The Poop

So, this is a strange post, but I felt the need to share. And - so you're aware - I will be talking about poop.

This morning I had my usual post-breakfast BM, and all seemed normal. No pain, no weirdness, no "staining" on the TP. But then I turned around to flush and saw that the bowl of "stuff" was slightly reddish. Hm, strange. Of course, like just about anyone, the first thing I thought was, "Oh my god, blood!". To make things more concerning, there seemed to be little red balls in the stool. Cause for alarm? Perhaps. (what would you think?)

Well, while remaining calm (trying not to be alarmed), I was sure to call Michael to see what he thought. For one thing, having a spouse with whom you feel comfortable discussing such matters, sometimes you find out that they have experienced something you yourself are experiencing for the first time. Second of all, I wanted to know if he could think of anything we'd eaten recently that may not have been easily digestible. I couldn't think of anything, and neither could he. So I called the Blue Cross nurse line.

After asking all the standard questions (and there were many), and basically coming up with nothing specific, "Juanita" suggested I call to make an appointment with my doctor sometime in the next week or so, and to watch for more of the same, but not to be alarmed unless something changed drastically. It didn't sound like an emergency. She also said that due to the color of red (assuming it was blood) I described, it's most likely higher up the digestive tract and not, say, a hemorrhoid, or something else further down. But, no guesses on the little "balls".

I wanted a second opinion, so I called the nurse line at the women's clinic where I've been doing my prenatals. I figured, for all Juanita knows, this isn't an emergency under normal circumstances, but perhaps it would be for someone who is pregnant. After some discussion with "Peg", telling her all of the same stuff I told Juanita, she figured it very well could have been a hemorrhoid, just internal. But, in the end, basically gave me the same advice: watch my subsequent BM's and note anything unusual. If it persists, call and make an appointment. I asked if she had an opinion about the little balls, and she suggested (or did she ask if I thought...) perhaps blood clots. Gasp!

While continuing to talk with Peg, and describing to her size of the balls - about the size of a pea - something hit me! "The size of a pea"...

Huh. Peas? Why, yes, I had eaten peas recently. As a matter of fact, raw peas, straight out of the pod, in a salad... And, what else was on that salad? Beets! I had eaten this salad Wednesday night, and then again the leftovers Thursday for lunch. I asked Peg, after slightly laughing at myself, if she thought it possible for the color of the beets to have made its way through, and if the peas were just too difficult to digest. She kind of laughed a little, and said it was entirely possible.

I think it's more than possible, but probable. And altogether too funny.

I, myself, have never seen my poo colored from beets, and I guess I just never paid attention to whether or not my body was able to digest raw peas. I am sort of self-diagnosing here, but I'm about 99% sure this is the answer. (I will, of course, be watching and paying close attention to the way I feel, and see someone promptly should anything change; so far, nothing to worry about)

So, in sharing this, I'm hoping to alleviate some alarm in others should they experience something like this. (Of course, I'm not advocating that you "assume" the same for yourself. I just hope that you won't be worried it's blood clots or worse, at least until you see someone or do some detailed evaluation of what you've eaten recently) I did a little research about the color of beets making its way through to the end, and found out that not only is it entirely possible, it's medical condition: beeturia. I'm not even kidding. It totally sounds like a made-up name, as in, made up by a child. Apparently, only a small percentage of the population is susceptible to it. Who knew? I also read (and will continue to research), that it's a sign that my body is struggling with the uptake of iron. Hm.

Speaking of poo (because I can't speak of it enough..?): I ordered diapers today! (yes, I am a mom-to-be and a slight geek about all things pregnancy/baby/parenting, so ordering diapers is a "yay!" moment) Remember my post about the free gDiapers? Well, the company that came out with flushable diaper inserts has now come out with washable inserts, upon customer demand. So, now you can use the same pants and liners for at-home and out-and-about purposes. Since, in our free stash, we acquired 2 pairs of pants (both with liners), two extra liners and a total of 40 flushable inserts, we just needed a few more pants and the cloth inserts. Ordered the six pack of pants - originally $70, but I found an online coupon that saved us $30 - and 24 inserts. We should be good to get started once Jellybean arrives, and if we find we're running behind on washing, we can order more and use the flushables in the meantime.

Given these (and all diapers) are sized, and "small" is what we're starting with, we'll have to buy another whole set once Jellybean is 14+ lbs. At least for now, we can say we got a steal for these, and we'll be saving tons compared to disposables. Heck, even if we end up buying these at full price from now on, we're saving money compared to disposables. Not to mention, feeling much better about ourselves about the whole thing, environmentally (that is what got this ball rolling in the first place).

I will also be creating my own wipes solution (100% natural) to use on washable cloth wipes. I'll keep a spray bottle and the dry wipes next to the changing station, and we're good to go. Saving on waste here as well. Yay! Who knew one could be so thrilled about poo?!