33 replies to this topic

[TheOutlookChild]

Hey there. I really do know what you are going through, I have the same problem. I once went weeks without a bm and it scared me half to death. I am only 20 and this has certainly $$$$$$ed with my life. I find it helpful to meditate on the idea that everything is constantly changing. Things will either get so bad that they require a serious intervention or they will get better. Either way it wont stay the same. In the meantime it may be very difficult but you gotta hang in there, there will come a day when things are better and you just gotta do everything you can until that time comes. Do your best and dont worry about it because that is all that you can do. Have you had any tests done?

[tummyrumbles]

You may may have overdone the laxatives. These things aren't meant to be used long term because they're doing all the work, not the colon. I don't know how long constipation can go for before it's a real medical problem. A week does seem a bit long. Do you take laxatives because you work? If you can, take time off work and just relax at home for a few days without using anything at all. Do you have a few hot drinks before you try to go? It sounds like you've got a real dependency problem with the laxatives so maybe get medical advice on how best to evacuate without using anything, but most people do well with hot drinks. Also don't fret in the toilet and try to force it out with strange positions. Give yourself enough time so you can relax more. Take a book or laptop in and just forget about things for a while.

[rhonalomey]

This is only my opinion but you are not doing everything right. You are not eating enough variety of foods and you need proper food, fruit and veg alone there is nothing to create bowel movements.Eating is good for constipation and fibre such as psyllium instead of laxatives is a much better option it moves the fod down the colon without pain.

[oceannir]

I have went weeks without going. Honestly, we are supposed to go after each meal, and at the most after three days. Waiting a week, in my opinion, is long enough. Trust me, I broke down and cried before taking the ducolax because I simply did not want to take them. I do NOT want to have to take them! I was in pain. I tried this psyllium husk yesterday, and I can tell that it certainly was doing what it was supposed to do; however, I believe that my issue is actually a tissue blockage, possibly even a tumor. The reason I say this is. . .(TMI WARNING-ABOUT TO GET GRAPHIC)I had a lump inside of my anus years ago, and that lump has now continued to grow and grow. I could not get any doctors to actually look at it, and they would merely diagnose it as hemmorhoids on mere description but refused to do an actual exam. I am pretty much convinced that it is cancer. Last night, I stuck my finger inside of my anus to see if I could pull out the poo like I used to do when I was a child. I could feel the poo on the other side of the tissue, but my finger was not able to get beyond the tissue. This actually makes sense, because unless I take so many laxatives until my poo is basically solely liquid, it won't come out, and when it finally does, it is spurting, not flowing.Sorry, told you I was going to get graphic! LOLIt is morning now, and I am pretty sick. It isn't coming out yet so I am going to probably drink some black coffee and see if that will help-rarely does but better than taking more. Wish me luck.

Sounds like a rectal prolapse to me.Would definetly cause constipation.Actually im near 100% sure that is the problem.

[Kathleen M.]

Usually for a rectal prolapse, surgery is the main treatment. There isn't a lot you can do over the counter or at home.If it is small/not bad enough for surgery just taking stool softeners or osmotic laxatives to keep the stool easy to get out is about all you can do based on what I can find.If you are eating next to no fat at all of any kind you might see what adding a tablespoon or two of olive oil to your diet does. Fat can add to the "move it along" signal when you eat it and some people find a bit more fat in the diet does help keep things moving. A no fat at any time diet isn't healthy anyway as there are some fats you need to get from your diet and you can't make them yourself. Will you eat fish like tuna and salmon or are you a dedicated vegan?

[oceannir]

Okay, we have the problem, so what is the solution?

No you have someone on the internets opinion of what the problem may be based on your description.Go to a doctor and ask for an exam. Tell them you suspect thats what it could be.

[oceannir]

I was not saying that this person was accurate. I would be an absolute fool to take a complete stranger-who has never seen me and has very MINIMAL information regarding my condition- diagnonsense as fact. I was simply inquiring in a solution to the proposed problem. As for seeing a doctor, doctors will not examine me. Strike three was it for me. It's hard enough without pissing money away. I guess I'll have to be near death for someone to look up me arse.

Explain your problems and ask for an exam and they might.I'm not sure how bad American doctors are. In Australia they do seem pretty poor at actually working through the problem with you and they just shrug you off.

[Dreyfuss]

After years of suffering with IBS, I decided to seek medical help. After several GI's, tests, and meds, I am right back where I was before. I am currently trying some "miracle shake" called Shakeology. I have no intention of seeing anymore docs.

[em_t]

After years of suffering with IBS, I decided to seek medical help. After several GI's, tests, and meds, I am right back where I was before. I am currently trying some "miracle shake" called Shakeology. I have no intention of seeing anymore docs.

