that's so interesting! it makes a lot of sense, but how would you get that position with a regular toilet? i doubt my roommate would appreciate a strange squatting device around our toilet...not to mention she'd think i was crazy!
would using a foot stool, and sitting normally with your legs raised in front of you achieve the same position? i know you're a squatter gareth, how do you do it?

well i prop myself on top of the toilet, lifting the seat, and plopping my feet on the rim itself. yes, it requires the toilet to be super clean so your feet won't pick up germs but also good balance or something nearby to hold on to so you won't tip over.
nothing like risking crapping on yourself huh!? :-)
of course the longer your crap is, the more weight you place on your feet so you must tread lightly after you get off so your feet can adjust again to the floor or they will be slightly sore.
but this definitely helped me when i was doing the macro diet in combination and it was a relief and for me, helped take the pressure off my fissure.

Oh my, I can only imagine some BIG person trying to do that - I guess it can be very dangerous if one losses the balance and falls IN the toilet or brake the rim !!!
"OK Sir, can you explain me again what happened actually and why did you call 911 ???"
LOL, just couldn't resist : ))) !!!!

the other recommendations i can make, which may be gross or not....
get yourself a litter box just like a cat has one....or a pan or something with litter gravel.....then just scoop out your poop...
else, get some of those doggy crap bags and place it around your anus when crapping and just crap inside the bag and just throw away.
also, just put some newspaper on the floor and squat right on it.

after i read this post i decided to try squatting. i've been doing it everyday for the past week and i've definitely noticed a difference! i feel much more emptied out each time, and it's so much easier to go. it's like it just falls out. it's kind of weird sounding, but i just climb on the toilet, and put my feet on the seat and squat over the bowl. it's not really that awkward. i use my hands to hold onto the back of the toilet so i don't fall.

thanks for the suggestion gareth!

juney, believe it or not, this totally helped me alleviate putting pressure on the fissure. i think squatting helped not only with relieving my bms, but also contributed to healing the fissure.
just make sure to get good balance and let yourself relax.
after squatting and encountering these types of toilets in the airport in istanbul, i was like, how embarrassing to do this in public toilets, but it makes soooo much sense!

Gareth,
Great article LOL. I printed it out so that I could save it to remind myself to squat!! Thanks!
Patty

i just wanted to mention to everyone that i STOPPED squatting. it was about 2 weeks after i started squatting to poo that i noticed pain and swelling after feeling pretty darn good for a whole month. that's when i looked down there and saw the discharge. i stopped squatting then and there! maybe it was just a coincidence, but i definitely connect my squatting w/ my most recent horrible setback - especially the swelling i saw afterwards. it put way too much pressure on the anus as i hovered over the toilet.

juney what happened?
just a quick question....do you still strain to have a bm?
i think that if you strain regardless if it is sitting or squatting, the straining is the most crucial component to work on.
squatting works best of course when you just let your bm slip out...if it doesn't come out easily like when you put pam on a frying pan and the egg just slides out, then squatting wouldn't be much help.....
of course once i got back to a managable way of crapping -without straining, sitting of course seems to be the most logical because that is how we have our toilets here......i certainly can't squat at work or anywhere else other than home.