When you have hemorrhoids, even simple things like sleeping become challenging. Even the soundest sleeper can have insomnia when there’s relentless posterior pain.
How to Sleep If You Have Hemorrhoids?
When your hemorrhoids feel inflamed or sore, it might be challenging for you to feel comfortable enough to go to sleep. Here are some tips to assist you get a more tranquil night of rest when your hemorrhoids are keeping you up at night:
- Take a sitz bath in a few inches of warm water to relieve the anal area. Sit for a minimum of fifteen minutes. Do not use any soaps or bubble bath.
- Apply ice for ten minutes to reduce swelling.
- If approved by your doctor, take nonprescription painkiller to assist with discomfort and swelling.
- You might want to attempt a relaxing activity such as reading in bed. The more comfortable and drowsy you are, the much easier it will be to fall asleep.
- Do not sleep on your back. This puts weight and pressure on your anal and rectal area.
- If you are pregnant try side sleeping. Sleeping on your left side is preferable to your right side.
Sleeping need to get simpler as your pile symptoms decrease. Making good options daily will help manage your hemorrhoids so you will be more comfortable at night.
Find Out The Best Sleeping Position for Hemorrhoids
Sleeping on your back puts weight and pressure on your anal and rectal area which can make hemorrhoid pain worse. Attempt placing a pillow underneath your knees and lie down on your side. The pillow alleviates pressure from the hemorrhoidal inflammation and reduces the abdominal weight on your pelvic floor.
Follow these standards to manage hemorrhoids:
- Get day-to-day exercise. Walk, swim, play tennis, do yard work or any activity that will raise the heart rate.
- Women need to consume at least 0.9 oz (25 gr) of fiber daily and men should take in at least 1.2 oz (35 gr) of fiber each day to keep stools soft.
- Drink more than the recommended 64 oz of water daily.
- Do not strain to use the toilet. Go to the restroom when you feel the desire and do not put it off.
How to sleep with a hemorrhoid complication
With an exacerbation of the disease, it is best to sleep on the right or left side. This position relieves the muscles of the perineum and reduces discomfort.
When choosing the position of the body to sleep, the following should be taken into account:
- it is undesirable to sleep on the stomach and back: this provokes an increase in intra-abdominal pressure, which can lead to an increase in knots;
- Do not sleep in the “fetal position”: this also leads to swollen hemorrhoids;
- The sleeping place should be individual, and the mattress on the bed – medium hardness.
Compliance with these rules contributes to the rapid removal of negative symptoms and improve health.
For women with hemorrhoids: what position is better to sleep in?
A pregnant woman with signs of hemorrhoids should pay special attention to the organization of rest. Due to the constant growth of the fetus and increased pressure on the perineal area, hemorrhoidal nodes overflow with blood, which contributes to the progression of the disease.
In order to prevent further development of the disease, a woman should sleep on her side with a small pillow between her legs. It is obligatory to maintain hygiene of the perineum and anus. After each visit to the toilet, it is recommended to wash and then thoroughly dry these places.
For men
Inflammation of hemorrhoids can occur in men as well. The right choice of sleeping posture reduces the discomfort of the exacerbation of the disease. “Uncomfortable disease” can provoke insomnia.
The optimal option for a night’s rest is to sleep without a partner, as sleeping with hemorrhoids in men is best on his side and alone in bed. This position allows him to feel relaxed in bed in a painful state.
Rules of sleeping and lying down if you have hemorrhoids
In situations where the treatment of the disease requires lying down, you need to understand how to lie down properly. After all, with hemorrhoids, the wrong position during sleep can cause the problem to worsen.
For such a regime to help, it is important to follow a few rules. They will help to cope with the problem and not aggravate the condition.
How to lie down in the presence of serious complications of hemorrhoids:
- In the presence of the described problems, you should not lie down on your stomach. In this position, significant pressure is put on the organs of the problem area, which leads to the aggravation of the situation.
- It is also not worth spending time lying on the back. In this case the vessels of the rectum suffer. Blood begins to flow to them, stagnating in the inflamed bumps. Because of this, heavy bleeding can occur, and the nodes can swell strongly.
- Lie with this pathology should be on your side. This is the best position, in which there is the least amount of blood pressure. It is necessary to turn from one side to the other all the time.
