open wound after hemorrhoidectomy
Posted , 82 users are following.
Hello All,
I had a hemorrhoidectomy 5 weeks ago. This has been the most painful, challenging thing I have ever gone through. It has completely changed me as a person. I am completely depressed and anxious all the time. I am healing, but during my first BM I blew open one of my incisions. I had a giant, gaping open wound. it has gotten much smaller, but just when it starts to feel better, I have to poop again and it opens back up. Has anyone else experienced this? My Dr. will not give me a time frame for how long I will feel like this. I am desperate for my normal life back, or just to hear something positive. any words would be appreciated.
6 likes, 117 replies
Andrew123456 dd23
Edited
day 9 finally had a bowel movement in the bath and in glad to say the pain was nowhere near expected of what i thought from all the comments and things ive read up . i would urge people to make sure they are taking their stool softners and fibre drinks if you have been prescribed . a great thing for me was the steaming hot baths with no salt just water . this may sound a bit odd but i had my first bm in the bath and i felt hardly any pain at all bearly even felt a thing that was a great help for me , just rinse the bath out and run another one as soon as you have a bm . i honestly felt like crap before all this because i couldnt poo and it was getting to me because i thought their was something wrong with me ... now i feel great and would urge others to give it a try . hopefully now onwards and upwards head up guys .....
Dawn246 Andrew123456
Posted
Im on day 36 now and barely any pain during BM. I still have bleeding during having one dont know why, maybe inside is taking longer to heal than outside.
Still doing the steaming hot baths after BM but other than that feeling fine.
Had a couple of days of being sore beginning of the week, thought i was healed enough and better to order a curry with the hubby, boy was i wrong! I played it safe and ordered korma but the coconut didnt agree with me so glad i didnt try spicy.
I havent taken any softners at all since surgery i suffer with IBS so my stomach is super sensitive, i only tried one spoonful of lactulose and i was dying, never again!
glad you first BM wasnt too bad, your one of the lucky ones. Wish id thought of going in water at the start instead of realising around week 2.
How you feeling now? I dont know wether im glad ive had the op or not yet, still having 2 hems left to go, Im not going back in for it done again! not only is it physically painful its mentally painful too. Hope your feeling much better.
deedah25311 Dawn246
Posted
I am on day52. No pain during bm but the sting after bm irritates me. Doc checked n confirmed my insides are fully healed. Only the two gaping holes, right at the anal spinchter, which are very very slow to close. That one causes occasional blood in bm. Maybe u are experiencing the same thing as i am?
Dawn246 deedah25311
Posted
My external wounds seemed to have healed, but not internally. When i have a BM the blood comes from inside. My surgeon only removed 2 external due to the size and said he would remove the 3rd at a later date. Ive gone through all this pain to still have a large hemorrhoid left which has now flared up and causing pain like before.
I was told id have a check up 6-8 weeks after surgery but haven't received an appointment.
I called my surgeons secretary yesterday to be told all his clinics had been over booked and his next available appointment is May next year! So i wont be seen until im 7 months post op! Im so angry, i told her im supposed to be seen between weeks 6-8 still bleeding, still having pain internally so she better sort it. She said she will see him Thursday and contact me afterwards.
I waited 18 months for the op, 7 months to be seen post op, the way ive been treated start to finish is disgusting. My surgeon didnt even see me after the op. kept in 1 night on a general surgery ward where everyone had, had different ops done and just sent home.
I will be moving to Bupa and never using the NHS for anything again. Its been the Biggest regret of my life.
deedah25311 Dawn246
Posted
Hey hey. I really think u need to change your doctor. My doctor assured me that i could just go to his office, mention his name n immediately get to see him in case of emergency. He didn't see me directly after surgery as he was involved in another, but there was a ward doc who managed to answer my qns. My surgery lasted for 45mins and started at 1030 hrs. I was discharged by 1430 hrs.
My grade4 hems were huge n prolapsed. So, my doc removed both, from internal to the external. So, my open wounds were quite extended. Tho your doc left one huge internal hem, u shouldn't be bleeding that much, i supposed.
