I need A LOT of help!

elvesrock - assuming your constipation is NOT due to something such as blockage, etc, that it is plain ole C and not something else, and assuming that you are an adult, you may want to try a few food tricks and see if that helps along with a magnesium oxide supplement (not MOM= milk of mag) - try to eat organically as much as possible, avoid all cow dairy products (goat and sheep yoghurt, cheese and milk ok) and a lot of people find relief from not eating wheat or corn. that said, why don't you begin by making an anti C soup that consists of onions, garlic and celery sauteed in lots of olive oil, then add quartered artichoke hearts, chopped tomatoes with skins on, a few chopped potatoes, several handfuls of fresh or frozen spinach and/or other greens, top with water or organic chicken or veg broth, bring to boil, then simmer 40 minutes. artichoke hearts, cooked greens, prunes, figs, pears, brown and white rice, non wheat pastas, goat yoghurt, rice crackers, potatoes with skins on, all contribute to me going regularly. with my first meal of day and with dinner i take 400 mg of magnesium oxide and with dinner i also take a flax oil gelule. lots of olive oil, some fat, well cooked veg especially greens, all help. good luck, g-

elvesrock, as far as i know, there are no magic bullets with the possible exception of enemas, colonics, and the stuff one has to do to clean oneself out for exams but seriously, in order to retrain ones bowel and be more or less "normal" one needs attitude, discipline, patience and help. i had to rethink my whole life and job meaning: i no longer work before ten am, i go to bed earlier and rise at dawn, no rushing of the morning clock, i exercise more and don't eat in the mornings before i've pooped at least once or twice, i no longer take laxatives but eat for C: as previously mentioned, cooked and raw greens, especially cooked, artichokes, prunes and figs, carrots-potatoes-tomatoes with the skins on, organic only, close to a quart of bottled non carbonated water a day, etc. however, the MOST important factor for me is NOT rushing the morning clock. that is what contributed to my probs years and years ago and i ended up in the operating bloc for 'roids. i will NOT go thru that again. we live in a toxic world and there are lots of things that we can do and eat to go back to a simpler and more natural life. one thing is this: learn to take the time to cook. learn to eat in a leisurely way. learn to get up before sunrise. all this requires discipline but it is worth it. of course, there is of course the subject of C= anger unreleased that is never discussed on this board and i for one believe it to be very true, barring organic causes for it. writing about your feelings in the mornings often helps, so does seeking pro help in the head department. however, so many folk prefer to not deal with that and hope for a "cure" of symptoms without addressing the causes. g-

I was the Queen of laxatives!dependant on them for 7 years at least.I had to get off of them because they really messed up my body and i have not been the same since.The only thing i take that works is my rhubarb supplement every night before bed with a stool softener.Without it,i would have never been able to get off the harsh laxatives.I was bouncing back and forth between Imodium and laxatives for years.I needed more and more of both in order to "go".My body is truly a mess now and i have not worked since i went off the pills 3 years ago.The rhubarb has not been habit forming.....i mean i have not had to take more and more in order for it to work.I think it can be a bit abrasive to the system though,so ask your doctor before you think of trying it.I have heard good and bad things about it,so i just go from my own experience.My doctor said it's ok to keep taking,but i still am looking for something better to get rid of the pain.I feel for you and know what your going through Please take care and e-mail me anytime!Wendi-

I take rhubarb by solaray through a place called The Vitamin Shoppe online.It's quiker through the mail because if i go into the store,it takes weeks to order since they do not supply it. I was taking Dulcalax for 7 years and when i quit,i was taking 13 at a time and tons of Imodium in order to stop things from moving while i was at work.I took the dulcalax 3-4 times a week,Generally every 2 days.I'm lucky that i did not have to have my colon removed.I did develope ulcers in my colon from the laxatives,but the doctor said that they would just heal by themselves.I do know someone who was taking 100 laxatives at a time in order to "go" and she did have to get her colon removed,so i am truly lucky.I have to take 7 rhubarb pills at night before bed,and the dose on the bottle is 3.That is how constipated i am.I always say that it takes a freight train in order for my colon to work.I have a serious motility problem and my doctor gave up on me.He just tells me that that is what happens when you take laxatives for so long.You can e-mail me at wlindelli###yahoo.com if you want anytime.I hope this helped a little.IBS constipation is so underated.People don't understand how debilitating it can be.Good luck with what you choose to do and ask your doctor before you take rhubarb.It can be a little tough on the system. -Wendi-

