Down the Chute
Why Laxatives may not Solve Your Constipation Problem
Hey, no shame here! Everyone deals with poo problems now and again. Typical potty problems are short lived and can usually be traced back to something we’ve eaten, or drank, or not drank (can we say de-hy-dra-tion con-sti-pa-tion five times fast?). Stress, anxiety, and mood can also play a big part in our tubular function. But what if you’ve ruled out the usual suspects? Are you doomed to days full of fiber drinks and bloated nights?
Let’s get this out of the way, if you haven’t moved your bowels in three days, have belly pain/bloating, or have blood in your stool then stop asking Dr. Google for answers and go make an appointment with your physician.
Now that’s been taken care of, let’s talk about the underbelly of constipation – the pelvic floor. If you’ve heard of the pelvic floor at all, then you probably know it as the thing you strengthen when you’re doing kegel exercises after pregnancy.
Strong muscles = good.
Week muscle = all sorts of bad.
Except that’s nowhere near
the whole story.
First off, the pelvic floor muscles aren’t just associated with urinary incontinence. They’re also necessary for your rectum to function. And they might not be weak at all, they may be tight!
Just like your neck or back gets tight when it’s injured, so can your pelvic floor. In order for stool to pass, these muscles have to RELAX as well as tighten. The older you are, the more time you’ve had to injure these muscles (it ain’t the age, it’s the mileage).
So, when you’re at the appointment you just made with your doctor, ask them about pelvic floor dysfunction.
This may be the key you need for unplugging the chute!
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Faubion, S. S., Shuster, L. T., & Bharucha, A. E. (2012). Recognition and management of nonrelaxing pelvic floor dysfunction. Mayo Clinic proceedings, 87(2), 187–193. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mayocp.2011.09.004
Harvard Health Publishing. (2019). Stress and the sensitive gut. Harvard Health. https://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletter_article/stress-and-the-sensitive-gut.
Martin, L. J., Zieve, D. (Eds.). (2018). Constipation - self-care: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia. https://medlineplus.gov/ency/patientinstructions/000120.htm.
Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. (2018, November 21). Kegel exercises: A how-to guide for women. Mayo Clinic. https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy- lifestyle/womens-health/in-depth/kegel-exercises/art-20045283.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2018, May 1). Diagnosis of Constipation. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/digestive-diseases/constipation/diagnosis.
Vazquez Roque, M., & Bouras, E. P. (2015). Epidemiology and management of chronic constipation in elderly patients. Clinical interventions in aging, 10, 919–930. https://doi.org/10.2147/CIA.S54304
