Dealing with hemorrhoids

This isn't the most comfortable topic to bring up, but I was hoping to hear about other people's experiences. What exactly is this, how does it happen, what are the treatments, and what actually helps?...
I spend a lot of time sitting down for work, and lately, I’ve been feeling this stinging sensation near my anus when I go to the bathroom—especially if I use rougher toilet paper. I've also noticed some blood on the paper. Maybe I just irritated the skin, or maybe it's something more?
Thanks, everyone.
P. S.
I came across this link:
https://macapnd.com/76Hk

I used to struggle with that quite a bit, but I finally overhauled my diet—I’ve been leaning heavily into bone broths and completely cut out fast food.
Plus, I’ve stayed pretty active with my workouts, so those issues have vanished entirely.

So, here’s the deal: you have to distinguish between external and internal issues. External ones hurt like hell—even if they don't bleed much—while internal ones might not cause much pain, but they can bleed. And honestly? That bleeding is where things get sketchy. It can lead to anemia, or worse, it could be a red flag for something more serious like Crohn’s disease, colon cancer, or colitis. For the external stuff, doctors usually suggest ointments or just soaking in chamomile tea, a diluted potassium permanganate solution, or even just a warm bath. The big thing, though, is lifestyle—you really need to load up on fiber, eat plenty of walnuts, and stay incredibly hydrated throughout the day...

To put it simply, you can get these from straining too hard, dealing with a lingering cough, or even just sitting on a cold surface for too long. You end up with these swollen veins around the area that fill up with blood—they can look purple or bluish... it looks pretty gnarly, but it isn't life-threatening.

That’s about it. Just my humble take on things. 😉

It’ll pass eventually, I suppose, but there's absolutely no way I'm heading to the doctor because of these hemorrhoids.😲 I haven't gone myself, but a close friend of mine went once and had a pretty miserable experience with a medical exam swab.😲 😢 😁

Christian Sanchez44 said:So, here's the deal: there are external and internal ones. External ones hurt like hell, while internal ones don't really ache, but they bleed. That can actually be pretty serious because it leads to anemia, or it could be a red flag for Crohn’s disease, colon cancer, colitis... You treat the external ones with ointments or by sitting in chamomile, potassium permanganate, or warm water... The main thing is to eat plenty of fiber, walnuts, and drink tons of fluids every day...

In short, you can get them from straining too hard, a long coughing fit, or even sitting on something cold... There are also those hemorrhoids near the anus that fill up with blood and look purple or bluish... It looks nasty, but it isn't dangerous.

Roughly speaking. Just my humble opinion. 😉

Everything is correct except for one thing... WARM WATER.😲
Don't do that. Heat just makes them worse since it dilates the blood vessels...
The move is to rinse the area with COLD water.😉

Are you kidding me? 😕
For crying out loud, I was just reading in a medical encyclopedia that soaking in lukewarm water is recommended—and they even specified it should be about 8 cm deep. 😁
I mean, what you wrote makes total sense... I’m not any more confused than I was before.

Christian Sanchez44, props to you. 👍

You’re pretty much the only one who actually "dared" to address this topic here. It’s kind of funny, I guess, how people still act all shy about certain subjects—claiming they "don't know anything," or saying they "just heard about it from someone else," or even the whole "my friend has it, but not me" routine. People can be so weirdly hesitant sometimes. 🙄

Anyway, Robert Newman5, if you head over to a local pharmacy, you'll find various creams for hemorrhoids. Some are made by big manufacturers like Pfizer and stuff like that, while others are prepared right there in the pharmacy and come in those little white boxes (they usually keep them in the fridge, too, since they need to stay cold). Maybe just ask the pharmacist; I'm sure they'll be able to answer everything you're wondering about. 🙂

Christian Sanchez44 makes a fair point, but I’m talking about sitting in warm water after surgery to help manage the pain. My mom always used to swear by cold water rinses to deal with hemorrhoids—not sure if she was right, though. The thing is, her actual surgery was an absolute nightmare. She didn't really have major issues before—just some occasional discomfort and minor bleeding—but it got to the point where she just couldn't get any peace, so we decided on the procedure. Honestly? It was an experience I wouldn't wish on anyone. The pain was unbearable and dragged on for a month—she couldn't sit, couldn't use the bathroom, basically couldn't function. Warm baths were the only thing that offered any relief. It took about six weeks for the agony to finally subside. Bottom line: please, think long and hard before you opt for surgery.

Hemorrhoids are essentially dilated veins that drain blood from the rectal area.

The general consensus is that these veins fail because their valves become insufficient, often due to the physical strain caused by poor lifestyle habits. Chronic constipation, irregular bowel movements, and spending far too much time sitting on the toilet are all major culprits behind their development. Even during pregnancy, the sheer pressure of the baby’s head in the pelvic region frequently triggers this issue.

It’s actually one of the most common ailments in proctology, affecting nearly 25% of the entire population.

