I have had poop in my blood from mid-December last year to the beginning of March. When pooping it was VERY painful... so much so that I literally cringed even at the thought of pooping. Anyways, I finally went to the doctor to see what was up. She did her probe and declared me perfectly healthy, but gave me some medication to see if it would reduce the pain and the blood. It did. But since I've discontinued the use, I've started to poo blood again and it hurts a LOT. Has this happened to anyone? Does anyone have any idea what's wrong?

Poonurse responds:

Do you have poop in your blood, or blood in your poop? Very different problems.

If you have the former, I would say you are in deep doo-doo, no pun intended. It is very hard to get poop out of your blood.

If the problem is the latter, I would advise you to start back on the medication your doctor gave you for this problem. See if you can't find out what the ACTUAL NAME of your condition is, from your REAL DOCTOR. This would go a long way towards helping me give you some advice.

Let me know what it is when you find out, and I'll see if I can offer any help.

Leah writes back,

The medication my doctor gave me is called Proctomyxin HC. I was to apply it morning and night and after every poop for ten days. I did all of this as instructed. My doctor thought it was a cut that I had "in there." The medication started to work, but not after one huge poop of blood. It was on my poop, I think, although I didn't excatly pick up my poop and open it up. After this terrifying incident, it went away -- both the pain and the blood. It stoped for the duration of my ten days, and I was a happy pooper. Since then, I've discontinued the medication (as instructed), but the blood has now returned, along with the pain. But, if this makes sense, the pain has moved to a different area in my rectum. But it hurts just as much!

Dear Leah,

As you know, I am not a doctor. But it sounds like you possibly could have a rectal fissure, which is like a tiny tear in the lining of the rectum. It can cause pain and rectal bleeding such as you describe.

But I must tell you that beyond following a high fiber diet and drinking tons of water (these make the poop easier to pass and less likely to keep irritating your rectum), you REALLY NEED to go back to the butt doctor and report that your symptoms have returned.

If you have a family doctor treating you, ask for a referral to a gastroenterologist. They specialize in these kinds of problems. But do go back.

Thanks for asking Poonurse!

Please be advised that I am only a Poonurse. I am NOT a medical doctor. Any advice I give should be taken moderate skepticism. Please consult a REAL medical doctor if you feel you have a serious medical condition.

-- Poonurse [1]

Poonurse is an RN with 25 years experience in labor and delivery. Her qualifications include seeing a lot of poop, and owning a computer. Also, she works in Michigan, which she calls the asshole of the universe, so that's another bit of credibility. Got a question [2] for her?