fissures

You probably already do this, but when I have similar problems I make sure to blow-dry my privates with a hair-dryer after a shower, instead of towel-drying. Also, only cetaphil for cleansing and then diaper rash cream when dry. I found Neutrogena makes an unscented one that seems pretty good.

Hi KiKi,
Have you tried castor oil yet? I use the type that is hexane free, that can be used internally, even though I don't take it internally. If you do some searches on this I believe you will see that castor oil is an amazing product with many uses.
Little Bit

I will put A & D Ointment on my kids butts when they get sore from whatever (probably poop stuck there). I think it helps for that.

I know it's not the same area, but I was getting these sores inside my nose and they would get infected and never heal. Unreal pain, and gross btw. I bought Spectrum Organic Virgin Coconut oil unrefined. Not sure if you've already tried this or not, but I put it inside my nose at night and the cut was almost completely gone. It didn't come back either. If I ever have the slight feeling of another one coming, I put a lot in there again.

Poor darling...you’ve struggled so long with this.

You’re probably too young to be familiar with Ann Wigmore, but she was one of the health gurus of the 60s and 70s. She was an early raw-foodist and I’m fairly sure she was the one who started the wheat grass movement.

The major way she utilized wheat grass was to grind it into a pulp and insert the pulp into her rectum where it stayed until it came out I guess - I can’t recall any time specifications. She called these “implants” and it was one of her regular practices.

She talks in one of her books about realizing when she was around 50 just how horrible she felt. I don’t recall that she described exactly why, but if fresh wheatgrass suppositories were her solution, you can bet some sort of anal problem was on her list of symptoms. She believed these “implants” vitalized her whole system.

As you saw when we you were here, I grow barley grass on a regular basis. I absolutely detest wheat grass. Not only is it caustic to drink, but I end up burping it for hours after. Barley grass is a whole different animal! It is extremely bitter and not at all pleasant, but it doesn’t have that gagging, battery acid quality of wheatgrass. And, it contains by far the most Omega3 of all the grasses. We are familiar enough with it now to believe it is absolute magic and call it “green lightning”.

I would like to suggest that you try Ann Wigmore’s implants, but I would use barley grass instead of wheat. You’ll have to buy organic, unhulled barley, which is what brewers use. I plant it in small cafeteria trays every few days, rotating three trays at each planting. If you’re not drinking it, you won’t need to plant very much at a time. It will require indirect sunlight and a wheatgrass juicer.

It might be worth a try. You’ve suffered long enough.

♥ Christine

You know Kiki, as I think about this, the anti-inflammatory effect of the grass is probably mostly derived from Omega3. Have you tried inserting an algae oil capsule? Pure DHA is as anti-inflammatory as it gets. It sure would be easier and I think it would *have* to help! DHA lowers all inflammation. If that doesn't do it, I have yet another idea - but I believe this will. The small gel caps will probably melt readily with little or no muss or fuss.

Fissures. Out of the blue, I started getting flare ups. Never had them before, and all of a sudden, all of this discomfort! I think stress had a lot to do with it (was taking 14 credits, commuting 2 hours a day, looking after my two year old, managing the household, etc). Dreading the next BM didn't help either. I've not had any for at least 6 months now, and hope it stays that way! Here is what I've done differently -- maybe something will work for you too?
1. Have a bit less stress now
2. Upped my protein intake to 70g/day (very high, for my pregnancy, but women do need 1g/kg/day. I eat meat & dairy, but know on days I have a mainly plant-based diet, I have to really work to reach my goal. Maybe check this aspect of your diet? Protein is so so important for tissue healing and integrity. I'm really thinking this had the greatest impact resolving my fissures).
3. Been eating a large, green, Granny Smith apple every night before bed -- never had such easy, regular mornings than as with this (!)
4. Been drinking a quart of my own blend of herb tea every day. Consists of red raspberry leaf, alfalfa, oat straw, nettles, peppermint, lemon balm, & a few red clover blossoms. I brew 1/2 cup of loose herbs in a liter of water overnight in a French press. I think all these good green herbs have made an impact for sure.
5. I use moist wipes on my bum instead of tissue. Seems to help some.

Best wishes, Kiki. Hope you can find something that satisfies your quest to be fissure-free!!

BadMirror's tea is a beta-receptor's dream...a perfect combination of phytoestrogens. I remain unconvinced your problems aren't hormonal, Kiki.

Here's some take away stuff you might find interesting:

Evening primrose oil taken orally is very good for skin integrity, elasticity etc (though I would use caution with topical application)

comfrey is amazing for skin healing- tea and sitz bath

good fats (coconut oil, avocado, and organic free range animal fats) keep the skin's integrity in good condition

vitamin C is amazing for skin healing and so is DHA etc

My daughter developed a fissure as a baby- like 2 years old- from passing sunflower seeds- she was always regular, no straining, no problems- it bled so much! It was shocking. Then as it healed she could go weeks without any blood at all- then *bam* something would scratch it open again and we'd start the healing process all over. I took ALL scratchy things out of her diet- things like corn chips, seeds, nuts and it took a little while (maybe 6 months of nothing scratchy and soft poos) and it healed up totally. If you are having *any* constipation at all or eating anything that might scratch on the way out, you are going to have a very hard time healing this thing. She was pretty pitiful and I could tell she was anxious about the pain of going potty. I started putting her in a very hot shallow bath with epsom salts after and that really helped her relax and know that even though it hurt during, she would get relief soon after.

