Digging out the stool can damage the soft tissue at the opening of your anus, resulting in anal tears and bleeding. Only a doctor should manually remove poop from the rectum.

Laxatives are meant to cause diarrhea. They work either by drawing water into the gut or by causing the muscles of the intestines to contract. However, taking too much of a laxative can cause diarrhea that is a problem.

All laxatives work in different ways, each with the intention of helping to relieve constipation. Understanding the differences between laxatives and stool softeners may help a person decide which one to use.

• Best Overall: MiraLAX Powder Laxative.
• Best Budget: Phillips’ Milk of Magnesia.
• Best for Pregnancy: Dulcolax Pink Stool Softener.
• Best for Postpartum: Colace Stool Softener.
• Best for the Elderly: Phillips’ Stool Softener Liquid Gels.
• Best for Constipation: Colace 2-in-1 Stool Softener & Stimulant Laxative.

Splinting involves inserting a clean finger into the vagina to push on the wall between the vagina and rectum, or the perineum. The push helps evacuate stool during a bowel movement. It’s estimated that up to 30% of women use this technique to occasionally help with bowel movements.

Digital disimpaction, also referred to as digital fecal evacuation, manual fecal removal, manual evacuation, or rectal clear is probably one of the most uncomfortable procedures for patients and one of the least favored tasks of medical providers.

Manual removal If a laxative or a suppository doesn’t unblock the feces from your colon, your doctor will remove the feces manually. To do this, they’ll insert their gloved finger into your rectum and remove the blockage.

If in addition to constipation, you experience a combination of any of these four symptoms—severe abdominal pain, an inability to pass gas, vomiting, and stomach bloating—you might actually have a bowel obstruction. This is a serious issue that definitely warrants a trip to the ER, says Chutkan.

What are the symptoms of fecal impaction?

1. liquid stool leaking from the rectum.
2. pain or discomfort in the abdomen.
3. abdominal bloating.
4. nausea or vomiting.
5. feeling the need to push.
6. a headache.
7. unintentional weight loss.
8. a feeling of fullness and not wanting to eat.