Pregnancy Symptoms and Solutions

Difficulty Controlling Bowels After Pregnancy

Your poor, battered bottom took the brunt of the damage during delivery, and now it's seeking its revenge. Here's what you need to know to regain control of your bowels after pregnancy.

What difficulty controlling bowels after pregnancy is

You're struggling with postpartum fecal incontinence, which means you have difficulty controlling bowel movements or passing gas after you've given birth. (Not too common and not too pretty, either.) You might experience anything from a feeling of pressure to actual soiling without warning. In addition, most women with fecal incontinence find it difficult to control when (and where!) they pass gas after pregnancy or even to differentiate gas from that got-to-go feeling.

What causes you to have difficulty controlling your bowels after pregnancy

Labor and delivery can be pretty rough on your body. Muscles and nerves get stretched and bruised, and that damage can make it difficult for you to control when and how waste leaves your body. If your delivery included the use of forceps or vacuum extraction or you had significant tearing or an episiotomy that extended way back toward your anus, you're likely to experience at least some trouble with your bowels while the area heals. (It will heal, promise!)

What you need to know about your difficulty controlling your bowels after pregnancy

The good news is the problem is likely to take care of itself within a few months after delivery as your body heals and returns to normal. (If that seems like a long time to you, keep in mind that the healing process takes a while down there. After all, you can give a sprained elbow a rest by putting it in a sling, but the anus is pretty much used every day and that can slow the recovery time.) Although it's rare for the problem not to go away on its own, there are cases in which surgery becomes necessary.

What to do about your difficulty controlling your bowels after pregnancy

  • Don't be embarrassed to talk to your practitioner. In fact, it's important for him or her to keep an eye on you, in case things aren't progressing as they should.
  • Manage your bowel movements and gas after pregnancy by staying away from hard-to-digest and gas-producing foods like bran, beans, and broccoli.
  • Do your Kegels. Then do them again. And again. In addition to strengthening the muscles that help control the anus, Kegels boost blood flow to the perineal area — a big key to healing.
  • If things don't seem to be improving, consider talking to a physical therapist about pelvic-floor therapy.

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