# Tip Of Stool Rock Hard Every Day No matter what! :(



## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

Hello all









I am brand new here and I have been reading everyone's stories and questions on here for 4 months every night in bed, and decided to sign up. I am at my wits end with what I supposedly have. I am a 47 year old male (not too many on here that are male at my age with this) in perfect health except this issue. I eat unbelievably healthy, jog every other day, weigh 153 lbs. I have not been sick not even a cold in 32 years.

I was diagnosed 2 months ago with IBS-C. I have a question I wish someone could make sense and answer but I cant even get an answer from my Gastro Dr. But here is what transpired.. Lemme vent first









I went away to new England area for a month vacation (I live In S. Florida) all of August 2016. At the end of my trip I ended up getting food poisoning at a restaurant for 3 days and so did my brother. Was the first time I had ever had this. I had D for 3 days and was on the couch. Well it subsided and I drove back to Florida. About a week or so later I started getting a burning gnawing pain in my abdomen (not my stomach like gerd or acid reflux my abdomen under it.). Then all of a sudden I could not go to the bathroom. I finally went after taking a lax and it was rock hard at the end. I mean like petrified wood only on the tip about 3 inches. This was causing me not to be able to go as it is sticking inside me I guess. Well eventually the burning pain got worse and constipation as described continued, after diet changes ect. I called my gastro whose office didn't return a call for 4 days after calling 3 times. I went to the ER and they did a CT scan and complete blood work.. My CT scan was perfect. My blood work, which I have checked every year during physicals was perfect. They said they didn't know what to call it and told me I had gastritis... They gave me some upgraded omeprozole and sulcrafate (some ulcer med) and that's it. Never even addressed why I had rock hard stool at the end and constipation! (PS they billed me $1100 for an out of network doctor I didn't ask for) Fast forward 2 months....

Well, I went to my gastro to go over the results 3 weeks later as nothing subsided except most of the burning pain in my intestines.. He checked me with a stethoscope for peristalsis (that's all this gastro has in his office) and read the hospital paperwork on the CT scan and after going over my symptoms he said I have IBS-C.. I have intermittent spasm pain in my intestines and I have no blood in stool and I have no thin stools etc. They found no masses and my bowel wall was normal in size etc etc. So he told me there would be no reason for a colonoscopy since it isn't covered til I am 50 and the fact I have nothing wrong in the CT scan or blood work and I have no other symptoms. He told me to take miralax and all the other over the counter stuff. Metamucil makes me worse . It makes my stool hard all around instead of just the end so I quit taking it. Well I was given linzess a few days ago. My insurance paid for it after him submitting a form. Yesterday after taking it I had slight D 2 x within an hour of taking it and then I went near normal 1 hour later and then went 100% normal 3 hours later. A perfectly s shaped stool even after I had D 3-4 hours before and felt like full evacuation. My question is, how the heck can my stool today, 14 hours later, be rock hard on the end the very next day after I went to the bathroom the day/night before 3 times up til 530pm??. I went to bed and drank lots of water all day,(all week) I took 2 dulcoease stool softeners (not dulcolax.. dulcoease..big difference) and pushed hard today today to go with no laxative except dulcoease and it looked like petrified wood at the end again.. the end that goes in the john first.. How is this scientifically possible after I went 3x the day before? I figured out that it has been doing this since August almost daily unless I take some miralax etc.. If my stool was not rock hard on the end as it is always, I probably would not have most of these IBS symptoms... I understand the whole slow mobility theory. But I would believe that more, if I had not gone for 3-4 days. We are talking 14 hours after having a complete evacuation bowel movement the day/night before.. Anyone explain how and why? I am stumped and my GI doesn't know either nor my primary....Any help appreciated! (PS I also understand how the part that comes out 1st is the part that has been in the bowel the longest but I never had this problem in my life and I drink 2 liters of water a day and I eat salads and don't even eat red meat or smoke etc) I also went 3x the day before.... This is ruining my life. I have had to quit my job because the laxatives I take work when they want and I am in sales where I do presentations in front of clients. I cant just get up and leave in the middle to go to the bathroom when it hits me. I tried timing when to take laxatives but I cant get it down to a science. They all work when they want to...I have abdominal pain most days and some days not at all.. I know people have it much worse than I do but I haven't even had a common cold in 35 years. Any help on this will be very much appreciated.

