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The Bathroom Part of the Story.

Here is what "they" don't tell you. Accidents happen, you have may thought you could get home, unlock the door and be ripping half your clothes off while running to the bathroom. You just don't quite make it. If you live alone, you will be cleaning yourself, your clothes and the bathroom. Projectile diarrhea goes much farther than you ever thought it could. You may be finding it days or weeks later in places you never imagined.
Are you ready to use a friends bathroom? Psychic friends would leave cleaner and paper towels or rags, and especially nice would be a grocery store bag to put the paper towels/rags in but few people are psychic. Never assume they have perfect plumbing if left with just toilet paper, asking for a plunger may be just as humiliating, don't try to shove all the cleanup toilet paper in one flush. Make it a process, clean &; flush, clean & flush. Remember men might be using this bathroom before the night is over, don't shock them with a nasty toilet seat.
You will quickly learn all of the best public bathrooms where you live. Fast food restaurant chains can be great, so can gas stations that are also a mini mart. One fast food place that I have spent enough money for food that I feel like I have paid for the bathroom, so don't feel guilty about dashing in and just using the bathroom.
Carry toilet paper and a plastic grocery bag in your vehicle. And maybe a change in underwear. You may never need to pull over on a dirt road, or the highway at night, but then again you might.
Explain to people, when you are riding in their vehicle, that you will give as much warning as possible, it doesn't mean we can go to one more garage sale or through another sub-division. If they don't take your warning seriously, you may be shouting or pleading in 10 more minutes. Being frantic can bring out the worst side in people. I am not proud of some of things I have said.
Some diarrhea is very acidic, start looking for and reading the ingredients of convenient wipes. Baby wipes is what I started out with. Now they have better products, don't irritate already irritated tissue.
You now have 43 years of hits and misses on my part, Clothes are easier to clean than car upholstery, the neighbors that didn't my situation must have thought I was nuts parking at the end of the driveway and trying to get to the house. The closer you get to the bathroom the more frantic you will feel. It is just one of those laws of nature.

  1. Thank you for sharing MJS1953, we appreciate you sharing these tips and experiences! Our contributors have written a number of articles on this topic as well so you are not alone!

    I wanted to share a few articles in case you find them helpful or have comments to add:
    https://inflammatoryboweldisease.net/living/stress-events-ibd/
    https://inflammatoryboweldisease.net/symptoms/urgency-and-incontinence/

    Thank you again for sharing with all of us and please keep us posted on your IBD.

    Susan (InflammatoryBowelDisease.net Team Member)

    Please read our rules before posting.