I was helped by reading this thread which I found by googling "painful hemorrhoids" so want to post my story to the one or two sites that actually helped me. I just got over a very painful thrombosed hemorrhoid or (Perianal hematoma- I learned when I came here!) - and it took about 5ish weeks to heal. I've had hemorrhoids before, several years ago after childbirth. Those had lasted way too long (with bleeding, itching, some pain)-took about a year or more I think. So this time around I knew it could take awhile and I was much more determined to take extreme actions to get rid of it - quicker.
It began sometime in July, ended late August. It swelled up pretty much overnight, about 10 days before a trip(s) I was taking. The first 7-10 days it was only mildly painful & uncomfortable. I did not do too much to treat it those first days... Then suddenly just before I was about to leave it grew & became super painful. All I could think of is "I am not living with this for another year or more like I did back then!" Right away I started eating smoothies only, barely ate (it was hard to eat in pain, anyway). I was on the road next day--reduced coffee over 3-5 days until I stopped drinking it. I cut out all sweets. Then the next few days (on my trip), I added new healing steps.
I've been under financial stress, and planning two trips back-to-back (adding to the stress). When it appeared and even when it got worse - I forced myself to travel with it. By the end of that first trip I canceled the second trip, due to the pain, and went home to heal. I recommend not forcing yourself to do things that are making heal-time longer or worse.
It was what appeared to be a thrombosed hemorrhoid. It would swell & come out of the anal opening, and I would push it back in. It hurt - constantly: it hurt as it would slowly fall out of the opening; it hurt, again, when pushing it in again, and hurt just as bad as I clenched to *hold* it inside... And I could only clench for a short time before eventually I had to let go & it would slide back out-starting the whole process over...hurting...always, always hurting.
While traveling on that trip I hurt so much I just stayed in bed to get some relief. There was one day I needed to be mobile and I found if I just let it hang out it didn't hurt much at all. I thought maybe I'd found a cure -all I had to do was leave it alone & let it hang. But at the end of that day it had swelled *even more*! Sitting was now impossible. Back in my hotel room, it was so swollen it was much harder to press it back into the anal opening - even when I laid down.
Here's what that experience taught me... I think when it hangs out it cuts off circulation causing more swelling. And I think when I press it in & keep it in, it allows circulation to be more natural and allows it to heal. However, in order to keep the swollen lump inside the anal opening, and not "slide out", I had to clench - which was also cutting off circulation, not to mention adding to the pain. All that pain & clenching & tension was disturbing the muscles all over my pelvic and torso area (and whole body). This affected the digestive track, my urinary tract (felt a uti coming), and elsewhere! Generally there was just way too much tension for the area and my body. I was experiencing possible UTi, and had multiple other body issues occurring that showed my immune system was failing. I knew I needed to keep tension (& pain) away...
It became clear the best thing for me to do was lay horizontally with it pressed in, and relax. Laying horizontally - legs strait - took away that gravitational pull for the most part, keeping the lump inside and allowing me to really relax well. Less clenching meant much less pain. And also allowed my body to function without that tension & helped circulation in that area. Sometimes I'd turn on my stomach for a short time, also goes with gravity. Laying down (and baths!) was one of the best pain reliefs I had during the worst of the pain.
The worst of the swelling from that day of walking went down fast enough - by the next morning it was more almond sized or less, and I could more easily keep it tucked in to the anal opening as long as I was laying flat (and following my other healing routines, which I will get to in a bit). I knew from here on out that one of the main things I would need to do was AVOID walking, AVOID standing - and most of all - AVOID SITTING, and to continue to lay down as much as I could.
Other things I did: On that trip- drank lots of water for the uti. two mornings in a row I had a large cup of hot lemon juice, drank fast-to help that uti. Starting during that trip, I took a cranberry supplement, a 1,000 mg C supplement, and an acidolphilis supplement - all three to help with the uti, immune system & digestive system. I stopped taking these supplements about 2 1/2 -3 weeks later.
Overall, I stopped eating much, from the moment of intense pain a day or two before the trip and the next 7-10 days --and tried to eat only fruits and veggies - greens. My goal was to focus on foods that fight inflammation and stay away from foods known to cause inflammation - (NO sugars except fruits, no coffee or super small amounts of these). I used my vitamix to make green smoothies- (with fruit, veg, a bit of steel oatmeal/psyllium husk & almonds). I even took it to my hotel & made them there. I also ate solid food sometimes, in small amounts per day, but otherwise just had smoothies. I did this ritually for about 7-10 days, but as the days wore on I started eating more solids and less smoothies... Eating less and the food choices I made reduced the amount of bowel movements & allowed more time between them for the lump to heal. My choices also 'kept my stool soft- also less painful to eliminate.
