Bowel movements per day

Is it a bad sign to have three stools per day? Most days I have two, but about 33% of the time I have three. I do eat two meals per day for supper and lunch, and also on and off for breakfast from six in the morning until about lunchtime. None are watery or urgent, and at worst just a little soft.


I know there is tons of info on the internet about this, but I wanted to ask you guys to get advice speficially for a UC sufferer. The info on most sites had to wide of a range anyway, most places saying 3 times a day to 3 times a week is normal.

Yeah two of the three of mine you could set a clock by. When I get up, and another around 12:45-1:15 in the afternoon depending on what time I eat lunch. Then, I have a "wildcard" thrown in every third day or so at a random time, haha.

I vary too, some days I might only go once or not at all, other days I might go 6 or 7 times...very annoying! If you're going 2/3 times a day and they are normalish consistency with no blood or mucous I would say that is a good sign :)

Levi. I am glad you posted this. I am in the same boat. Pretty much in remission and going anywhere from 1-3 times a day. Mostly it is 2 times a day. The thing is that pre UC, I only went once a day and that was normal for me. I wondering if having UC has changed my insides in a way that normal for me is now 2 times a day, meaning it takes going more times to get that full BM out whereas before it would all come out at once. Thats kinda what it feels like. I had a scope the other day and things were clear in there and the doc gave me the go ahead for remission! YAY! But still I wondering why do I go 2 or 3 times a day sometimes when I know that normal for me used to be 1.

What I am saying is that I think after UC and the changes that it can cause, we may have a new normal and maybe 2-3 times a day is ok as long as its not urgent, bleeding or too loose.

I would love to hear more comments on this.

I also think that's ok, since there's no urgency or bleeding.

man, I wish I could go only 3 times. I go about once every 1.5 hours. maybe I can get away with 2 hours. I am looking at about 15-30 BM's per day for the past year. Exciting!

My norm is 1 - 2 daily....but a third one has slipped in there depending on what and how much I've eaten or what other supplements I may have added or increased to the mix.

I know I'm not flaring and I'm on maintenance meds, so all feels normal to me.

Yes, I agree that having UC changes things, but we do take fibre, probiotics and supplements that can change the patterns and consistency a bit.

The fact that you're having them at certain times makes sense, especially since you're functioning at a fairly organised schedule.

q

The # of bms would be related to many things....with UC we just have to be aware of the other symptoms that can say flare is happening....many symptoms are very slight. They will increase with time, where if it's food, stress, ibs, they may continue or lessen as the gut gets used to the new additions/routine.

q

My GI has said that up to 4 times a day can be completely normal.

I usually go once a day when I'm in remission. Lately, I've been going two or even three times a day. I've been under a lot of stress. I'm in between jobs, and, on top of that, at the end of January, my previous boss switched from federal Cobra to state Cobra without telling me. I had no idea that I was to start paying my insurance company directly instead of going through Ceridian, and my insurance company had no idea I was getting the Cobra subsidy. They started sending me enormous bills that did not make any sense. So I kept up my payments with Ceridian, who started sending them to my previous boss instead of my insurance company. The end result was that my insurance company canceled my insurance at the end of January for non-payment without telling me. Plus, I missed the window period for re-selecting the subsidy without even being told that I had to re-select the subsidy. All this happened during the time I went to see my GI for a mini flare, had a colonoscopy done, have been seeing one doctor for my lexapro prescription and another for my skin. It's all been very stressful.

What is normal? Pre-UC I was slightly on the constipated side, meaning 1 was normal along with skipping a day once or twice a week.
Nowadays 4 is "normal" but it takes dedication to stay at 4. The slightest food intake variation changes things in quantity, urgency. etc.
And yet 4 is abnormal for most anyone except UC'ers.

Before I started the SCDiet I couldn't count, just all day long, unpredictable and bleeding.
Yes 4 is wonderful compared to previous hell. Variations are 4-4-4-2-2-5-6-4-4-4. Fascinating (not).

I'm hoping to see reduction in the next months as more healing happens. I dream of only 1 but would settle for 2.

I think "normal" is different for everyone.

For me, my normal was once a day.

Finally, after 7 months of UC, I think I'm in remission. I go once a day (8:30AM on the dot) solid poop with no blood. I do have a slight urgency though and spasms to poop during the day. I think I sit way too long. I'm going to start back up on the suppositories.

I'm at 1-2 when feeling well and up to 6 when not. Realizing that I'm pretty lucky...knock on wood!