If you find yourself asking the question stated above, you’re not alone. A recent study estimates that over 100 million Americans suffer from piles every year, meaning that there’s probably someone in your office, yoga class, or church that is asking themselves which piles treatment is right for them at this very moment.
The answer to choosing a piles treatment depends on the severity of the condition. Generally, most people won’t even notice piles in the early stages of their growth, but once they become symptomatic, many people find themselves hurrying online or to their doctor looking for answers.
Piles symptoms often include any number of issues, from itching, burning, and pain to finding blood on the toilet paper, in the toilet water, or in the stool.
And while there are a number of piles treatments that can be acquired over the counter and applied in the home, when they become more severe people are forced to seek medical attention. In the end, if your piles don’t heal on their own or with a home remedy, a medically prescribed treatment is advantageous in the long run, as home remedies only really treat the symptoms of piles and don’t treat the root cause, leading to many experiencing the same condition in the same area over and over.
Below, we’ve outlined some of the symptoms and the treatment options available to you to treat piles.
If you’re only experiencing mild discomfort…
such as itching, you might consider a home remedy. Start with a warm sitz bath, which can be purchased at any drugstore or medical supply. If the issue persists, you might consider trying one of the hemorrhoid creams available over the counter. Preparation H and Tucks are popular brands, and there are several natural creams available on the market as well. If you decide to go with a natural product, be sure to consult medical literature or a doctor to assure there are no complications.
If you’re experiencing blood on the toilet paper, in the stool, or in the toilet…
and over the counter products haven’t been successful, it may be time to consider medical attention to treat your piles properly. Find a hemorrhoid doctor in your area and make an appointment. The doctor will be able to examine you and recommend any number of piles treatments, each with varying levels of invasiveness, recovery time, and pain involved, starting with the relatively painless hemorrhoidal banding technique on one end of the spectrum all the way up to the fairly painful and invasive sclerotherapy at the other. Together, you and your doctor will be able to choose the right piles treatment for you.
Be sure to check with your doctor . . .
It is important to remember that, while hemorrhoids or piles are typically minor problems, there are more serious conditions which may cause rectal bleeding. For this reason, you should consider seeing your physician in order to rule out any of these other issues, especially if you are at least 40 years old, or if you have a history of colon cancer.
As embarrassing as it might seem, there’s really no reason to suffer in silence when it comes to choosing a piles treatment. With a little education and the right advice, getting treatment for your piles can be relatively painless – so much so that you might just ask yourself another question: “Why did I wait so long to do this?”