Please please do take care of yourself. The recovery process is painful enough. Don't prolong agonising yourself yah.
Dawn246 deedah25311
Posted
Im just going into week 8 now, argued with my doctors secretary on the phone and demanded im seen. He called me monday morning and told me i should of been informed before i left that he'd removed internal ones and a growth he was not happy with and he had sent it off to be tested. He said i should also of been informed that he needs me to go back in for a second surgery. I was told nothing. Hes agreed to see me early January.
The doctor said he isnt surprised im still bleeding from what he removed. I have a large external one left to remove but the last couple of days ive been so sore. I checked in the mirror this evening and where the others were removed new ones have started to appear! I could cry, it makes me feel suicidal and i cant go through another hemorroidectomy again. I should never of had the surgery, I had no pain before my op just lots and lots of bleeding. I cant change my doctor, on the nhs in the uk you see who your given you dont get to choose 😢 i really hate my life right now.
PatientMod-A Dawn246
Edited
Hi Dawn246,
We note from a recent post which you have made to our forum that you may be experiencing thoughts around self-harm. If we have misinterpreted your comments then we apologies for contacting you directly. But if you are having such thoughts then please note that you are not alone in this, and there are people out there that can help.
If you are having these suicidal thoughts then we strongly recommend you speak to someone who may be able to help. The Samaritans offer a safe space where you can talk openly about what you are going through. They can help you explore your options, understand your problems better, or just be there to listen.
Their contact details are on our patient information leaflet here: https://patient.info/health/dealing-with-suicidal-thoughts, which also offers lots of other advice on how you can access the help you may need.
If you are having such thoughts then please do reach out to the team at the Samaritans (or the other people detailed in our leaflet) who will understand what you're going through and will be able to help.
Kindest regards
Patient
deedah25311 Dawn246
Posted
Breathe!!!
Okieokie. A few steps u might b able to try.
Hugs. One day at a time.
mogedd dd23
Edited
Just wanted to share my experience as reading these forums both helped me and scared me as I prepared for surgery. I had 3 prolapsed, thrombosed internals removed 9 days ago.
I am a 33 year old female and began having hemorrhoids in college. Just an annoyance that Prep. H would help. A few years later I started having episodes of heavy, heavy bleeding occasionally. Had 2 big babies. Had some banded, but they came book very soon. For the past 3 years I have had near constant flare ups. The thrombosed hemmies that just throb and make you miserable. Had to wear pads everyday due to leaking mucous, liquid and a little poo after bowel movements every morning. As a busy mom and elementary school teacher it basically took my quality of life down to zero. I would occasionally have a good day, but they were rare. What I read online and heard from people about hemorrhoidectomies scared the crap out of me, but I finally reached my breaking point and scheduled it.
The first 5 days were very painful and I basically laid on the couch when I was not in the bathroom. BMs were painful and happened too many times a day, but pretty quick each time- lucky to not have constipation or diarrhea. I stopped my hydrocodone after 2 days as I was afraid of constipation, and it didn't seem to help much more than advil/tylenol. Ate lightly, drank a ton of water, continued my daily dose of Miralax & Benefiber that I've taken for the last year and added in 3 Colace (stool softeners)/day. I was also careful to never ever strain. I think I sabotaged my banding by straining due to pressure. You have to basically wait for your body to be pushing it out on its own.
By day 6 I felt better than I did before surgery. I was back to a regular BM schedule (once/day) which really helped. There is still a constant ache, but nothing terrible at all. Yesterday I felt really good and spent a lot more time on my feet, and I am more sore today. Overall though, it has been much less painful than I had been afraid of. It certainly wasn't fun at all, but I would do it again 1000 times over even if it helps for just a few years. I was in so much constant misery for years that I wish I had done this years ago. I'll never get that time back. I would take a week of intense pain over years of near constant pain.
