# Imodium question ?



## Guest (Apr 11, 2009)

Has anyone ever noticed this ?The amount of Imodium you take , is the amount of Day's you will be Plugged up ?I had bad "D" on Wednesday (4/8) and I ended up taking 3 Imodium that day.I didn't go on Thursday and Friday and I was able to finally go some this morning. That's 3 days . It's really strange , as for me , this seems to turn out being the time I can't go. 3 pills = 3 days.


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## petra (Feb 2, 2009)

this doesn't apply to me. Sorry if this seems a stupid question but why do you worry if you are constipated for a day or two. I am always delighted to have a break from the D so that would be a real bonus for me. I would much rather the pain associated with a bit of constipation than incontrollable D. I guess we are all very different which makes this disorder so frustrating.


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## Guest (Apr 12, 2009)

My Gastro doctor told me " A Normal person has 1 bowel movement daily".And for the last 20 years (Approx) I have had nothing but "D" and that got worse when I had my Gall Bladder out about ( 9 years ago (approx).I only take Imodium if my "D" is at it's ultimate worst and I can't get off the toilet for 3 hours plus.I guess I thought it was harmfull when you can't go for afew days. Your body needs to rid itself of all this waste matter , and retaining it wasn't good for you.I heard when "ELVIS" died , the medical examiner found 40 pounds of waste matter in his intestines.I also heard that when "JOHN WAYNE" died , they also found Over 40 pounds of waste in his intestines.This surely must be dangerous to your health ?????????????


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

The middle of the normal range is one time a day, but it isn't true that every single normal person always has one and only one BM every single day.At one time they did used to teach you MUST have a BM every day to be healthy but they've looked at that a bit more and relaxed that. Forcing yourself to go every day with laxatives is probably a lot worse than just letting yourself be at your normal range that they now acknowledge is a range, not a single number.The range you see in normal healthy people ranges from 3 a day to 3 a week. You do not have to go every day. However if you take more Imodium than your body can handle you could be blocked up for a few days and that means you probably need to back off on the dose the next time even if you think you need that much to totally stop you up.Elvis was a narcotic addict. That kind of thing doesn't happen to normal people who aren't abusing drugs that are really constipating. After all Imodium is all the stuff you up part of narcotics without the high. So taking huge doses of pain meds every day is like taking huge doses of Imodium all the time and never taking a break as addicts don't drop the dose down just because they missed a BM.It is unusual (even if some people selling products tell you every single human has pounds of feces in there because they want to clean you out) to see that in anyone, even in drug addicts, but you can take enough drugs for enough years to do that to yourself. I'm also not clear how many of the horror stories of stars with huge amounts of stool is actually real and what was actually found and how much is exaggerated to make a good story, especially if you are using it to sell a colon cleanser and most of the people spreading the stories seem to be sales people or promoters of some sort of cleaning product.If you haven't gone in a week it may be time to talk to the doctor. If everything stops, including no farts at all you need to be seen ASAP. It really takes a lot to get an impaction and you won't because you went 48 or 72 hours without a BM. Usually that takes more like 10 days to two weeks of no BM.


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## keycat (Apr 6, 2009)

It's always been my understanding that the body will, in most cases, take care of itself. Unless you have serious pain or constipation lasting more than a week or two, you don't need to worry about stuff building up in your gut. There are no nooks and crannies in the intestine for your waste matter to hide. Furthermore, I'm pretty sure that the "40 pounds of waste" found in Elvis and John Wayne are urban legends. If you were that backed up, you would have serious symptoms that would alert you to the problem. I often get constipation if I take more than one Imodium; it's not a big deal. My doctor recommended taking fiber for it. I don't think you have anything to worry about.


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## Guest (Apr 12, 2009)

My Gastro doctor has had me on Benefiber orange chewable tablets (5 tab's 3 times daily) for quite along time now.He did that to bulk up my stool so it isn't straight watery mush all the time.He was very insistant that a person should have one movement a day.So I always figured he knew what he was talking about being a Gastro doc for 30 years.I asked my primary care doctor about this issue too , and she said she goes every day.But she said atleast 4 movements a week is acceptable.I feel better if I go daily , as long as it isn't watery mush. I feel drained if I have "D" for hours on end every day , all the time.That why I was given Fiber.For me , I still find , that the amount of Imodium I have to take will work out being the days I can't go due to being plugged.It looks like I am the only one expierencing this crazy issue.Now in regards to Celebraties that are found with all this access waste matter , I didn't read this in a Rag magazine , I read their Autopsy reports. I would think they would be very ill with that much waste inpacted in them. I sure would be.Thanks for all the replys.


