Everybody knows what hemorrhoids are. This disease is a venous enlargement with an inflammatory process in the rectum. It causes a lot of discomforts and is commonly painful. This condition negatively affects the quality of a person’s life.
Although the conditions causing the development of hemorrhoids is mostly physical and lifestyle-conditioned, psychosomatics also plays an important role in it. Lifestyle cannot be considered completely healthy if you are living in constant stress or frustration, even if you eat healthy food and exercise.
How Psychology and Hemorrhoids are Connected?
Open any medical article about hemorrhoids and you will find stress in the list of hemorrhoid causes. It’s obvious how food and sedentary lifestyle influences this, but how does a purely physiological issue respond to psychological problems? Let’s see.
Eating disorders. Many people who suffer from injuries, low self-esteem or emotional breakdowns turn to compulsive eating or unhealthy dieting. This causes digestive problems and as a result- constipation, which wears down the rectal veins.
Alcoholism. Many try to drown their problems in alcohol, which is well-known by its negative influence over the vascular system (and we remember that hemorrhoids are a disease of the veins).
Depression. Usually, depressed people are not interested in anything and have no energy to lead a life full of activity. They often lead a sedentary way of life, lying in a bed or sitting in front of their computer, so their lifestyle lacks physical activity needed to prevent hemorrhoids.
As you can see, psychosomatic hemorrhoid factors are also purely physiological, but the psychological background leads to unhealthy changes in the behavior of people that cause lifestyle health problems.
Which Problem Should You Solve First?
This complex problem involves a lot of factors in its treatment. A lot depends on the stage of the disease. If it’s in the early stages, lifestyle corrections may be enough to fight it, when it progresses further, this may not be enough. Visiting a psychotherapist might not be a bad idea. Therapy is chosen according to individual conditions and life situation of the patient.
Anyway, changes in lifestyle are necessary both for physical and psychological treatment of the disease. Without them, there will be little success in treatment. Doing exercises is very helpful in fighting depression and anxiety. Plus it provides the needed activity for proper blood circulation in the entire body, including the rectal veins.
Diet is also a very important factor for having psychological comfort. Some foods are depressants, and some, on the contrary, help to fight the depression and perform a calming effect. A proper diet provides good digestion and prevents the development of constipation that leads to traumatization of the rectal veins.
Now you see that the correlation between psychology and hemorrhoids exists and it’s quite logical. Only complex lifestyle changes and attention to your needs and problems will help on both levels. Hemorrhoid treatment is always a question of lifestyle in the first turn.