1. < Digestive Health

Does anyone have chronic constipation?

Posted by anna17X0X @anna17xox, Apr 11 5:30pm

I don't know what's going on with my digestion ,I have been chronically constipated since December so it's been 4 months. I am always gassy and the smell has been very foul so I've been scared and embarrassed to be around people lately because of how bad it smells, when I've tried to poop only gas comes out most of the time, sometimes my stomach feels stiff and I start to feel lethargic. And I've tried almost everything digestive drinks like meta Mucil, eating more fiber i live an active lifestyle and I drink plenty of fluids and water. I recently had an appointment with my pediatrician about this she made me do colon cleansing for a day . And take Miralax for a minimum of 3 weeks. My stools were watery during the cleansing but after a couple days it feels like my stool is going back to being hard and stubborn. I still don't poop completely sometimes and I'm still gassy but it's not smelly like it was before. She said I can stop taking Miralax when i feel like my stools are going back to normal after a few days or weeks and it's been a week or two and a few days. I know I still need to wait one more week but my follow-up appointment is next Wednesday. The Miralax seems like a temporary fix, I feel like it'' never go away the worst part is I cant figure out what the cause is. I don't think it's IBS because I heard IBS involves bloody stools and stomach cramps I don't have bloody stools and I don't think I get stomach cramps . It just feels like have some other serious digestive problem or something I don't really know. I don't want to be constipated for the rest of my life I feel miserable, my pediatrician said if the Miralax doesn't work as intended I may have to see a gastroenterologists.

Has anyone or is anyone dealing with chronic constipation ?,does it or did it ever go away ? and has anyone been experiencing the same symptoms as me ?.Do you have any recommendations on how they treat their constipation ?

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bobweller | @bobweller | Apr 30 7:12am

You mention your pediatrician. Do you have a Gastrointestinal doctor? This is the specialist that deals with the kind of issue you are having.

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renhandi01 | @renhandi01 | Apr 30 8:24am

Do you have any other health issues. They could be related. Parkinsons is one of them

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sheilagreen | @sheilagreen | Apr 30 11:25am

In my experience, it’s ongoing daily care.
With the long and tortuous colon, ( redundant colon )
Unless you have a chunk cut out of the colon to shorten it, which I understand can cause a myriad of problems 😳
( i believe in my case it’s hereditary to have this xtra long colon …)
Then you have to help the passage of food through in a speedier way , to get past all the extra twists and turns we have..
I have found a way after 65 years, cosmocol sachet everyday, plus a spoonful of inulin and flaxseeds..
Gluten free diet…
You simply have to manage it , it’s a pain but I’m happy to have found my way….and made it into a habit..
Cosmocol is probably the British version of miralax I keep reading about 🤔
Good luck everyone.😘

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h8bigbiz | @h8bigbiz | Apr 30 3:12pm
In reply to @researchmaven "H8bigbiz, I seem to have diverticulitis or just an extremely delicate gut. And I have a..." + (show)
@researchmaven

H8bigbiz,

I seem to have diverticulitis or just an extremely delicate gut. And I have a severe redundant (long) colon.

I too focus on root vegetables (but only parsnip, kabocha squash, potato and radish), no raw veggies and very little meat and fish. Eggs whites and pea protein powder isolate are decent protein sources for me, as well as Lactaid milk.

You have likely tried dropping wheat and highly refined/processed foods. You should try dropping all grains if you haven't yet tried that. I can't even eat rice or oats (even a little bit is a problem), so if I can't maybe you can't either.

I am sure you have tried all the regular laxative-type foods like prune juice, apple juice (I can't go this route) as well as mineral oil (laxative) and slippery elm (inner bark) tea. As well as chewing your food for a long time before swallowing.

I had hard stool all the time, no matter how much I drank. And also had IBS-C like responses to food and switched to a very limited diet. However, then this limited diet started causing IBS-C symptoms.

My gut and food scene got better once I added in the Intoleran brand dietary enzymes for starch, sugar and fiber intolerances. They have a nice "all in one" product that also adds in lactase (I seem to benefit from more lactase than the Lactaid milk provides).

Since I got so much gain from that, I added in a pancreas supplement for assistance with fat and protein, and I can eat more meat and fish (two bites instead of one).

These supps give me a little more breathing room, food-wise, and make my stool rather normal, at least for now. What a gift. but gut health seems to be a moving target for me.

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Yes, I've already tried the totally-grain-free diet; no results. I'm very interested, though, in the Intoleran enzymes you mention. I've just contacted Intoleran and asked if they sell an enzyme that helps with sodium intolerance; still waiting to hear back from them. If they don't, do you think their enzyme for starch/sugar/fiber would work the best? (Sugar doesn't seem to bother me at all but starch and fiber do.) I really hope they have something for sodium intolerance; I haven't added salt to my food in years, but sodium is hard to avoid and even one grain of it seems to bloat me up and cause gas and constipation no matter how much water I drink.

