Wednesday, December 26, 2018

Recent Constipation and Review of Squatty Potty from a Crohn's Patient

Image result for squatty potty

For a while I had heard of Squatty Potty. Honestly I was a little skeptical about this device. There were thoughts in my head like 1) why hadn't a gastroenterologist invented this already? 2) How effective could it really be? 3) Is this just a fad? To be perfectly honest even though I had Crohn's I had not realized that constipation was such a common problem.

Well December 3, 2018 was interesting day for my bowels. At work in the early afternoon I had tried to pass a bowel movement but was unable to do so. It felt as if I had two large bricks in my backside and I pushed and pushed but nothing happen. I left work early and went to a Target near my apartment to see if they had Squatty Potty (someone who worked at the store looked at me without trying to laugh). Unfortunately, Target was out so I went and purchased some stool softeners. As I was walking to the car my backside felt like it had a tremendous amount of pressure inside. I went home and was able to pass the bowel movement (honestly it was one of the largest I had ever passed) and I felt like I had lost a few pounds in a matter of minutes. So I ended up not using the stool softeners and got them just in case. I had been having constipation issues for the previous couple of weeks so I went ahead and went onto Amazon and ordered one through Amazon Prime.

When my Squatty Potty arrived I still was skeptical thinking is this really going to work? Luckily the day it came I had some constipation and had tried to test try the Squatty Potty out first. It is pretty easy to use and really helps you squat to do your business. The first time I tried it honestly it did help make it easier. I did a test run too to try a bowel movement with and without the Squatty Potty. I did notice the Squatty Potty did help ease passing the bowel movement. The best way I can describe it is the Squatty Potty seems to keep everything in line (as opposed to just sitting on the toilet). Overall, I am quite happy with the Squatty Potty and have noticed an improvement in passing bowel movements and reduced strain.

Sometimes regular people and Crohn' patients have constipation. The constipation seems to have gone away as I have been working out much more (I am off on vacation for 2 weeks) and therefore drinking plenty of water to stay hydrated. I would recommend the Squatty Potty for anyone that is looking to help pass their bowel movements and honestly don't see any harm in using it (even for Crohn's patients). Although, I am not a doctor I would think the Squatty Potty would help since you aren't having to strain as much which over time could cause issues.


Full disclosure: I purchased Squatty Potty on my own and don't receive any financial support from the maker of Squatty Potty