Ok, I’ve been wondering about this for a while and wanted to ask y’all. A while back (maybe 8 months ago) I was on the toilet taking a crap. Just sitting there, minding my own business. So I go to clean up, and as I’m wiping, I…wipe too hard. “Ouch” says I. “That hurt.” I throw the paper in the toilet and try to wipe again with different toilet paper, more gently. Then I realize there’s blood on the toilet paper. Uh-oh. I took another piece of t.p. and just barely touched it to my area, and there’s even more blood. :eek: “Oh, shit” says I. It bled quite a bit from there for about two minutes, and eventually stopped. The funny thing about it all is, after the original pain of wiping too hard…nothing hurt. Even as blood was leaking from…there, there was absolutely no pain. Doesn’t pain generally accompany a loss of blood?
So what’s the deal? Why didn’t I feel any pain? I await your expert opinions.
Popped hemorrhoid, or your turd was too big. Possibly a combination. In the shower, does your butt hole feel like a balloon knot, or like a small, neat package of bubble wrap. If the latter, it’s hemorrhoids. The former, eat more fiber.
Happens to me all the time. Not as much now that I’m on a mostly juice diet for a little while. It’s much less of a concern than if the blood was in your stool.
Yah. Anal fissures. Instead of sitting and waiting while it bleeds, pop a wad of TP in between your cheeks, stand up and wait a couple of seconds, and that should stop the bleeding. YMMV.
Are you a man or a woman? Did the blood come from near your anus (asshole) or your vagina or labia (lips)?
Some women are prone to abscesses on the labia or near the vaginal opening. These can build up pressure and hurt, and then either be reabsorbed from the internal side, which means they just go away, or they can pop and spew blood and puss, after which they don’t hurt anymore. There’s also a cyst/abscess of the Bartholin’s gland/s, tiny openings (you probably can’t see them with your eyes) to either side of the vagina. Same deal, but generally more ouchy and stinkier when they blow.
Ask me how I know this. :rolleyes:
Sometimes these can be caused by gonorrhea, but often there is no STD present, it’s just “one of those things”.
A hemorrhoid, on the other hand, is close to the anus, and it can usually be felt like a pebble. It’s a swollen blood vessel, and when you break it open, blood will come out, but usually not pus.
There are internal and external hemerroids. The external type are more likely to itch or be painful. You should have your Dr. examine you on your next visit. They can be repaired.
Again, eat fruit, veggies, whole grain cereal, etc. on a daily basis and they’ll probably fix themselves over time.
Do they usually heal up and disappear after they break open, or do they stay there and break open over and over again unless repaired surgically? I’ve often wondered about that since I saw the Preparation H (or Tucks Medicated Pads or something) commercial where the woman said “Great news! The doctor says I don’t need surgery for my hemorrhoids!” Do hemorrhoids usually need surgery or something?
Sometimes they just go away on their own, or with the help of fiber and/or topical treatments. There are various surgical treatments for hemmorhoids if they get big, or are persistent bleeders. I’ve never had an external one, but for an internal one about six years ago, I had a colonoscope with a needle inserted, and the hemorrhoid injected with adrenaline. (A sudden burst of “fight or flight” feeling with a camera stuffed up your ass is a weird feeling.) The procedure only took about five minutes. Thankfully, it went away and never came back.
N.B.: if the blood is fresh and red, then it’s probably a hemmorhoid and nothing to get too worried about. However, according to my doctor, a BIG warning is if the blood is clotted - dark in color and sticky or solid - get to the ER immediately.
A small amount of bright blood on tissue paper after a bowel movement is usually an anal fissure when it’s accompanied by this sort of sharp twinge of pain which then resolves. These tears are caused by passing large or hard stools. They typically heal on their own.
Hemorrhoids can present similarly, but the pain is not typically a single episode of a sharp stinging. It tends to be more intermittent and more chronic. Many times a large hemorrhoid will thrombose and form a clump of blood. These can be very painful and the pain gets better if the hemorrhoid ruptures. There may be a small clot of dark blood seen with this.
Hemorrhoids are very common, so feeling a small painless hemorrhoid does not suggest that the problem is not an anal fissure.
All bleeding associated with passing a stool should have an initial evaluation by a qualified physician which includes a careful exam and a consideration for making sure there is no other cause of bleeding. Carcinomas and other pathology can present with BRBPR (Bright Red Blood Per Rectum) when they are near enough to the anus.