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Can you train your bowels?

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Ulcerative Colitis
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Posted 11/18/2015 6:31 PM (GMT 0)
Just been speaking to someone I know who has a daughter who has pancolitis. So you think she should know but......

Apparently this is all in my head and I am making myself visit the bathroom frequently. Apparently if I am not thinking about it then I shouldn't need to go. I am so annoyed but need to ask the question, Can you train your bowels. Are the constant urges and bathroom visits in my head. I am really surprised she also says that maybe I am wanting to be ill.
I would have thought that having a relative with this awful disease she would know better. I have been given a sick note from work because I can't keep out of the bathroom and I teach in a school so I can't just run to the loo when I want. Hopefully the urgency will get better when the steroids kick in. Of course her daughter works all the time. Also I should be off all my meds too.
I am really sorry to have to rant like this but I thought this person was a friend who would understand what this illness is like.
Also this is not a flare but is just a bit of inflammation. Is there a difference between the two. The person who did the scope said that my colon was bleeding with every touch of the scope, there was ulcers and puss. A flare is inflammation isn't it.

I am so angry.

But can you control the frequency and ugency? Would like to know how.


Thanks for reading. I know people on hear who experience flares will know.
Posted 11/18/2015 6:48 PM (GMT 0)
Uc urgency is caused by inflammation in the rectum. Once stool contacts the raw, inflamed, and swollen tissue it becomes painful to hold and it must be evacuated within a few minutes, it's not us controlling it, rather it controls us. It's not something one is physically capable to hold in despite the most strongest of will power.
Posted 11/18/2015 6:54 PM (GMT 0)
UC urgency is caused by inflammation but I can tell you for a fact that I go the toilet way more at home than I do when I am out and about. So I agree with the initial poster, there is a degree of the mind making you go too.... but what she is speaking about is UC +IBS.
Posted 11/18/2015 7:13 PM (GMT 0)
To be clear, inflammation in the rectum is not the only cause of urgency! I've had severe urgency even when my IBD wasn't affecting my rectum, the feeling of incomplete bowel movements related to proctitis is slightly different than urgency issues, you can still have urgency issues even without proctitis (inflammation in the rectum).

And no, you cannot simply control it with your mind, not with IBS either at least not in the sense that people are assuming (it takes a lot of meditation to help the messed up mind-gut connection) that doesn't mean though that people with either IBD or IBS can simply use their mind to stop the urges that come with both bowel disorders.
Posted 11/18/2015 7:15 PM (GMT 0)
Anxiety and over thinking of symptoms can cause IBS. When you are preoccupied there is no anxiety and no overthinking and hence no IBS - so not as much urgency.
Posted 11/18/2015 7:46 PM (GMT 0)
Urgency and tenesmus aren't controllable. Anxiety/fear isn't all that controllable as it's an ingrained, subconscious fight or flight response that results from our experience with urgency, tensemus, and accidents. Anxiety can can get exponentially worse causing a fear of an accident into a reality. As a precautionary action, we may sit on the toilet before leaving the house, leaving a store, going to a meeting, etc. Or we choose to sit on the toilet because we cannot distinguish between a fart or shart (when badly flaring).

If we could just come to some sort of cathartic epiphany and suddenly realise we could have a sphincter of steel, and it would work hereafter, then that would be awesome.

I wish we could send our bowels to obedience school (like dogs and puppies) and after a few sessions have a professional give us a diploma and well behaved, mannered, and patient bowels. I'd write a very large check for that service :-)
Posted 11/18/2015 8:11 PM (GMT 0)
when i am flaring, i cannot control my bowels at all. i wear Depends all the time because i can't always make it to a bathroom in time. if i could train them to go when i want, that would be really awesome, but that is not how UC works at all. i wouldn't be afraid of leaving the house if i could tell my colon "you aren't allowed to poop while we are out today."
Posted 11/18/2015 8:36 PM (GMT 0)
Apparently if I am not thinking about it then I shouldn't need to go

I get the strongest urges out of the blue when I'm not thinking about it. I nearly crapped myself on the sofa today whilst playing a game on my Hudl (move over, iPad). For 2 or 3 scary seconds I thought I wasn't going to be able to hold it, but I just managed to contain it.

As for frequency, I would love nothing more than to go considerably less than I do.

I just feel so sorry for the daughter with pancolitis.
Posted 11/18/2015 8:44 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks. Thought I was crazy.
Posted 11/19/2015 7:41 PM (GMT 0)
Not unless your arsehole cooperates....you can train them to a point.
During a flare? never found I could as in stop from going, but I could prolong it for a bit.

Your friend or family member is quite cold-hearted in saying you want to be sick. What did you say to her in return?

The butt rules...lol.

Regarding your situation...you've gone a long while without much treatment or even your doctor believing you were flaring. Allow yourself to get better, and with that...you'll gain more control.

q
Posted 11/19/2015 8:49 PM (GMT 0)
I would be really insulted if someone said it was in my head. I've had times where I was having a very peaceful day with no thoughts about a poop and then the second i get to the grocery store, intense urgency kicks in. Why would i invent that idea. I didn't generate the poop with my thoughts, the poop urge came and I had to to the toilet, not the other way around - thought i am sure some pigheaded people believe that we made it happen with out minds. I really wish they could experience this urgency just once in their lives so they understood what we are dealing with.