I personally dealt with hemorrhoids back when I was serving in the military, sitting constantly on cold surfaces in foxholes. I had external hemorrhoids that bled frequently; I lost so much blood that I ended up anemic. Once I finally saw a doctor after my service, I had to take iron supplements, and to make matters worse, I was diagnosed with H. pylori, which meant a grueling regimen of two different antibiotics plus other medications. Eventually, I had to undergo surgery to fix the hemorrhoids, and let me tell you, the recovery was brutal. I went through every painkiller imaginable, but nothing worked! Believe it or not, the only thing that actually provided relief was applying yogurt to the area—it took about a week before the pain finally subsided.

If you want to lower your risk, it’s simple: maintain regular bowel movements, eat a balanced diet high in fiber, and for heaven's sake, stop straining when you're on the toilet.

It seems to me that one of the core issues here is how we actually define "warm" water.
I’ll throw my two cents into the ring...
The whole thing really comes down to how we perceive "warm" versus "cold" in relation to the human body.
Below zero? That's just ice.
- Minus 10 degrees—now you're entering dangerous territory for the body.
- From 10 down to 0—fine for very brief exposure, maybe.
0 to 10—freezing water.
10 to 20—cold water.
20 to 30—lukewarm.
30 to 40—warm water.
40 to 50—hot water.
50 to 60—scalding hot.
Any other temperatures aren't even worth considering—they're simply unsuitable for any contact with the human body, even briefly.

I know someone who dealt with—or is still dealing with—this kind of thing...
They always go out of their way to avoid anything spicy or peppered...

But honestly, I don't think you're actually looking at hemorrhoids; it sounds more like fissures...
You probably have some small tears in the area that cause a bit of bleeding every single time you hit the restroom!
That usually heals up on its own if you play your cards right... just stop eating all that dry, processed junk!
Stick to more broth, plenty of veggies, fruit, whole grain bread, and maybe some yogurt...
Rub some Preparation H on it and you’ll likely feel better in about a week or so...
Though, if you’re convinced it’s hemorrhoids, you really ought to see a doctor as soon as possible!

😛

Hemorrhoids—if you rule out any underlying medical conditions—usually stem from one of two things, as far as I can tell:
1. Sitting on your butt way too much, being a total couch potato, and eating like garbage (I'm talking greasy, spicy junk food)
2. Extreme physical strain. For example, rowers often talk about getting "the surge"... basically, they push so hard they end up with torn veins or hemorrhoids that just pop.

Most people have already covered the treatment side of things, so there's not much more to say there. Personally, I once picked up this herbal cream at the "Celikovic" apothecary (over on Gracanin Street, just before you hit Paul's)... and honestly, it actually worked. It was probably the best stuff I've ever tried.

But look, I'm only talking about the cases where they're caused by the stuff I mentioned above. If they're a symptom of some other actual illness... then you need to focus on treating the primary disease first.

Don't bother trying to play the hero—it looks like he’s either vanished into thin air or just couldn't care less anymore.
What really gets under my skin is when someone can't even manage a simple "thank you."

😠

He honestly couldn't care less about the posts

steelsailor17 said:Don't bother trying to step up. It looks like the guy just vanished, or maybe he just doesn't care anymore.

Look, who cares if the person who started the thread isn't hanging around anymore? There are plenty of other people here who can benefit from the exact same advice. That’s literally the whole point of an online forum.

As for bragging about being appreciated... honestly, you'll feel a lot better if you just stop expecting people to say thanks.

I mean, what can you even say? Ever since money was invented, "thank you" has basically become a useless phrase. 😁

Hey, regarding that whole yogurt skin thing, it sounds a bit wild but I’ve heard people swear by it, though I honestly can't wrap my head around why anyone would choose yogurt over a standard moisturizer.

I mean, yogurt is only actually useful if you're dealing with some kind of fungal infection...

I honestly have no clue why yogurt works, but some guy who had hemorrhoid surgery right before me swore by it, claiming it actually helped his recovery.
Anyway, regardless of what anyone says, if you’re heading in for hemorrhoid surgery, you better brace yourself for about a week of absolute agony. My doctor discharged me from the hospital the very next day after the procedure without handing me a single prescription for pain relief. So, what did I do? I took matters into my own hands and popped every single over-the-counter painkiller I could get my hands on, but nothing worked! It was useless. Can you believe it? The only thing that provided even a moment of relief was slathering on yogurt—for some reason, that actually calmed the pain down for a while. I have no idea why it does that, but it was the only thing that worked.

Old school home remedies that actually still work:

Just pop one bag of pumpkin seeds every single day.

I’m dealing with my regular bathroom routine today, and those damn hemorrhoids are acting up again. 😢
After all that struggle—man, it feels like trying to pass a President's Choice can through a tiny opening... there's always a sudden rush of blood into the toilet bowl.
I’ve been using wipes to clean up, though honestly, I just stay seated on the toilet because it's the only way to keep things somewhat clean and disinfected... then I slather on some over-the-counter hemorrhoid cream, but it doesn't do a thing. 😳 😢

help 🙂