Why Are Having Good Poops Important?

• Constipation leads to more strain on the pelvic floor organs and pelvic floor muscles

• Constipation can lead to more estrogen to be pulled back into our circulating estrogen levels and can contribute to painful periods

• Straining with bowel movements can exacerbate prolapse symptoms, pelvic pain, hemorrhoids, anal fissures

• Constipation can worsen symptoms of stress urinary incontinence (leaking pee with coughing, sneezing, running, jumping, etc) and urgency incontinence (unable to make it to the bathroom in time with the urge to pee)

• Constipation can lead to pelvic floor muscle hypertonicity (tension)

• Ignoring the urge to poop can lead to that urge diminishing over time, we lose the sense of our need to poop and this worsens the constipation even more

The main pillars we want to tackle when managing constipation are:

1. Timing + Routine

2. Position

3. Pushing

4. Diet

5. Stress

6. Cycle

7. Movement

8. Splinting

Timing and Routine

Our bowels are creatures of habit - they LIKE evacuating at the same time every day and they love a good routine. Try forming bowel habits and pick a time(s) every day where you actively sit and try to relax the pelvic floor on the toilet and have a bowel movement. If you carve out this time, it will help you relax which will help you have a successful poop!

Also, we never want to ignore the ‘urge’ that our bowels give us. That alarm system going off that tells us we need to poop can get softer and eventually go away if we ignore it enough, then we never get ‘the urge’ anymore and lose touch with our bowels completely.

The bladder is a holding tank - it is designed to ‘hold’ pee and it’s good at it! The bowels are a tunnel, things should pass through with regular movement.

Position

Use a squatty potty or step stool to put your feet up on and get your knees above your chest. This mimics a deep squat which relaxes and opens our pelvic floor, reducing our need to ‘push’.

Rock forwards and backwards with breathing instead of straining with a breathe hold.

Pushing

We want to push WHILE breathing which looks like:

• Inhale a full belly breath

• Exhale and send the breath downwards towards the rectum, using the exhale to push the poop out

• The exhale can sound like a ‘tssssssst’ or a ‘shhhhhh’ sound as you do it

• OR exhale into a fist

Diet

I would recommend working with a naturopath who can help you to identify trigger foods or liquids but as a general rule of thumb:

• 2-3L of water a day

• Always pair caffeine or alcohol with a glass of water (1:1 ratio)

• Add simple fibrous foods into what you’re already eating

Examples:

• Add a tbsp of chia to your water bottle

• Add 2 tbsp of flax on top of oatmeal or yogurt

• Add a daily Good Poops smoothie

• Do oats for breakfast with flax, chia, berries added in

Good Poops Smoothie (my personal fav)

Avoid drinking this fast, instead try to ‘chew’ your smoothie. By chewing your smoothie, your body releases more digestive enzymes and this will help you from getting bloated from drinking it!

1 cup frozen spinach
1 cup frozen mixed berries
½ cup pumpkin puree
2 tbsp chia
2 tbsp flax
1 cup almond milk
1 tbsp cocoa powder
3 ice cubes
1 scoop protein powder (optional)

Stress

Saying ‘be less stressed’ is a great way to make people feel stressed, BUT I have to add it because stress and being in constant ‘fight or flight’ mode makes our bowels stall completely and makes our pelvic floor muscles tense.

Take note of stress and if it is coinciding with constipation and/or pelvic heaviness and/or hemorrhoids. Manage stress in whatever way works FOR YOU.

Your Cycle

You may have noticed that bowel habits change with our periods. When we are about to get our period or even on day 1 or 2 of our period, our body releases Prostaglandins. Prostaglandins cause contractions that help your uterus shed its lining. Sometimes, they also cause contractions in your intestines, which can cause a range of GI symptoms, including diarrhea. After ovulation (assuming you did not become pregnant) hormone levels fall and this can cause constipation.

Movement

It doesn’t need to look like intense exercise, but any movement of our body can help us get the poop out. Aim for at least a daily walk of 30+ mins (bonus if it’s before your scheduled poop time)

Splinting

If you are hesitant to push or strain while pooping because of feelings of heaviness or fear of prolapse, you can use splinting to help support the perineum as you push.

Put a couple squares of toilet paper on your hand and hold it over your vaginal opening and perineum as you are breathing to poop.

Constipation Toilet Meditation (A.I.R.B.A.G.)

(Reference video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9zsTUvNn-8)

1. AWARE: Sit with your feet apart on your low stool or squatty potty and your arms or forearms resting on your thighs.  (If this  means putting down toilet paper on the seat of a public toilet – then so be it!  You must sit to  fully relax.)

2. IMAGINE: Focus on the process of your pelvic floor muscles letting go, your urethra or butthole opening, and the bladder/bowel letting go and emptying. 

3. RELEASE: Let the tension in the pelvic floor, your hips, your back, your fists, your thighs, your jaw and your feet go.

4. BREATHE: Sometimes we forget!  Breathe in through your nose and out through a relaxed  open mouth ‘haaaaa’.  Feel your ribs and your diaphragm moving with each deep breath and slowly  exhale.  Don’t force the air out.

5. ALLOW: Trust that your body will do what it was designed to do!  It knows how to breathe,  pee, and poop but sometimes we get in the way and try to take control.   

6. GRATITUDE: Thank your body for doing a very important job.  And think of at least one thing that you are grateful for that day – a beautiful day, friends, family, pets, etc.   

I-L-U Massage 

The purpose of ILU massage is to calm tension in your abdominal wall/intestines and/or to  help move chyme (digested foods) through your system more efficiently. 

• This can be done in lying, sitting or standing 

• Always do from right to left, using soap in the shower, or cream on your fingertips

• Start by forming the letter “I” by stroking with moderate pressure from the left rib cage  down to the left hip bone 10 times

• Next, form the letter “L” by stroking with moderate pressure from the right rib cage,  underneath the ribcage to the left, and down to the left hip bone 10 times

• Last, do 10 strokes “U” from the right hip bone up to the right rib cage, across to the left  ribcage, and down to the left hip bone 10 times

• Finish with 1-2 minutes of clockwise circular massage around the belly button to  stimulate the small intestine 

• Do this massage once/daily