I feel really bad for that daughter with UC. I don't talk to my family about this stuff, I am sure they would say the same.
Posted 11/19/2015 9:06 PM (GMT 0)
Your friend (or not so friend) is an idiot. Sorry. I feel bad for her daughter with UC.

You cannot control urgency. Period.
Posted 11/19/2015 9:39 PM (GMT 0)
THanks for your replies.

It was someone who lives nearby and not a family member thank god. I did stick up for myself and said that I really didn't want to be ill and definitely didn't want this crappy illness
Posted 11/20/2015 1:51 AM (GMT 0)
Wow, where'd you find this lady? Tell her to give her head a shake! No, you can't stop thinking about pooping and miraculously cure your UC! She probably thinks cancer patients don't need chemo etc., they just need more orange juice and to "will" it away with meditation.

What, she figures we should all just buy a copy of "how to train your dragon" and apply the principles to our bowels?? confused
Posted 11/20/2015 3:47 AM (GMT 0)
If there's one thing I've learned it's to never take IBD advice from someone who doesn't have IBD. GI doctors excluded, but even they can be out of touch at times. People can speculate all they want about how they think it is for us, but they will never truly know until they walk in our shoes.
Posted 11/20/2015 5:01 AM (GMT 0)
Or.....run, not walk in your underwear.
q
Posted 11/20/2015 8:51 AM (GMT 0)
I have calmed down a lot now. I do suffer from depression and it does get me down as I suppose it does everyone from time to time. I take anti depressants to combat this, increasing these when necessary. I cope with it better now than when I was diagnosed four years ago.

Funnily enough, Toomuchpoopin, she said just take vitamin c tablets. LOL
Posted 11/20/2015 12:36 PM (GMT 0)
Normies just don't understand our struggles. I've had number of them people poo poo my struggles and concerns with uc, and I now value those opinions as much as a giant pile of crap lol. When it comes to uc urgency, anxiety, and depression, it's just not your fault at all! Uc does horrible things to us both physically and mentally, and we all struggle and cope best we can. If there's an easy button then someone please tell me :-)

It's very odd that someone with pancolitis would have given you such insensitive comments. They must have a very easy case that gives them very minimal trouble, be a misdiagnosis, or at minimum a total jerk lol.
Posted 11/20/2015 12:42 PM (GMT 0)
I am sure my bowels are trained.

They perform tricks every day.

Old Mike

Posted 11/20/2015 2:47 PM (GMT 0)
Old Mike...you crack me up.

This disease is not in your head. It makes me so angry when people say that because before UC, I was the epitome of good health. I never even went to the doctor.

But with that said, I do think relaxation helps with the frequency. Sometimes, when I am in a public place and I feel like I am going to lose my bowels, I just take deep breaths and the pain passes. Of course, this is my warning that I better find a bathroom soon. I also often vomit during a BM due to the pain and I find that if I just relax then it doesn't come up both ends.

So I do think that we can train our bowels to some degree but it is kind of like training a tiger. Sure it might sit for you now and then but don't think it won't rip your head off if given the chance.
Posted 11/20/2015 2:50 PM (GMT 0)
btw, Vitamin C is really hard on the gut. Not sure why she is suggesting that.
Posted 11/20/2015 3:47 PM (GMT 0)
Mad martha, this woman is an ignorant person and I feel bad you had to come across one of these types of people as others have mentioned inflammation in the rectum messes up the signals
when a very small amount of blood/mucous or stool enters the inflamed rectum it sends an emergency message to the spinal cord to empty the rectum immediatl and thus we have urgency.
normally when the rectum is full it sends a message to the brain to let us know we need to empty it and we will have a choice of when we do so...

ugh I feel really bad for her poor daughter, UC is a hard thing and when your mom does not support you it is that much harder. speak to the daughter if you can and send her some good vibes from me
Posted 11/20/2015 5:11 PM (GMT 0)
Without having uc there is no way she can understand the urgency. I didn't have the urgency for almost 20 years like I have now and there is no way I can tell myself is in your head just hold it because it doesn't hold. And whats really frustrating is the urgency and then nothing at times. Just talk to her daughter if you can and let her know you can support her through it because I can't imagine what she goes through with her mother like that, but maybe she doesn't have the urgency now but I guess it will come I really never even knew about the whole you have 15 seconds to get to a toilet until this flare and I have had bad flares that they wanted to admit me but I wouldn't go, this time I had no choice.

Keep your head high and ignore people like that and know you have support here.
Posted 11/20/2015 10:29 PM (GMT 0)
I've been wondering if doing kegels for my butt would help????

My GI mentioned I may try biofeedback, but I haven't researched. anyone try that?
Posted 11/20/2015 10:50 PM (GMT 0)

U B Tough said...
I've been wondering if doing kegels for my butt would help????

Not really, I know it is good for the sphincter muscles to be exercised, especially if you're going to undergo surgery but I can't see it helping much with inflammation urgency :(
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