~Toilet Time~

@barbary Yes, they tried having her take colace regularly, but it caused a problem in the opposite direction. So, she takes it as needed. She has had to go to the ER for an enema because she hadn’t had a bowel movement for six days. She has always had a tendency towards constipation and sometimes the stool softeners work and sometimes they don’t.

@gratia I don't know if this is even a good suggestion and one by the readers the may sound ludicrous, but in reading your "toilet time" post, I couldn't help but wonder if one of those large plastic inserts the doctor or hospital gives us to fit inside the toilet rim when we take a stool specimen, would be appropriate when she goes to the bathroom. This way, her stool doesn't clog up the toilet, and when she uses toilet paper, she stuffs that in the plastic insert piece along with the poop OR you give her a plastic trash bag to put the toilet paper inside (if she remembers to do it). Then you can dump it however you see fit. It will stop clogging up the toilet. May appear to be an extra step, but plunging away with a migrane becomes many extra steps and a lot of work to toilet overload.
Best, Karla

I'm sure toilet issues are no laughing matter when they are happening. @gratia, thank you for the levity in these messy and real life caregiving realities.

You are not alone. Here are some other toiletting related discussions:
- 2 things, plugging toilet and sitting in bathroom for way too long. https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/2-things-plugging-toilet-and-sitting-in-bathroom-for-way-too-long/
- Forgotten how to use the toilet https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/forgotten-how-to-use-the-toilet/
- Can't find toilet, nighttime wandering https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/cant-find-toilet-nighttime-wandering/
- Pooping and spot checking https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/pooping-and-spot-checking/
- Not Incontinence but bathroom messes and clothes soiling https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/not-incontinence-but-bathroom-messes-and-clothes-soiling/

@dedhambeth
Severe constipation is often followed by massive amounts of loose stool. So a smaller dose of colace every day or just colace stool softener might work.
Will she drink an adequate amount of fluids? about 6-8 (8 glasses) daily No caffeine? Fluids are essential.
Have you tried 6 prunes or a large glass of warm Pune juice?
Linzess 145 mg 1/2 hr before eating is what is recommended for IBS-C and helps a lot.

Ensure a bowel movement occurs daily.

@colleenyoung Hi Colleen, thank you so much for these links. I will check them out. Fortunately, this is not recurring too frequently at the moment, but I’m worried about how it will evolve along with the other dementia processes. It’s such a difficult condition to navigate. This site is a respite in itself. My apologies if I’ve posted too frequently! I feel for everyone here. Having a place to share or vent with one another is very helpful.

Thank you!
🤗❤️

My mother has Lewy Body and Parkinsonism. This is the usual at my parents’ home. She is constipated for days. Then she “has to go,” but it takes 4-5 trips to the bathroom for it to actually happen. Each time she needs help
getting out of her chair into her wheelchair, wheeled to the bathroom. Then helped out of her wheelchair, onto the commode over the toilet to make it easier for her to sit and get up. She then needs help with cleaning herself after she finally is able to go. Then reverse this back to her chair. My father keeps a stick outside that he has to use to break up the “deposit” each time so it will flush. Not TMI. It’s real life for a lot of us.

More toilet news. Today my husband leaves the bathroom on one side of the house, pauses briefly in the common area, and then moves to the other bathroom on the otherside of the house. Not sure if he is urinating or other but of course he doesn't want to share what is happening. No memory of this being his 5h or 6th visit to the throne. He also takes a diuretic but that med doesn't usually create this behavior. My head is on a swivel.