Hi Dreyfuss, I can't remember if you said before but have you ever seen a colorectal surgeon as opposed to a GI? I only ask because from my experience GIs can only do so much and will always prefer to treat you with medicines when surgery might be a better long term solution. That drink sounds really dodgy - what does it have in it? I completely understand the urge to try anything if it helps but I hate the fact that there are lots of quacks out there that will exploit people's desire for a miracle cure. Did you doctor recommend it?

[oceannir]

Won't surgery cause permanent damage? I can't help but picture bags of poo attached to me the rest of my life, and aren't the possible effects much more severe with someone slicing your butthole open than drinking a not so tasty drink? Just saying.

The idea of surgery is to address the problem and reduce your symptoms, its goal is not to create permanent damage. Obviously all surgery has risks, but for some people the constipation is so bad that they can no longer live their lives with it, so something has to be done.

[dilu]

Hi,I have the same problems like you. It is simply terrible, it destroys your life. I've searched the internet for years, after decades of listening to incompetent or uninterested doctors. Heard the same nonsense about eating more fibres, drinking a lot of water, having daily exercises. I think i ate more fibres, drank more water and had more exercises than all the doctors combined. They simply don't know what they are talking about. And if you see a doctor who is finally listening to you like he is doing his best, then you know that he thinks that the problems are all between your ears and he just wants to be patient with you. On this forum some people even suggest that you over'did' the laxatives. It's just nonsense talk. And so many possible 'diagnoses' like IBS, Crohn's disease, Coeliakie,allergies, etc.. pass the revue. Most of the time these diagnoses are just something that doctors throw at you because they can't find the real cause. So i went through all that... Until one day i found out empirically that certain antibiotics relieved me of all problems at once. And believe me, constipation was not the only symptom. The relief was total. Not just an improvement, but a reversal of all symptoms. I felt great, like i hadn't felt in decades. However after the antibiotics were finished, the symptoms gradually returned each time. But from then on i was sure that it was a bacteriological problem which i had somewhere in my bowel. After searching more, i came to the conclusion that it's probably my appendix that was the cause of it all. It was difficult to find a surgeon who wants to perform the appendectomy, because with chronic appendicitis (doctors learned in universities that it doesn't exist) most standard diagnosis methods often show negative results (CT-scan, white blood cell count, ...). However the most important indication for chronic appendicitis is a preceding acute appendicitis which was not treated with surgery. I had that when i was 19 and my appendix was not removed. If you had an acute appendicitis before (terribly stinging sharp pain in the right bottom bowel area, pain around the navel/'belly-button', maybe vomiting and nausea, shaking, chills, light fever...) then you have a good chance that your problems are caused by a chronic appendicitis. In that case the infection is no intense as with acute appendicitis and your appendicitis may even look terribly normal on CT scans. But it still can cause a whole lot of problems, not only to your bowel but also to other organs in the body. I found a surgeon who is willing to do the appendectomy, he even advised me to do it, following his own experiences with his patients. I will have the operation on Monday (laparoscopic surgery). Take care. Nick.

What began as chronic constipation, progressed into lazy bowel syndrome and eventually irritable bowel syndrome. It may even be worst at this point, but I have no interest in wasting any more money going to a useless doctor who minimizes everything that I say.I am honestly doing everything right-EVERYTHING. The only foods that I eat are fruit, vegetables and oatmeal with flax seed powder-THATS IT. No butter, sugar, milk, or anything of the like. The only thing I occasionaly and sparingly will add to my food is cinnamon, mustard, cayienne pepper and ginger powder. I drink plenty alkaline and spring/purified water-mostly alkaline. I drink tea (peppermint, dandelion, yerba mate, etc) Yes, I have tried the overrated Senna tea, which worked a little once and only made me bloated the following times I tried it. I also take probiotics as well as magnesium. I am sure to go on walks throughout the day, because i have a sedentary lifestyle otherwise. I also perform colonic massages on myself as well as do yoga poses and try all crazy positions on the toilet.I have not been able to produce a bowel movement on my own without laxative or saline enema (enema rarely works fy) in months. I am miserable. THis effects not only my physical state, but also my mental state, specifically my emotions.I do not know what else to do. Tonight, I will have to take laxatives (dulcolax) because it has been 1 week and still no bowel movement. I hate taking laxatives, because it always makes me so ill. Not only because of the nausea, cramping, bloating, gas, general discomfort, but also it depletes the little nutrition i am able to absorb anyways. This is so frustrating. I am about to stop trying to find a diet that works for constipation, and begin looking for a way to live off minimal, even juices/smoothies in a healthy way that can at least keep me from getting impacted and being forced to take extreme measures. I need hope, because I am on the edge. This is so disheartening.