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

Well you can follow your doctor, that is your right.I know 30 years ago the medical conventional wisdom was no one should always have a BM every day even if you have to take laxatives to make it happen.I think the last decade or two they've loosened up on that and if you aren't taking anything that would block you up skipping a day every so often isn't the damaging issue they used to think it was.However, if you are taking constipating medications you probably do want to be more careful about blocking yourself up too much. There is a difference between someone that is normal, not taking any medications and goes every other day and someone that normally has 5-20 BM's a day blocking themselves up with medication for 3-4 days at a time.If one always has diarrhea you should stop all constipating medications if you don't go for a day or so. You can medicate yourself into a blockage easier than the body can do it by itself.I don't know why you think NO ONE constipates themselves with Imodium but you. I see lots of people saying they have that happen, but most people find it to be a relief as long as it doesn't go on for more than a day or so. Again, not that I think it will make a difference, but the best dose of Imodium is one that slows you down but doesn't stop all BM's for 48 or more hours. I know still having a few loose stools during a bad bout of diarrhea can be annoying, but it is better to err on the not quite enough side than the too much side because you can medicate yourself into a blockage and that is a bad thing.For those that aren't on medications to stop them up skiping a day or two is not a medical emergency and forcing yourself to go by any means necessary every day when that isn't what your body does on its own is probably not a good thing. It is, like everything, a balancing act. Celebrities who rattled from the pain pills they took (either because they are an addict, or they are in the last bit of cancer that needs very high levels of narcotics) are not examples of the normal human being's GI tract.


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## Guest (Apr 12, 2009)

I am not on any Narcotics.I only take Zantac 150 and Protonix for Acid reflux.I was put on Pancrease MT-20 because a CT SCan of my chest showed my Pancrease is Atrophic.I was told the Pancrease MT-20 will help me like a digestive enzyme to help food break down for processing.None of these are Constipating my Pharmacist said.Which I tend to believe because of my constant "D" that is either water or mush.The only time I get plugged up for 1 , 2 , 3 days is if I take Imodium , and for me , the amount of Imodium I take equils the amount of days I am plugged.Maybe that is just a fluke situation ??? What I was asking was > Dose any one else get plugged , day wise , by the amount you take ?I know I am Not the only one that gets plugged up from Imodium.I am glad we have this medication to take , as it is the Only thing that helps.


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## Guest (Apr 12, 2009)

I did read AUTOPSY Reports for Wayne and Presley , guess they must have been FAKE.I really Don't Care if they had 40 pounds of waste in them. I just thought that must have been a terrible situation to be impacted that badly.Now back to my original question > When I take 3 Imodium , I'm plugged 3 days. When I take 2 Imodium , I'm plugged 2 days. Does this happen to anyone else ??????? Or do I seem to be the only one that happens to ?????


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

A lot of people over the years on this board have reported temporary constipation from Imodium.Constipation IS a side effect of Imodium. FWIW it is a relative of the narcotics and it is the constipating side effect of the narcotics without the high or addiction issues. It stops diarrhea the same way opium, morphine, codiene and heroin do.It can't leave the gut and kill pain or make you high.It is constipating. That is why it stops diarrhea.It is not unusual or surprising that it backs people up for a day or three. Lots of people on this very forum have said it does. Constipation is listed on every side effect listing for Imodium I have ever seen.Side effects are typically related to dose for all drugs in all people. This is not some unique thing that happened only to you and no one else in the world.Just because it isn't the exact same number of hours for the exact same dose as you does not mean it never happened to anyone. Why it only counts if people say it is the exact number of hours as you on your thread and only your thread I don't know.I'm out of here, I'm repeating myself and it isn't getting anywhere.Imodium is constipating, you are not the only person in all the world that this happens to, really!