I am going to a new primary to ask for a sibo test (yes even constipated people can have sibo)-one is H2 predominate and one is Methane predominate. I brought this test up to my gastro and his answer was "you would have D if you had sibo" Jeeze, asking for a sibo test is like asking for oxycontin. He actually said not to take it... wtf?









thanks all


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

I meant to say also I tried fodmap diet paleo diet and gluten free. I went salad only and tuna fish for a whole week. Lost 5lbs that I didn't need to lose and stool still rock hard on the end even after going the day before 3x..... wth!


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## dlind70 (Aug 7, 2015)

apple cider vinegar, grape vinegar, or coffee can help. Coffee with cacao 2 tsp, maple syrup 2 tsp. Also cooked beets eaten at night with raw onions (as much as you can handle of the onion). You have your own instincts on this. Also you may be low in cannabinoids, these are things that normalize/balance the nervous system. Sage, saffron, oregano. eat those more often. More variety in your eating will help regardless. Walnuts for breakfast help with breathing and lungs. Surprisingly the lungs control many organs.

I would skip the tuna and all fish unless you eat it with butter. Fish now is not ideal. I would say its full of shi. Did you know the silver and gold mine operations share runoff water with many fisheries, gross to even think about what you're eating if you eat a fish nowadays.

ONE more thing whenever you go on a trip for over a week, always always order the local whiskey or hard vodka and drink it straight. The local drink helps with your immunity of that area.


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

dlind70 said:


> apple cider vinegar, grape vinegar, or coffee can help. Coffee with cacao 2 tsp, maple syrup 2 tsp. Also cooked beets eaten at night with raw onions (as much as you can handle of the onion). You have your own instincts on this. Also you may be low in cannabinoids, these are things that normalize/balance the nervous system. Sage, saffron, oregano. eat those more often. More variety in your eating will help regardless. Walnuts for breakfast help with breathing and lungs. Surprisingly the lungs control many organs.
> 
> I would skip the tuna and all fish unless you eat it with butter. Fish now is not ideal. I would say its full of shi. Did you know the silver and gold mine operations share runoff water with many fisheries, gross to even think about what you're eating if you eat a fish nowadays.


Thanks for the reply







I have tried every thing you mentioned on here and more... even the beets. I even drink flack seed oil, oregano oil, coconut oil, manuka honey all 2 tblesp a day, magnesium pills even vitamin c and magnesium flush powder.... It isn't every single time it is rock hard but if I stop taking miralax or dulcoease 1 day, the very next day it is rock hard at the end. Even if I went 3 x the day before. How can it still be rock hard like wood the next day 14 hours later? It seems physically impossible to dry out that fast within 14 hours.... 3- 4 days I could understand which I have never had to wait that long.. But from dinner time night before to the next morning its like wood? ... That's the part that is driving me insane and ruining my life. I have to stay home now until a laxative kicks in every single day and usually when it happens the laxative works too well and I am stuck home for the rest of the day. I cant get the formula right.... I tried fiber one cereal, fiber gummies, sialex, bromelein,slippery elm, fenugreek, turmeric, fennel seeds, mineral oil, and more....every natural supplement known to man. And still usually the 3 inch tip is hard like a rock a day later causing it to be stuck in me at times.... I usually 5/10 have no urge to go because if it ....metamucil and citrucell made me 10x worse. It's if my body is allergic to fiber. I don't get it.







Some other dude on here had the same exact problem but the only answer is always "drink more water eat more fiber and exercise"... I do all 3 and more. I went from a semi retired guy in his 40s loving life, who quit his lucrative job, to a stay at home depressed no life that does nothing now and waits all day to go to the bathroom playing xbox. I've even cancelled/skipped vacations over this. Just did it last weekend... And the laxatives I take (not the bad ones the kinda natural ones) don't work while I am sleeping like they do for others.. So I have to take them in the late morning and wait 1-3 hours. I am stuck home until they work







Having no normal schedule and worrying about this daily is enough to drive someone to drink and in my case I quit alcohol over this and still no improvement


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## PD85 (Aug 19, 2010)

The first thing you might want to consider is to quit taking the laxatives. They can alter the guts natural ability to function properly, which may be why you haven't been able to cure your issue. This is perhaps the most important point of my post.

Three of the best things for stool softening are fiber, magnesium, and probiotics.

Have you tried any probiotics?

