# Immodium overuse?



## csneath (Sep 20, 2002)

I'm new to trying treatments for my systems of D. For quick relief of D, what is the opionon on too much immodium? It seems an easy answer, but I worry about using it too much.


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## Billie24 (Nov 3, 2002)

I'm not sure if it is bad to take it alot, but it does give me constipation bad afterwards.


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## AliceThomas (May 16, 2001)

I take 1 immodium every morning and also 1 calcium 3 times a day. This seems to control the diareah and I don't get constipated. If I take 2 or 3 immodium a day I do get constipated. The Dr. said it's okay to take 1 every day as a preventative.


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## Homebound (Jan 27, 2000)

I take 4 Immodium, and 1 calcium a day, everyday. This keeps me relatively "normal". I don't get constipated for the most part. Sometimes I will and then I'll just skip a day and then I'll be okay again. And of course if I eat the wrong thing or I'm really stressed out I might get a D attack. But that is getting to be rare. It took me 4 years though to find out how much I had to take to find my "normal". My doctor is aware of how much I take and is fine with it. Actually happy that I was able to help myself since he never seemed to!


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

The main concern with Imodium is constipation. So if you are backed up you are taking too much.If you intend to take regularly (and that is one of the recommended treatments for IBS-D from the recent New England Journal of Medicine Review of IBS treatments) best to start with a really low dose and work up until you find the dose that works, and doesn't stop you up.If you stop up just don't take it until BM's start up again. And if you have no BM's for over a week then call the doctor, some people can get an obstruction when having really bad constipation and that needs to be taken care of.The spread between effective dose and overtly toxic dose for Imodium seems to be pretty high. Very very little of the Imodium gets out of the GI tract (it is an opiod...and is OTC because it doesn't get out of the GI tract much at all) but if you take enough an opiate addict can get a buzz off it. One addict is reported to have been taking 160 Imodium at a time to get a buzz, and while methodone was used to wean the person off.....that is a lot of something to take at once and not be dead (that many asprin or tylenol could easily be overtly lethally toxic) So the take home for me is staying under the max dosage on the package (and all OTC's have a max dosage on the package info) is way less than what you need to hurt yourself with it.K.


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## bci (Jan 27, 2003)

I use Imodium, and it works for me, but I don't recommend every day use, as you then can become constipated which can be worse than diarrhea ! I find that if I take a full dose (4 tablets) one day, I'm good for two or three days afterwards. Then I dose myself again. If I'm going somewhere where a good clean bathroom is not readily available, I take a dose or two before I leave to make sure I won't have any surprise attacks.


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## jefe (Jan 6, 2003)

I too use immodium daily. I thought that the greatest thing Walmart ever did for society was to carry loperamide hydrochloride (generic immodium) in 96 caplet boxes







The most I've taken in a day was 10 but usually 3-5 will let me function at my job when I'm having a bad day. I take 1mg (1/2 a tablet) every night before sleep as my attacks seem to be in the early morning.


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## bo99 (Apr 1, 2003)

i notice if i take 6 of them i dont go for a day but the second day i always do.i been wondering the same thing if using it all the time is bad.try calcium and maybe 1 imodium


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