Did you know hemorrhoids are a good thing? You know that moment when you're sitting in traffic on the freeway on the way home, and all of a sudden you feel a rumbling in your stomach - as if to say "You'd better find a toilet, NOW!" but you're stuck in bumper to bumper traffic at 5:30 in the afternoon and your exit is just 3 miles away, so you tell your body to "Just hold it, 10 more minutes and you'll be home?"

The ability of your body to actually do this lies in hemorrhoid tissue. The itchy, burning, annoying little hemorrhoids that you typically treat topically with over the counter remedies are actually always present in your anal arena, and do have a positive purpose.

There are actually healthy hemorrhoids - the ability of the anus to "hold it" when necessary, to not leak when coughing or sneezing is when hemorrhoids are doing their job. Unhealthy hemorrhoids are the itchy, bleeding, inflamed redness that's so uncomfortable that you can't sit at your desk.

Some people suffer from bleeding hemorrhoids. This is usually caused by internal hemorrhoids. Because it's difficult for one to see them, we don't know that it's there. This the most common form of the condition.

There is commonly an urge to go to the bathroom (number #2) after just having done so. This continual pressure on the rectal area causes the hemorrhoid to bleed. The little bit of blood is usually seen when wiping.

External hemorrhoids are the less common, but more acute form of the condition. Also called thrombosis, external hemorrhoids are the groups of small bumps that can be seen around the anus. Thrombosis can cause bleeding, discomfort, and if not treated adequately, can lead to other health issues.