# Getting it checked, but need help to calm down



## adam4little (Feb 10, 2011)

Hi,

Three years ago all my bowel issues started. I went to the doctor's and they did an x ray and found accumulated stool in the right side of the colon (freaks me out to this day) and gave me Miralax. Anyway, since then, my bowel habits changed and haven't gone back to their old ways. My stools are usually on the looser side--not always diarrhea (diarrhea prob once a week), but two or three smaller stools, smaller in diameter with a mushy consistency; I still usually only go once a day--unless I've had a lot of food--which is pretty normal for me. I go when I wake up, and the more the "urge" the more explosive it tends to be (like I said, this is like once a week). Over the last three years, I've NOTICED blood in my stool probably six times. The first time was two years ago--bright red blood on the toilet paper--and then five times this past year. The most recent time being this morning. This morning where I honestly wish now I had never looked because here I am, feeling like I have no future. It is so pathetic to say that. But I can't help it. I'm so scared and so hopeless feeling.

Anyway, it was four or five pieces of stool about .75 inch in diameter (the diameter of a dime). There was no blood on the tp when I wiped, but sure enough, when looking in the bowel I notice this brownish reddish streak down the side of the stool. At first, I assumed this was that brown liquid bile stuff you see on stool occasionally, but I looked closer and saw it had this maroon tinge to it. So--thank God my partner is in the health field--I grabbed some clear medical gloves and a paper towel and laid the stool on the paper towel. The liquid on the stool did not come off on the paper towel as red, but rather a brown. I shined a flashlight on the paper towel to examine it more closely, as the light in the bathroom tends to give everything a red tint (just this morning my dark yellow urine looked kind of red) and I saw nothing resembling red. So, I pulled another piece out, flipped it over and noticed it too had a very clear--no question--red patch, a deep dark red. I tore this apart and, thankfully, it was the skin of a tomato/apple.

So, my plan is this: I'm calling my doc Monday and I'm going to ask him if he can refer me to the GI so I can get a colonoscopy. I used to be afraid of the procedure, but now I think I'm more afraid of the results. It's foolish, but I'm being honest here. I'm literally afraid to poop. Before this week I've been pooping without looking because I'm afraid my BM will ruin my whole day. It really sucks, because otherwise my life is a good one, but feeling like you're on death's door everyday is no way to live. Thank you for reading. Any advice to get me through the thanksgiving break?


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## KevinMT (May 20, 2013)

I understand what you're going through--I'm having bad bowel issues as well and the GP thinks I should get a colonscopy to be 100% sure it comes back clean..so that freaked me out even more. It's health anxiety causing these issues for you and me as well...I just went back on Paxil 40mg last week to help control my ocd and health anxiety-she also gave me some ativan to help too. I too have become obsessed with my bathroom habits, weight, etc. It become a vicious cycle and you just want to stop it but can't.

As far as your blood goes, I would relax--especially if it's a regular red colored blood as this is way more often than not due to a hemorrhoid issue or anal fissure. Wiping too hard or straining a bit to pass a stool or even a hard stool can cause these to bleed easily.

Hope we both feel better..Kevin


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## adam4little (Feb 10, 2011)

But that's the thing: the blood appeared to be much darker. What kind of blood to you experience? Mine was mixed in with that dark brown liquid stuff.


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## adam4little (Feb 10, 2011)

So, this morning I saw what appeared to be some of the same liquid/mucus stuff coating my stool. Anyway, I fished some out and put it on a piece of toilet paper so my girlfriend could see it. She looked at it for a few seconds--maybe 30 total--and said it was most definitely a brown color. She said, she could see how maybe if I were expecting to see red, I could see it as sort of red, she said at MOST (and she said this was a stretch) it looked the color of rust.But to her it was brown. I know this has been discussed before, but I can't remember, what is the brown liquid/gelly stuff that coats stool?


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## adam4little (Feb 10, 2011)

Poking around, it looks as if it could be some sort of mucous. Thoughts? Another person on here even mentioned a rust orange color, and another mentioned maroon.


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

Mucus can pick up colors, so it could be that.


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## adam4little (Feb 10, 2011)

Thanks Kathleen. Like I said, I'm going to set up a colonoscopy, despite being terrified of the procedure and not cancel this time. This has been going on three years now, and I have to get on with my life. I wish I had taken pictures yesterday morning, cause now I'm second guessing what I saw.


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## adam4little (Feb 10, 2011)

Also, how does mucus pick up colors? Like from foods? Or blood? What does it sound like to you? Probably hard to say. It's this liquid surrounding the stool like through the cracks, and I'm not sure what it is. Is that the brown blood people talk about? Liquid stool?


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

If the colors are water soluble they can diffuse into the mucus, so the mucus doesn't always stay a pristine white or clear color.

It isn't like the stool is bleeding/leaking the blood out. I think you are way overanalyzing this. (Which is easy to do when you get yourself freaked out).

Various food items can color the stool as well so hard to say the one and only explaination for any given appearance must be blood. Usually when people have a lot of bleeding in the gut (so going through a darker brown maroon to tarry black protions of the stool depending on how high up the bleeding is) they often have diarrhea rather than perfectly normal stools, but doesn't have to be all liquid.

You have the test scheduled so I'd try to focus on anything else other than your stool between now and then.


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## HumanistRuth (Sep 19, 2013)

Do you have to wait long to see a GI? Specialists often have month long wait times. Though they may give you priority with blood in the stool. You really need an expert diagnosis.


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## windemere (Sep 25, 2011)

Ive had weird colored mucus. Its bern white, brown, yellow and the rust colour you described. It was yellow when i was having problems with acid reflux and then turned to that rust colour. I had several stool tests done. I sent my stool with the odd coloured mucus to the lab and it was fine. My gi doc found that i wasnt absorbing sugars properly though and after further testing found that i had a fructose malabsorption problem. I thought for sure that there was something serious going on. Also, dyes in food can really mess with stool colour. I ate almond joy pieces that had a blue candy outside and pooped a blueish colour for 2 days. I freaked out until i remembered i ate those.


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## guitar_ted87 (Mar 8, 2017)

Adam

Sounds terribly similar to me. One day in December I decided to check my stool. And to my great astonishment I found streaks of burgundy red on my stool... when I wiped them off the stool they were brownish orange no red. My FOBT test came back negative and the doctor said it was likely what I was eating. But it kept occurring about once every 7 to 10 days. I did an ezdetect and again it was negative for blood. Even on the day I noticed it. I cut some foods out of my diet and I haven't seen in in 16 days... but it's still in my mind. I see one orange glob of slime in my stool once in a while. But thankfully none of the burgundy streaky coating.


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