A gastroenterologist explains what causes this when you do both.
The toilet is one of those places where you should not take your time.
Why: Have you noticed that your legs and / or feet fall asleep when you are evacuating?
That tingling sensation occurs because you’ve been sitting on the toilet for a long time – and in a position that’s not ideal at all.
Your feet are even more likely to fall asleep if you’re a skinny guy.
This is because body fat prevents the blood vessels in your legs from compressing when you sit down. But if you don’t have this cushioning, your blood vessels can compress, causing a problem with your blood flow – and eventually your feet go to sleep.
In most cases, experiencing this tingling in the toilet is not to worry about. (If you feel numb or tingling in your hands and feet at another time, see your doctor.)
However, you can try to prevent that from happening: buy something called an air donut, an inflatable mattress that will give your butt more cushioning, improving blood flow to your feet.
This thing is not a ticket for you to stay for hours in the bathroom: spending too much time there – especially if you spend too much effort – it can cause annoying conditions such as hemorrhoids, bleeding or even a tear in the end of the rectum, called anal fissure.
So if you haven’t made it after 10 to 15 minutes, leave the bathroom and try again later.
Satish SC Rao is a professor of medicine at the Georgia Medical College and director of the Digestive Health Center at Augusta University.