Types of bowel
URINE AND BOWEL MANAGEMENT
Different persons require different types of bowel programs, depending on whether
their bowels are ‘automatic’, ‘limp’, or ‘pull back’.
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• Automatic bowel usually occurs in persons who have muscle spasms in their
legs, and an ‘automatic bladder’. The muscle or ‘sphincter’ in the anus (asshole)
stays shut until there is a stimulation in the bowel to make it open, so that the
stool can come out. An automatic bowel will ‘move’ in response to a suppository
or stimulation by a finger.
• Limp or ‘flaccid’ bowel usually occurs in persons with low spinal cord damage
who have limp (not spastic) legs and bladder. The sphincter muscle in the anus is
also limp. So the person tends to ‘ooze’ or ‘dribble’ shit. A limp bowel does not
respond to finger stimulation.
• A bowel that pulls back is neither automatic nor limp. When you put a finger up
the anus, you can feel the stool move back up instead of coming out.
PROGRAM FOR AN AUTOMATIC BOWEL
• Start with a suppository
if available. With a finger
covered with a glove or
plastic bag, and then oil,
push the suppository about
2 cm. (1 in.) up the anus.
Do not push it into the
stool, but push it against
the wall of the bowel.
(Or try the program
without a suppository;
usually finger stimulation
is enough.)
• Wait 5 or 10 minutes. Then
help the person sit on
a toilet or pot. If he
cannot sit, have him lie on
his left side (on top of old
paper).
SUPPLIES NEEDED
• non-sterile glove, finger glove, or plastic bag
• lubricant (vegetable or mineral oil works well)
• old paper or newspaper
• soap and water
• if available, suppositories such as Dulcolax
or glycerin. These are bullet-shaped pills that
are pushed into the anus.
They stimulate the bowel
and cause it to push out
the stool (shit).
suppository
• Put an oiled finger into the anus about 2 cm. Gently move the finger in circles
for about 1 minute, until the anus relaxes and the stool pushes out.
• Repeat the finger action 3 or 4 times, or until no more stool is felt.
• Clean the butt and anus well and wash your hands.
disabled village children