# Anyone ever drink Magnesium Citrate to treat constipation?



## cielpur (May 14, 2017)

Hi I'm new to this forum. I have suffered with constipation for my entire life. I don't know why my parents or pediatrician never gave me saline or mineral oil enemas when I young. I wish they would have.

But this post is about my current situation. I had an x-ray done two days ago, that showed impaction in the higher intestinal tract and some in the lower but no bowel obstruction has been noted yet. For the past month, I've suffered from terrible gas and air on my left side, fatigue, acid reflux, smaller appetite, nausea, bloating and stomach cramping from the air and gas that's trapped on my left side.

So, I went to the E.R. and asked for an enema since my doctor's office no longer offers them, not even the urgent care will deliver an enema. I guess because enemas are available over-the-counter. So, I went to the E.R. and argued with the physician assistant, that I wanted a saline enema to get rid of the stuff that's stuck in my rectum, that's not low enough for me to expel on my own. She refused. She instead told me to drink a 10 oz. bottle of Magnesium Citrate and told me that should clear out my system, and allow the trapped gas and air to escape afterward. She was really rude about it. She didn't even bother to tell me how to take the oral solution (with or without food, what time of day, or what the side effects are etc.). '

So, I bought a bottle of grape flavored Magnesium Citrate at Target, and then asked the pharmacist there the questions I had at the E.R. that the rude p.a. wouldn't answer. He told me I can take Magnesium Citrate anytime of day with food and that I need to drink it cold with two glasses of water to dilute it. Then, I have to wait for the bowel movements to begin.

It's nearly 10 p.m. and I haven't started it yet. I'm too scared, but I know I have to drink it. I haven't tried stool softners or enemas yet (although I did buy a Fleet enema saline solution).

I will drink it. But I'm scared that it will give me the same symptoms of food poisoning; vomiting, stomach cramping, bloating, gas, and watery diarrhea. Obviously, I want to expel everything that's blocked me up right now and making me miserable. But I'm scared, nonetheless.

Can anyone please share their experience with drinking the Magnesium Citrate to ease my anxiety? How was your experience with it? Any tips that will benefit me? I plan to drink it at 10 p.m. tonight. I have Benedryl tablets ready to go in case it causes me to stop breathing. See? I'm super anxious about something that is supposedly safe for pregnant or breast feeding women to take.

I had rice for dinner (didn't drink any liquid with it and am thirty). Then I went for a 30 minute walk afterward, thinking a long walk post-dinner would aid digestion and move things along. But, it's now been an hour and still no bowel movement. I can feel it sitting there in my rectum, but its to high and I don't feel like straining to push it out.

But, really, I need your support with the Magnesium Citrate. I'm super anxious about drinking it.


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## mosesbd (May 10, 2017)

first and most importantly, breath. relax,

anxiety will always make it worse when it comes to constipating,

i know that since i have PTSD and adhesions (motor accident 3 years ago, many surgeries) so severe that its been over 8 months now on a liquid diet, walking is good

keep it up , dont let the nausea and bloating take over you, you must keep breathing deep, meditate and massage your colon , this video helped me a lot 




and i still do that to my self, heath pad could also be useful,

i dont know what you have but for me magnesium citrate would most likely get me to the ER for sever cramping and i prefer to stay away from laxatives and just keep on my liquid diet until i find a proper permanent solution.

hope some one can help you figure if this substance could help you...

while you wait, breath, meditate, relax your self, smile, try to laugh and distract yourself with talking (making loud voices also expand your abdomen, this this might not be a one step quick solution,

it is safe to say i avoided being plugged into the NG Tube for a while now.

hope you drop those bombs and start a proper diet until you figure out what is it that you have.


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## cielpur (May 14, 2017)

Thank you Mosesbd. It's going on 7 hours since I drank the Magnesium Citrate and it took 5 hours for it to work. But now I'm thinking I shouldn't have drank all 10 ounces, even though I drank 16 ounces of water with it and have been drinking water ever since, in between bouts of really explosive diarrhea.

I guess my anxiety is through the roof because taking a laxative is a new experience for me. Having it dry me out to the point where my throat is so dry that I'm coughing, my eyes are dry, and my tongue is dry because the laxative is drying me out, to expel all of the impacted stool inside my upper intestinal tract, is very anxiety-provoking. I tried to sleep in between the explosive bouts but haven't been able to.

I have called my healthplan's urgent care nurse line pretty much every hour, seeking the nurses feedback and telling them everything that I am experiencing because this is my first experience with a laxative. I had no idea I would be battling it to stay hydrated, since the 10 oz. of Magnesium Citrate's job is to dehydrate me to begin with.