How much magnesium and what type were you taking when trying it?

Also every fiber is different and effects people differently. If I were you I'd run the gamut and try every fiber I could. Having already tried metamucil and ctirucel, you may perhaps want to try acacia gum.


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

PD85 said:


> The first thing you might want to consider is to quit taking the laxatives. They can alter the guts natural ability to function properly, which may be why you haven't been able to cure your issue. This is perhaps the most important point of my post.
> 
> Three of the best things for stool softening are fiber, magnesium, and probiotics.
> 
> ...


Hey thanks for replying...-

I quit the laxatives and I didn't go for over a week. I was more miserable and anxiety kicked in and I actually had tears in my eyes ( I live alone so it is more difficult). It was that frustrating and driving me insane... When I finally went I was in pain and said no more of that..I neede a laxative.. Miralax only works sometimes and that causes gas pains as well. .Fiber it seems is making me worse. I tried both soluble and insoluble. I tried metamucil and citrucel as well as food fiber in plants. They all made me worse. It bulked me up and dried me up inside to the point I could not pass anything unless I took milk of magnesia the next day which makes me all bloated and gassy feelnig from all the bubbles it produces...Even gas x doesnt help it after.. I was worse off with fiber. I never really ate fiber a lot in the past anyways at least not the RDA.. I take Magnesium daily. All it seems to do is make my intestines gurgle over and over. I tried phillips laxative pills. The back of bottle says all they are is 500mg of magnesium. They do work a bit but the gas pains and bloating from them is horrible. I am currently taking 3 probiotics..Bifidobacterium longum, Bifidobacterium infantis (align brand) and lactbacilus acidophilus.. the 3 most common or best around I as told by nutritionists and others. Its only been 4 days. I am taking 1 of each a day (6 billion total) Maybe I should up it to 12 billion or more? I have tried 500-800mg of magnesium oxide and citrate daily. The citrate after doing research is supposedly the best as it is absorbed better and creates more of a laxative effect but all I feel they do is make my intestines gurgle all day and night. They may help but I cant really tell. I don't have an urge most of the time and have to push even with an urge a lot of the time... I am about to try some spoonfulls of benefiber tomorrow but it seems fiber makes me worse off. My GI doctor is no help and I learned all this on my own.. I even tried L glutamine for 2 weeks daily. Made me gassy and not feeling well. Any other suggestions? I have never been constipated in my life. Now I have intermittent spasm pains in intestines no matter if I went to the bathroom or not (which is a sign of ibs), some gas pains, and cant go to the john unless I take some form of laxative no matter what I eat. I can eat salad for a week and no laxative and a day or 2 later it is rock hard at the tip of the stool again.Not all of it just the end. That's even if I have a full evacuation day before and 14 hours later its hard again..How is this even possible (it is but how)







Just happened to me yesterday. Today I took a senna caplet 1 magnesium and I had miralax last night and I had D for 3 hours. I cant get this under control or the right dose and am at wits end. I just wanna go back to work and be normal again like I have been for 40 years. Last 4 months have been just about more difficult than losing my parents


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## flossy (Dec 8, 2012)

mbella2000 said:


> Hey thanks for replying...-
> 
> I quit the laxatives and I didn't go for over a week. I was more miserable and anxiety kicked in and I actually had tears in my eyes ( I live alone so it is more difficult). It was that frustrating and driving me insane... When I finally went I was in pain and said no more of that..I neede a laxative.. Miralax only works sometimes and that causes gas pains as well. .Fiber it seems is making me worse. I tried both soluble and insoluble. I tried metamucil and citrucel as well as food fiber in plants. They all made me worse. It bulked me up and dried me up inside to the point I could not pass anything unless I took milk of magnesia the next day which makes me all bloated and gassy feelnig from all the bubbles it produces...Even gas x doesnt help it after.. I was worse off with fiber. I never really ate fiber a lot in the past anyways at least not the RDA.. I take Magnesium daily. All it seems to do is make my intestines gurgle over and over. I tried phillips laxative pills. The back of bottle says all they are is 500mg of magnesium. They do work a bit but the gas pains and bloating from them is horrible. I am currently taking 3 probiotics..Bifidobacterium longum, Bifidobacterium infantis (align brand) and lactbacilus acidophilus.. the 3 most common or best around I as told by nutritionists and others. Its only been 4 days. I am taking 1 of each a day (6 billion total) Maybe I should up it to 12 billion or more? I have tried 500-800mg of magnesium oxide and citrate daily. The citrate after doing research is supposedly the best as it is absorbed better and creates more of a laxative effect but all I feel they do is make my intestines gurgle all day and night. They may help but I cant really tell. I don't have an urge most of the time and have to push even with an urge a lot of the time... I am about to try some spoonfulls of benefiber tomorrow but it seems fiber makes me worse off. My GI doctor is no help and I learned all this on my own.. I even tried L glutamine for 2 weeks daily. Made me gassy and not feeling well. Any other suggestions? I have never been constipated in my life. Now I have intermittent spasm pains in intestines no matter if I went to the bathroom or not (which is a sign of ibs), some gas pains, and cant go to the john unless I take some form of laxative no matter what I eat. I can eat salad for a week and no laxative and a day or 2 later it is rock hard at the tip of the stool again.Not all of it just the end. That's even if I have a full evacuation day before and 14 hours later its hard again..How is this even possible (it is but how)
> 
> ...


