Very often, at the end of an IBS attack, I am left with what feels like a pebble-sized turdlet stuck just inside the hoop. This has caused more cursing and excess wiping and raw bunghole issues than I care to admit, as the idea of sticking a finger or anything else up there to get it out is just too gross for me. (In fact, it never even occurred to me before reading PoopReport.)
So I'm having an episode the other day -- the first really bad one in a very long time, I'm happy to say! -- and I had been on the pot for twenty minutes or more when I felt like I needed a stretch. This was also toward the end of the attack, and I just so happened to be waiting for that little turdlet to drop. I went in for the stretch, and as I reached up and arched my back, the gherkin-sized grogan popped out like a squeezed watermelon seed!
I was excited, but also worried it was just a fluke, so I waited until the next time it happened. Sure enough, a few days later when I stretched, out popped the stuck turdlet again. Eureka!
Being a good PoopReporter, I have to share. Here's how to perform what I'll call, until one of you comes up with a better name, "Retention Prevention."
You're probably already leaning forward, on your tip-toes, elbows on your knees, trying in vain to drop that poopkin, right? Now do this: stretch your arms out in front of you and clasp your hands together. Roll your spine up off your lap while reaching upward with your arms as high as you can to give yourself a good stretch all the way down from anterior to posterior. Keep your back arched and make sure it's a true stretch, not just a reach. (Although maybe that will work, too...?) Just about the time you get into it and the stretch starts feeling really good, your stuck shit should plop right out into the toilet.
If you have hip joint issues, this maneuver may not be for you, since from a seated position, the stretch will put your legs at a very acute angle to your body; however, you may be able to experience the same results with a lesser degree of arching or stretching.
This has worked for me twice so far. Anyone else care to try it and report back, please?
