Hello,

I am merely 17, and about a day ago, and for the first time, I got a hemorrhoid. I believe it to be external, and I am very sure I got it from straining too hard (very hard to be honest...). As it is (or atleast how it is currently:) it does not itch, burn, sting and barely irritates. It feels big but when I'm sitting down or walking I can barely feel it.

When I first got it, I noticed that the next day, it shrunk very slightly (but was still fairly evident, but they aren't suppose to heal in just a day anyway, and the fact that it was smaller than before should be a good thing I thought.) I am currently applying PreperationH but its too early to tell or not whether it has been helping or not (since it is suppose to relieve the itchness and burning, but I never felt those anyway.) I also have a 10min warm bath daily.

But then a couple of hours ago, I passed out a stool, it was a fairly hard one but I put only a little strain on it, there was a little blood trailing slightly on the side that passed the hemorrhoid. Now the hemorrhoid has suddenly flared up again and I almost feel as if it was harder than when I first got it. Thankfully, it feels like it has settled down slightly and only rose as a result of passing the stool. Afterwards, I sat in a warm bath and applied the PreperationH cream.
My question is: Is this flare-up after having passed a stool natural? I just want to make sure. Also, if it flares up like this after passing a stool, then how will it ever heal naturally? Afterwards, I consulted my mother and she had me take some pill that would soften my stools, hopefully next time I pass a stool it will flare-up less.

Another question I have which I've been searching for but to no avail is the aftermath of a hemorrhoid. What happens to the area where the external hemorrhoid was after it heals? Does it completely settle or will the bump be there forever? And I don't mean "Will it NEVER come back?" I'm simply asking if my anus will ever be like it was again before the hemorrhoid was there, even if its just for a day?