Hi my friends

hope all my friends are ok. Got severe constipation girls so bad my bum bleeding! Ive tried the natural approach ie senna and aloe vera and nothing Than i ate a load of prunes but was as sick as a dog! Last night i resolved to 2 Dulcolax(Bisacodyl) and now ive got bad cramps but still nothing.Dosage is up to 3 pills. What do you reckon? Any ideas? Thanks Lynn RSA XXXXX

[trolleydollyuk]

Hi Lynn

Sorry to hear you are suffering, I go through boughts of constipation, generally when I forget to drink lots of water. I hate pumping more drugs into my body so I always take a mug of hot milk with a heaped teaspoon of ispaghol husk, seems to do the trick every time. Hope this helps. X

[PatsyH]

Hi Lynn

I had dreadful constipation after my first dose of carbo/taxol to the extent that everything was jammed solid and I was in so much pain I was rolling around on the floor. My doctor came out and prescribed a medicine called Pinorax, but BE WARNED. I think this is what they use in hospitals to clear things out before an op and the effect is drastic, to say the least! You need to stay by a loo for the first few hours. After a day or two, once things had settled down, I took Movicol on a regular basis to prevent the constipation happening again.

I hope this helps but I imagine Pinorax is only prescribed in 'emergencies', which I think my situation counted as.

All the best

Patsy

[cathysal]

Hi Lynn

I suffered from constipation all my life and found the very best help came from taking Milk of Magnesia every night. I put about half an inch in a small glass and topped it up with about an inch of water. It's gentle but really effective.

A word of advice and warning!! Do try and get it sorted and don't be like me. I ended up with not just very painful piles but with an anal fissure which is something you DO NOT want to have! Mine took almost a year to clear up and most of the time the pain was almost intolerable.

As much as I hate having an ileostomy (stoma) at least I know I'll never have to go through that again!

Good luck. Cathy xx

[bosue]

I always suffer from constipation after chemo take senokots,movicol, took 8 in a day last time and it sure did work up till 4am, also have as a backup advised by my onc nurse glycerine suppositories you an buy them at any chemist about £2.50. hope this helps

[Hidden]

Thanks so much my friends! Right im arming myself with all these goodies!! And girls if i explode on the loo i,m blaming you ok ???LOL I can get most of the stuff here except the one where you need a script. Gonna give them all atry Thanks again Love Lynn XXX

[bosue in reply to Hidden]

hi. again, see my previous question 'constipation and chemo' posted a few days ago there are 17 answers, that might help. good luck love sue x

[suzieque]

Hi,You have all my sympathy, constipation was my biggest problem while I was on chemo.It took a while to control,but through trial and error I found what was best for me.I took 1 fybogel in the morning and 1 at night with 2 bisacodyl at night .Great results ,just couldn't be too far from a loo,especially in the morning.....I'm still taking both to "assist" my bowels since chemo finished in August,just not every day.If I eat Asda's liquorice sticks I find that they help me too...

Good luck xxxxx

[Florence]

To Constipation Sufferers Everywhere. Getting out of the cycle of constipation after chemo sounds dire! On top of all that you've been through it's so debilitating and painful anf must affect your sense of well-being. Not fair.

Although my constipation is not from chemo it is related to cancer ops etc. When I finally got myself 'regular-ish' I found that sticking to a daily natural routine of 2 figs, 2 prunes and an apricot daily works for me.

To those of you that are now going ugh! Let me give you a few intersting facts about these dried fruits.

PRUNES: a laxative because of their high fibre content which helps to stimulate the bowel. They are high in antioxidantsand a key ingredient in many anti-ageing creams. They are virtually fat free so they won't pile on the pounds.

FIGS; Rich in calcium so good for bone health. 1 fig (20g) contains 50mg calcium. They are a good source of iron and fibre therefore good for constipation.

APRICOT; are rich in beta carotene which the body converts to Vit A , needed to support our immune system and keeps skin and eyes healthy also a rich source of fibre which helps to prevent constipation and digestive disorders. A handful of the lovely little thingssupply about 20% of our daily requirements of potassium and more than 10% of our iron needs.

I also add to my daily mix a few Goji berries also known as wolfberries which are rich in beta-caotene which 'they' say may help in the fight against heart disease and cancer as well as as protecting the skin from sun damage. Goji berries are sometimes known as 'happy' berries as they are thought to help boost the spirits. Now that can't be bad, can it?

It takes me a couple of mins in the morning to put together my natural cocktail and keeps me 'going' through the day.

I shall test you all later but for now lesson over!

Florence