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I adhere to a simple philosophy when it comes to going number 2.
When you feel the urge to poop, let it out, no matter where you are at the moment.
Whether you’re at a concert, in a bookstore, in the White House, or wherever the bowels start begging, just find a toilet and drop anchor.
I get it though. Sometimes a person just can’t get to a bathroom, like during long car rides, stuck in a work meeting, or hanging out at a date’s house for the first time.
Eventually, the urge goes away, but ignoring the urge might be causing serious issues to your insides.
In the latest episode of his “Daily Digest” series of videos, gastroenterologist Dr. Sameer Islam explains what can happen when we hold in the poop for too long.
“Whenever you hold your poop, there are a couple of things that can occur that may not be the best thing for you,” explains Dr. Islam.
Dr. Islam explains that if you need to use the bathroom, but you hold it in, you’re actually sending your body a signal that it can’t go. This could lead to constipation problems and a whole mess of other issues.
“The problem is that your body gets used to the feeling of not responding to the urge to go, and that can really make it more difficult for bowel issues.
You can have really bad stomach pain, and the problem becomes, as your body adapts to you not responding to the need to use the restroom, you’ll start to actually not use the restroom.
You’ll develop a condition called pelvic floor dysfunction, in which the rectal muscles are not working correctly at all. And because they’re not working, it’ll make it even more difficult for you to use the restroom.”
Dr. Islam stresses that “repeatedly holding off going to the bathroom can cause severe abdominal pain” and recommends sticking to a regular bathroom schedule.
If a person learns to “train” the bowels as to when to go to the bathroom, they’ll avoid long-term issues and discomfort.
[via Doctor Sameer Islam]