An American Reddit user known as Suspicious_Round_375 suffered severe distress after combining alcohol with a double dose of laxative medication to treat constipation.
The user detailed how a midnight reaction to four laxative pills taken after heavy drinking resulted in a chaotic scramble to the bathroom, damaged fixtures, and severe physical discomfort.
Writing on the social platform, the man explained that he had been suffering from constipation for several days and was feeling unwell. Although he possessed laxative medication, he had repeatedly postponed taking it. After drinking heavily with friends one evening, he decided it was an opportune moment to address the long-standing issue.
Expecting the medication to take between six and twelve hours to act, he assumed he had sufficient time to sleep. He consumed four tablets, washed them down with two shots of alcohol, and went to bed.
Bathroom scramble in pitch darkness
The man woke up in the middle of the night to a thunderous rumbling in his stomach, describing the sensation as if a possessed demon inside him was trying to tear its way out. Doubled over in pain, he rolled out of bed, struck the wall, and quickly got up to rush to the bathroom. He opened the bathroom door with such force that it nearly tore off its hinges.
Stumbling through the pitch darkness, he landed on the toilet seat with what he described as the grace of a piano falling down a flight of stairs. Upon impact, he realized the lid was still closed after accidentally sitting on his scrotum. As pain and panic mounted, he pushed himself up, lifted both the lid and the seat, and struggled to balance on the bare porcelain bowl.
To prevent himself from falling into the toilet, he grabbed the shower curtain. The curtain tore away from the wall, its bent metal hooks scratching his cheek during the fall. What followed was an explosive reaction that he compared to scenes from low-quality American comedy films.
Aftermath and recovery
His alarmed cat initially walked into the room to comfort him, but fled howling when the intense odour filled the space. The user reported experiencing severe nausea, watering eyes, trembling knees, slipping hands, and cold sweat before the pain eventually began to subside.
Over the next several hours, his primary relief came from a stream of cold tap water while he dealt with a lingering headache. After reviewing the product instructions later that morning, he confirmed that he had taken twice the recommended dosage of the medication.
Once the physical distress passed, the user noted that he had to regain his cat's trust through numerous treats and belly rubs, while thoroughly ventilating his apartment.
Health risks and platform context
Reddit is an international social news aggregation and discussion platform where members post content and discuss personal anecdotes across specialized forums. Medical guidance generally warns against combining over-the-counter laxatives with alcohol. Alcohol can irritate the stomach lining and exacerbate fluid loss, while exceeding recommended laxative dosages can cause severe abdominal cramping, acute intestinal spasms, and rapid onset diarrhoea.
The account was reported by Oleg Davydov, an editor for the Russian news site Lenta.ru, which frequently covers viral online trends and personal stories shared on international social networks. Lenta.ru noted that similar gastrointestinal emergencies have previously circulated online, including a case where a student was forced to wash his trousers in a public restroom on the way to an important examination after suffering severe diarrhoea that soaked his jeans.
