There are various ways to deal with hemorrhoids:  natural treatments, surgery, even exercises.  But the simplest of all the treatments should be diet.  Yet I find it to be the hardest way to help keep my hemorrhoids under control.  This post isn’t about the usual ways to treat hemorrhoids that you’ll find on other sites.  Rather it is about my experiences with my food, drink and hemorrhoids.

Drinking

First up:  one of the major “triggers” for a painful bout of piles is alcohol.  Bizarrely, my worst years (till recently at least) was my time at university.  Given that I was in my late teens and early twenties this shouldn’t really have been when I was experiencing the the agonizing, bleeding, mostly embarrassing hemorrhoids.  But it was. . .

It is no coincidence that this time was also spent drinking heavily.  Like many students I drank far, far more than is healthy – and I saw an increase in my occurences of hemorrhoids as a result.

During my late twenties, they calmed down considerably – mainly because I was drink far less often.  Although I would still get an occassional flare up around big events. . .like my birthday!

Your experience may differ but I find that heavy drinking generally means hemorrhoids.

As for my general fluid intake.  Well, I drink plenty of water anyway (as I like to workout and always take a big bottle of water with me).  I find that this helps to stop me from getting constipated.  Although to be completely honest I don’t normally have a big problem with this.

Eating

Generally this is my biggest weakness.  I eat terribly.  As mentioned I like to train at the gym but this doesn’t necessarily translate into a good diet.  It really is the hardest thing for me to control.  But I can guarantee that I eat incredibly “clean” when I experience a bad case of hemorrhoids.  This because, although I don’t eat the healthiest diet, I find that it is hard to correlate whether what I eat is the cause of a new flare up of hemorrhoids.  But I always eat far more healthily when I have to endure it.

This may partly be because a bad case of hemorrhoids mean that I’m willing to try absolutely anything to get rid of them!  My experience of eating more cleanly when enduring hemorrhoids is generally a good one.  Going back to my university days, I would be inclined to keep “eating like a student” (well, I was one) and the attacks would last for weeks.  I now realise that I almost “sub-conscously” eat healthier food when I get them now and that they disappear within days rather than weeks as a result.  This generally means meals like grilled chicken or fish with steamed vegetables.  I find it is boring to eat but that I heal more quickly.

Now you may be thinking:  If he is using diet to get rid of individual episodes of hemorrhoids then surely diet would help to prevent them?  And you might be right.  But that is a lifestyle change that I haven’t adopted yet.  Should I?

You may have reached a point where good diet, a healthy lifestyle and natural remedies just don’t help with your hemorrhoids any longer – if they have ever helped at all.

In my own case, hemorrhoids are clearly a hereditary problem.  My grandfather had piles, my dad had piles (until undergoing a hemorrhoidectomy (see below), my uncles have them – and so do I! 
Granted, piles are an affliction that a great number of the population deal with at some point but some of us are just a little more likely to be prone to them.  Unfortunately, this might mean that we have to resort to hemorrhoid surgery.  This article is intended to give you some information about the different hemorrhoid surgical options.

Hemorrhoid banding

This is often the first (minor) surgical option for piles sufferers.  In fact it isn’t always considered to be hemorrhoid surgery – you may hear of it referred to as a piles treatment as it can be performed without anesthetic.  Banding works by cutting of the blood supply to the hemorrhoid.  Using a special tool, the surgeon will tie a rubber band tightly around hemorrhoid.  In 1 – 2 weeks the hemorrhoid should, in theory, drop off without any further treatment.  Typically this treatment is considered to be suitable for treating 2nd or 3rd degree piles and has been reported as having an 80% success rate.

In my dad’s case this was the first hemorrhoid treatment that he was offered by his surgeon.  He underwent the procedure but it failed to have any effect.  Note:  It is worth pointing out that he had very (very) bad piles and so more extreme surgery was the only option for him.

It has also been recommended to me.  I am currently trying a variety of different lifestyle changes (mostly diet and exercise related) but my father’s experience (see more below) has convinced me to opt for the THD treatment (also see below) if I decide that surgery is the only option.

Sclerotherapy (injections)

This procedure consists of injecting special chemicals into the hemorrhoid.  The idea is that it permanently scars the vein to reduce blood flow and shrink the hemorrhoid.  The injection is made above the dentate line which means that it is less painful.

However, it has been reported that results may only last 12 months and that it is unsuitable for more serious hemorrhoids.

It was the second treatment that my dad tried.  In his case, it was a complete failure.  However, his experience wasn’t especially painful – it just didn’t work!

Stapled Hemorrhoidectomy (or stapling)

This is a hemorrhoid surgery option that is a slightly less severe version of a full hemorrhoidectomy.  Instead of excising the hemorrhoid, the surgeon uses a special type of stapling gun to staple the pile to the anal canal.  This pulls the hemorrhoid further up into the anus and cuts off its blood supply.  If your doctor recommends a complete hemorrhoidectomy it may be worth asking about stapling – if only because our readers report that it is considerably less painful!

Hemorrhoidectomy

This is often the last resort for many sufferers of serious hemorrhoids.  You will be placed under general (or sometimes spinal) anesthetic and the hemorrhoid will be “tied off” to restrict blood flow.  The surgeon will then cut through the hemorrhoid to remove it entirely.

This is the final surgical treatment for hemorrhoids that my dad tried.  In his case the the hemorrhoidectomy was a complete success.  Over fifteen years later he is still completely cured.  He also seems to be able to drink alcohol, do very little exercise and eat what he likes.   I’m not saying you should do the same thing:  just that it seems to be an effective hemorrhoid treatment is my father’s case!

