Content

• To step
• Method 1 of 3: Adjust your lifestyle
• Method 2 of 3: Professional products and surgical procedures
• Method 3 of 3: Using home remedies

Varicose veins are swollen and dilated veins that are usually blue or dark purple and mainly occur on the legs. They can look lumpy, bulging, or squiggly. Varicose veins develop when the small valves in the veins stop working properly and blood builds up in the veins. If you have varicose veins, you may also have other symptoms such as painful legs, swollen feet and ankles, and muscle cramps in the legs.

To step

Method 1 of 3: Adjust your lifestyle

1. Try not to stand or sit for long periods of time. If you keep your legs in the same position for longer periods, the blood flow in the legs is limited. This allows blood to build up in the veins. Try to adjust the position of your legs every now and then to make sure that blood flow is maintained.
   • Try to change positions about every half hour. For example, take a walk through the office. If that is not possible, you can stand up every half hour to stretch your arms and legs.
2. Keep your legs elevated when you are sitting and do not cross them. Keeping your legs elevated while sitting can relieve pressure on the blood vessels. You can also relieve the pressure by not crossing your legs.
   • If possible, place your feet on a stool or other chair. This way you promote blood flow in the legs. Try to raise your legs every now and then so that your feet are level with your heart.
3. Sleep on your back and keep your legs elevated. Try to keep your legs elevated when you sleep. This can be just as important as raising your legs while sitting.
4. Choose shoes with a low heel and baggy clothing. High heels and tight clothing can make circulation difficult in the legs. Shoes with low heels (or without heels) ensure that your calf muscles have to do more work while walking, which stimulates blood flow in the legs.
   • In particular, avoid tight clothing that restricts blood flow around the waist, legs, or groin. Choose (baggy) clothing that does not press or squeeze these parts of the body.
5. Exercise regularly. By adding moderate exercise to your daily routine, you can increase both muscle strength and blood flow in the legs. If necessary, exercise will also help you lose weight. If you're overweight or obese, you'll be doing your veins a favor by shedding a few pounds - relieving pressure on the legs and significantly reducing varicose veins.
   • The general blood flow, and especially that in the legs, benefits greatly from exercise. A walk of half an hour is enough for that, or a short run.
   • Focus mainly on cardiovascular exercise and strength training. The cardio ensures that the blood is better pumped through the body; the strength training ensures that your legs become stronger by working on muscle strength.
6. Practice restorative yoga. Restorative yoga is a type of yoga that uses props, such as a wall, pillow, or block, to support your body. Restorative yoga does not involve any muscle activation at all; restorative yoga mainly focuses on releasing stress and tension on the muscles. The legs-to-the-wall position is great for circulation and blood flow, significantly reducing the risk of varicose veins. Go to a quiet, open area with a wall and place your yoga mat against the wall. Lay a pillow or a few rolled up towels next to you to use in this pose.
   • If you have stiffer muscles, the pillow or towel should be lower under the back, just above the tailbone, and slightly further away from the wall. If you are more flexible, you can move the pillow closer to the wall. The distance to the wall also depends on your height: if you are shorter, move closer to the wall; if you are taller you can lie further from the wall.
   • Start with the pillow about 6 inches from the wall. Sit sideways on the right side of the support. Exhale and swing your legs up the wall. Keep your shoulders and head on the floor. Your sit bones don't have to be against the wall, but they should be close to the wall. The pillow should be under your back (how low or high that is depends on your flexibility).
   • Bend your knees, press your feet against the wall, and lift your pelvis a few inches from the pillow. Then slide the pillow a little higher, under your pelvis and lower back. Then lower your pelvis onto the pillow, straightening your legs so that they are now stretched out against the wall.
   • Keep your legs firmly straight with enough strength to keep them vertical. Move your head out of the neck and bring the shoulder blades out. Bring your hands and arms aside, palm up.
   • Hold this pose for five to fifteen minutes. You will feel the blood flowing from the legs to the hips. This indicates that the blood is returning and flushing.
   • Do not turn away from the support when coming out of this position. From the pillow, slide to the floor and bend the knees. Roll onto your side and lie in the fetal position for a moment, with the legs raised and head in, remain in this position for several breaths.
7. Follow a balanced diet. A balanced diet full of fresh fruits and vegetables can help keep salt levels low and fiber high. This stabilizes blood pressure and puts less pressure on the veins.
   • A low-salt diet will minimize swelling in the legs caused by fluid retention. Also, focus on high-fiber foods, such as whole grains like rice and quinoa. The bioflavanoids in dark berries, dark leafy greens (such as kale and spinach), garlic and onions also help keep your veins healthy.
8. Quit smoking and limit alcohol consumption. Tobacco and alcohol can cause high blood pressure. Eliminating them or limiting their role can reduce varicose veins.
   • Alcohol can cause blood vessels to widen - this can make varicose veins worse. A drink now and then won't hurt, but drinking it regularly can.
   • Smoking is directly related to blood pressure. If you want to get rid of varicose veins, it is important to stop smoking completely.