I agree with a lot of your replies to his post.

I wrote this out a few weeks ago, I hope it helps (click on below link to read):

http://www.ibsgroup.org/forums/topic/325690-the-abcs-of-chronic-constipation-aka-ibs-c/


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

flossy said:


> Hey flossy
> 
> I read your post that was pretty long. It sounds like you have it pretty bad. My GI told me to not take laxatives at first only miralax. Well that doesn't work all the time. So now I take what I have to... Senna herbal tea, milk of magnesia when I have to and now I am starting linzess. It sucks not being normal all of a sudden. This all happened after a food illness my relative and I both caught the same day at a restaurant. Except hes fine. Ever since then I have been screwed 5 months now. I haven't had a colonoscopy because my GI Dr. said I have all the symptoms and the fact I had a CT scan and blood work and all were normal. I have no blockage no masses and my bowel walls were all normal size..I have no blood no pencil thin stools and no urges to go and no issues with any cancer or bowel issues in family. . He said it would be a waste to do one and the fact I am not 50 yet. Insurance wont cover a colonoscopy til I turn 50. I have minor abdominal pain and constipation and that's it. I get some bloat and gassy feeling but I know 100% of it is from the laxatives not the food. I can eat cheese pizza and no gas or bloat. But I can drink miralax or l glutamine or milk of magnesia and I get bloated and gassy feeling after an hour or so. Laxatives make me feel worse but they work.
> 
> The real problem I am having is the end of my stool is rock hard about 2-3 inches.. The rest of it most of the time is fine. But because the 2-3" end of it is rock hard, it is moving slower in my digestive track and I don't get a real urge to go all the time because of the fact it isn't signaling me to go because it is rock hard. Probably not pushing up to the part that its supposed to to tell me to go to bathroom. I have tried not to push but it is so hard not to when you feel you are almost there . I cant wait more than 1 day. I feel miserable if I haven't gone. I may try those supplements. They are on ebay actually for a few dollars more and I have an account on there. I just hate the fact that I cant wake up like a normal person and just go. I have to sit there and wait to see if I get a feeling to go every morning before my day can start and I am miserable if I wake up and cant go. Then I take a linzess or something else like senna tea and wait for 1-3 hours for it to work because I am not currently working. I cant work in this condition I would be out on temp disability. I was in corporate sales doing sales presentations for a decade and I cant do them in the condition I am currently in. My GI said he has heard his patients have this clear up before. I am taking every supplement known just about including gut juice (some mix of cabbage juice and cucumber and other stuff) I think if I can get past the part of the stool being hard at the very end almost always, I would be almost back to normal... What could be causing just the very end of my stool to be rock hard? Yesterday it looked like petrified wood at the end and that is after having a complete normal formed bowel movement 2x 14 hours before..


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## flossy (Dec 8, 2012)

To reply:

I don't look at my stool if I don't have to, it's just too gross, but to answer your question it sounds like you are simply constipated, for whatever reason.

Sorry, but unless it changes you cannot get disability/temporary disability for IBS here in the U.S.

Does IBS run anywhere in your extended family or no?