- While lying down, the lower extremities should be straight and relaxed. The legs should not be pressed up against the chest or thrown onto a pillow, etc.
Remember!
- Do not lie on your stomach
- It is undesirable to lie on your back.
- The best position for sleeping is on your side.
- It is not recommended to pull your legs up to your chest.
These principles also answer the question about the rules for sleeping with rectal vein disease. Observing them, you can significantly alleviate your condition and speed up recovery.
Even knowing how best to lie down with hemorrhoids, you should understand that such a disease rarely involves an absolute restriction of mobility. Often patients are allowed short and leisurely walks in the street. In this case, even bed-ridden patients are recommended to perform movements that mimic walking. However, you should ask your doctor about the possibility of such walks.
What is the right way to lie down?
As a rule, movement is indicated during hemorrhoid treatment. Maintaining the necessary level of physical activity allows you to eliminate congestion, improve blood circulation and muscle condition, and maintain body weight in the normal range. Even when it is painful and unpleasant to walk, it is not desirable to neglect walking, as it speeds up the recovery. Usually lying down for hemorrhoids is indicated only during nighttime sleep.
But if the doctor insistently recommends rest and bed rest, it means that there are good reasons for this. Sometimes only a strict limitation of mobility can bring relief. What is the best way to sleep and lie down correctly with hemorrhoids in order to relieve the problem area and not to aggravate the disease?
Bed rest
The position “on the side” is considered the least traumatic in the severe course of hemorrhoids: it is the best option for your lying down and sleeping. From time to time you should turn over to reduce congestion in the pelvis. Sleeping on the back in hemorrhoids is contraindicated, as such a position increases pressure on the problem area and leads to a build-up of blood in the hemorrhoidal nodes.
Patients who observe bed rest are usually recommended to perform a number of special exercises with caution:
- “scissors”,
- Leg lifts in a supine position,
- various twists and bends,
- “bicycle”.
You can do these exercises even while in bed. Simple exercises will improve blood circulation in the lower part of the body, strengthen muscles and increase the elasticity of blood vessels. In the acute stage of the disease, it is important to exercise in moderation, even with the recommended loads, and to closely monitor the body’s reaction.
What are the benefits of the supine position? Several important points can be highlighted:
- The risk of trauma to the external nodes is minimized,
- In the resting position it is easier to stop bleeding,
- When lying down, it is easier to use local medicines (suppositories), they stay in the affected area longer and have a complete effect – they reduce inflammation and pain, stop bleeding, eliminate swelling,
- In the prone position it is possible to find a comfortable position, in which discomfort and painful sensations will be minimal.
That is why in severe forms of the disease, marked exacerbations, as well as in the postoperative period is usually recommended to spend more time lying down.
How to walk correctly in the acute stage of hemorrhoids
Bed rest for hemorrhoids is prescribed by a doctor in cases where it is really necessary. However, even in the presence of serious problems, the specialist usually allows short walks. They help normalize blood circulation, and help avoid many problems.
However, if hemorrhoids are at the stage of complications, careless movements can make the problem worse. Therefore, it is important to follow a few rules that will help protect yourself from various troubles.
The rules of walking during an exacerbation of hemorrhoids:
- It is imperative to try to keep the back completely straight. You should not bend your torso, trying to alleviate painful sensations. This will cause improper blood circulation and stagnation.
- It is also important to keep the muscles of the abdomen and thighs relaxed while walking. In this way, you can avoid the occurrence of pressure in the lower body.
- It is important not to rush while walking. All movements should be slow and careful. Walk without unnecessary stress.
- You should not carry weights. During an aggravation, even a weight of more than two kilograms can lead to unpleasant consequences. Therefore, it is advisable not to make independent trips to the supermarket in such a condition.
- Thus, if these rules are followed, it is possible to take short walks even during the aggravation of hemorrhoids. The duration of such hikes should be short.
Before deciding whether to take such breaks during bed rest, it is necessary to consult with a specialist. Sometimes even minimal walks are contraindicated. Such situations may include heavy bleeding.
Conclusion
So that your sleep does not exacerbate the problem associated with hemorrhoids, it is important to sleep in the right position and not to strain the muscles of the anus. The position on your side is correct even for a healthy person and remains the most preferred position for those with hemorrhoids. Following your doctor’s recommendations will help you get rid of this unpleasant disease sooner.
