# I really need help cutting back on Magnesium



## songbird (Dec 21, 2009)

Hi all and Merry Xmas: I have been coming to IBS Group since 2000- it is here that I discovered I could get magnesium pills for my chronic constipation. I had been taking Milk of Magnesia at that point for 10 years, 4 tbs a day, and it was making me sick. I am now 70 years old( that is hard to admit). Fast forward now to the present time. I have been taking magnesium citrate pills for 15 years now, but in the past 8 months I went from 1600 mg every other day to now, almost 2400 mg every other day. I have no idea how or really why I increased it so tremendously except that I always wanted to make it work a little better. I get a physical every year and in September my kidney function was good and my magnesium level was normal. However, I know that 2400 is too much. I rationalize it by saying well, it is every other day, so it actually averages out to 1200 day and maybe that is true. But I am too old to take that much, and I am asking for your help in beginning to cut back to between 1600 mg and 1800 mg every other day. Part of the problem is the kind of constipation I have manifests itself by getting stuck at the rectal area unless I dynamite out with lots of magnesium so I take a lot to make sure it all comes out.

Even with magnesium, when you cut back even 100 mg, it works a lot less and I have gotten my intestines used to taking 2400 now and even a reduction by 100 mg will cause it to work a lot less.

I am asking how I should begin to cut back. Has anyone ever cut back from a larger dose?

Do you think 2400 mg every other day is way too much?

Anyway, I really want to get some information - I really am worried I am doing harm to myself by taking so much. All suggestions are welcome and I have to say without magnesium I would never be able to go to the bathroom at all.


----------



## annie7 (Aug 16, 2002)

Hi Songbird

so sorry you're still having so many problems.

sorry--i can't answer your questions about how much magnesium is too much and how to cut back. although maybe you could try adding in miralax while decreasing the magnesium. was your gastro doc any help with all this? have you tried other things besides magnesium--like linzess, stimulant laxatives, miralax or--especially since things are getting stuck in the rectum--suppositories --glycerin or dulcolax suppositories. or enemas?

things getting stuck in the rectum makes me think of pelvic floor dysfunction--where the pelvic floor muscles are too tight and/or do not coordinate properly to have a complete BM. often people with pfd say they have to dynamite their stool out of there. . have you been tested for pfd ---defecogram and/or anal manometry? if you do have pfd, biofeedback can help teach you to relax and coordinate those muscles .

hope someone else on here can answer your questions about magnesium. and hope you can somehow find some relief.


----------



## songbird (Dec 21, 2009)

Hi Annie: so good to hear from you and Merry Xmas to you:

I did see a motility specialist at U of M- he is good but he had no real ideas about anything else I should take. when I developed constipation 30 years ago I unfortunately went right to the stimulant laxatives to the point they stopped working very quickly. I then used an enema for a year or so and that stopped working. I found magnesium and that was a Godsend. However, I am now 30 years down the road with it and I am much older now---as far as biofeedback, honestly, I am just too old to have probes stuck up my butt. There well may be some type of pelvic floor dysfunction but I decided to just continue taking the magnesium. the problem is I think I am taking too much. I tend to overdo things which is why I got into this mess in the first place. When I developed constipation many years ago, instead of trying diet, drinking more water,etc, I went right to the laxatives. I tried Miralax years ago and all it did was, how shall I say this -- ooze-- it was awful and I would not use it again.

I really appreciate your response and hope you are doing well. you are a really sweet and caring person.


----------



## annie7 (Aug 16, 2002)

thanks for your kind words--you are such a nice person--very caring, kind and thoughtful.

sorry i wasn't able to be any help--i had a feeling it would be that way and yes, sounds like you've tried everything already. and so sorry your gastro doc wasn't of any help. was hoping he could think out of the box for you.

some people have success with natural calm. it's powdered magnesium that you mix in water and drink. don't know if you've tried that, maybe, since it's sort of a different type of magnesium, you wouldn't have to take so much. i imagine you've tried other forms of magnesium beside magnesium citrate--like magnesium oxide,magnesium glycinate, chelated magnesium, liquid magnesium citrate (the supplement--not the stuff in the bottles you buy at the drug store) etc. maybe with a different type of mag, you wouldn't have to take so much?

hoping someone else here will have some ideas for you. take good care,


----------



## dlind70 (Aug 7, 2015)

Arterial blood is rich in magnesium, and venous blood is rich in iron. Iodine regulates them. Iodine timing is the key, Most supplements brush off the timing on when to take these things.

sea vegetables, eggplant, cranberries--supercharge them by eating cranberries near 5:00-6:00 pm. Cooked potatoes eaten with the skin eaten at dinner. Black walnuts (if you can find them) eaten early in the day. Raw cheese eaten with kiwi or any vitamin C berries eaten at lunch. Pumpkin seeds eaten at lunch. Pumpkin seeds will make you go, for sure.


----------



## songbird (Dec 21, 2009)

Hi Annie: you started me thinking. what I am doing now is taking 1600 mg citrate and the rest is oxide. I think citrate is probably stronger so I think I will increase the citrate --and cut back on the amount of oxide. just trying to figure out how to do this without winding up being miserable and full of poop. I really don't know how I wound up increasing the dose so much over the past several months. The motility specialist at U of M suggested I take 1000 mg every day, but at this point 1000 mg won't work because I am taking so much---one's body becomes used to a certain dose and doesn't work very well at a much lower dose.


----------



## songbird (Dec 21, 2009)

Hi Dlind70-- I appreciate your input - however, I am way way past any food helping my constipation. There is no food that helps. Even fiber only backed me up. That is why I use so much magnesium.


