6 tips for relieving your hemorrhoids without surgery

Hemorrhoids are a difficult medical issue. They're also probably much more common than we know, since many people are understandably too embarrassed to admit they have them.

Pregnancy:  

• Because of changing hormones and abdominal pressure, straining during bowel movements due to constipation, obesity, and sitting for prolonged periods, hemorrhoids are common among pregnant women.

• Bright red blood covering the stool, on toilet paper or in the toilet bowl.
• An internal hemorrhoid may protrude through the anus outside the body, becoming irritated and painful.
• Other symptoms include painful swelling or a hard lump around the anus.

• If you have to bear down to have a bowel movement, something's wrong.
• If you've been sitting on the toilet for more than five minutes, you've been there too long.
• Straining is the primary cause of hemorrhoids.
• Instead, give up and try again later.

• Once you have hemorrhoids, it's even more difficult to go to the bathroom; you're afraid something might burst, not to mention the burning.
• Use moist towelettes or hemorrhoid cream or pads.
• Try a sitz bath. Sit in about 15 centimetres (six inches) of warm water for about 20 minutes, or you can hold a washcloth soaked in warm water over the sore area. Do this several times a day.
• Sit on a doughnut. You can find these rubber circles, which keep the pressure off your bottom, at medical supply stores.

• The reason you're straining is probably constipation. Keep things moving along.
• Focus on fibre. Try flaxseed — it's one of the best sources of fibre you'll find, with nearly three grams in 15 millilitres (one tablespoon). Add ground flaxseed to muffin or pancake batter and sprinkle it over yogurt or oatmeal — even on your evening bowl of ice cream. Fibre acts like a sponge in your intestinal tract, soaking up liquid and creating bulkier stools that are easier to move out of your body.
• Get moving. A good way to get your bowels moving is to get yourself moving with regular exercise — anything that gets the blood flowing.
• Drink up. A major reason people get constipated is because they're not drinking enough fluids, so carry a water bottle with you and make sure you refill it at least six times a day.

• Modern toilets work against you when it comes to hemorrhoids.
• Sitting while squatting facilitates bowel movements.
• Try propping your feet on a small footstool and pulling your knees towards you.

• Believe it or not, there's actually an ideal time for a bowel movement: about 30 minutes after you wake up, just after a cup of hot coffee or tea, and about 30 to 60 minutes after meals.
• Plan for some bathroom time, even if nothing happens. What you're doing is training your bowels to go at the same time every day.

•  Not only will the extra fibre help with constipation, but berries are high in flavonoids, plant compounds that reduce inflammation and strengthen blood vessel walls.
• Prescription medications containing highly purified flavonoids significantly reduced the risk of bleeding, pain and itching.
• Ask your doctor about taking one.

Although they are common, that's little comfort for people suffering from hemorrhoids. Try these tips to relieve the pain. If it does not work, consult a doctor about the possibility of more drastic methods.