I used a toilet sprayer to clean myself (took a sport water bottle for the trip) after every movement - I still do this, and really, I always have (since my birth hemorrhoid experience). After reading up on hemorrhoids, I realized that by cleaning myself so well I think I probably avoided the itching/bleeding, this time around.
Then after every bowel movement & spray cleaning, I took a 10-15 min epson bath (best in the tub vs toilet/pan because I can lay back, push it in & relax). I enjoyed a good book while in the bath.
I found essence oils EXTREMELY helpful-particularly the very nice-smelling geranium oil - 3-4 drops on a cottonball applied directly to the lump hanging out several times a day, (then pressed back in with a bit of vaseline) and always after finishing the bath and/or every bowel movement. Slowly I reducing the amount of applications over the next 2-3 weeks as the swelling slowly declined then disappeared.
On some days, chose to switch out the geranium oil for other oils directly to the lump. I purchased oils listed online to reduce swelling/ inflammation (but making sure to read up on their toxicity): I applied occasional tea tree -least effective; blue chamomile - ok; eucalyptus (be careful with it)- was very painful but I still used it on occasion, sometimes mixed with coconut oil, sometimes strait; Cypress oil and juniper oils. I spent a lot of money on these oils, and if I could only use one it'd be geranium.
I really didn't feel any great effects using any of the other oils (compared to geranium)- but I hoped by switching around the various oils I was providing my immune system some other options, and also kind of recreating that "first time" affect when I went back to the geranium since the first time I used geranium oil it seemed to have the most noticeable reduction in swelling. No matter what, geranium oil always felt soothing on pain. Geranium oil feels warm on the swollen skin and relaxing to the surrounding muscles. The smell is also soothing and relaxing. And wherever I went people commented it smelled like fresh flowers, lol - much nicer than other smelly rubs you might be using.
NOW brand geranium oil was cheapest so I bought 3 bottles which I used the first couple of weeks. I read up on differences & some critics say there is no benefit to brands labeled "therapeutic". I did go to a well-reputed (Arlys) site to buy cypress, juniper, blue chamomile & an extra geranium - and used them for the final 3 weeks... just in case the NOW brand geranium wasn't as good - I was desperate. I have no idea if the brand I used was better or not just went by reputation.
I used both coconut oil and vaseline (mostly vaseline since it was easy to dispense from a tube) regularly to help push it in several times a day. First I would apply the essence oil, directly, and sometimes I'd wait a few minutes, other times I just immediately put a dab of vaseline over essence oil -which was always just before pressing it back inside.
I finally could feel that it was receding in that 3rd-4th week. It was slow, so I wasn't exactly sure if it was going down, but I had an inkling. Then it became more obvious it was shrinking and soon, I was down to such a small size that I was celebrating.... but wondering if it was going to stay there at that small size or go away. I continued all my efforts, very much a routine by now, (though I was eating far more solids and even a tiny bit of sweets/coffee) and by the 5th week I realized it was gone, so I put away most of my treatments (except my sprayer every day, and an occasional epson bath every few days) - as maintenance.
I can't say which of this routine was most important... I think laying down with the lump inside, relaxed, was hugely helpful... as was the geranium oil. But so was the smoothies, particular diet of non-inflammatory foods, greens/veggies, and so was the cleanings and baths. Probably it all worked together.
During those final 3 weeks after the trip, I didn't really stay in bed ALL day - just OFTEN. Before the hemorrhoid I had been walking, daily, but during recovery, I did not walk. And I *did* stay home. I didn't go out for most of the 3 weeks, cancelled everything, stayed off my computer. On a couple of occasions when I did go out -- my essence oil/cotton went with. I also carried a water bottle with a sport cap so I could clean myself; flushable wipes and a green smoothie. So, while recuperating, I cooked & did light cleaning, and cared for my child etc but spent a lot of time in bed, (relaxing, sleeping, reading/watching tv/ occasionally brought computer to bed --laying down --but hard to use that way, so not too much). I rarely sat down anywhere. When I did sit, I used a soft pillow. I know this routine would not be possible for most people due to jobs. But this is what healed me and I need to tell it.
I have been carefully about my diet but had too much stress, so I think it could affected me most. 
but if I remember correctly C's also said that the significance of garlic is overrated.
) I immediately have diarrhea and hemorrhoids.
