Red flakes in stool.. Any ideas?

[Karbairusa]

Hello! I appreciate you reading this whoever you are... I'm hoping for some answers and this is the only place I could think of.

I am going to be in depth with information as to get the most help possible.

A week ago I had a small about of blood in my stool. I'm 19, so this freaked me out. My parents said it's fine, and that it happens sometimes. I spent most of my time thinking I had cancer, hemmorhoids, or crohns thanks to webMD. 3 days later, it went away to my relief. Now , since it went away, I have had what looks like small red flakes in my stool.. Not a lot of them but probably 1 or 2 on the outside. When I first noticed this, it wasn't a shock because I had eaten chili the night before. Same for the next day.. A bit more worried it was there but was confident it was the beans or tomatoes or something. It is now 5 days (I think) and I'm still having them in there. It's not all movements either.. I have noticed about 3 that did not have them, but it's possible that I just didn't see them. One time I put gloves on and well.. Went in (at this point I had to... I was freaking out) they were hard. Not rock hard mind you. Not thick either. Pretty thin and and weak, but solid, not like gelatin..you know when you eat popcorn and the yellow shell things might get stuck in your teeth? Closest things I can compare them to.I'm 19 and very scared and freaked out. I don't know what it could be, and I'm scared it's something dangerous, like cancer or something. I still live at home and told my mom and she said that I'm fine. I told her I wanted to go to the doctor and all and she just said your fine you don't have cancer stop worrying .

Important information:
My stool color has ranged from darkish brown to cardboard brown. Nothing weird like black or any other color.
I have no pain when passing stools.
I do have abdominal pain, but it's not everyday and really doesn't hurt. Similar to when you run a long time in gym and your exhausted and when you walk it feels weird and hurts on your sides. I have always had it from time to time and assumed it was normal. I have had it for the longest time and always associated it with walking or running too fast or too much
There is no bleeding when I pass stools.
There has been no recent change in how often I pass stools.
No real recent change in diet except I'm drinking a lot more water now when I used to not drink any.


I'm just looking for answers.. I'm really scared and worried. I want to see a doctor because I want answers but I don't want him to have to check my back end . Scared to death he will want a colonoscopy or something. Please help me, I really didn't know where else to turn.

 

[shamrock15]

Well, if you haven't been diagnosed, blood in stool isn't normal. Something has happened, and maybe it has passed. Some of your symptoms do remind me of those that I had when I was little and undiagnosed. You really do need to seek some medical assistance here, and you likely will get at least a finger up the backside to check for hemmorhoids or fissures. The blood you saw - bright red or dark red? Anything that looks like coffee grinds? Colour may be an indicator to where the problem was. Likely there will be some blood work. Any other non-bowel movement related symptoms like fatigue, sleep problems, changes in skin? Look at your finger nails - are they flat or rounded or clubbed? Joint pain? Day long colds, chills, night sweats? If you are worried about crohn's, you will see signs somewhere else in your body as it is a systemic disease. My feeling is you need to get looked at.

 

[Karbairusa]

Bright red, that's why I did not worry. Nothing like coffee grinds. Any other symptoms you mention I have not had. Just those red flecks and the blood that had now gone away. I feel absolutely normal... Not sick at all. I feel like myself 100%.

 

[vonfunk]

The fact that you feel fine is very good, it might very well be nothing but seeing a doctor isn't a bad idea.

Bright red blood is usually an indication that whatever is causing is lower in the GI tract towards the rectum. It could be anything from inflammation causing bleed to an actual physical trauma to the lower colon or rectum (small cut,tear due to difficult BM).

Keep an eye on it and pay attention to the symptoms Shamrock15 mentioned above. Unfortunately a doctor checking your backend will probably happen, scopes are a hassle but usually aren't too bad, I've had dozens upon dozens. They medicate you so that you don't notice. I had one without any sort of medication because it was unplanned, happened during a GI appt and I had to head to work immediately after, they were only checking the very base, uncomfortable and unpleasant but not painful.