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anna17X0X | @anna17xox | Apr 30 7:06pm
In reply to @renhandi01 "Do you have any other health issues. They could be related. Parkinsons is one of them" + (show)
@renhandi01

Do you have any other health issues. They could be related. Parkinsons is one of them

Jump to this post

This may be a bit personal,but i have delayed periods i have not had a period since september so i don't know if it's linked to to it.

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anna17X0X | @anna17xox | Apr 30 7:08pm
In reply to @bobweller "You mention your pediatrician. Do you have a Gastrointestinal doctor? This is the specialist that deals..." + (show)
@bobweller

You mention your pediatrician. Do you have a Gastrointestinal doctor? This is the specialist that deals with the kind of issue you are having.

Jump to this post

No,and yes i have a pediatrician she's currently making me take 2 colace a day to see how it goes and if nothing works she'll refer me to a Gastrointestinal doctor.

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anna17X0X | @anna17xox | Apr 30 7:17pm
In reply to @glory1007 "I can tell you I have constipation, smelly gas for the last 4 years. So bad..." + (show)
@glory1007

I can tell you I have constipation, smelly gas for the last 4 years. So bad I stay away from events it smells so bad. I’ve been to gastroenterologists several times with no avail. I was taking Metamucil also.
Now I’m taking a fiber called Frontier Fiber by Nutritional Frontiers. It’s a little pricey but I finally have some relief. I eat a lot of rice cakes for my sandwiches but not totally gluten free. I started getting the gas in college but it wasn’t until last four years were smelly. I’m in my 60’s. I’m convinced the gas and smelly farts are triggered by stress (I have anxiety). Do you? Best of luck. It’s horrible. I didn’t dare eat anything on the day of my daughter’s wedding🫤

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Yeah i often deal with lots of stress and anxiety, asked my pediatrician if it was a possible factor she said it's likely not though but it could be.

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anna17X0X | @anna17xox | Apr 30 7:19pm
In reply to @researchmaven "Have you all explored food intolerances? I have that issue with peanuts, and even a little..." + (show)
@researchmaven

Have you all explored food intolerances? I have that issue with peanuts, and even a little bit of sugar makes me gassy.

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im exploring my food intolerances tight now,i tried forgoing peanuts but did not notice any changes .

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anna17X0X | @anna17xox | Apr 30 7:32pm
In reply to @researchmaven "Have you considered a food intolerance, anna17XOX? If you have a food intolerance, your gut can..." + (show)
@researchmaven

Have you considered a food intolerance, anna17XOX? If you have a food intolerance, your gut can be like a car engine that backfires and doesn't work well. I even think an intolerance can stymie laxatives (I think my intolerances did so for me). And an intolerance can come on quickly, as in one day you are fine and the next you are intolerant.

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not sure,i recently tried exploring a food intolerance by forgoing peanuts but didn't notice any changes so now i'm trying to see what to forgo next.But since you mentioned that an intolerance can stymie laxative. Do you know and have a food intolerance or are you currently exploring yours as well ?.

I have been eating lots of whole wheat bread,oat meal,fruits and veggies ,but last week i experienced a set-back because we had a ice cream party at school and im a sweet tooth so i couldn't help myself and i also had cinnamon rolls and chocolate cake,pasta and choclate lately.This food intolerance test is kind of hard and almost improbable for me.Having a social life and struggling with constipation is like a minefield,i really hate restricting like this.But maybe the set-back i had could be having an adverse effect on the colace im currently taking.I mean i have not pooped for 3 days and have been passng more gas instead which is frustrating.

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researchmaven | @researchmaven | May 1 8:17am
In reply to @h8bigbiz "Yes, I've already tried the totally-grain-free diet; no results. I'm very interested, though, in the Intoleran..." + (show)
@h8bigbiz

Yes, I've already tried the totally-grain-free diet; no results. I'm very interested, though, in the Intoleran enzymes you mention. I've just contacted Intoleran and asked if they sell an enzyme that helps with sodium intolerance; still waiting to hear back from them. If they don't, do you think their enzyme for starch/sugar/fiber would work the best? (Sugar doesn't seem to bother me at all but starch and fiber do.) I really hope they have something for sodium intolerance; I haven't added salt to my food in years, but sodium is hard to avoid and even one grain of it seems to bloat me up and cause gas and constipation no matter how much water I drink.

Jump to this post

H8bigbiz,

You have likely tried the A-Z of managing your sodium intolerance, including knowing that "not adding salt" to restaurant/industry-made food is an insufficient management tool given all the salt in such. I do not think Intoleran has anything for salt.

I tried three Intoleran products one-by-one, in turn - Starchway, Fructase and Fibratase. With each additional enzyme product added, another gut issue quickly resolved. I was exploring Intoleran as my restrictive diet alone stopped working.

I subsequently tried the Quatrase Forte and Starchway together and that worked too.

I need to try Quatrase Forte alone to see if it alone works for me also. That would be a money saver!

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