worried 21 year old =/

No, I'm not a doctor. I've just been on this board for a year. And I've been without a gall bladder for 3.5 years. And I had a bad gall bladder for 5 years. And both my parents are in the medical field. So between learning from them, learning from first-hand experience and paying attention to what others on here say, I can usually help a little.

I think your best bet is to go to a doctor with your problem. It never hurts to get officially diagnosed with hemmroids and for the doctor to make sure that they aren't too big of a problem. Sometimes they have to be removed when they start getting in the way (Ronald Reagan had hemmroid surgery while President, I seem to recall). Yours probably aren't that bad--I think they tend to get worse as the years go on and so hemmroid surgery is usually something done on older people--but still, it never hurts to be sure.

If, however, you're bound and determined not to go to a doctor, or you need something to help while you wait to see one, then I would suggest you try the hemmroid suppositories and see if they help with the burning and the pain. I take it that your stools have become narrow? That can be a sign of swollen hemmroids, but then a lot of IBSers have narrow stools and don't have a problem with hemmroids, so that may not be a good indicator of swollen hemmroids. That your rectum causes you pain is a good indicator that they are torn and maybe swollen as well. I don't think the suppositories would hurt anything, at least. Then there's always the hemmroid doughnut--an inflatable innertube-like device that you sit on so that your rectum is above the hole part and doesn't have to touch anything; you can use that in the car or on the couch, etc.

The best help for your hemmroids, though, is going to be softer stools. Have you tried the usual non-chemical stool softeners, such as soluable fiber, prune juice and/or aloe vera capsules on a daily basis? I find that my hemmroids take care of themselves once I get over my constipation and start having normal stools again. Yours sound worse than mine have ever been, though, so you may benefit from having some mushy stools for a couple of days. Anything that's not hard or causing you to strain will help. Soaking in a bath of epsom salts, I have heard, is also good for a sore bumhole. You can get Epsom salts in the pharmacy section. I can't recall what product section they are normally in, but I always seem to find them on a bottom shelf. I think they are in with first-aid stuff because they are good for soaking bruises and certain wounds (like torn-off fingernails--ask me how I know this). They are also a laxative, but I tried some once and I about gagged at the nasty taste! Better, in my opinion, to stick to fiber or aloe vera pills.

kgrl17 said...
I've had kind of the same problem. I used to be mainly IBS-c but now I got to the bathroom 5-6 times a day. It's not like diarhea though- it's pretty normal. So I'm not sure what's going on with my body

what have you dont to improve/fix your problems?  aside from seeing a doctor, i really dont knwo what else to do.