Introduction
The presence of swollen veins and blood vessels in the lower part of your rectum and anus region indicates hemorrhoids. In some cases, these blood vessels bulge out and cause severe irritation in the anus region. Hemorrhoids are the most common cause of rectal bleeding.
Hemorrhoids occur due to the application of excessive pressure on your rectum during a bowel movement. It can occur during pregnancy or due to some straining physical activity such as weight lifting. During hemorrhoids, you may experience pain and itching in your anus, lumps are observed in your anus, and blood may appear while passing stool.
Hemorrhoids lead to severe discomfort while sitting due to extreme pain in the anus region. You can try some home remedies to provide comfort and get temporary relief from hemorrhoid pain. You can try using a hemorrhoid pillow or hemorrhoid pad.
Read About Home Remedies for Hemorrhoids (Piles Treatment at Home)
Hemorrhoid Pillow
Hemorrhoid pillow is a special type of over-the-counter treatment method which is believed to cure inflamed hemorrhoids. During hemorrhoids, doctors usually recommend sitting or leaning back on a soft and supportive cushioned surface such as a bed or a coach.
People who experience inflamed hemorrhoids should sit on a soft cushion surface to relieve their swollen tissue pressure. The cushion’s shape is designed so that the affected area is not hard-pressed by any cushioned surface.
Types of Hemorrhoid Cushion
Different types of hemorrhoid pillows are available in the market. They vary according to their shape. Hemorrhoid cushions can have a doughnut shape, ring-shaped pillows, oblong pillows, square pillows, and O-shaped pillows.
Some companies are presently preparing hemorrhoid pillows of variable shapes, which are quite similar to the normal pillow. These pillows provide support and comfort to the anal area than doughnut shape pillows. But, these normal-shaped hemorrhoid pillows do not offer any support over your couch, your bed, or on any other soft and supportive surface.
Some commonly used hemorrhoid pillows are as follows:
Donut Pillow for Hemorrhoids
A donut pillow is a round tubular cushion with a hole in its center. It resembles the shape of a doughnut.
They are made up of different material such as memory foam, memory pellets, styrene pellets, gel-like substance, hard foam, and other such material which allow them to take your lower body shape. Foam based hemorrhoid cushions also provide support to your back and anal region.
Some of the doughnut cushions are made up of inflatable material, which allows easy transport in their deflectable form. They can be used by people having variable shape and size, as it can be inflated more or less depending upon the support you require.
In hemorrhoids, the veins and skin around the anus and rectal region become inflamed and irritated, creating pressure on your tailbone. Due to which you may experience severe pain even while sitting in a normal position.
Donut pillows for hemorrhoids are the most commonly used pain relief items by hemorrhoid patients. It is an affordable treatment method, which provides temporary relief from hemorrhoid pain and itchy piles. The cushion’s shape is highly effective in distributing your body weight evenly across your buttocks and thereby reducing piles pain.
Doughnut cushions are also used to provide pain relief or injury to your lower part of the body. Pregnant women use them after delivery; people suffering from sciatica have suffered from broken or injured tail bone and coccyx pain. These cushions also help in improving your body posture while sitting.
Ring-Shaped Hemorrhoid Pillow
A ring-shaped hemorrhoid pillow may provide instant relief from specific hemorrhoid symptoms such as pain and itchiness in the anal region. It only provides temporary relief, which can be gained by taking a sitz bath or applying an ice pack on your hemorrhoids.
Egg Crate-Shaped Hemorrhoid Pillow
The egg crate foam pillows are light, more flexible, and provide great ventilation and airflow compared to other hemorrhoid pillows.
How to Use a Donut Cushion for Hemorrhoid Treatment?
Donut cushion includes a simple and straightforward method to use.You can place the hemorrhoid seat cushion on your chair, so it is pushed up against the back of your chair and located in the middle of your seat.
While sitting on the donut cushion, your tailbone should be centered directly in the middle of your cushion ring, and your buttocks should be comfortably seated on the pillow itself. To gain maximum comfort, you can slightly lean forward while sitting on the cushion. This position reliefs most of your tailbone pressure. It is the most natural and relaxed position, which even improves your posture.
You should not hunch forward or put any strain on your back or any other part of your body while sitting on the piles cushion.
Most patients may spend a lot of time sitting on their desk chairs in their office, which creates a lot of pressure on their tailbone. They can place a donut pillow on their seat to provide relief from hemorrhoid pain and reduce excessive pressure due to sitting for longer hours.
