Fecal incontinence: What helps?

Hello @jenweb and welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. Incontinence can certainly make having an active lifestyle more difficult. I have a female family member who has had a similar experience and found relief using IBS Clear: https://www.amazon.com/IBS-ClearTM-Psyllium-Friendly-Capsules/dp/B07VCKL6WW

Would you say it you are experiencing a combination of GI and incontinence issues?

The FODMAP diet has helped me a lot. It’s a medical diet so you always start with your doctor or dietician. On this I eat a healthy diet but a couple of foods are rarely on my plate and a couple more I eat, but just in moderation. My diet did not change very much but being on my personalized FODMAP diet greatly changed my life. Good luck, I hope you get some answers and keep up the good work with having an active lifestyle.

What is the FODMAP diet?

I have also had this problem for years and it’s getting worse, to the point of interrupting my active lifestyle. I started taking Metamucil which has helped but not enough. I’m now looking at surgical options.

FODMAP is an acronym for foods that are known to cause gastro problems for some people. Mine are garlic and apples. I can eat certain apples but not others. I can eat garlic in small quantities. There is a medical system for finding out which foods should be eliminated or eaten in small quantities. That’s why you start with your doctor or dietician.

Thank you.

@jenweb This is so frustrating and 15 years is a very long time to live with this. I've had fecal incontinence on occasion after pelvic radiation therapy. I"m glad you came here to Mayo Clinic Connect for support.

Have you considered pelvic floor physical therapy (PT)? I've had PT sessions with pelvic floor specialists and it's been so helpful. I was listening to a radio program a few days ago on women's health and the physicians talked about how effective pelvic floor PT is for the entire pelvic area including the rectum. Your description related to childbirth, age, and menopause fits right into that group. Your doctor would need to make the referral and you would want a PT who is specifically trained in pelvic floor. Here are two websites related to this:
https://menopause.org/
https://www.ucsfhealth.org/treatments/pelvic-floor-physical-therapy
Do you have a primary care physician who will help you with this?

What surgical options are you looking at? I tried the sacral nerve stimulator implant but it was not successful. I don't think they ever got the electrodes placed correctly and the stimulator got infected with staff bacteria so it had to come out. I would consider other surgical options at this point, but not sure what they would be? Any input you can give me on that would be greatly appreciated. Thank-you so much!

Yes, I am trying pelvic floor PT, just for a month now. They tell me it takes 3-4 months to notice a difference, some shall see. It helps with urinary but not fecal incontinence so far. In the meantime, I find the pelvic floor exercises a real challenge and so is trying to do them every day twice a day! Thank-you for your input.

Yes, definitely experiencing a combination of both. The naturopath has given me a fiber supplement called Fibre Feel to try. It is low in FODMAP, so we shall see how it goes. Going to start it tomorrow. Thanks for contributing!