1. Keep Things Moving
When you are pregnant, what you eat and drink can have a big effect on how your digestive tract functions. Eating plenty of fiber that is found in foods such as lentils, peas and whole wheat pasta will help to keep you regular. Water also aids in digestive tract function by essentially washing waste material through the intestines. By staying regular, your bowel movements remain softer and easier to pass. This in turn means less straining during a bowel movement.
2. Proper Positioning
When you are dealing with hemorrhoids, how you sit when you are having a bowel movement matters. Ideally, you should sit with your feet slightly elevated off of the floor. You can do this by propping your feet up on a step stool. If a step stool isn't available, let only the tips of your toes touch the floor. This position takes some of the strain off of your rectum which can help to make already present hemorrhoids get better quickly.
3. Stay Active
Regular exercise helps alleviate and prevent hemorrhoids, if your practitioner hasn't restricted your activity. Kegel exercises can help hemorrhoids and any pregnant woman can do Kegels even if her activity level is restricted. Regular light exercise such as stretching and walking will help to keep your digestive tract and circulatory system functioning properly, which helps you cope with hemorrhoids by helping them heal faster.
4. Go to Extremes
Ice and heat can help you to deal with the discomfort of hemorrhoids. After you have a bowel movement, sit in a sitz bath, or a shallow bath, to let your rectum soak. The water should be as hot as you can stand. Because of this, it is important to make sure that the water doesn't reach your stomach. In between bowel movements, you can use ice or a cold towel to help stop the burning and itching. Simply make a compress out of a cold towel or place a small bag of crushed ice in a dry towel and place it on your rectum.
5. Wipe Out Hemorrhoids
Using wet wipes or baby wipes after a bowel movement will help to lessen the irritation associated with hemorrhoids. If wet wipes aren't available, use a damp paper towel or damp toilet tissue. It is also important to make sure that you wipe gently. Hemorrhoids are aggravated by harsh wiping.
