Diverticulum Problem

[Breathless1943]

Hi All,I hope you’re all ready for Christmas. Anyway I have diverticulum, I think that’s what it’s called. My problem is I’m still learning how to handle it. I’m suffering a lot of problems with it,one being constipation,which I can do without,I used to take senokots but I’ve been told I shouldn’t.

So my question to anyone out there who suffers with this same disease,is what is the best laxative to take,before bed. And also are there any immediate laxatives I could take if I got desperate. Hope you all have a good Christmas.

[heartmatters1]

Hi. I suffer too with diverticula problems along with constipation. I have had impaction a couple of times. The first time I was in hospital, as we didn’t know at the time what was causing my stomach/bowel pain. I was subsequently prescribed large doses of Movicol & Fybrogel, which helped to sort it out. However, since then I have tried Laxido, which I prefer. One satchet a day helps & sometimes two or three a week is all that’s needed. I hope you find a solution which helps you.

Best wishes for a merry Christmas & a happy healthy new year.

[Breathless1943 in reply to heartmatters1]

sorry I think I wrote my reply in the wrong box.🙄

No I never but I’ve deleted the original reply. That’s old age for you😂

I’ve tried fybrogel and it didn’t seem to suit me,but I may give it another go.However I think I was advised movicol,my hubby got me some Micralax Enema but they don’t seem to work.

But thank you for your reply,and you have a great Christmas and healthy new year.

[Craftlife in reply to Breathless1943]

If you are still having problems you may find Movicol, or generic name macrogol works differently to fybogel ,will suit you better .It doesn't cause urgency and taken regularly and varying the dose to your symptoms each day should help . Taken from my own experience over a lot of years ,

[Boxroad]

who told you not to take senokot and why? My GP and the hospital told me senokot was ok to take with ibs and diverticulitis.

[Breathless1943 in reply to Boxroad]

I was told by a specialist not to take senokot,the reason I cant remember but that was for diverticulitis,not IBS,as I’ve always took senokot with IBS.

I think I read it’s an especially strong herbal remedy.

[Boxroad in reply to Breathless1943]

I have diverticulitis as well as ibs, I think it all depends on who you see on the day, I have been put on pills by one doctor to be told by another they not good and I should stop them, it’s a mine field out there.

[Breathless1943 in reply to Boxroad]

I tend to agree with you. There’s so many contradictions out there.

Sorry a bit late with a reply,I was just browsing.

[Evonne02 in reply to Boxroad]

I tried those and they didn't work for me. It depends on how bad the symptoms are. I think your symptoms are milder than ours. Plus, we also have other health issues that exacerbate this. One of mine is Sjogrens syndrome, which dries all fluid in the body, eevenear wax, the skin, hair and tears. It took over a decade for the gp to realise, and it was a specialist optician x2 at Specsavers that diagnosed me with it. So the severe constipation then made sense, and I was referred to Urology, as my impacted bowels resulted in me continually wetting myself. So I ended up with Diverticulitis which shocked me as i needed to attend A&E ue to psin, etc, said I was dying and did a plethora of tests and scans. These consultants together were fantastic 👏 👌 🙌 😍. Now I take 2 Macrogols in the evening (the prescription states to take 1, twice a day but this does nothing for me), Docusate tablets 4 times a day to soften my stools , Peppermint Oil Capsules to relax my stomach and bowels, and to drink x3 cups of Peppermint Tea each day (expensive, but it needs to be done). So far (now 3 years later), it is very rare that I have any issues with tummy pain & have never been constipated since.

[winfong in reply to Boxroad]

My gastro said no for several reasons. One was it's harsher. Another was that it could be habit-forming, especially if you have to take something every day, as is the case with most people with diverticular disease (like me). It's much better to take an osmotic laxative - i.e., something that draws water into the bowel to bulks things up and move them along.

[Breathless1943 in reply to winfong]

Have you got any suggestions what that would be?

[winfong in reply to Breathless1943]

Osmotic laxatives? Polyethylene glycol (Miralax), calcium polycarbophil (FiberCon), methy cellulose (Cirtucel) ...

[Craftlife in reply to Breathless1943]

Macrogol is available on prescription in the UK

[Healtheater]

I eat fresh fruit and youghurt with flax xeeds and chia seeds every morning. This helps to reduce inflammation in the gut and can help with diverticular problems. I also take magnesium at night which helps to prevent constipation. Hope this helps and have a great Christmas!

[Breathless1943 in reply to Healtheater]

I do eat fruit,but I’m limited on what vegetables I can eat. I’m also told magnesium is bad for diverticula,but where do you buy flax seeds and chia seeds from?

[Healtheater in reply to Breathless1943]

I have diverticulosis and I am also a nurse and Nutritional Therapist. I take magnesium. There is no reason why you can't take magnesium for diverticulosis. You can get flax seeds from any health food store or online form Amazon.

