# Can a person become dependent on enema use?



## Cliff (Feb 28, 2002)

Please help. My wife has had IBS for 3 years now. She has tried everything. I mean everything. Someone, not a medical expert suggested that before she moves her bowel, that she does the enema procedure. So for the past six months she's been doing it twice a day before she moves her bowel. Even if she does not have the urge to move her bowel in the morning, she does the enema procedure every morning because she is sooo worried that it will be too hard by the time evening comes. Then again in the evening she would force herself with the help of the enema to move her bowel. She explains that if she does not do it at night, she would be sooo worried that she is unable to sleep. She does this Every single day. She said that this is helping her to ease the pain of her bowel movement. I'm Really worried that this might be hurting her, in that she needs something "unnatural" to help her move her bowel, that she might become dependent on this procedure. Is it OK for her to be doing this? And also, since she's unable to sleep at night because of her anxiety, will a glass of wine or two be ok before bedtime to help her sleep? Your Help would be greatly appreciated.


----------



## Cath11 (Mar 4, 2002)

I just asked my gastroenterologist that same questions today. I have been doing enemas every week and I was getting worried that my body would begin to rely on them. He assured me that once every week or 2 weeks would not be harmful. He actually recommended it. I have had problems for over 10 years now and I have become desperate. I have had 4 colon hydrotherapy sessions in the past 6 months, but I stopped going because I had bloody stools for a few days after the procedure. Those definitely clean you out, but my doctor suggests not doing that and sticking to enemas, suppositories, and Miralax. Your wife should definitely see a specialist about this. Hope this helps.


----------



## Paula J. (Nov 23, 2001)

I am speaking from my experience only. I have your wife beat probably. I used suppositories, and enemas everyday for years. I used the enemas to get complete evacuation because I could not have total elimination. I hated it, and I'd use warm, sometimes very warm water. This will stretch the rectum area and make it easier to move. I still use the suppositories 9 years now, and can still occasionally go without it. The suppositories are preferable for me to the enema. You should get her to go to a doctor and maybe he could give her something to relax the bowels. I take Levbid for that. This is not a natural way to go, but when you can't go thank God for it.


----------



## BQ (May 22, 2000)

Cliff??? Two times a DAY??? No WAY! Get her to the Doc. By over using laxatives you can damage your intestines permanently. This is nothing to fool with. Go to the Doc pronto.BQ


----------



## Guest (Mar 6, 2002)

Cliff...she sounds like she is suffering from clinical anxiety...this may well be what is precipitating her bowel problems...I would consult a physician and perhaps see if some therapeutic intervention might be effective. The enemas are not the way to go, but all that sounds like an effect of a mental state and not the other way around. I hope she begins to make some progress towards more normal functioning real soon.


----------



## admflo (Dec 1, 2001)

Please listen to 4Willie and BQ.- Esp. about the mental state. I work in a hospital and once sawa very sad case of a woman who inflicted this onherself and her then seven year old son. Pleasepost back.


----------



## bonniei (Jan 25, 2001)

I agree with the others of trying to get your wife help, Cliff. However, from a physical point of view,"Weakness, shock, convulsions, and coma may result from water intoxication and dilutional hyponatremia in children, the elderly, and patients with megacolon who are given large tap water enemas. Convulsions with hypocalcemia and hyperphosphatemia have occurred in patients with renal dysfunction who absorbed large amounts of phosphate present in sodium phosphate-biphosphate enemas." from Constipation by A WaldDon't ask me what this means but it is a lead.


----------



## honeybee (Sep 12, 1999)

Cliff, I did daily warm to almost hot water enemas every day for about 10 years, during which time I was being seen by GI docs, none of them felt that it was a real problem to do this, since the alternative was to not go for up to 17 days at a time. The warm water enema actually relaxes the muscles in your rectum (not stretch them) which will allow stool to pass. Many people who have painful evacuation will tense up because of the pain which will then cause them to be unable to evacuate. Many children have this problem because they wait to long to go and then it hurts which makes them afraid to go. She should not be trying to force herself to go twice a day, every person is different and going every other day may be normal for her, and this can cause more problems such as hemmorroids and rectoceles when you are pushing and your body is not ready. Your body should indicate when it is time to go, then if you cannot evacuate try an enema or suppositories. But the best bet would be to get her to a doctor such as her ob-gyn, she might already have a rectocele which will/could cause painful (and possibly inhibit) evacuation, some women will get a rectocele after child birth. A heating pad applied to the anus will also help to bring on a bowel movement for the same reason a warm water enema does, it relaxes the muscles in the rectum. If after going to her ob-gyn she does not have a rectocele, consider going to a GI doc and asking for a manometry test. This test checks the pressure/muscle tone in the rectum, maybe she has some other kind of problem there. I doubt a glass of wine at night would really hurt, but never worked for me as it just gives me a headache. I didn't read that she was doing daily laxatives in your post, is she? Good luck to you, let us know how you fare.


----------



## kyle2020 (Mar 18, 2002)

can anyone give me advice on when it is best to use an enema and how much time i should set aside


----------



## Sean (Feb 8, 1999)

Kyle -- The best time is probably on an empty stomach. The enema will cause some bloating and I find it more comfortable if it has been a while since I have eaten. First thing in the morning is a natural time, but only if you are not rushed to leave home to start the rest of your day. You want to make sure you stay around a bathroom for a while. If you are too rushed in the mornings, try doing it at night before bedtime.I would allow an hour to do it from start to finish, including about 30 minutes on the toilet. You should be done after that and OK to leave home. The Fleet enemas have a saline laxative in them so there is a chnace that you will have to "go" again a couple of times during the morning because the effect of the laxative tends to linger, even after you have evacuated most of the liquid. I don't have that problem with warm tap water, which I prefer. E-mail me if you would like, because I have a couple of things I would like to ask you, since we seem to be having very similar problems.


----------



## JUL (May 23, 2002)

I also deal w/alot of pain and when it gets real bad I nead fast evacuation. The only thing that will do it for me is an enema. I use them probably 1 to 2 times a month, but in the last week I had to use 3. My doctor said that once in a while was ok. I use the fleet enemas. I never heard of hot/warm water enemas! Do you just fill a bottle up yourself? Are they better for you than fleet enemas? After I perform an enema I can at least lay on my bed but the pain still stays pretty bad for a few hrs. Any advice on a pain pill I can take?


----------



## honeybee (Sep 12, 1999)

Jal, For a warm water enema you fill up a bottle with warm water, I went to that approach because I was doing them everyday and could not afford to do a fleet enema everyday, and I would sometimes have to do more than one enema a day. Not that fleets are really expensive but when you do them everyday (and sometimes several in a day) for 10 years it would certainly add up. As far as water temp for the enema, do not use really hot water (I tried that once and I think that I burned the lining and felt like I had to go to bathroom constantly for a couple days), but warm to verge of hot has worked well for me.


----------