If your hemorrhoids are not a big hinderance to your life, I would not recommend the surgery, as it is more major than many doctors make it out to be. But if they are frequently painful or causing major blood loss - just DO IT!! You will get through it and come out better than before. Every body and case is different, but I wanted to share a positive story that hopefully encourages some people. I'm glad I was prepared for the worst, but so happy that recovery has been smoother than that. Best of luck to anyone suffering right now - hang in there!
Dawn246 dd23
Posted
i was lucky in regards to pain after the hemorrhoidectomy I had it done on the monday, was at my sons presentation on the friday and didnt need any pain relief at all. All that has healed now. My surgeon only did half the job so im so angry. i had 3 huge external ones as well as internal. My surgeon decided to remove 2 external and 1 internal and see me at a later date for a second surgery. I am still bleeding lots from the internal left behind and the remaining external flared up and has thrombossed from all the messing around. My quality of life is no better now than before. Why he couldnt do it all at once like everyone else ill never know. You can bet its down to him claiming more money us being on the nhs here in the uk. Glad youve got your life back and healing well, ill get there eventually 😃
florence11683 dd23
Posted
am experiencing exactly the same thing, in fact you just wrote my story, mine is almost 2 months now and my wound is still open...each time it seems it has healed, but when i poop , it opens again, am just tired and anxious, i have kept to all the instructions given to me by the doctor... plz what can i do differently to hasten the healing process, coz am tired and worried...
Dawn246 florence11683
Posted
Hi, im 5 months post op now and still have good days and bad days. Days where i bleed a lot and days im fine. Days i cant sit and days no pain. The bad days i use anusol 4 way suppositories and that seems to put things right after a day or two again.
I eat everything from fruit and veg, heck i even make sure i eat a small bag of peanuts everyday to keep things regular. The open wound stays open ive found but it heals both sides so your left with a healed gap. Still have days its sore though.
They do say it can be up to 12 months to be fully recovered.
I had mine done beginning of October and still not had my 6 week check up for after surgery. Its 5 months!. I have given up trying to be seen.
I do know one thing though no way will he be removing the other he left behind, its a skin tag causing no pain so why go through the torture again!
My surgeon is not reliable i cant speak to him, if i contact him i have to go through a receptionist that never passes my messages on. He cant even be bothered to follow up with his patients. The NHS is rubbish. The treatment in America i understand is expensive, insurance etc but their treatment sounds outstanding.
All i can advise is keep up the diet and use wet wipes to clean after toilet visits, lots of salt baths and a hydrocortisone cream.
8 weeks is still early days yet.
You have all my sympathy and i wish you the best of luck. keep strong you can do this. It does improve just gradually xx
bart_BE dd23
Posted
Dear all
I had 2 external ones taken away and for one of those, the doctor told me (afterwards, after operation; we didn't know this before..) that he had to take away tissue internally as well.
When it is only externally, I believe things heal in a normal fashion HOWEVER if it is internally the healing takes forever and there's more pain and more blood with BM.
I lost blood occasionally during the first TEN MONTHS!!! Only after 10 months I felt that the inner spot had healed. The tissue there is extremely weak and tears easily (causing bleeding). The external healing went a lot quicker.
It left me with a lot of worries during almost a full year. It is not a normal life at all, there's no relief; you feel as if this is never going to heal and you have a lot of questions. The doctor should have been much more informative about the healing process. 10 months!!! Do they even realize? Do they even know?
I am 14 months after operation now and I am fine. emotionally I paid a very high price for this...
mogedd dd23
Posted
Wow! I had mine done at the beginning of December (Internals and externals), besides the first 7-10 days being torturous, my recovery has been smooth sailing. I was so scared to plan vacations, family and work event for the few months following surgery after reading all these posts, but within 3 weeks I was pain free - And after years of severe pain, this was no small thing!
I also had the open wound that seemed like it would never heal. Wasn't really painful, but was sensitive, caused some discomfort, and looked awful. After about 6 weeks it actually seemed to be getting worse. Then right after week 8 it just healed up.
Hope everyone feels better quickly!
florence11683 dd23
Posted
thats great...am still hopeful, i hope to heal up completely after the 8th week...i cant just wait to be normal again.