Did you know that the butt hole has one of the densest concentrations of nerve endings on the body? This means when your butt feels good, you feel great. However, when the butt is sore you’re really going to feel that more. If left untreated, chronic butt pain can not only affect you physically, it can also affect your mental health too. Remember to talk about your butt with everyone! If you love sharing your butt stories, your butt will inevitably love you back. Pinky promise.

Now, let’s get stuck into it. Essentially, there are two main problems most people face with their bums.

Haemorrhoids. Even the word is painful to say. Let’s get through this quickly. If you’re experiencing swollen veins at the lower rectum or back passage (anal canal) – then you can stop Googling “How do I know if I have a haemorrhoid?”. While we all have veins back there, yeah, it’s when they become enlarged or irritated that they can cause unwanted symptoms including rectal bleeding, itching, and you guessed it: pain. Sometimes you can see or even feel haemorrhoids around the outside of the anus, but typically they are hidden from view, inside the rectum. 

Anal Fissures. Kinda sound fancy, right? These are (not so simply) tears or splits in the lining of the back passage (anus) and usually occur from constipation, straining or hard stools (we call it big or hard poops) or anal play. Unwanted but common symptoms of anal fissures can include stinging, burning or tearing pain during bowl movements, as well as bleeding and subsequent throbbing or itching (cue much needed hugs). Most uncomfortably, this can then set off a cycle of pain and muscular spasm of the anus, making it even harder to go to the toilet. This further reduces blood supply to the anus which can prevent healing of the fissure itself. In any case, not ideal.

Bit too technical? How about a pretty picture?
Or at least as pretty as we could make it:

Are you a tight arse?

For the sake of our brand, we hope the answer is yes and no. If yes? We’re sorry your butt is tight and sore. But Happie Holl might just be the product for you. If no! We’re so glad you’re willing to spend on a product that works. Happie Holl is definitely the product for you. 

Back to the yes. Have you ever wondered why you’re (or have) a tight arse? When it comes to the anatomy of the anus, yours (and everyone else’s) is made of two rings of muscle. The outer one (the first one you’d touch if you inserted a finger or something fun) is easier to squeeze and relax. The inner muscle however, is more tricky. This muscle is actually quite the sensitive button: your mood and emotions are directly linked to its behaviour. For example, if you’re stressed out or worried, it’ll probably tighten up.

If you’re going with the flow – there’s more room to…
you know. But don’t stress too much – most people have a difficult time with complete sphincter relaxation (what a term!) during both toilet stops
and intercourse. 

Enter anal stretching.

Come again, you say?
That’s the goal, yes. 

There are several ways to train the muscles of the anus to be able to easily relax and loosen up when needed. Being able to relax the sphincter muscles is especially important if you partake in anal play or anal sex. Anal training and following a dilation protocol is also important for the prevention of anal fissures. Why? Because if you are unable to fully relax, your chances of tears and fissures increases. Makes sense, right? Check out the previous diagram to locate your sphincter muscles on our pretty picture.

We hear you asking: “How do I stretch my anus muscles?” And we’re so glad you asked. To begin, we have to understand how these muscles work. The muscles within the entire anal sphincter, independently and together as a whole, are responsible for the functions of contracting, pushing out, and squeezing or pulling things in (we’ll let you use your imagination there). Learning how to control both of these functions will ultimately allow you to relax your sphincter during anal play and intercourse. Anal stretching or anal dilation is a great way to learn how to relax your sphincter. We’ll go into more detail on anal dilation in the coming weeks. Stay tuned!