You can get Intestinal Formula straight from Dr. Schultze's website if you want to try it. BTW, I don't have hard stools anymore thanks to I.F # 1. It softens 'em up nicely. Link:

https://www.herbdoc.com/


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

Nope doesn't run in family. No diseases at all. It all started from food poisoning and won't go away no matter what I eat or drink. I don't even have any foods that trigger it. It's every day or every other day and a laxative sometimes doesn't work at all.  I saw those supplements have senna in them. I'm using senna tea which has almost same ingredients. I was diagnosed with gastritis after the food poisoning. And this came right when the gastritis did.


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## dlind70 (Aug 7, 2015)

Like i said you may be low in things called endocannabanoids. Many with IBS issues don't eat spices enough; wild plants like Black pepper, pine nuts, maple sugar. Try a breakfast of wild pine nuts from Nevada ((to avoid Fukashima radiation runoff, please avoid pine nuts from China origin)). For lunch you could have Oregano, sage. Sage is very similar to medicinal hemp via CB2 receptors which contribute important functions to your body. This is the reason wild game meat tastes so good. Try eating some liver or fresh beef kidney from a local butcher shop. Natural foods like tips of leaves are eaten by all the wild deer, elk.

At the very least try eating sage with some wild bison meat for three days in a row and see how those foods affect you. Do they sell bison meat in the store near you?


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## PD85 (Aug 19, 2010)

Sorry to hear about your trials and tribulations.

I'd like to hear how the benefiber is going, as that is pretty good at softening stools. I do not think Citrucel is good at softening stools, and for me it makes them sticky and hard to pass. Metamucil makes stools more slippery but since you are addicted to laxatives you probably do not have the necessary mucosal layer to pass stool without them.

Please don't give up on yourself, and I'd urge you not to doom yourself to a life of laxatives... which apparently just give you D anyways?

There are so many more avenues to try. When you quit the harsh laxatives you MUST take natural ones like magnesium as a half-way step. Magnesium is actually safe to take long-term if you want to.

How have you been doing lately?


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

PD85 said:


> Sorry to hear about your trials and tribulations.
> 
> I'd like to hear how the benefiber is going, as that is pretty good at softening stools. I do not think Citrucel is good at softening stools, and for me it makes them sticky and hard to pass. Metamucil makes stools more slippery but since you are addicted to laxatives you probably do not have the necessary mucosal layer to pass stool without them.
> 
> ...


Hey there I stopped the benefiber because it was making me gassy and bloaty feeling. Fiber does 0 for me..when I say zero I mean Zero! I tried insoluble and soluble. Insoluble made me worse. It made the whole stool harder instead of the end. Soluble doesn't do anything at all for me







I even tried fiber gummies and fiber one cereal...I have been going back to miralax last 2 days but so far nothing..but it doesn't work always and then I have to use a senna tea which makes my intestines sore after and keeps me home all day. I have had to quit my lucrative job over this. I have a script for linzess but last time I took one it gave me D all day! Was horrible. It worked first time then the 2nd I was home all day as usual. I don't want to take a laxative every other day but I cant seem to go if I don't...and no matter which one I take my intestines get sore all day and then take 2 days to recover... then the cycle starts again... It doesn't matter if I drink water all day or alcohol all day. Alcohol doesn't make me worse. I stopped drinking it for 3 months and still nothing. I lost 8 lbs in 3 weeks because I don't wanna eat from the intestine soreness and the fact in my head the more I eat the worse I will be trying to hit the john and cant go unless I push and strain. Feel like my head was gonna explode a day ago. I saw stars. I am at wits end. My fiance and I have almost broken up over this after 7 years of perfection because I am miserable and depressed for the first time in my life. I cant seem to get the right formula down. I either take too much laxative and stuck home all day or I don't take any laxative..have 1 good day of freedom, and back to miserable the next day. You said there are so many more avenues to try... Which ones? I have tried acupuncture. I went on a salad and tuna fish diet only I gave up bread. Nothing is working. I had 0 IBS spasm pain yesterday because I took no laxatives. I think a lot of the pain is coming from the damn laxatives... from the use of Senna, dulcoease, and milk of magnesia.. I tried magnesium. They do nothing it seems. Just make my intestines gurgle all day and night which in turn causes intestine soreness after. I took one last night 400mg. I hadn't gone to bathroom since Tuesday and was geting antsy and feeling of being full. Woke up and nothing. No urge from the magnesium...SO I drank a cup of senna tea and I am now home again! all day! When I stop the laxatives I feel like I don't even have ibs. Its just I am not on a regular schedule like I was. I used to go every day in the am. I have never had constipation. I havent even had a cold in 30 years. Now I cant go unless I push so frigging hard and/or take a laxative and stay home 3 hours for it to take effect because I don't want it to hit me while I am driving in traffic or if I am out for a jog ect. It's keeping me a prisoner in my residence. This condition doesn't seem manageable to me. It is unbearable. I am going tomorrow to the store again for the 45th time to try some natural remedy.... coconut water, coconut milk and shaved coconut for fiber and see if it does anything. I hear coconut water is a laxative ...But I already tried everything I can think of including sialex, magnesium, bromelein, papaya, and just about every holistic supplement that everyone says works for them like clockwork... But not me.. wtf? . I don't even eat red meat. Haven't for 15 years. Barely any processed foods.. Just basically white meat chicken with brown rice, susuhi, tuna fish, and gluten free pasta and salads etc. Tried fodmap diet as well..Nothing is working ...Hard stool on the end. I can go to the bathroom 2x within 3 hours and both will be hard only on the end... How is this even posible 2-3 hours later?