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## Guest (Apr 12, 2009)

Thanks for the additional reply kathleen.My only point was > If I take 3 Imodium that is the number of days I can't go.I just wondered if anyone else found this Exact same thing happening to them ?I knew Imodium is constipating , that is why we take it.Since I don't take Narcotics , I don't know if it is Constipating or not. I am sure it effects everyone differently , just like Imodium does.I just thought it was strange that the amount I take that day ends up always being the amount of days I don't go.


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## newly recovered (Apr 13, 2009)

Ask your doctor about HYOSCYAMINE. I had IBS-D for a long time, which became progressively worse over time, and this is the only thing that really help. I've tried other medications, fibers, and etc. but this is the only thing that helps me. I started out using the long-acting hyoscyamine but found that two doses of the short acting pill per day works much better for me. The pills work within 10-25 min and works from the first time you take it and it does not have any annoying side-effects like altering my mind or anything. It made my IBS symptoms about 90 percent better. I still have some gas from time to time, like most normal people do, but no more explosive diarrhea and having to use the bathroom more than once a day; except to urinate of course. Because I do not have gas backed up all the time, my bladder can also hold more urine; resulting in less trips to the bathroom to urinate as well. Hyoscyamine is a medication that has been around for a very long time and because of it I can go eat at restaurants and do other things without having to worry about using to restroom mid-meal. It woks great for me and I hope it does the same for you and other people reading this post. p.s.: while the long-acting hyoscyamine pills does help, the short-acting version works much better for me so you may want to try both to find out what works better for you. I am paying about $10 for 90 pills(0.125mg) that last about 45 days for me because I only take 2 a day. I do have insurance but I think the medication should be around the same price without insurance as well.


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## Guest (Apr 13, 2009)

Thankyou for your reply. I will ask my doctor about it.The Imodium works very well for me , so I am pleased.I just notice that if I take 3 Imodium on a Bad "D" day , then I am plugged 3 days. Same thing for taking 2. Even 4.That can be irritating. I feel better if I can go Daily. Just not watery mushy D all the time.I am open to trying anything to stop my "D" and not plug me for several days.


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## keycat (Apr 6, 2009)

Have you tried just taking one or even one half of an Imodium before the D starts? Sometimes I do that. I also try to go very slow with my Imodium intake ... I take 1/2 at a time, wait, and then take another 1/2 if I need it, etc. Of course, this only works if you have the luxury of time to wait around and see if your D will get better.I probably mentioned this before, but you should try fiber. It helps both D and constipation.


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## Guest (Apr 13, 2009)

I've been on Fiber a long long time.I take Benefiber orange chewable tablets 5 tabs 3 times daily. As recommended by Gastro doctor.Gastro doctor said it will help bulk up your stool.I Only take Imodium if my "D" is at it's worst. Going non stop over 2-3 hours straight. Other wise I just let it run it's course so to speak.It tends to plug me up.Maybe ? , taking 1/2 to 1 tablet daily would keep the "D" under better controll. I just don't know. Untill I try atleast.Thanks for the post.


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## WMMCM (Apr 16, 2009)

I take 1 tablet everyday. It makes my life great. When I started I only took 1/2 a tablet for the first few days.Life is better each day with my medication.WMM


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## mrae (Apr 28, 2009)

I see that you have bee taking immodium for 15+ yrs. You are the exact person that can answer this for me. The only thing that helps with my ibs-d is immodium but I only take it when I have appt or traveling because I always thought it was unhealthy and unsafe to take it on a daily basis. I also thought eventually your body would get use to it and it would stop working. So you haven't had any health issue becuase you have taken it on a daily basis for so long. How many can you take a day and it work for you since you have been on it so long. I can take 1-2 depending on my D for that day and be good the rest of the day and most of the next. So I am thinking if I took one a day everyday it would keep things going smoothly for me. Very interested in this issue of immodium since this is a life savor for me. I would not be able to go anywhere if it wasn't for immodium.


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## keycat (Apr 6, 2009)

My doctor recommended that I take Imodium every day. I don't think it's unhealthy or unsafe to use over a long period of time. That's the beauty of Imodium; it's safe and effective. As for tolerance to Imodium - the things I've heard have been mixed. Some people say that long term use will lower the efficacy of Imodium, but others say that they have been taking it for years (sometimes decades) with no such problems. For many people with IBS, there's not much of a choice between taking Imodium and not taking it. Without Imodium, we might be confined to our homes. If that's the case for you, I'd definitely say it's worth it to take Imodium.


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