Surgery is a painful-and sometimes traumatic-experience in a person’s life. Nobody can escape the after effects of excruciating pain and soreness after having spent hours in the operating room.
Patients with hemorrhoids are often confronted with the possibility of a surgery and what to do after hemorrhoid surgery. The amount of time needed to recover from a surgery depends on the type of surgical procedure done to the patient. A major surgery may require a longer recovery period compared to a minor one. A hemorrhoid surgery, however, is classified under minor surgery and doesn’t require the patient to spend a night at the hospital.
Some of the common types of hemorrhoid surgeries are:
– Hemorroidectomy or removal of anal lumps with the use of a cautery knife or scalpel;
– Infrared Coagulation or direct exposure of hemorrhoid tissues to a laser beam; and
– Direct injection to the veins with chemicals cold Injection Sclerotherapy.
Bear in mind that the speed of recovery after hemorrhoid surgery varies from every patient. Consider some helpful tips to have a painless, quick and successful recovery after hemorrhoid surgery.
The first thing you must bear in mind after hemorrhoid surgery is that a full rest is imperative. Your body needs to regain its strength. Fresh incisions and cuts have the tendency to bleeding and newly operated hemorrhoids have a high risk of recurrence. You will be advised to spend hours of bed rest for the first few days after hemorrhoid surgery.
Once the anesthesia wears off, the pain starts to manifest itself and this can be very uncomfortable especially when you need to move your bowel. Keeping a stock of painkillers at hand is necessary especially when the pain is keeping you from having a normal bowel movement.
Practicing a relaxation method is also helpful when you want to prepare yourself for a bowel movement. A sitz bath or soaking your pelvic region in warm water can help ease soreness and make it easier to defecate.
Eat fibrous foods like grains, cereals, fruits and vegetables to increase fiber in the body. Drink an average of 8 glasses of water a day. Fiber juices and other healthy and alcohol-free fluids aid in the softening of stools and prevent constipation. Hard stools can aggravate the healing wounds and may trigger bleeding.
If you are a heavy or overweight person, losing weight may be one of the advantageous ways to recover after hemorrhoid surgery. Carrying a lot of excess weight around increases pressure in the anus or rectal region. This can only aggravate the symptoms of hemorrhoids. By trimming down to a reasonable weight, you are not only helping your hemorrhoids to heal faster, you are also saving your body from weight-related health problems.
To help alleviate pain and irritation, gently rub medicated cream or gel on the sore spot until they have healed.
Physical pain and discomfort doesn’t stay in the operating room after hemorrhoid surgery. But by coping well and doing things right, you will be well on the road to recovery in no time.