Donut cushions have an inflatable nature, due to which they can be carried easily and can be used in your car or a plane or anywhere while sitting.
Benefits of Hemorrhoid Seat Cushion
Some common benefits gained by hemorrhoid cushion include:
- They provide relief from piles pain and itchy hemorrhoids, which are the major hemorrhoid symptoms that create discomfort.
- These pillows are cheap and easily available in the market.
- Hemorrhoid seat cushions are beneficial for relieving piles pain for external and internal hemorrhoids.
- They can be used at any stage of hemorrhoids, from mild to severe cases.
- Hemorrhoid cushions are useful in the long-term healing process.
- They are available in the inflatable form, making it easier to carry them along with you by simply folding them into your bag or a coat pocket.
- Donut pillow for hemorrhoids helps reduce contact between the surface of your seat and your affected hemorrhoid tissue.
Drawbacks of Piles Cushion
Donut pillow does not adequately support your hemorrhoids lumps and disturb the pressure throughout your anal area. They do not provide much relief against hemorrhoid symptoms; rather, they can even deteriorate your condition.
Some common drawbacks experienced by patients due to the use of hemorrhoid cushion include:
- Hemorrhoid pillows may provide temporary relief from minor hemorrhoid issues such as pain, but eventually, your condition can even become worse.
- They do not heal the internal or external hemorrhoid lumps located in the anal and rectum region. Neither could they speed up the recovery process.
- People suffering from prolapsed internal hemorrhoids should not use a hemorrhoid cushion, as it can lead to severe complications. Due to which, you may either require intensive treatment or your hemorrhoids may take a longer time to heal.
- The shape of a doughnut cushion is similar to a toilet seat, due to which it can create similar issues if you spend a lot of time sitting on it.
- Constipation is one of the most common causes which lead to hemorrhoids. Your doctor may recommend ways to prevent constipation, such as he may advise not sitting on the toilet seat for a longer duration.
- Sitting on a doughnut cushion for long durations can aggravate your constipation and create a lot of discomforts. Such a situation can be much more difficult, if you experience prolapsed or inflamed hemorrhoids.
- Do not spend time reading, checking social media, and doing other activities while sitting on the toilet seat, which can worsen your hemorrhoid symptoms.
- You cannot prevent the occurrence of hemorrhoids by sitting on a hemorrhoid pillow.
What Factors Should Be Considered While Looking for a Cushion Ring for Piles?
All these factors should be kept in mind while looking for a hemorrhoid seat cushion:
Comfort
You should look for a piles cushion which provides support, is slightly firm, soft, and is the most comfortable.
Durability
You should prefer to use a hemorrhoid cushion, which has a long-term efficiency and can be used for different lower body pain and injuries.
Support
Some donut pillows are comfortable for the initial few hours or weeks but may create severe discomfort when used for a longer time. You should prefer to use a hemorrhoid pillow, which provides comfort and long-term support to your lower body and back region.
Cost
You should not buy an expensive hemorrhoid pillow, as it is only used to relieve hemorrhoid pain. These cushions cannot heal hemorrhoids, so you should be careful while buying one of them.
Hemorrhoid Pads
Medicated hemorrhoid pads and wipes are highly effective in treating itchy hemorrhoids. They provide the following benefits:
- Hemorrhoid pads provide a gentle cleansing action than dry toilet paper to clean the anus region after a bowel movement.
- They contain similar ingredients, which are also found in hemorrhoid cream, gels, and ointments such as parabens, glycerin, and alcohol.
- Hemorrhoid pads containing natural ingredients such as witch hazel and aloe Vera are also readily available in the market.
- These pads provide adequate lubrication and also ease the strain caused during a bowel movement.
- It helps in maintaining anal and rectum hygiene by effectively cleaning the hemorrhoid surface.
- They help reduce pain, itchiness, swelling, and irritation in the anus region.
- If hemorrhoid pads are used along with other home remedies, it can provide more rapid relief from hemorrhoid symptoms.
- Hemorrhoid pads contain an antiseptic, astringent, anesthetic, and anti-inflammatory substances, which provide additional benefits.
- They are cheap and easily disposable.
- Hemorrhoids pads and wipes are primarily used as a personal care product by hemorrhoid patients and also can serve as a great substitute for toilet paper.