The nurse told me to try to relax, keep pushing fluids, eating yogurt, toast, a banana to bulk me up again. She said that I should wait 12 hours to see how I feel, before I go to the emergency room to request I.V. fluids to rehydrate me. I think i will go anyway around dinner time to get the I.V. fluids. I'll probably have to wait in the lobby anyway, so who knows how long I'll have to wait to get the fluids. But I don't think I'll ever do a laxative again after this. It's so scary. Wow. I'm happy that it worked, but still overwhelmed by how quickly the laxative sucks up any water I drink. I have my vaporizer on to humidify my apartment, and I could humidify my bathroom with steam from a hot shower.

I'm just new to all of these digestive tools like laxatives, stool softeners, enemas, suppositories as options to alleviate digestive problems like constipation that I've had for my entire life. My mother and sister both suffer with constipation and have both had episodes of diverticulitis too. I can barely handle one laxative experience. I don't think I'd handle diverticulitis well. Thanks again for your supportive response and for sharing your story.


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## Justwannabenormal (Jun 2, 2017)

You will be fine, I drink it all of the time because it works the best on me to produce a bowel movement. Basically it sucks out all of the water in your body into your intestines and you will get out all of the hard stuff, and after that it will be brown water. The benefit of this is that you won't have cramping associated with senna or something. Sad that I know all of this, unfortunately I have taken a lot of laxatives since January and I find this works best for me. A similar, and perhaps gentler option is a new product that I have found by LIfe Extension called Effervescent Vitamin C and Magnesium crystals. It is basically a megadose of Vitamin C, with some magnesium in it. Don't use it if you have kidney issues.


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## sara1991 (May 13, 2017)

Justwannabenormal said:


> You will be fine, I drink it all of the time because it works the best on me to produce a bowel movement. Basically it sucks out all of the water in your body into your intestines and you will get out all of the hard stuff, and after that it will be brown water. The benefit of this is that you won't have cramping associated with senna or something. Sad that I know all of this, unfortunately I have taken a lot of laxatives since January and I find this works best for me. A similar, and perhaps gentler option is a new product that I have found by LIfe Extension called Effervescent Vitamin C and Magnesium crystals. It is basically a megadose of Vitamin C, with some magnesium in it. Don't use it if you have kidney issues.


Hey, Just noticed you're UAE-based as well & was wondering if you found any gastro here to help you? Desperately looking for one that's not going to tell me "you have to live with this". Also, I'm taking both Miralax and Magnesium Citrate 1200 MG and it causes watery stools 8-10 times the next day. Do you think I'm taking too much?


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## Justwannabenormal (Jun 2, 2017)

Sara, I just private messaged you.

I would cut down on the Magnesium Citrate dosage. There is something else that you can try that is similar called Effervescent Vitamin C. Basically it is a very high dose of Vitamin C, with some magnesium and a bit of potassium thrown in. You have to play around with the dose, everyone is different. I need a larger dose to get things moving along, but that is because I have a bit of SIBO. But you can adjust to where it simply draws water into your stool, and normalizes it. It is similar to magnesium, but it doesn't turn everything in your bowel to water unless you take too much.

Also, Sara, if you are in the UAE I will tell you what works GREAT. Ayulax. You can get it at most pharmacies, just ask for it and the pharmacist will know what you are talking about. It is natural, ayurvedic, and works like a dream. I take 2-3 at night, and it works beautifully the next day. Sometimes within a few hours. When I visit my family in the US for an extended period I always bring extra with me. Last time I ran out, and I had to get my husband to send it to me because I couldn't find anything there that works as well as this. If I am really backed up I will take this along with an osmotic laxative.


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## Hartigan (Jun 28, 2017)

Justwannabenormal said:


> Sara, I just private messaged you.
> 
> I would cut down on the Magnesium Citrate dosage. There is something else that you can try that is similar called Effervescent Vitamin C. Basically it is a very high dose of Vitamin C, with some magnesium and a bit of potassium thrown in. You have to play around with the dose, everyone is different. I need a larger dose to get things moving along, but that is because I have a bit of SIBO. But you can adjust to where it simply draws water into your stool, and normalizes it. It is similar to magnesium, but it doesn't turn everything in your bowel to water unless you take too much.
> 
> Also, Sara, if you are in the UAE I will tell you what works GREAT. Ayulax. You can get it at most pharmacies, just ask for it and the pharmacist will know what you are talking about. It is natural, ayurvedic, and works like a dream. I take 2-3 at night, and it works beautifully the next day. Sometimes within a few hours. When I visit my family in the US for an extended period I always bring extra with me. Last time I ran out, and I had to get my husband to send it to me because I couldn't find anything there that works as well as this. If I am really backed up I will take this along with an osmotic laxative.


Justwannabenormal, are you currently using just Ayulax or multiple laxatives to keep your bowels moving? For how long have you been on regular laxatives to date?


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