Trouble pooping on vacation? You’re not alone, and here’s how to fix that

This story is from The Pulse, a weekly health and science podcast. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Find our full episode on poop here.

You’ve finally arrived at your destination, and your itinerary is packed with relaxing activities — sleeping in late, lying on the beach, grabbing a piña colada, and feasting on the local food. You’re on vacation; this is what you’re supposed to do. 

But what isn’t on your itinerary: grueling days of constipation and the excessive bloating that follows. 

About 40 percent of travelers experience constipation when away from home. And sometimes it’s hard to pinpoint the culprit, if there is just one. This is a phenomenon that neurogastroenterologist Trisha Pasricha hears a lot about from her patients. 

“It’s one of the biggest reasons people’s vacations go so awry,” she said.

Pasricha directs the Institute for Gut-Brain Research at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston and leads a laboratory funded by the National Institutes of Health. She also covers this topic in her new book, “You’ve Been Pooping All Wrong: How to Make Your Bowel Movements a Joy.”

“I hear this all the time around this time of year when people are coming back from their spring breaks that they should have had a really lovely time … and instead by day three, day four, they realize they haven’t pooped the entire time, and they’re just completely miserable.”

So why can’t people “go” on vacation? 

To get a better idea of what’s really going on, I surveyed a few brave participants at Washington Square Park in Philadelphia.  To protect their privacy, we’re only using participants’ first names because, well, it’s about poop.  

People spoke about comfort, stress, and more:

“I don’t know. Something about being in a different environment, but I can attest that it is true from personal experience, but I don’t know why,” said Mike. 

“Our stress levels are extremely important. And all of these things, I feel, get shifted when we’re in a new location. And then it disrupts that gut -body -brain connection to then release and have the release be pleasurable,” said Naomi. 

“It depends. If you’re by yourself, you shouldn’t have a problem going number two on vacation. If you’re by yourself, you feel comfortable,” said Aigner.

People also mentioned eating outside of their normal diet and forgetting to drink enough water. 

Pasricha says altogether, the vacation constipation is severalfold. She says to remember that our colons have a schedule that they rely on.

“Our colons are a creature of habit. So they actually operate on a circadian rhythm,” Pasricha said. 

The circadian rhythm is our body’s internal clock. Over the span of 24 hours, this clock tells our body when to do things and when to give it a rest. For example, it helps release hormones that make you feel energized during the day and sleepy at night. 

As for our colon, our circadian rhythm tells it to go quiet at night and to resume activity in the morning. 

“That’s why a lot of people do regularly go in the morning because that’s a time when your colon is naturally starting to contract and push things forward,” Pasricha said. 

But when we’re on vacation, our schedule is often different. We sleep in, missing that morning colon wake-up call. Sometimes, we’re in a drastically different time zone, which can also throw off our internal clock. 

Pasricha wants us to also remember that on vacation, our daily routines are disturbed. We may not be waking up early for that cup of coffee which is known to stimulate contractions in the colon. We probably aren’t walking the dog or participating in any exercise — we’re most likely lounging. 

A second factor that can lead to vacation constipation is a lack of fiber. Whether you’re at a getaway destination or just a few hundred miles away from home, you’re most likely not eating a well-balanced meal. 

“Like, order broccoli,” Pasricha said. “I know that’s weird. I know that’s lame. I know that’s not what you want to do on vacation, but just order a real adult vegetable at dinner.”

Or, she says, just simply take a fiber supplement. 

Lastly, Pasricha says that if you’re still having trouble in the bathroom, it may be time to consider your surroundings and any environmental stress.

“You have to feel safe. You actually physically cannot have a bowel movement unless you feel safe,” she said. “ God forbid you’re sharing that hotel room with your cousins or your best friends, and everyone’s judging each other. It’s horrible. People can’t go.”

Pasricha says patients often tell her horror stories about escaping to the hotel lobby bathroom for a peaceful moment, but she says there are ways to tweak the experience without leaving the room. 

She suggests creating a serene environment — a vacation … from your vacation.  

“Sometimes that means literally putting some headphones on and just tuning out the external environment,” she said. “Shutting your eyes … and pretending you’re somewhere else.”