# Miralax? Is this normal?



## Lucy998 (Apr 11, 2016)

I've had chronic constipation for a few weeks now. I was rally backed up when I went to the ER 2 weeks ago, and I've been going but only a little everyday. I had an enema and magnesium citrate at the hospital 2 weeks ago, which only got rid of a little. The past two weeks my doctor started prescribing miralax, which the past 2 days I've been taking 2 capfuls per day. When I get that sick feeling like diahhrea, but it comes out with a lot of gas and is pencil thin and soft. I've been worrying about colon cancer, so is this because of the miralax or something worse like cancer? It started becoming really thin and short, and has been for the last 3-4 days (while taking the 2 capfuls of miralax). I know it's not an obstruction since I had an x Ray at the ER today and he said he didn't feel anything hard or mass like when feeling my stomach. I said my stools were thin, and he didn't really say anything about it. I've looked up online and some others had said when taking miralax their stools were thin and short. Is this because of the miralax? Should I be worried? I'm 17 years old by the way, and I don't have any family history of cancer, but I do have an eating disorder (anorexia) which I think is a part of my bowel issues. The other symptoms I have are just back pain and some has pain, but again my doc said that's probably from the constipation. Does everything seem fine? I just hate when I look up thin stool, colon cancer pops up.


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## luckyl7 (Apr 21, 2016)

Same thing happens to me when I take miralax. I don't think you have anything to worry about.


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## Lucy998 (Apr 11, 2016)

Thanks I hope that's what it is. It's still the same size, pencil thin, and it's been 4-5 days. I guess I'll just see what happens after I stop taking the miralax


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## Lucy998 (Apr 11, 2016)

I'm just really worried, they are as thin as an actually pencil but still formed. I've also have had extreme hunger and some weight loss..


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## APR (Jul 15, 2015)

I was under the impression that abnormal stool size, consistency, etc., was a symptom of IBS. I would be severely constipated, but get stools like you described. I thought it was odd because normally, constipation is associated with overly hard stools that are usually large [when you do finally go]. I was taking stool softeners because that is recommended for constipation, but at some point I decided that this made no sense--my stool is plenty soft (softer than normal, in fact), so what is the point in taking a stool softener?

When I was having major issues with constipation (now, my IBS alternates between D and C, but seems to be D rather than C the majority of the time), I hated taking anything like magnesium citrate. It didn't necessarily solved the problem, but it definitely made me sick and triggered other symptoms of IBS (abdominal pressure and pain, bloating, and nausea). Even senna based laxatives would trigger IBS symptoms, but was not nearly as bad as magnesium citrate. Talking about being stuck between a rock and a hard place--severe constipation makes you feel terrible, but laxatives also aggravate your IBS. The worst experience I had with laxatives was one of those chemical based enemas you buy at the drug store--it did make me go a significant amount of what was backed up, but it also made me very sick and nauseous. That experience is what let me to avoid going to doctors for my issues, until the problem became so unbearable that I had no choice but to see a doctor.

Miralax combined with the occasional use of senna laxative did seem to work better than either one of those alone. I think I might have mentioned before that [besides the aforementioned laxatives] a plain water enema did sometimes help with constipation--when you think that fecal material is in the lower colon, like you are close to going but nothing is ready to come out or it won't come out. I don't know if I was doing a water enema as would be recommended, but I pretty much just took water that was somewhere between tepid and lukewarm, and used a large oral syringe. I just kept putting water in until I really felt like I had to go. Usually I wasn't using that much water--maybe 1 cup or a tad more than that. If you are only using a water enema once daily at most, it definitely shouldn't cause any harm [unless possibly if you have some other medical issue that would make doing this an issue]. I suppose just to be on the safe side, it's a good idea to consult a doctor before doing a water enema (one gastro doctor that I told about using water enemas, basically dismissed it, saying that it wouldn't do any good, but I know that it caused me to move material that was not moving at that point on its own).

I know that constipation is worry, and after awhile, I was really afraid that I was going to have an obstruction before anything would move. But thin, short stool doesn't necessarily mean anything beyond IBS. As long as you are seeing a doctor [and you are telling him all of your symptoms], you should be okay. If you are concerned, you might want to get a second opinion from another doctor [especially if your doctor is a GP, you might want to get a referral to see a gastroenterologist]. The first gastro doctor I went to ordered a colonoscopy to be on the safe side, but I am 42 years old [and I don't know if age was a factor in his decision to do a colonoscopy].


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## Lucy998 (Apr 11, 2016)

Thank you for replying. My symptoms are still happening, and I'm super weak and tired... This could be because of how anxious and stressed I am; I'm probably making myself sick thinking about all of this... Tried making an appointment with a gastroenterologist, but there closest appointment is July. Really? I can't wait 2 months and continues this way... I made an appointment with a different doctor since my current doctor said "they can't do anything". This really is pissing me off... I don't know what's wrong and nobody seems to be listening to me.


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## APR (Jul 15, 2015)

Lucy,

I also ran into the problem of not being able to get an appointment for a month or so. When I called the gastroenterologist practice I go to now, it was a multi-doctor practice, and I told them that I would see whichever doctor had an appointment available the soonest. Usually, you are making an appointment with a specialist based on a recommendation, and you would prefer to see the doctor you were recommended, rather than whatever doctor has an appointment open. And of course, the most popular and experienced doctor is usually the one that you will need to wait weeks to see. There's also the issue of whether the doctor is "in network" or an "approved provider" for the insurance you have.

Depending on how flexible your schedule is, you might want to see if you can get an appointment that comes up because of a cancellation. I don't know how practices usually handle this--if you can be put on a list to be called in case of a cancellation or if you just have to call every few days or so to see if a cancellation opened up an appointment so you can get in sooner. It seems like once you have seen the doctor once and are considered a current patient, rather than a new patient, that you have an easier time getting an appointment.

I believe that you are doing the right thing going to a specialist or a different doctor. You just have to find a doctor that seems interested in helping you. It doesn't guarantee that all your issues will be quickly resolved, but at least you'll have a doctor that is interested in working with you and trying to find a treatment that will effectively manage your condition. The first gastroenterologist I saw seemed to have no interest in doing anything once he did a colonoscopy and ruled out anything more serious than IBS (i.e., colon cancer, ulcerative colitis or crohns). My current gastro doctor seemed much more interested in helping me, and actually encouraged me to come back in if I continued to have bad symptoms.

Maybe I'm wrong, but I just felt like for moderate or severe IBS, it was better to go to a specialist.


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## Lucy998 (Apr 11, 2016)

Thanks again for replying! And sadly there is only one children gastro where I live, since I'm 17 most won't see me! We tried calling all the gastroenterologist's we could, but none said they could see me because I'm 17. I'm still going to see another doctor to see what they can do, and they possibly said they can order me a colonoscopy, and a CT scan to make sure I'm okay. You don't think it's something like colon cancer do you? A lot of my symptoms seemed to have started after I started taking miralax... And a lot of reviews I saw online had similar effects ( the thin short stool, cramps, fatigue) so I'm hoping it might be because of that to calm me down for now, but I'm definitely going to try to see if there is a cancellation for the gastro and keep my appointment with my doctor (who is specialized in eating disorders, which I have, so maybe that can help).


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## Patrick ibs c (Mar 5, 2016)

good luck


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