Hello,
I see a few posts mentioning constipation. This is not one of my symptoms but I was wondering if anyone uses enemas these days? They seem to have fallen out of fashion these days, but at one time they were all the rage.
I have used them in the past if I have been constipated and they are very effective!
No, I wouldn't consider an enema. I think it's best to try and encourage the gut to work naturally if possible.
The only time I've had an enema was before giving birth. That was over 40 years ago, I don't know if they do it now.
Rather horrifying - they don't give them to you before you give birth any more. Likely for cost and time saving reasons.
I had one the last time I was in hospital - because all the unnecessary drugs the were giving me, were bunging me up!
Plus the hospital food didn't contain enough fibre, and I couldn't eat it, anyway!
I read in the recent quarterly Thyroiduk.org.uk quarterly Magazine 'Harmony' the mention of enemas in an article written by TUK's Adviser Alyssa Burns I think is a nutritionist.
thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/About_...
She's a 'holistic hormone health specialist '. She doesn't allow linking to her website without contacting her first but is easily googled.
Thanks for this. Looks like an interesting read!
I couldn't find anything on searching the link but found by googling her name.
What kind of enemas are you talking about? One of the home made ones I've read about? A plastic bucket and a tube? Ones with coffee in them? I always wonder if coffee enemas are code for something else because the idea of shoving coffee up my rear end is just too weird for me and I think people must be taking the mickey.
I read, but don't contribute to, the Phoenix Rising forum for people with CFS. I'm astonished by how many of them are into enemas, particularly coffee enemas.
I've always assumed that enemas are very bad for the bacteria in the gut. Surely a lot of them get washed away?
Yes, I agree that a lot of stuff would get washed away. I prefer probiotic juuice.
I had one as a kid in hospital and it horrified me. If I get constipated now I just avoid any carbs for a few days and only eat raw vegetables and of course fruit. Seems to work.
When I've done enemas at home I have used boiling water left to cool. I wouldn't recommend soap sud enemas as these do aggrevate the lining of the gut. Coffee enemas are very effective
My enema kit is gravity fed and is literally a large hot water bottle with a rubber hose and a tiny plastic pipe that you insert. Seriously - it's tiny!
Enemas WORK and they WORK FAST - 20 mins start to finish. If I had constipation I would try this before anything else. But I understand - if you have constipation all the time then it's likely not a good idea (I might be wrong) having one every day.
No no no no to the hellz no. lol I had constipation before the meds got straightened out, and I took a probiotic juice each day...still do. No more constipation. Also a dies rich in seeds, with flax thrown in for good measure, in cereal or bread. Vegan diet. Haven't had an issue with it since.
I think it's highly likely that those suffering from the ongoing constipation are gluten free so not eating usual sources of fibre such as bread and cereals.
For me and three other friends who are hypothyroid it was directly related to our disease. Two of us are gluten free and two are not. Didn't seem to matter.
Now there you are wrong in my case. Gluten makes me constipated, I am in the 20% that this happens to rather than getting the runs. Also not enough thyroid meds also bungs me up and this is an ongoing battle since my thyroidectomy
How do you solve your constipation?
Not enemas, no, but I do use glycerine suppositories occasionally. I am prone to const. which seems there in spite of a good diet. I take psyllium husk capsules every day between meals and these tend to keep things regular - usually.
It is often treated as a bit of a joke, but there's nothing worse than having a busy day out and about and you're well and truly "stuck"!
No way. I was given one (soapy water I think?) when I was a little tot, around 3 yrs old I think. I can only remember being carried round outside by my grandmother bawling my eyes out afterwards. That left me traumatised re the whole subject, unsurprisingly.
My default setting is 'constipated' so I've had a battle with it all my life, but when I was a teen we discovered yoghurt and that has pretty much solved the problem, or had done until last year when I guess hypothyroid symptoms started to set in. Figs used to be a great help, too. Recently I discovered lemon juice works wonders. A quarter of a lemon's juice squeezed onto fish (if you are having it for a meal) or in some hot water and bingo! Really works.
I went gluten free and it made me constipated. I suppose everyone is different. The worst thing I can eat for my gut is rice. It causes physical pain and my stomach just can't digest it at all and swells up. Even nuts especially brazil nuts and too many seeds give me a bad stomach. Sometimes it isn't always gluten causing it.
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