Woman 8

Hi Jack - thank you so much for your tremendously helpful page.  I am not sure if you want to add my story but if you think it may be of help to anyone, please do post it anonymously. 

 

After suffering throughout my pregnancy with what I thought were just extremely painful hemorrhoids, I came to learn after consulting a Colon & Rectal surgeon that the pain I was experiencing was from fissures, not hemorrhoids. 

 

This was really somewhat disturbing because up until this point - my obstetrician had just patted me on the back with orders to drink metamucil and have the hemorrhoids banded once I had the baby.  A month postpartum, a gastroenterologist who I sought out to help me understand why my stools were so hard told me to find a surgeon to perform a hemorrhoidectomy.

 

Had I taken this advice I would have been even more miserable than I already was!  When I got in to see the C & R Surgeon - I came to learn what my real issue was.  After thinking it was hemorrhoids for so long - I was skeptical but the Dr, explained that the pain I was describing could not be attributed to the small hemorrhoid he could see.

 

I left with two things - a prescrption for the .2% nifedipine compound ointment and instructions to eat a very high fiber diet and LOTS of fluid.

 

I immediately started to feel better with use of the ointment.  I went crazy with both the fiber and the water.  I would supplement with Benefiber and took 4 - 5 colace at night. 

 

Despite the ointment helping - I was finding that my stools were still hard.  One difficult BM would throw any healing I had done back several steps.  So, even though I initially thought I was getting better - because I was still having trouble having soft stool - it was really exacerbating the problem.

 

When I went in to see my Dr. at my one month checkup - he confirmed that I still was not healed and because it was not healing on its own, I might have to undergo surgery.  He asked me to try one last thing since it was still too early postpartum for me to have surgery.  He told me to take miralax every day and asked me to continue with the nifedipine.  In addition, he gave me another prescription, for analpram.

 

I left extremely discouraged and convinced that I would never want to get pregnant again given how much pain I was in.  Within days of using the Miralax - things really started healing for me.  After trying everything, this was the first and olny thing that ensured soft BMs for me, hence allowing for the healing to take place.

 

Here is what I attribute my cure to:

 

1) Miralax - this was a godsend and I only wish I had known about it earlier

2) Lots of fiber - 25 - 30 grams a day.  Big fan of La Tortilla Factory high fiber, low cal wraps which helped me meet my numbers easily

3) Tons of water - drank 5 bottles or so a day

4) Initially tried pecans, but because I do have some hemorrhoids - those would irritate that so had to stop with that

5) 1-  250 mg. tablet of magnesium

6) 2 Flax Seed Oil capsules daily (one day/one night)

7) Cutting out red meat and reducung Overall consumption of meat and dairy

8) and last but not least - the nifedipine compound ( i don't think the analpram did much either way for me)

 

For comfort - I relied heavily on sitz baths, ibuprofen and sitting on a heating pad.  I NEVER use regular toilet paper but by the preparation h wipes in bulk from costco, which is where I will also be buying our Miralax.

 

Thank you again so much for this help page.  I am 3 months postpartum and getting ready to go back to work, thankfully with my pain and healing under control.  And yes - I can imagine having kids again - and will not let this experience discourage me.