----------



## annie7 (Aug 16, 2002)

yes, i think that's a good idea . i've read posts from people who say the citrate works better for them then the oxide. but yes, like you said, it'll be tricky with the trial-and-error in finding the right balance. but it's worth a try.

and the really good thing is that so far--even with all the magnesium you're taking now--you mag levels are still ok.

good luck with everything! keep us posted.


----------



## Xxyyzz (Jul 2, 2014)

For me it works much better with vitamin C powder than magnesium. It should be buffered with magnesium, calcium and kalium, otherwise one get difficient in those minerals. It should be a powder, taken on an empty stomache in a glass of water. Then the water it's taken with goes through the small intestine to the colon and works as a stool softener. It only works if you're not deficient in vitamin C, because otherwise you'll absorb the vitamin, and if your not dehydrated, because then the body will absorb the water. I have taken it almost daily for 10 months, without the need to increase the dosage.


----------



## flossy (Dec 8, 2012)

Songbird,

Perhaps try something else? This has worked very well for me (click on below link to read):

http://www.ibsgroup.org/forums/topic/239065-finally-a-product-i-can-recommend/


----------



## songbird (Dec 21, 2009)

xxyyzz- are you talking about natural calm? if so, how much do you take?


----------



## songbird (Dec 21, 2009)

Hi Flossy: thank so much for your response: I looked up the formula you referred to: there are stimulant laxatives in there: senna leaf and cascara sagrada: when I first became constipated I took sennaKot- very soon 20 pills stopped working. I found magnesium, which was suggested to me by a GI doc. it was a life saver. I have used it for many years but only recently have I increased it to a point that I have scared myself. I know Mag works so I will continue to take it but I know I take too much and know have to try and cut it back to something reasonable.


----------



## Xxyyzz (Jul 2, 2014)

songbird said:


> xxyyzz- are you talking about natural calm? if so, how much do you take?


No, I'm taking Thorne Research Buffered C Powder. Usually I take one tsp with one glass of water.


----------



## Nuffa (Sep 12, 2014)

just my two cents: what flossy is recommending works better than any other stimulant.


----------



## dlind70 (Aug 7, 2015)

sheep stomach and spaghetti squash can rebuild the lining of the stomach. Milk of magnesia is a laxative, though I think it is not a good one over time.


----------



## Rbnk68 (Jan 16, 2016)

Songbird~

Thank you for posting this question! I am sorry you are having to deal with the worries of how to taper down on the magnesium without affecting your regularity, but I appreciate very much reading this post and knowing I am not alone in dealing with this issue.

I began taking magnesium myself about 6 years ago, gradually increasing my intake and the types of Magnesium over the years. I take 5 capsuls every night, Mag oxide, Mag glycinate, Mag maleate (has malic acid for absorption), Mag citrate, Mag oxide...1450 mg daily. Works like a charm, I wake up and go 2-3x every morning. I used to take the powdered mag Natural Calm, but I find the capsuls work better for me, as they get a little farther into my digestive system before releasing the powdered mag...the powdered mag drink made me very nauseaus.

I have tried reducing the amount I take a few times aso and every time I get constipated, even if I just reduce 100 mg like you mentioned! I also must drink coffee in the morning to get things kick started, stopping coffee has caused me to be plugged up as well.

I hope to find some stories of success and helpful tips here to help me avoid having to depend on the magnesium and coffee so much.

Take care!!


----------



## Ouchie81 (Nov 26, 2013)

Hello, I take 800mg a day of magnesium with a vitamin C. I take it every night. So to start with I would stop the every other day and become more regular with it. Take a set a mouth every night. The vitamin c helps absorb it, the slow release kind. I would also stop any magnesium. In the morning I make sure I drink water and walk around a bit, I leave certain chores for the morning to get me moving. It takes 30-60 minutes after waking and like you I get and need that explosion to get it out of my rectum. After the first BM I wait 10 minutes and do an enema to make sure it all came out. I also take inner health plus in the morning. Hope this helps


----------



## Ouchie81 (Nov 26, 2013)

I also do squatty potty, lots of water, push in my perineum and lean forward when on the toilet. I'm still always looking for better ways but this is the best I found so far


----------



## songbird (Dec 21, 2009)

Rbnk68 said:


> Songbird~
> Thank you for posting this question! I am sorry you are having to deal with the worries of how to taper down on the magnesium without affecting your regularity, but I appreciate very much reading this post and knowing I am not alone in dealing with this issue.
> I began taking magnesium myself about 6 years ago, gradually increasing my intake and the types of Magnesium over the years. I take 5 capsuls every night, Mag oxide, Mag glycinate, Mag maleate (has malic acid for absorption), Mag citrate, Mag oxide...1450 mg daily. Works like a charm, I wake up and go 2-3x every morning. I used to take the powdered mag Natural Calm, but I find the capsuls work better for me, as they get a little farther into my digestive system before releasing the powdered mag...the powdered mag drink made me very nauseaus.
> I have tried reducing the amount I take a few times aso and every time I get constipated, even if I just reduce 100 mg like you mentioned! I also must drink coffee in the morning to get things kick started, stopping coffee has caused me to be plugged up as well.
> ...


 I appreciate your response--I cut the dose from 2300 to 2400 my every other day to 1800 mag citrate which by the way, is much stronger than mag oxide--- that is still a lot but I am afraid if I go lower it won't work very well-- coffee, walking, etc does not help me--I need dynamite----to get it going--I am glad you found something that works for you--magnesium is good stuff bit I abused it over the years, took too much and now I can't take much less cause it won't work 
Be well


----------