My typical daily food intake

Breakfast

2 eggs without yoke- maybe a slice or 2 of bacon ( i hadn't eaten bacon in 10 years til last month and I still get ibs)

activia yogurt with a few fresh strawberries glass of oj with pulp

water

Lunch example

Tuna fish sandwich on rye, or tuna pasta casserole, or Bacon lettuce tomato and avocado sandwich, or 1/4 chicken platter with brown rice

kiwi fruit, some pumpkin seeds

Water, water and more water

Dinner

Small piece of salmon or a all natural veggie burger

spinach or potato with skin on it

small plate of baked apples

more water water water

I realize this isn't a lot of fiber. But I also eat a handful of small grape sized tomatoes for snacks, green grapes, avocados, pumpkin seeds kiwi fruit etc. They do nothing. Hard stool every single time on the end

I already ate 99% healthy before all this. I only weigh 150lbs and 5"10. I jog or bike every 2-3 days and I have 0 stress except this ibs bs. What am I missing that everyone else did that has this syndrome and is coping with it? Help







what are the so many other avenues you mentioned that I am missing?









Citrucell and metamucil made me more constipated. It was awful.


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

flossy said:


> To reply:
> 
> I don't look at my stool if I don't have to, it's just too gross, but to answer your question it sounds like you are simply constipated, for whatever reason.
> 
> ...


Hey there by the way that dr schultze's formula one has senna leaf in it which is a stimulant laxative. I thought this is the one we are not supposed to take because of dependency and your bowel could stop working without it in the long run using stimulants for long periods? The senna tea I take makes my intestines sore hours after like I was kicked in the intestines the night before.... Maybe I am taking too much but the one you recommended isn't an actual stool softener it seems. Its a stimulant laxative like senokot if it has senna in it..







Unless I am wrong? I am looking for an all natural softener that isn't dulcoease, colace or miralax..Something made of plants if there is one....


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## dlind70 (Aug 7, 2015)

You have a nice eating plan with a few things that I would, personally, switch around.

I would focus on intuition on gut health. THERE IS NOT a valid reason for abstaining from a food group, but you must be decisive like a disciple in your eating. There is a reason in the great holy books they are called disciples. Health means following the rules.

Other things;I see youre eating that may be off is timing. Your thyroid must have protein carb (natural sugar) and fat. Have you gotten your thyroid checked? There are a few natural foods like black walnut plus cherry juice (for the iodine) that may help. Almonds help (because of the protein (prebiotic nitrogen protein) and most trace minerals. Coffee is great after breakfast (fresh C02)

Eggs in the morning is not ideal not because they are bad but because of the timing Try eating the eggs at night instead. Lack of meat means fats come from where (the fish?) this is not ideal. Unless the fish is fresh or from warm climates like halibut (the fish fat is prone to oxidize so quickly that why even bother).

You are good to use your own intuition and being decisive on this of course. Good luck.

Edit try a therapy three days in a row to see if it does anything. If you ever do a new eating plan try the same food three days in a row. In threes the days are more decisive.


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

dlind70 said:


> You have a nice eating plan with a few things that I would, personally, switch around.
> 
> I would focus on intuition on gut health. THERE IS NOT a valid reason for abstaining from a food group, but you must be decisive like a disciple in your eating. There is a reason in the great holy books they are called disciples. Health means following the rules.
> 
> ...


