I had surgery on 3/15/18 to remove a rectal Tumor & have a reversible colostomy, today I had a rectal bowel movement (rectum is intact) I didn’t think that was physically possible and am a little freaked out! Has anyone had this happen? My surgeon didn’t mention this could happen.
Happens for me about once a day and I have no colon at all and have an ileostomy. The thing is if you have an intact rectom it creates it's own "matter" that can cause what you mentioned. From what I understand it's mainly enzymes and a form of bowel lubricant that you're body makes for it's self.
So yes perfectly normal.
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Thanks for your prompt reply I’ve been very comcerned & almost afraid to eat. My Dr. is usually very thorough as far as expectations & side effects, but she missed this. Thanks again for the reassurance!
Our bodies create anywhere from 2.5 to 5 liters of liquid daily, eating or not. What will come from the rectum when the colon has been removed or is temporarily disconnected is some of this intestinal fluid but mostly mucous, which in normal circumstances is what facilitates the fecal matter to be expelled. And yeah, surgeons are not very good at explaining this issue, they usually just casually mention "slight anal leakage" in passing until we get freaked out when it happens. It can be accompanied by a strong urge to defecate, but again, it is not really poop. Don't let it freak you out because it is much better to be able to pass it normally that to need suppositories or other assistance because it hardens and doesn't release on it's own. If there is a significant amount of blood, and you had ulcerative colitis, it can be diversion colitis, meaning you still have the colitis in the rectum, and with a lot of blood you really do want to keep your doctor in the loop, surgeon and GI.
Peace
