Constipation! (Pain meds make it worse)

Hi @woundedbear64, I also struggle with constipation which I think may have played a part in my inguinal hernia surgery last year due to all of the constant straining. I've since done a little better by using Miralax several times a week along with a fiber supplement. I've found that a hot cup of a special Prunelax tea that I let steep for about 10 to 15 minutes before drinking does wonders for movement. I only use it about once a week to get me back on track - https://www.amazon.com/Prunelax-Natural-Laxative-Tea-Count/dp/B07DFSNYQW.

There are a couple of discussions you might want to check out here:
--- Constant constipation: https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/constant-constipation/
--- Severe Constipation: https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/severe-constipation-1/

Awesome, thank you for the advice!

After beginning necessary iron supplements, I struggled with constipation, a common side effect but not ideal for me. So I was advised to manage that side effect by taking Magnesium supplements. I was taking 500 mg but it worked so well (softening as well as frequency) that I cut back to 250mg, feeling free to double up some days if I go through a dry spell. I think it also helps my Neuropathy symptoms.

Thank you for the advice!
Constipation was always a bother, but now that I'm getting older, it can be dangerous for my health, so I have to take it much more serious, thanks again!
Jeffrey.

Five decades ago I was afflicted for years with "irritable bowel syndrome" and no medicines were helping. Constipation was bad enough, fainting from the painful cramps, but I was distressed by the inevitable sudden diarrhea when bathrooms were distant or had lineups. Release was always accompanied by a different sick feeling, coupled with exhaustion, requiring me to bring a kitchen chair to lean on so I wouldn't fall off the toilet. Then there was the embarrassment of occupying somebody's bathroom for my extended struggles.
My aunt told me to eat an orange every night, and that actually cured me. It caused me to be curious, and over time I learned that drugstore remedies come in two varieties -- there are things you take that stimulate your bowel to excessive peristaltic activity, which seemed to me a good way to create damage over time. Straining seemed useless and also potentially harmful. Fiber (like that in oranges) was the answer for me, either dietary or capsules -- psyllium husk has no added ingredients and is virtually inert. You can pay a lot to have it bottled with liquids or in capsules, but I like to control what I consume so I get it from the bulk food store and either add it to foods or put it in capsules myself (they're really cheap). I even have my elderly cat on it.
The job of the colon is to extract water from your digestive tract for the use of other body parts. If you are constipated, your gut is working properly, but you need to increase it's water supply. The trick with fiber (psyllium being the most effective) is that it soaks up water, stiffening up the stool mass if you're having diarrhea and softening it if you're having constipation. You can actually eat anything you want, and avoid straining and corrosive laxatives, if you trickle water and fiber down your gullet frequently.
Exercise is an excellent tweak, because the musculature of the colon is pretty weak, especially if it's been overworked by laxatives. Here's an explanatory image -- sausage is ground meat stuffed into long hoses of animal guts (or plastic substitutes), and they twist the hose every few inches to keep the stuff from spilling out when they cut it it into segments. The human gut is kinked and folded to fit in the belly, so you need to keep the contents wet and soft from end to end. When you are still, the contents of your colon are not moving along the tract all that well, but when you get up and move around a bit, things start shuffling toward the exit -- hence the morning poop tradition. When you move your body, you are literally releasing the obstructions to stool movement, so while exercise may not be necessary to elimination, it is actually helpful, so try to avoid long idle spells.
Simple, cheap and effective -- fiber + water + motion, leaving you in total control of your bowels, for your whole life. Or eat a can of beans, but that won't work without the water.
Last word -- this approach succeeds when followed daily and persistently. If you stray and end up straining to poop rocks, take a massive dose of fiber with a huge amount of water -- it will take a while to work it's way down, but it will work (and may do so without warning). One company that sells bottles of psyllium in capsules says to take 15 caps with lots of water if already constipated, followed by a small number of caps several times a day (with water) ongoing for prevention.
I am posting this uncomfortable lecture because I wasn't able to convince my Dad that one capsule of psyllium at each meal, with half a glass of water, wouldn't do the job, and the poor man was regularly taken to emergency to have impacted stool manually removed from his aged rectum. I am the age now that he was at the time, and I have lovely, soft poops every day or two. So does my cat. You're welcome.

Thank you very much for the advice, I'll have to look into this.
I strain every single time I go, and I believe the last couple of times I have actually hurt myself.
Right now I'm experiencing symptoms of low hemoglobin count, I walk a few feet and start feeling light headed and can't seem to inhale enough oxygen, and my legs feel like they weigh a ton.
I have fallen a couple of times already, so I think I'm going to get to the doctor some how, and have a blood test taken.
I think I may have tore something while straining, that's the only reason I brought it up.

@johnbishop Since my Robotic Ventral Mesh Rectopexy, I have to keep things moving to be sure my intestines are not blocked and moving. No straining to give the mesh time to attach securely. This could take 2-3 months. If things slow down I have been drinking Miralax (3Tbsps) in the afternoon. So far everything is moving but as a single ball. I need to start taking fiber. What do you take and how much at a time? This was suggested at my post-op surgery appt. I have no idea of a brand, how much, and how often. Any comments would be appreciated. KLH

Hi @kilh, I've been using Heather's Tummy Fiber which is said to work for IBS constipation or diarrhea - Here's a link to their website that has a video explaining how it works - https://www.heatherstummycare.com/p/suplmts_acacia-can/tummy-fiber-acacia-senegal-can/.
I haven't found my normal dose yet but it does seem to help. The easiest way to use it is mix it with a moist food but you can mix it with room temp water but you have to follow their directions to help it dissolve better.

@johnbishop Do you think this could be dissolved in a cup of hot tea? That is how I take my Miralax. Also, does it cause any boating or side effects? Any taste in the fiber? Thanks for the link. I will read it tonight but now the weather report and evening news then off to dinner. KLH

@kilh I haven't tried it but they do say in the directions that it's best mixed with room temperature liquids. It's like most fibers and doesn't really have a taste. I usually put 1 or 2 teaspoons in an empty cup and gradually add water while stirring with a fork. It does bubble a little but mixes in with water. I have a lot of gas also but no abdominal pain or cramping. It just makes the BMs noisy 🙃and like baby cannons if you know what I mean. They also sell some Tummy Fiber tea which I like and is for gas and bloating so maybe I will try mixing a couple of teaspoons of the fiber with the tea tonight and let you know.