How to Poop
Let me teach you how to poop, even though you have been pooping your whole life! Pooping or passing a bowel movement is a multi-factorial event, which can be regulated by several factors that you can read about in our blog Am I Constipated. Those external factors help regulate a bowel movement, but here are the mechanics of pooping:
The Start
- Start with positioning using a Squatty Potty.
- Bring your attention to your pelvic floor (right above the crotch part of your underwear).
- Breathe into your belly and your pelvic floor to relax them both (and your body). Remember, belly big when you breathe in, belly soft when you breathe out. If you have a hard time relaxing your pelvic floor, a neat trick is to place your tongue against the roof of your mouth, to assist relaxation.
The Main Act
- Bearing down or actually passing stool is best initiated upon exhalation and consists of:
- Keeping pelvic floor open
- Generating abdominal pressure
- As you exhale, gently push and continue to exhale throughout your effort.
- It can take 3-5 tries to empty your bowels, so be patient and inhale between each try.
- Refrain from straining to pass bowels (straining is pushing forcefully while holding your breath).
- At the end of an attempt, give yourself a few breaths to assess if you have any more bowels to pass. If you do, then repeat steps 5-9. If you don’t then proceed to the next step.
The End
- When wiping, it can be valuable to assess how much of your TP has been stained.
- Ideally, you’d want to have minimal cleaning because that tells you that your bowels are well formed. If there’s no cleaning, your bowels may be too hard/lumpy and if there’s moderate to heavy cleaning then your bowels may be too soft.
How Does Pelvic Floor PT Help?
Pelvic floor physical therapy can help you:
- understand the mechanics of defecation
- learn toileting posture
- bring awareness to your pelvic floor
- teach you correct breathing and relaxation techniques, so that you can be a happy pooper!
We Can Help!
Body Harmony Physical Therapy offers one pelvic health physical therapist to one patient evaluation and treatment sessions. Our treatments are for up to one hour in a private treatment room (not a booth). We provide individualized home programs to every patient.
We offer a quick call back option for potential patients who have questions or concerns related to physical therapy.