Thanks! Thyroid checked all good including pancreas enzyme output etc. I have tried gut health. I am taking 30 million probiotics with 15 different strands it is the best on the market. I also drank gut juice for 2 weeks which was cabbage, pickle, saurkraut, and other juices as in fermented probiotic juices. I don't eat meat really all that much except chicken because steak and red meat is hard to digest for most of us and it stays in the gut for 72 hours or more instead of the normal 18-30 hours. I am trying not to make things worse. I do eat some fats as in ice cream and pork rinds etc. Last week I ate a pizza and eggplant parm sub, but I don't eat junk often. Not even fast foods. So far nothing is working that I can see... I don't eat eggs and bacon every morning. It was just an example. Today I ate oats cereal with almond milk and strawberries and an acvtivia yogurt with blueberries. I can eat salads for a whole week and my end of the stool is still hard after no mater what I do. Just one end of it. Even tried tablespoons of raw virgin coconut oil, extra virgin olive oil and flak seed oil by the tablespoon 2x a day..Still nothing... Tried manuka honey by the jar... I really have tried almost all avenues.. I wish I missed some that I can try. Tried prune juice daily tried eating prunes in the morning with warm water. I even tried decaf coffee. I dont drink coffee but I tried it for a week. All it does is make my intestines gurgle. Doesnt make me go and surly didn't soften me up inside..I am gonna try colace softener. I was taking dulcoease 100mg but it was making me have some minor gas pains. Colace has a new non gmo no food coloring and gluten free 50mg tablet. I am going try that one. Maybe the 100mg one was too much for my system as I am only 149lbs.. Anything else anyone can come up with? A gastro dr wont even mention one thing I said here. It's always "Take linzess" What did they say 4 years ago when it wasn't even on the market... "drink more water eat more fiber & exercise" I already do this in life.


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## PD85 (Aug 19, 2010)

A couple of things.

When you first begin fiber, probiotics, or magnesium, your guts will gurgle for like a week until your body adjusts. This is natural and happens to most everyone.

Second, what was your dose for the metamucil? Or the other fibers?

I like your diet, however there is no reason to abstain from egg yolk unless you just don't like the taste or something. It's an extremely healthy food.

I truly think that in order for you stool to not be hard, which is what is causing all your issues, you need to focus on getting more water or bacteria into the stool. More water or more bacteria = softer stool. There is no other way for the stool to soften other than these, unless you increase transit time. However transit time will also increase with more water and bacteria.

However you want to go about doing this is up to you! Nothing I say is without the ability to be totally and completely wrong.

Some things that we scientifically know that add water to the stool are fiber, prebiotics, magnesium, and probiotics. As well as several synthetic chemical medications like miralax and ducolax.

I think it's best if you focus hard on specific self-experiments. You are caught in a vicious laxative abuse cycle, and if you don't think laxative abuse is real just look it up. It might take a LOT of fiber, magnesium, or other agent to initially break the cycle, and there will be periods of tremendous suffering that you will have to endure, but once you do, you will be grateful. Don't confuse yourself with hundreds of pieces of advice about various unrelated things because it won't help. I believe in you!


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

PD85 said:


> A couple of things.
> 
> When you first begin fiber, probiotics, or magnesium, your guts will gurgle for like a week until your body adjusts. This is natural and happens to most everyone.
> 
> ...


You have been very kind with all your replies....

I kinda understand about it taking time for body with gurgling but I have been taking probiotics daily for a 2 months or more and seems like they are doing nothing. I was only taking 3-6 billion though. I just upped the dose to 30 billion yesterday with a 15 strain pill I bought. As far as magnesium I wasn't taking it on a daily basis because I have been taking miralax and or colace or senna tea every 2 days, and they make my intestines gurgle enough already so taking a magnesium also would make it worse, but I did take magnesium off and on for about 1 month and still gurggled all day after. Was taking 400mg of magnesium citrate. Metaumcil dose was only 1 tablespoon per day. It made it worse as it does to many others on here. It stopped me up worse than any other time. It was no longer just hard on the end. It was hard everywhere and wouldn't move inside me. It bulked me up alright and made me not go no matter what I did. That stuff is for people with IBS D I believe. I had to take milk of magnesia just to get me back to be able to go 3 days after... I am so afraid to not go every day or other day in fear of getting impacted. I am deathly afraid and get the shakes just walking into a hospital or doctors office for testing....I have never had anxiety but having this issue has made me have anxiety now.

