldn't get up and down the stairs and relied on my mum/boyfriend to make me food and bring me drinks. There was no chance I could even make a cup of tea, such was the pain.

Day 8 - 14: I was told that after a week would be the turning point, and this was true. All of the above symptoms decreased in severity by at least 40%. It felt like the swelling had reduced, I could lie down more comfortably and therefore sleep much better. My priorities for week 2 were to get out the house (I couldn't bear being in for another week) and to restore my bowels to normal. During this 2nd week, I would either be consiptitated and uncomfortable or running to the toilet every hour to open my bowels. I stopped all medication on day 8, the tramadol was making me constipated and laxitivies seemed to give me diaoreha. I ate 2x shredded wheat every morning for fibre. Unlike the first week, each day definietly got better during this 2nd week. I found getting out the house for an accompanied 15 min walk, popping to the shops and doing gentle housework actually reduced the pain. Moving around eased the pressure for me and I would highly recommend, it also took my mind off the pain.

Day 15 - 18: I have reverted back to my original diet, I only take 2x paracetamol a day if required.. and my bowels have returned to normal! I.e. BM once or twice a day. I find the fibre provided by cereal is sufficient to keep my stools formed and soft which is just what we want to prevent the haemaroids coming back! I feel 90% back to myself. I drove for the first time post-op on day 15, whilst I do still experience some discomfort sitting down, this is nothing compared to that first week. I am planning to go back to work this week, in total I would have had 2 and a half weeks off. I have an office job so wanted to ensure I can sit for hours at a time before I committed to going back. It's still somewhat painful passing stools, but I'm still hovering and now using flushable wipes to wipe. I do still have a small bath afterwards to relax the muscles and ensure everything is clean down there, but I'll have to stop this when I go back to work! It's more of a 'nice thing' to continue for the moment. I'm also still wearing sanitary pads, my consultant said leakage from that area is common for approx 6 weeks so I'll continue to wear until this stops. My partner has moved back into the bedroom, as my bottom was so sensitive and prone to spasms at the slightest movement, he has kindly been sleeping in the spare room for the past 2 weeks!

I think I have covered all of the important parts, but please feel free to ask any questions if you are going through the same experience!! I'm close to 3 weeks post-op now and I almost have my pre-op life back, minus the haemaroids! In another weeks time, I think I will be able to fully appreciate the after effects of the surgery. It has been one horrendous rollercoaster, but having my friends and family to support me has kept me focused on the light!

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