[Breathless1943 in reply to Healtheater]

Do you mean like milk of magnesium? Do you have any suggestions to quietening a bowel down mine seems to be constantly moving causing pain. I’ve tried the usual Buscupan,Mebeverine,and the latest one SimAlvia soft capsules.

[Healtheater in reply to Breathless1943]

I don't mean milk of magnesia. I mean magnesium citrate capsules. You could try taking mint capsules for your bowel. It may also be helpful for you to look at the FODMAP diet. Have you tried eliminating gluten and dairy products from your diet?

[Breathless1943 in reply to Healtheater]

Hi Healtheater,I have bought some chia seeds and Flax seeds do these help with constipation and do you use about a teaspoon of each daily.

[Letswalk]

I have diverticulitis. Ask your doctor for laxatives CosmoCol. Works for me. I also take Mebervibe before meals prescribed by doctor. Drink plenty of water eat whole meal bread, pasta and rice and fruit and veg. Hope you feel better soon.

[OldTimer74 in reply to Letswalk]

I also use Cosmocol, make up a sachet and drink part of it after every meal and it works for me.

[Minty00]

Hi i developed diverticular disease in 2017 and eventually had inflammation of the colon that was pretty awful luckily it was uncomplicated and did not need medical intervention apart from having a ct dcan to confirm it . However i was told to increase fibre in my diet do i ditched white bread for wholemeal in addition to this i was prescribed fybogel a natural laxitive soluoble fibre drink u mix with water it really helps with constipation and keeps u going regular ot might be worth a try instead of the senokat u are using

[Breathless1943 in reply to Minty00]

I have tried Fybogel,but I found it a bit too much,but I may give it another try. I have also tried to increase my fibre intake,fruit veg Ect.

Thank you for your help. I’ve got to be honest I’m never free from stomach pain,and now Diverticulum has been added on,it’s worse. Sorry for complaining as I know you all must be struggling one way or another.

[Minty00 in reply to Breathless1943]

yeh i get u totally it took a long time for me to sort out my gut issues but i also cut down on red meat and drank loads more water im still not totally free from gut issues but ive not had another infection since my first one so i think just making some food adjustments until you find the right balance that works for u . i dont take fybogel all the time but it does tend to work for me hope u manage to find the right way to manage it good luck

[Breathless1943 in reply to Minty00]

Thank you,I think you get it. I do have a drink by my side all day I drink plenty of water. Just a break from all of this would be good. But he ho I’ll keep trying with a little help from this platform.👍🏻

[Evonne02]

So sorry you're going through this. Please read my reply below to Boxroad. What you have I believe is called Diverticulitis, which is an issue with your Spleen. It has 3 stages and is very painful when you have flare-ups/ acute pain. Please research your health issue. All the best 😍

[Karenjaninaz in reply to Evonne02]

Evon, diverticulitis is not an issue with the spleen. It is an issue with the Colon. Maybe this was a typo?

[Evonne02 in reply to Karenjaninaz]

Hi Karen janinaz, I didn't know until I got this disease/issue that there are many types of Diverticulitis as well as many causes and complications in health resulting in this issue. I also have Rumatoid Arthritis, which is an added contribution to getting it. Just having RA can lead to an enlarged spleen itself. For now, I just receive treatment for my other underlying conditions, monitored and sometimes given antibiotics when needed.

Types/complications include:

Splendid Flexture.

Phylephebitis.

Perforated Diverticulitis in the ascending colon combined with Phylephebitis.

Perforated Sigmoid Diverticulitis (gas in the abdomen and Liver abscesses).

Cecil Diverticulitis.

Splenic abscesses.

Fistula -an abnormal connection between 2 organs, or an organ & the skin (I have this type... i think, due to the rare type of eczema i have & the Ibs too. Consultants wont confirm this though, even though only 100 people hace my eczema in the World) 😟

Intestinal Perforation.

Intestinal obstruction (I've had this in the past. Fingers crossed i never, ever get this again !).

There's absolutely loads more variations of this issue, as well as the causes, complications and outcomes.

Hope this is more understanding for you, as well as others. All the best 😍

[Breathless1943 in reply to Evonne02]

Sorry I never replied before now. But I have Rheumatoid Arthritis as well,which I have learned a few things from this Ect Diverticulitis.

But can you tell where to look for all your information.

[Evonne02 in reply to Breathless1943]

Hi again Breathless1943, I get in from various places and try to find if what the consultant has said is true. We all have different reasons, complications or longstanding issues that result in giving us this disease.

Some of the places include:

Healthline,

Cleveland Clinic,

Nhs inform,

Mayo Clinic,

And I then, as usual, I then put the issue in Google & add USA at the end as we don't all get all the truth all the time here in the UK.

Hope this helps. Some are long reads. All the best 😍

[Breathless1943 in reply to Evonne02]

Thank you,I’ll give some of that a read tomorrow.