A few years ago, we only thought of constipation in terms of mobility. Unfortunately, we missed something very important. Mobility is important, but it is impossible to defecate if you cannot relax your hip muscles. I don’t mean glue / buti / left. I’m talking about the four extra muscles that make up your rectal canal and pelvic floor. They are there to prevent incontinence, and thanks to that, they usually work quite well. This barrier is designed to keep our lingerie fresh until we hover over a commode and consciously choose to initiate a sequence of synchronized pelvic muscle relaxation that clears the way for the introduction of a microbial torpedo. Unfortunately, many of us think that when we want to defecate, these pelvic muscles will behave the way we want them to. This is not a reality for many of my patients and perhaps for some of you.
There is a condition called pelvic dysnergia where the muscles fail to relax when they are supposed to, and in some cases, they actually contract. This leads to a situation where the only way to defecate is to strain and push, often a small nugget slips out. Or, people feel the shape of a strange stool or feel that they can never be completely empty. Another symptom is going once, then going back to the bathroom again after 45 minutes. All of these indicate pelvic dysnergia.