Constipation is no laughing matter, and this just proves it!
On 25 December, a Taiwanese girl took to the local social media site, Dcard to share how extreme her case of constipation really was.
In her post, the 23-year-old female University student shared she has been suffering from constipation since she was a child, going as long as 17 days without emptying her bowels at all. And it often takes her up to 1-2 hours to use the toilet.
After suffering from this issue for many years, she finally decided to visit the doctor and do an x-ray to see how bad the situation was. And to her horror, she was so constipated to the point where her colon had swelled and squeezed upwards towards her heart.
She explained that she has tried countless methods to try and solve her constipation, including eating various brands of probiotics, eating lots of vegetables and fruits. Once, she even ate seven big papayas and two dragon fruits and yet to no avail.
“This is the result of the accumulation of faeces for many years… The only solution seems to be to cut off my colon but I’m so scared,” she writes in her post.
“If I don’t have a bowel movement, I think I need to cut my colon. I’m posting this article in hopes I can get other people’s suggestions.”
Luckily for her, the post soon started gaining traction online, where netizens shared their own experiences with constipation and gave her various messages of encouragement and advice.
In particular, one poster informed her that no, her colon had not reached her heart at all. Instead, it’s in a totally normal position and she may have been born with just a longer colon than others.
She also received abusive posts regarding the situation but has since messaged the makers of these posts to remove them and apologise lest she reports them to the police.
Other commenters expressed how they’re also in similar situations, encouraging her that she is not alone in her worries.
“I’m exactly like you! I drink a lot of water, eat bananas, drink milk and eat yoghurt. I also love to eat vegetables and fruits, but it’s difficult to maintain all the time. Unless you’re having diarrhoea, it always stays the same. I’ve had the same thing happen to me before after a really long time of constipation, and my X-ray revealed that my colon was extremely long. Just like you, I’m thinking if I should do the same.”
“And I thought having constipation for three days was bad, never thought that you… this must be hard to deal with, I hope you get well soon!”
In an interview with SET News, she said that she plans on going for a hospital examination in January next year and is willing to undergo surgery if need be. She encourages everyone suffering similar issues to not be afraid and to visit the doctor if you need to.
Constipation occurs when too much stool stays in the colon or if the stool moves too slowly, allowing your colon to absorb all its water and making it dry and harder to push out. Oftentimes when there is an excess accumulation of stool, your colon will stretch to accommodate it, causing the stool to move slower through the colon and thus making the situation worse.
We really hope this poor girl finds a solution to her problem soon and is healthy again.
Also read: Man With Constipation Dies of Cardiac Arrest After He Pooped With Excessive Force