This was a true test of my patience...
Only this morning have I been able to be plugged again after four days, and even when I plugged this morning around 6 a.m., I had to remove it again for yet another bowel movement.
It all started the other day when I felt extremely bloated and my entire gut felt really hard. Not only that, when I lay down on my left side (the side you're supposed to lie down on when you've eaten) I felt pain somewhere near the opening of the sigmoid colon, but I caution that without real pain receptors in the system inside the guts, it could have only felt localized. The pain was not severe, but it was enough for me to think that I might be overly constipated from my regimen of digestion-slowing food, along with taking too much Imodium. There's also this idea that your gut can become compacted and the constipation is severe and your feces becomes extremely hard.
So I reluctantly removed my beloved butt plug and started a program of stool softeners, high levels of dietary fiber and drinking plenty of liquids. It took these last four days to reach a feeling that I had finally defecated adequately to reinsert the butt plug into my rectum. This will go down into my posts as one of the longest periods I have gone without a plug in my rectum in seven years. This is one of those times when wearing a plug was just not possible—unless I was willing to make matters possibly worse with this bout of constipation.
Those of you who have read my blog for seven years know that when I started trying to wear a plug 24/7/365 I had issues with the runs, soft stools, and irritable bowel syndrome. Creating and regulating a different diet, along with taking Imodium (OTC generic) helped me to realize my dream of living plugged. And since April of this year, I have had the best consistency with waste elimination, perfect stools, and little or no gas, so that my plugging was pleasant and carefree.
But I have learned during that time that it's possible to overdo the white steamed rice in too many dishes. I learned from this experience that I do need to add dietary fiber to my diet, as well, and so from here on, I will be renovating my diet and experimenting with additional foods. The best advice I can give myself and others who might be having occasional difficulty like me is don't try to stay plugged if you're having to fight your digestive schedule. Instead, be patient and just live through the withdrawal symptoms of not having a plug in your rectum. I've had the plug in for a few hours and even now it's a bit uncomfortable. It could also be that I am coming down with something. It is colder now, rainy, and the weather is unpredictable. I go from being over-heated to chilled.