The Basics of Bowel Care

Let’s have a whistle stop tour through what’s normal and what’s not, and some simple action plans to support good bowel and pelvic floor health

Your outlet pipe, back passage or rectum is a very clever piece of kit! Nerves in this outlet pipe check out the contents – Is it wind, or stool, is it a hard stool or so soft it’s going to be a struggle to make it to the loo?

What’s normal:

• To need a poo up to 4 times a day or every 4 days

• You should be able to reach the toilet on time and usually easily pass a stool that’s a type 3 or 4

• Check out your stool type by googling ‘Bristol Stool Chart’ check out  https://bit.ly/3pnGL55

• After you’ve finished you should feel a pleasant sensation of being ‘empty’

What’s not normal:

• Pooing less than 3 times a week

• Passing a poo that’s large and dry, hard, or lumpy with straining and pain

• Having sudden urges to poo that you can’t control 

• Having an inability to control wind and leaking poo when you break wind

Let’s focus on constipation:

If you have a dry hard stool that’s sitting in your rectum it can prevent your bladder being able to empty easily. The effort of bearing down to push it out can overload the pelvic floor and other structures.

Action Plan

Ask yourself, am I?

• Drinking enough fluids

• Including enough fibre in my diet check out - https://bit.ly/2ZUhiHW

• Moving and exercising enough

• Listening to my body and when it says ‘I need a poo” am I ignoring the call to go (It’ll be more difficult next time!)

• Sitting in the right position on the loo check out - https://bit.ly/3pnGAXy

• Giving myself time to empty fully. Not straining but not rushing off!           

• In tune with my body clock – does my ‘strong bowel reflex’ fire in after breakfast or at other times in the day

Let’s focus on poor bowel control: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/bowel-incontinence/

The causes of bowel leaks are often very individual and can be due to several reasons. We know that for many women having stronger deeper pelvic floor and anal ring muscles can help improve control. If you do feel that lack of bowel control is an issue.

Things to consider. Am I?

• Checking my diet to see if I eat anything that irritates my bowel

• Struggling because my stool type is always very soft 

• Noticing my lack of bowel control started after childbirth

It’s important to seek advice if you:

• Are not improving with lifestyle changes

• Are regularly constipated and it lasts a long time

• Experience ongoing difficulty getting to the loo on time to poo and have difficulty wiping yourself clean

• Are bloated and it lasts a long time

• Have blood in your poo

• Have unexpectedly lost weight

• Feel very tired all the time