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Gina,
I take Miralax at least once a day and sometimes twice. Also many of the dried fruits you mention. They usually work.
My problem is I have a "redundant" colon (means extra long colon) and the diuretic I take dries it out the combination of which periodically, once or twice a week, causes severe constipation I have to clear with powerful laxatives or enemas, suppositories or the like. No fun at all.
Thanks,
Tadueo

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Replies to "Gina, I take Miralax at least once a day and sometimes twice. Also many of the..."

@tadueo I took care of my mother for several years. She was in her nineties and bedridden. Because she was limited in movement, she would often have constipation issues. Her doctor put her on a low dose of Lactulose (oral solution), which is a colonic acidifier which promotes laxation. Lactulose is a synthetic sugar that is used primarily as a laxative to treat constipation and to reduce ammonia levels in patients with liver disease. I wasn't to give it to her every day. I was only to give her a dose when and if she became severely constipated. I don't know if that would be something that you could take since Lactulose pulls water from the intestines to soften the stool and might worsen dehydration. But you could ask your doctor. Something else to consider is taking a natural, herbal remedy for constipation, such as Senna. Some people drink an herbal tea that acts as a laxative. There are several different brands that have a laxative tea blend on the market, and each brand has its own blend of herbs. One such tea is called "Smooth Move" and contains Senna, licorice, bitter fennel, cinnamon, ginger, coriander, and sweet orange. Again, your doctor would know if any of those ingredients were contraindicated with the medications that you take. I, myself, take a diuretic (Chlorthalidone), and it causes me to have occasional MILD constipation, so I am taking an herbal supplement that contains Slippery Elm. It works for me. There's also Slippery Elm tea available, but it isn't as effective as the supplement in pill form. I hope that you get some help from all of the comments here.