Does anyone take so many tablets, mostly painkilling, that they suffer serious constipation.

[Whitworth]

And if so, how did you deal with this added annoyance?

[rattusrattus]

a big swig of lactolouse is effective. (sp?) is an otc laxative - its around 6 pound a bottle at the chemist. its an osmotic laxitve so drink plenty of water with it.. p.s dont plan on leaving the house afterwards!

[Philip in reply to rattusrattus]

HAHAHA, that's cheered me up anyway lol.

[Hidden]

I'm taking 1-2 sachets or Transipeg or if things get really bad, Movicol. If you take Movicol, choose the chocolate flavour - the 'lemon' one is serioulsy awful!! xx

[Whitworth]

Thanks for the advice. I am off to see the chemist!!

[miss]

Have you tried all bran mix it with another cereal coz taste is not nice. Always works for mexx

[Hidden]

I have 4 senna everyday and 4 docusate tablets everyday as prescribed by my bowel specialist.

I also have a high fibre diet but still have major constipation so bad that I can pass out with the pain from it.

Mine has always been a problem since I was a child , but pain killers especially morphine has made it all much worse.

I've tried loads off different medications to help but not one makes me regular daily like most people are.

[knobblyknees in reply to Hidden]

Im not sure but I think morphine actually slows the gut.

[Hidden in reply to knobblyknees]

Thanks I know morphine isn't good for my gut, and doctors have tried me on many different painkillers and pain killer patches etc but nothing helps with my pain as much as the morphine does so I've no choice, as each time they've tried to alter my pain relief I've had to be hospitalised to monitor me, as lack of control over my pain has left me in a bad state ??

That's why I'm on continuous morphine each dose lasts 12 hours so I don't have to be without pain relief I just take my continuous morphine twice a day 12 hours apart and if my pain gets worse at any point I use oramoph as a quick fix x

[knobblyknees in reply to Hidden]

I feel for you. I actually go the other way. I dont know whats worse. Hugs x

[Hidden]

Very good answers.. also increase water consumption and eat plenty if fibre.. dates and figs are nice xx

[earthwitch]

a good diet makes a huge difference. Lay off the caffeine (or seriously minimise it) in all forms - coffee, cola drinks, etc. Drink lots of water. Reduce red meat and increase fruit and vegetables, making sure you get a lot of good bulky roughage (freshly cooked or raw vegetables, salads, whole grain cereals) and lay off the heavily processed grains like cakes, white bread, pizza, and in fact most convenience food etc. Soak prunes overnight, then having a few each morning with a bit of the juice.

If you still need help after that (which you might if you are on codeine based or similar pain killers) then you can always ask your GP for a prescription for movicol. I'm not with swissmiss on this one though - just the thought of chocolate movicol is making me quite queasy! I find the lemon/lime flavour is actually OK. The easiest way to make it palatable though is to mix it up and then chill it in the fridge before drinking it (or mix it up in iced water). If you do buy anything over the counter, ask the pharmacist for advice. What you don't want to be doing is getting dependant on straight laxatives, which are a bit different from the osmotic preparations and other things that can help and are much better to use.

[Hidden]

A really simple thing that helps ease constipation is hot water - maybe as much as three-quarters of a pint in the morning. I don't think this alone can sort out constipation that results from morpheine-based painkillers but it might be a good regime to aid the laxatives. My son was complaining of constipation & refused to belief that hot water would help but was amazed by the quite immediate relief it gave him once he tried it. I don't understand why hot water works better than cold but do give it a go!

Luce x

[Terrpist]

Yes I take colace every day to help

[Jan66]

I'm so glad you asked this question! I am suffering horribly at the moment, actually for quite a while! I take lactulose too but will try a big swig. I also just started drinking Robinsons SUGAR FREE squash which makes a nice hot drink especially if you have a cold. Also if trying tto stay off the caffeine.

Here's to good bowel movements everywhere!

X Jan

[Kathyfitz12 in reply to Jan66]

Don't know if this will help - but I ended up mega constipated having taken Codeine based painkillers after surgery. After suffering for nearly a year taking all sort s of laxatives I ended up at a gastroeneterologist who recommended Laxido - it's based on Macrogol and has electrlolytes to help maintain normal levels which can fall if you are constipated longterm. It's an over the counter med & costs about £10 for 30 sachets, but my GP gave a prescription when I found it worked.

It took quite a while but it did work without the usual side effects from other laxative type products, and I now back to normal (whatever that is!) Hope you get sorted soon............Kathy

[Neonkitty]

FIGS! Doctor swears they are better than laxatives, but some people really do need those when things get bad.

[Hidden]

My GP recommended Normacol granules which worked well for me.

My husband uses Fibogel, but it tastes disgusting!

Good luck!

[Hidden]

I've heard that taking more than the recommended dose of Vitamin C helps - I have to say it seems to work with me. I guess the the body gets rid of the excess Vit C that it doesn't need.

[Hidden]

Just found this:

constipation-remedies-for-a...

[tilstongal]

Rather than straining I use a glycerine suppository - it works! Cheap and effective, although perhaps not for really serious constipation.