When something is amiss with your colon, the sensations can vary from subtle changes in your digestive routine to more noticeable discomforts in your abdominal area. These feelings and observations often indicate that your bowel is not functioning as it typically should.
Here's a breakdown of what it might feel like:
- Changes in Bowel Habits: You might experience a significant shift in the frequency or consistency of your bowel movements. This could manifest as:
- More frequent diarrhea: Stools become loose, watery, and you may need to use the restroom more often than usual.
- Persistent constipation: Bowel movements become difficult, infrequent, and stools are often hard.
- An alternating pattern between diarrhea and constipation.
- Ongoing Abdominal Discomfort: A common feeling is persistent discomfort in your belly area. This can present in various ways:
- Cramps: Spasmodic pains that come and go, often described as a gripping sensation.
- Gas: A feeling of bloating, fullness, or pressure in your abdomen due to excessive gas.
- Pain: A dull ache or a sharper, more localized pain in your stomach region. This discomfort might be constant or recur frequently.
- Feeling of Incomplete Emptying: After a bowel movement, you might have a persistent sensation that your bowel hasn't fully emptied. This can leave you feeling like you still need to go, even immediately after using the restroom.
- Visible Signs (Not a feeling, but an important observation): While not a feeling, observing changes related to your stool is crucial:
- Rectal bleeding: Bright red blood visible on toilet paper, in the toilet bowl, or mixed with stool.
- Blood in the stool: Stool that appears dark red or black, indicating that blood may be present within it.
These symptoms serve as important signals from your body, indicating that your colon may be experiencing issues.