My thinking? Go all the way! get crazy strict about your diet, your bum care regimen and your teas. Keep it up for at least a year. That's the only way you'll know right?

Kiki, I sometimes get a scaly, sometimes moist/soggy patch of skin in my bum crack, halfway down my tailbone (right where my strange tailbone turns straight inwards at right angles). I think it is fungal because it is moist and scaly and responds to a dob of teatree oil and disappears completely in a couple of days. During summer perspiration drips down my spine groove and down my bum crack, which may be how it becomes and remains moist. I am wondering if your perineum gets soggy for some reason, which reduces the strength of that outside layer of skin and allowing it be compromised easily.

Louise

I think there is a lesson here:

"If you're going to ask for advice, be ready to sift through a whole bunch of well-meaning suggestions." (I can see you scratching your head!)

I'm betting some combination of what was offered is going to help. I'm praying for your speedy and permanent recovery.

Great to hear all the suggestions from everyone. it is what makes this site so warm and cosy.

My addition to the list-
It would be great if we all could afford a bidet but I can't and maybe you can't. My solution is to fill a plastic sports water bottle (with the squirt top that you suck out of) with water. After using the toilet and while still sitting on the seat - use it to spray water over all the bits and pieces down below. You could a drop of tea tree oil or similar if there are infections. Use warm water if desired. There is no need to touch any part of your body when doing this so there is no contamination on the bottle.

Bacteria love to breed in the tiny bits of fecal stuff left behind and in the urine particles left clinging to our bodies. Wiping with toilet paper just gets rid of the drips and bulk. Having a shower after using the toilet is not a convenient option.

Also a water bottle can be taken discreetly into a public toilet so you have a portable bidet.

It is a great way to wash off especially for those gals who are still menstrual.

I like the suggestion to use a hair dryer for those who have very sensitive bits and pieces down below.

Hi bad_mirror,
I read your post several days ago and decided I would try the apple before bedtime. It has been a great help to me. This is what I have found works for me. As long as I eat an apple within an hour before going to bed, I have a very easy BM within an hour of arrising the next morning. It really doesn't seem to matter what variety of apple but I do stick with the open pollenated. It was my rectocele that was giving me the most problems lately and it certainly seems to have improved since doing the apple before bedtime thing.

I know that I have read that a rectocele doesn't cause constipation but constipation causes a rectocele. It does seem to be just the oposite with me though but maybe it just seems that way. It has only been on rare occasions in my life that I actually seemed to be constipated but since before Christmas when my rectocele really started giving me problems and started causing the "bulge" feeling, is the first time in a long time that I actually started batteling with constipation. It seemed like some things made my rectocele worse but the apple before bedtime has been one of the best things that I have tried. I have experimented a little and if I eat the apple earlier than one hour before bedtime, then it doesn't seem to work. When I was able to start back on my shark cartilage, the feeling of the "bulge" went away but the rectocele seemed to still be causing constipation problems so the apple has been a huge relief.
Thank you,
Little Bit

Hmmm, I remember vividly lying tucked up in bed at night eating a peeled and quartered granny smith apple on a saucer, courtesy of my Mum. I used to get constipated as a child. Maybe my Mum knew more than I have her credit for?

Just a though Kiki. I have a very good friend who never eats multigrain bread because she thinks the pointy end of the whole flax seeds in it tear her anal skin on the way through.

Since I travel to shows with my artwork and usually stay in my van, I've become most adept at staying clean and fresh with my squirt bottles, so I definitely endorse this suggestion!

I finally caved in and bought an electric coffee grinder, which we are now using for spices and seeds. We grind our coffee by hand anyway. This one (Breville) has a removable, stainless goblet and blade. I don't really mind the taste of cloves in my flax seed, but it is nice to know I can remove it to wash it without damaging the electricals. It also means I don't have to tip the whole grinder upside down to get the last bit out.

Previous to that I tried several mortars and pestle, but it was very slow and was hard on my wrists. Flax seeds are such slippery, hard, little bastards. Only an electrical grinder will do the job, and it is so quick!

Just give in.

Louise

I use a "Magic Bullet" for grinding all kinds of seeds and things. It is a small blender. I have seen a few versions in Australia - don't know what they are called in other countries. It is a really useful gadget and easy to clean.

The only Magic Bullet I have ever seen is a vibrator. Nah, I don't think so...

You can clean a grinder pretty well by grinding up a small piece of bread.

Mmm, good idea. I do that with my mincer. However, I am a bit of a design nerd. Any kitchen appliance that cannot be taken apart and the dirty bits run under a tap is badly designed, as far as I can see. It is just slack designers.

I.used to teach in wigmore based centers. Implants were always juice you absorbed, not fiber you shoved up you at every center I was involved with. You do a regular enema, then put the juice in you and hold it as it absorbs. Its fabulous for you.

It helped the bulge? How? And how long did it take? Can you advise as to what to find it or what brand you use?