 a quick look at what I affectionately call "rhoids" They are very common. 1 in 20 Americans and almost half of people older than 50 have them (Fox et al. 2014). Sometimes they are embarrassing to talk about. There’s no such thing as an embarrassing topic in my world. This stuff is important and needs to be talked about!! They are sometimes painful. They are objectively a pain in the rear! I’m talking about hemorrhoids, also known as piles, which “are tortuous masses of dilated and inflamed veins situated in the ano-rectal area” (Rahmathullah 2003). These can be inside the rectum (internal) or outside (external), or, if you’re really unlucky, the internal hemorrhoids can prolapse and can actually then be on the outside. They can bleed. They can become irritated. They can be irritating. They can be painful. They can burst. These veins are at risk of becoming thrombosed if a blood clot forms inside the hemorrhoid. I have been told that it is at this point that the bearer of such piles doesn’t care who is in the operating room when these get addressed! How does this little pile of goodies arrive in the nether regions? I’m glad you asked… Apparently, “everyone has them, the pillow-like clusters of veins that lie just beneath the mucous membranes lining the lowest part of the rectum and the anus” (Harvard Health Publishing 2019). The problematic part shows up if these veins get enlarged. How do they get enlarged? Chronic constipation and straining at toilet. Pregnancy: up to 35% (Lawrence and McLaren 2020). Sitting on the toilet for long periods of time. (If this is a thing for you, you may want to leave your phone by the sink to keep things moving along.) Heavy lifting. Being overweight. A couple of other possible causes: uterine displacement and pelvic inflammatory diseases (Enache and Soare 2022). The internal hemorrhoids are often painless, though they may bleed. The external hemorrhoids are easily irritated, as one might imagine and as Harvard Health Publishing tells us, “When a hemorrhoid protrudes, it can collect small amounts of mucus and tiny stool particles that may cause an irritation called pruritis (a tingling or faintly burning skin sensation that prompts a person to rub or scratch; an itch (Venes 2017) ani (around the anus). Wiping constantly to try to relieve the itching can worsen the problem.” That indeed sounds like a problem. Maybe somebody should invent some 4-wheel drive toilet paper to get around all the obstacles! Could it be something other than hemorrhoids you’re feeling down there? You bet. Click here and read the “Differential Diagnosis” paragraph. Fox (et al. 2014) recommends that even if hemorrhoids can be seen on examination, patients with rectal bleeding who are at risk of colorectal cancer should still undergo colonoscopy to exclude cancer as the etiology. What can help? Drinking lots of water and eating foods high in fiber to help prevent constipation and straining during bowel movements. Avoiding harsh toilet paper. Some companies seem to take the “paper” word too seriously! Since we don’t have a soft, “off-road” toilet paper yet, here are a few options to help keep the nether regions clean:
Why witch hazel wipes? I first learned about these lovely little things after the birth of my first son. Witch hazel is an astringent, meaning it can cause tissues to tighten or shrink and it has been shown to be beneficial on pain, bleeding and swelling, as well as preventing recurrence (Admuthe et al. 2025). Witch hazel has another name: Hamamelis virginiana and it is, wait for it… a homeopathic remedy! In fact, this homeopathic remedy is part of the Banerji protocol for varicose veins which is relevant here because hemorrhoids are essentially varicose veins of the rectum. The full protocol is Hamamelis 200c mixed with Arnica 3c taken twice daily. If things are particularly acute and uncomfortable, repeat this every 3 hours. A hemorrhoid which may respond well to Hamamelis may be chronic; external or internal; large and swollen and it may disturb your sleep. Why is Arnica part of this protocol? I thought Arnica was for sore muscles? Well, part of the reason Arnica is used for sore muscles is because Arnica can help reduce inflammation and pain and bruising and trauma. If you think those little dangly bits don’t suffer any trauma, think again! Arnica is also helpful to improve circulation which can definitely help because a hemorrhoid is part of the vascular structure (remember from above, a hemorrhoid is an inflamed vein). Are there any readily available homeopathic remedies that can help? Absolutely, though the Ham/Arn combination is a very good place to start. Boiron* makes a couple of combos, all with the name HemCalm. Each of these contain similar, but slightly different ingredients. HemCalm pellets and tablets contain the following remedies for the following reasons (looking at Murphy’s high level symptoms in the top row, as well as their small rubrics (unique symptoms) in the bottom row)**:
Forces of Nature* is another homeopathic combination which is for topical use only. It contains both Aesculus and Hamamelis and is combined with essential oils. WHP Be gone* from Washington Homeopathy is an ointment with Aesculus, Collinsonia and Hamamelis. Are there other combinations out there? Yes! A quick look on the internet turns up all sorts of hemorrhoid relief — some of them are homeopathic, most are not. Choose carefully! To see why you may want to choose the homeopathic remedies over the others, see these studies:
If you have tried everything and are still struggling, consider booking a consult. Julia Coyte, CHom Classically Practical homeopath #wellnessawaits *I have no affiliation with this or any other company. ** Many of these remedies may be found in many of these rubrics. I have only highlighted the level 3 & 4 rubrics as well as small (fewer than 5 remedies) rubrics. I have touched on the most common homeopathic remedies for hemorrhoids in this article, but there are more. To read further on homeopathic hemorrhoid remedies, consider subscribing to Ruminating on Remedies: Digging Deeper. Reference list
Admuthe, N. B., Karajgi, S., Uikey, J., Bhimraj, N. M., Prakash, V., Babar, T. P., Karra, T. and Shrivastava, R., 2025. Natural Products in Hemorrhoid Management: A Comprehensive Literature Review of Traditional Herbal Remedies and Evidence-Based Therapies. Cureus [online], 17 (5), e83397. Enache, T. and Soare, D. E., 2022. Doppler Ultrasound Testing Suggests Hemorrhoids in Females may be a Consequence of Impaired Blood Flow Associated with Pelvic Organ Prolapse. Journal of Coloproctology [online], 42 (03), 228–233. Fox, A., Tietze, P. H. and Ramakrishnan, K., 2014. Anorectal conditions: hemorrhoids. FP essentials [online], 419, 11–19. Harvard Health Publishing, 2019. Hemorrhoids and what to do about them - Harvard Health [online]. Harvard Health. Kamlesh Bagmar, 2020. Management of Haemorrhoids with Individualized Homoeopathy in Improving Quality of Life: An Observational Study [online]. International Journal of Research. Lawrence, A. and McLaren, E. R., 2020. External Hemorrhoid [online]. PubMed. Lohsiriwat, V., 2012. Hemorrhoids: From basic pathophysiology to clinical management. World Journal of Gastroenterology [online], 18 (17), 2009. NIH, 2016. Definition & Facts of Hemorrhoids - NIDDK [online]. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. Rahmathullah, S., 2003. Compendium of human diseases and their cure by homoeopathic treatment : a modern book of homoeopathic therapeutics with concise description of the diseases. London: S. Rahmathullah. Venes, D., 2017. Taber’s cyclopedic medical dictionary. Kindle. Philadelphia: F.A. Davis Company. Washington Homeopathic Products, 2025. WHP Be goneTM Hemorrhoids [online]. Homeopathy Works.
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Julia Coyte, CHomI am passionate about homeopathy and I love sharing this passion. Having a working knowledge of homeopathy shouldn't be kept a secret. If people have the ability to help themselves, their children and their friends when they have minor ailments, life just gets better for everyone. That is the purpose behind Ruminating on Remedies. Archives
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