However. . .it is extremely painful.  Although it is performed under general anesthetic, the recovery time can take between 2 and 6 weeks.   My dad found that it took about 3 weeks – and any kind of bowel movement was agonising.  He has told me that he would never undergo the same procedure again and that if he had know about it in the first place he never would have tried it.  But it seems like he won’t have to!

THD hemorrhoid treatment

This is new hemorrhoid treatment that has some major benefits over all of the above.  It works by tying off the arterial blood flow to the hemorrhoids and has a very high success rate.  It is also relatively painless with a fast recovery time – normally within 24 hours.  You can find out more information here. THD is highly recommended by our readers as a successful treatment for piles!

This is one of our frequently asked questions about hemorrhoids. Should you exercise if you suffer from piles?

The short answer is: Yes! The longer answer is: You need to choose your exercise depending on your symptoms.

In this article I am going to relate some of my personal experiences with exercise and piles.

First, let’s talk about the science of hemorrhoids. You have veins supplied by arteries all over your body. Regular exercise helps the transmission of oxygen and nurtrients to these veins. You are getting the blood pumping when you exercise!

By exercising you are helping the areas around your backside to be healthier. This has to be good for piles right?

So if exercise is good for hemorrhoids then we should do as much of any kind of exercise as much as possible?

No, this isn’t necessarily true. In my experience (and bear in mind this may be different for you) it is better to focus on exercises that don’t force you to strain too hard. This means that exercise such as swimming, cycling or even just walking are all great for keeping hemorrhoids at bay.

So that means no weights at the gym?

I’m only speaking from my own experience here but it doesn’t necessarily mean no weight training.  After an examination by my doctor (prior to a colonoscopy) I was advised that my piles were fairly prominant.  He asked me about my lifestyle and I informed him that I live a generally healthy life (with a reasonable diet) and that I love weight training.  This last bit raised some eyebrows.  I was advised against lifting heavy weights as they may aggravate the piles more.

This was  a problem.  I love weight training.  And as I mentioned, the extra blood flow does have some benefits.  So I thought I would seek out the advice of a trainer at my local gym.  After discussing the situation with him, we realised that we needed to eliminate the exercises that were putting the most strain on my body.  Namely:  Squat presses and other leg exercises.  (Note:  A squat press is one of the fundamental leg exercises of weight training where you put the bar on your shoulders and literally squat down).

But if we stopped weight-based leg exercises what do we replace it with?  (I like a full body workout).  The answer for me:  kettlebells.  Kettlebell exercises still allow me to exercise my legs but because it consists of more endurance-based exercise it doesn’t cause the strain that aggravates the hemorrhoids.  Better still they provide a perfect combination of cardiovascular, strength and flexibility.  All good for hemorrhoids!

Revisiting the doctor

Prior to my colonoscopy, I went back to see the doctor.  And I am glad I did because he confirmed that the new exercises really did help.  Of the piles that he had spotted, one had shrunk considerably.  The others were much smaller!

If you want to find information about Kettlebell training you can go try these sites:

http://www.dragondoor.com/

Other general advice about exercise and piles

The most important thing to remember is that, even if you don’t feel like it, you must try to remain active.  I don’t mean that you should be hitting the gym every day or running marathons.  But you should try to walk, run, cycle or do something because it will help.

And you probably don’t want to hear this but you should also try to take walks even during an attack of hemorrhoids.  Even though staying still seems like the best thing to do.  It isn’t.  Getting that blood flowing will help you to heal more quickly!

A surgical solution to hemorrhoids is normally guaranteed to come with one thing:  pain!  But not, it seems, anymore. . .

The clever surgeons at THD Lab have devised a new technique that cures even the most serious cases of piles.  A long line of happy patients report that following the THD surgery they have been able to return to work and even physical activity – usually within a couple of days.  Given that a hemorrhoidectomy normally involves a very long recovery period (and lots and lots of pain) this almost sounds good to be true.  But it seems that there is some clever science behind it.

So how does it work?

In short, the surgery cuts off some of the blood supply to the hemorrhoid.  As I’m sure you know, piles can be incredibly painful (not to mention uncomfortable) because of the pressure of all that blood building up inside.  So a treatment that reduces the blood flow sounds like it can only be a good thing.

The medical term for this is: haemorrhoidal artery ligation.   (Note the spelling “haemorrhoidal” –  this is a the European spelling as the treatment originates from there).

The basic steps are:

1.  The THD surgeon inserts a small plastic (and transparent) device into the anus.  He or she then detects the artery that supplies the hemorrhoid.

2.  A hooked shaped needle is then passed out of the probe and loops surgical thread around the artery.  (This is the “ligation” part).

3.  The thread is looped round the artery as needed and “tied off.  The THD device is then removed.

4.  Another device called a “surgy” is then inserted.  The THD surgeon then performs a “pexis” which means that he loops more surgical thread through the skin tissue next to the artery.  They then pull the loops tight therby moving the tissue higher up into the anal passage.  Technically this is known as “Lifting of mucosal prolapse.”  The THD surgy device is then removed.

5.  The original THD device is then reinserted and a quick check of the area is carried out.  It is then repeated on other arteries if needed.

You can view the video about the treatment here:

You can also visit the THD website to find out more and book an initial consultation.

Or if that doesn’t sound like the treatment for you then please visit our main menu for other hemorrhoid treatment page (both surgical and natural).