another doc, if you are really young, insist to your parent/s that you want another opinion and a doc who will thoroughly test you for motility, transit time, blockages, everything. once you have ruled out that there is no organic cause for your C, then you can start taking action - i am also wondering if you have food or weight issues? is that the case? why the big refusal to use food as your medicine? does your mom cookomg ghitta, look, you don't know my situation and dont make assumptions. obviously i want and need to rule everything out but i can't because it's damn canada! it's so hard to get appts, first of all, but thats beyond the point since i already have a g.i. etc. but i cant get those tests because a. she supposedly says i dont need them and they're for research and b. they're not available in the biggest city in canada???i dont know what is going on, but i cant believe there is not transit test done in toronto! i mean, its a huge city and sick kids is supposed to be a great hospital. there ARE no magic bullets i know this, and maybe you should know this too. don't tell me to get everything tested, because you don't think i don't know? not everything is simple or a "magic bullet" as you seem to say the testing and ruling out is. everything takes SO MUCH TIME here and i dont know if its the same in the usa.

there are no stores in toronto that sell fresh greens? no stores that sell canned artichoke hearts? no health food stores that sell magnesium supplements and organic meats? no stores in toronto that sell rice pastas or rice cereals? no stores that sell lovely chinese vegetables? are you in toronto or out in the boonies because baby, if you are trying to tell us that your parents can't find fresh food in one of the greatest culinary cities of canada, a city known worldwide for its asian culture and cuisine, then, well, sell me another bill of goods. and none of that is that much more expensive than frozen pizza and crappy junk food. on the other hand, i am not a mother and i really don't know how to communicate well with very young people and i can sense that you are an extremely young person so i'll just stay off your posts, how about that? good luck; g-

I just want to say a couple things that might help even just a little. You can take it or leave it...I must say that I absolutely believe food is the key to our problems: Three years ago when I finally figured out that I had IBS, I started a very strict diet of all fresh foods, no starch,preservatives, and NO DAIRY. After the first week, my bowels, stomach, and mind started to get better. As time went by I felt better and better. I was still some what constipated. I quit eating red meat and the constipation went away. Unfortunately from not eating any protein I developed ascites(liquid in my abdomen) When that happened, before I knew what it was, I slowly stopped eating because the liquid put so much pressure on my body that it hurt so bad to eat or drink anything. When I got diagnosed with IBS, while in the hospital for the ascites, the doctor put me on Zelnorm. Through this whole time I never cheated on my diet, because if I did, I would either get blocked or D or both at the same time. This is how I know food has got EVERYTHING to do with it. Since day one on Zelnorm I go every single day without problems unless I eat too much of a certain thing, or eat something that I do not tolerate, like dairy for example. I ahve been on Zelnorm for 10 months and LOVING IT!! But I also know that if I dont stay on my diet then Zelnorm does not work. Also I still do not eat red meat. It takes a normal person twice as long to digest it so why in the world would I have ever thought I could eat it having one of the slowest digetive tracks in the universe!!! I used to say my system was locked up like Fort Knox (sp) every single day. Now I feel great!! It has been a very long road with LOTS AND LOTS of pain, tears, beating myself up, wanting to totally give up, fasting, enema's, and second guessing everything I did. This disease completely has to take over your life if you want to feel better. There is no quit fix, no pill that will completely solve your problem. You also have to calm down. I know this from experience. The more upset I got the more blocked up I would get. Stress is another big part of this. As upsetting as all this can be you have to try to calm down and take one step at a time. I know the pain and frustration is so overwhelming, but remember it can always be worse. You could be like I was, in the hospital weighing 89 pounds (From 130 pounds) because you couldnt eat anything at all for 2 weeks.I hope you find some kind of relief soon. Remember when you are trying new things that everything, especially changes in diet take time to adjust in your body. Even longer than a normal person. The food that I eat right now are are fresh cooked. I eat white chicken, fish, scallops, any kind of squash, green beans, carrots, very small amounts of greens, and very small amounts of some fruit. I cook baked goods like cookies, cakes, and muffins out of almond flour. Thats just almonds ground up into a flour. I am still trying new foods. I only introduce one thing about every other week. You could try cutting out all dairy for about a week and see how you feel. I know that it is so hard to give up food that you have loved your whole life, but after time you learn to adjust. Just trial and error. take care and hope you feel better soon.