Left side discomfort

[Casand11]

I've suffered from constipation all my life but over the last 3 or 4 years it's got worse and I get a lot of discomfort on my left side. I've had blood tests,examinations and a scan which didnt show anything untoward other than gallstones,which my doctor didn't think was an issue. I'm at a loss what to do to help with the constipation. I try and eat lots of vegetables and fruits but this gives me bad wind and still can't go. I walk everyday, drink lots of fluids. When I feel really "blocked" I take Senna but end up with bad stomach cramps. My body seems to naturally want to clear itself after about 5 days of no bowel movements but in a severe way in that i have awful stomach pains and on the loo for about 3 hours,this doesn't result in diarrhoea but lots of "usual" stools.Really getting fed up with never knowing how my toilet habits are going to be day to day which makes going out and socialising difficult, anyone else experiencing these symptoms?

[xjrs]

Have you been formally diagnosed with IBS-C? Your GP should be helping you to manage your symptoms.

To improve constipation in the short term you can try ground flaxseed on your breakfast, starting at 1 teaspoon and increasing at 1 teaspoon every 2-3 days - you'll need to consume extra water with it.

These foods are also high fibre:

8-9 Prunes

2 tablespoon chia seeds (soaked for 10-15 mins in milk or non dairy milk with cereal or water)

Shredded wheat (or if GF: Nutribrex)

60g Quinoa

Wholewheat bread

75g Whole grain pastas (if GF: Buckwheat)

2 Hard pears

5 Dried apricots

90g Raspberries

1 orange (contain a natural laxative)

2 kiwi.

I find that I need to have 1 orange a day and then another high fibre fruit later in the day to help with BMs.

I also take 30 drops of ginger extract before bedtime to aid motility. You may need to work up the dose to say 7 drop increments each night.

If all else fails you might want to try Optifibre. You need to work up the dose according to instructions.

Exercise can help with BMs as you know. The government recommends 150 mins of moderate exercise (e.g. walking as if you are late for an appointment) or 75 of intense exercise (e.g. jogging) per week. I also have a bit of a walk around straight after breakfast to get things moving.

You need to ensure that you are drinking enough fluids (2 litres of fluid per day).

There is some good advice about constipation here:

theibsnetwork.org/constipat...

theibsnetwork.org/constipat...

There are also medications that help IBS-C (constipation dominant IBS). I suffer from IBS-C and have been prescribed Linaclotide for it. I also take Alflorex probiotic which has made me more tolerant to taking in the extra fibre I need for a BM. This may mean that you will get less wind when you increase fibre. It is also very important to increase fibre slowly and try one new thing at a time to allow your body to get used to it, otherwise you will get a back lash. Do this first before trying Alflorex since you may not need it.

Some people are more prone to constipation due to their intestinal anatomy. Through colonoscopies I have been told that I have a long loopy (redundant) colon. This means that food takes longer to pass through and in the mean time the intestines have more time to suck out water from the stool, drying them out and causing constipation. I have found that I need to consume much more fibre than other people to have regular BMs.

I have also found useful having most of my food at meal times, leaving 4-5 hours of not eating between meals, eating my fruit snack before a meal. This means that your digestive system has time to process each meal. It also allows something called the MMC (migrating motor complex) to run which sweeps food waste from your small intestine into your large intestine. This only happens when you have an empty stomach. When people snack regularly, it prevents the MMC from working properly. I also find the larger meals help to push things along better than drip feeding through snacking.