Method 2 of 3: Professional products and surgical procedures

1. Wear compression stockings. These elastic stockings exert therapeutic pressure on the veins in your legs. In doing so, they relieve pain in the legs and temporarily keep varicose veins in check. Often these stockings are tightest at the ankle and gradually become less tight towards the top. This promotes upward blood flow to the heart.However, with compression stockings, also called compression stockings, there is no guarantee that the varicose veins will not get worse or that new varicose veins will not develop.
   • Compression stockings come in various different sizes and pressure levels. Most people with varicose veins will be prescribed class 1 (light compression) or class 2 (medium compression) stockings. The stockings are also available in different colors, lengths (from the knee to the thigh) and foot styles (which cover the entire foot, or stop right in front of the toes).
   • You can buy the compression stockings from the local pharmacy or online from the manufacturer. Based on the severity of the varicose veins, the doctor can also prescribe compression stockings.
   • While compression stockings can promote blood flow in the legs, you will likely have to wear them all day to get noticeable results. They can make the legs hot and sweaty, and you should change the socks every three to six months.
2. Ask your doctor about sclerotherapy. This is a type of injection that causes the varicose vein to close and disappear from view.
   • In this procedure, the doctor will use a needle to inject a special chemical into the vein. This substance, the sclerosant, induces an inflammatory reaction of the vessel wall, causing the vessel wall to swell and eventually close. The blood flow is completely stopped, and the vein eventually becomes a scar that will disappear from view.
   • This treatment does not require anesthesia, but several treatments may be required to treat the same vein. These treatments should be performed every four to six weeks.
   • Another form of this therapy, microsclerotherapy, can be used to treat teleagnidactasia and small varicose veins.
3. Ask your doctor about superficial laser treatment. Laser therapy is often used for smaller veins. A powerful laser beam is aimed at the varicose vein in short bursts, so that it will eventually disappear. This treatment is usually ineffective for varicose veins larger than 3 mm.
   • The laser treatment can take fifteen to twenty minutes. You will need two to five treatments before the varicose veins are gone.
   • Although there are no chemicals or incisions involved, the laser treatment can still hurt.
4. Learn about endovenous laser ablation. These treatments use laser beams or radio waves that damage the varicose vein through high temperatures. The varicose veins then become scars that fade. Deeper varicose veins, also called saphenous veins, are usually treated with this method.
   • The doctor will insert a needle into the problem vein through a catheter, or small tube. The laser or radio waves sent through the tip of that needle cause the vein to close.
   • The healthy veins around the occluded vein take over the blood flow from those veins. Superficial varicose veins that are connected to the treated vein also usually close quite shortly after the treatment.
5. Ask your doctor about vein ligation and stripping. In this procedure, the varicose veins are tied and removed. The doctor makes small incisions in the skin to allow the veins to come out.
   • This treatment was especially common in the past, but is still used today on patients who cannot undergo endovenous thermal ablation.
   • For this treatment you will be put under general anesthesia or an epidural. The treatment takes place in the operating room.
   • When the veins are removed, the deeper veins will take over the circulation of the removed veins, so that the circulation is not affected.
6. Consider PIN stripping. This treatment method also removes problematic veins, but here they are removed with an instrument called the "PIN stripper".
   • The doctor will sew the end of the PIN stripper to the end of the vein. If he / she removes the pin stripper, the vein will also be removed.
   • This procedure can be performed under general or local anesthesia, and can be done in the operating room or outpatient clinic.
7. Try Müller phlebectomy (ambulatory phlebectomy). In these treatments, small incisions are made to remove small problem veins that are just below the surface of the skin.
   • Small hooks are inserted through the small incisions in the skin. The vein is then pulled through these incisions.
   • Your leg will be numbed, but you will not be under general anesthesia.
8. Ask your doctor about endoscopic varicose vein surgery. In this treatment, an endoscope is inserted into the vein. This endoscope is used to occlude the vein from the inside.
   • This treatment is usually only applied to varicose veins that cause skin ulcers.
   • The doctor will make a small incision in the skin around the varicose vein. The endoscope, a small camera at the end of a thin tube, is inserted into the vein and pushed through. A device at the end of the tube closes the varicose vein.

Method 3 of 3: Using home remedies

1. Be wary of home remedies for varicose veins. Home remedies and treatments can claim to cure your varicose veins in a "unique," "permanent," or "pain-free" way. Most of the time, however, they cannot. Always consult your doctor before using any home remedies. This is because there may be health risks or side effects associated with such methods.
   • Some home remedies can affect the way other medicines work. If you are taking other medications, it is therefore important to ask your doctor whether it is safe to use alternative medicines.
2. Try supplements containing horse chestnut. This herbal extract can be an effective treatment for chronic venous insufficiency - this is a condition where the veins in the legs have trouble returning blood to the heart. They can also help with the swelling and discomfort caused by the varicose veins.
   • Do not use horse chestnut if you suffer from liver or kidney disease, if you are taking blood thinners, or if you are on medication for diabetes. Never take more than the recommended amount. If you are allergic to latex, you could also be allergic to horse chestnut.
   • Consult your doctor before using horse chestnut extract. Ask him / her if he / she can recommend your suppliers of this herbal treatment.
3. Use apple cider vinegar. Although there is hardly any scientific evidence to support the effectiveness of this method, it is regularly used in folk medicine. Topical application of apple cider vinegar is said to shrink varicose veins.
   • Dab a small cloth or cotton ball in a little apple cider vinegar. Then rub the vinegar over the varicose veins or wrap the cloth around your leg.
   • Let the apple cider vinegar sit on the skin for about thirty minutes for maximum results.