A WOMAN was horrified when she started pooing and farting through a mysterious tunnel in her left bum cheek just an inch away from her anus.
Customer service representative Tierney Dumont, 29, from Miamisburg, Ohio, said it is “not an ideal lifestyle” but she has learnt to live with the issue.
The American was first diagnosed with the bizarre health problem in 2018, and was told she had a condition called a fistula.
A fistula is an abnormal connection between two body parts, such as an organ or blood vessel and another structure.
Tierney first grew concerned when she noticed she was not going to the toilet from the correct place, but was instead going an inch away from her anus on her left buttcheek.
The 29-year-old has undergone over 20 procedures and surgeries since she was diagnosed.
To help her deal with the issue, she had an ileostomy bag procedure in 2020, which she says vastly improved her quality of life.
Tierney is scheduled to undergo another surgery in August to close the fistula by harvesting muscle from her thigh.
“I have a rectal fistula, it's essentially a hole in my bowel,” she says.
“The doctors aren’t sure how it came about, but it might have been from childbirth, from giving birth to my daughter, Savannah.
“I was putting out stool and passing gas, not from the adequate place, I had created this whole tunnel all the way through the inner side of my left butt cheek.
“Rectal fistula is complicated and really hard to fix.
“I have six surgeries in my hometown, Miamisburg, Ohio and after the sixth when they were unable to fix it we decided to go to a bigger hospital.
“We went to the Cleveland Clinic and the surgery department believed that the best thing to do would be for me to have an ileostomy bag to give my colon a break.”
It’s crazy the things our bodies are capable of doing, I never thought this would be something that was possible let alone happening to me
Tierney Dumont, 29
Tierney admitted that at first, she had a difficult time overcoming her embarrassment and shame of her condition.
But now, the 29-year-old is sharing her story in hopes of inspiring those ashamed of speaking of their health issues, and says she has found a supportive community through her struggle.
“At first I was so embarrassed about it and I don't know who to tell, or where to go for this or what I should do,” she says.
“It's been a really long and frustrating and crazy journey,” she says.
“I think if we're more open about those kinds of things other people are going to be open about it and not feel ashamed or embarrassed about it.
“I have found such a great community of people in the ileostomy community we talk and support each all the time.
“It has been a life-changing experience, and I've learned to adjust even though it's not an ideal lifestyle.”