I will lay off all the laxatives like you mention here with the exception I will take a cap of miralax stool softener along with prebiotics I am buying today, probiotics that I am now taking 30 billion as of yesterday, and 400mg magnesium. What is the dose for magnesium? I know some say you have to play with it but is it 250 to start? 400? 800? Others say 1000 a day works for them. I only remember in the past that I just felt gurgling and not getting a real urge. Maybe I should wait 2 days instead of my normal one? I drank 8 0z of prune juice today, some coconut water and ate coconut shavings for fiber and will see what happens later on, but in the past nothing happened but gurgling all day which in turn makes my intestines sore every day. For some reason they aren't getting used to it in a week like you mention. It's been 3-4 months now... I really don't think I have ibs and was misdiagnosed. I do have some minor intestinal pain but its minor and its mostly there after laxatives to be expected.... Its nothing like others say they have on here. There are many days I wake up and don't have any pain or spasms all day. Sometimes 2 days in a row. I went 7 days in a row 2 months ago of not 1 bit of intestinal pain or spasms.. I think a lot of it is coming from the aftermath of the senna tea or the miralax or milk of magnesia.. But I do get some random spasm pain here and there.

I have kept a journal of what I eat and when, or if I go, what I took, and my intestines are always sore like I was kicked by a football player for 2 days after I take a laxative no matter what kind. Even miralax or dulcoease (not dulcolax thats a harsh stimulant-never took it) If I take nothing at all that day I feel 100% normal all day except the fact I cant go to the bathroom because my stool is not moving along due to it being hard on the one end. If I could get past that part I would most likely be cured of this ibs stuff









Thing is say I take a laxative like senna tea one morning. I will go within 2-3 hours. Then the next day I will go again complete normal no hardness or anything because the senna is still in my system from day before. I can feel it gurgling the next day and my intestines are sore so I know its still in my system a day later working. But the 3rd day even if it is only say 8 hours later after I went to bathroom, or even 4-6 hours later it is back to being hard on the end again? How is this possible all within 4-6 hours? That's the issue I am having.. I can go 100% normal after senna tea or even a linzess and 4 to 8 hours later it is hard on the end again... I don't get it how if I just went normally earlier in day or night before?

I will try your way and drop all laxatives except a 'kinda' safe one like miralax. Gonna take prebiotics, probiotics, magnesium and prune juice and coconut water. Also bought some chewable papaya enzymes yesterday that says works for ibs c?? If iall works in a few days I will come back here and praise you and even send you a gift card for helping me out







... It seems everything I have tried has failed though. I have a blackup plan and have linzess as an emergency backup, but I don't want to have to take that to rely on going. I always have to stay home and wait for it to work which ruins my day daily. I don't feel normal doing that and wanna try anything that is natural first..

Linzess isn't a laxative though and I don't feel the same soreness and sick feeling you get with milk of magnesia, sena or any other stupid laxative. But, it's made in a lab and who knows what they will say about it in 2 years, like the other one they took off the market







. I took it only 2 x. First time it worked within 3 hours and was normal. But I had to stay home because it worked too good. Took it 3 days later and it gave me D all day and stayed home for the 122nd time in 4 months


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## TMM388 (Nov 17, 2010)

Have you tried taking Mineral oil? My type of constipation is like yours, stool is dry and hard by the time it gets to the end. Miralax, ACV, other oils, none of them work. The only two things that worked for me for dry hard stools are: 2T mineral oil, or about 1c of stewed prunes (and I mean stewed for 25 minutes so they're gelatinous).


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

TMM388 said:


> Have you tried taking Mineral oil? My type of constipation is like yours, stool is dry and hard by the time it gets to the end. Miralax, ACV, other oils, none of them work. The only two things that worked for me for dry hard stools are: 2T mineral oil, or about 1c of stewed prunes (and I mean stewed for 25 minutes so they're gelatinous).


Yes I did. It didn't do all too much at all that I noticed. The fact that I am drinking oil made from petroleum/plastic byproducts didn't sit too well with me either. The miralax and 8 oz of prune juice a day seems to be working for 5 days in a row now. I haven't even had any abdominal pain for 4 days now except a few minor spasms here and there for a minute. I will try the stewed prunes if I need to. I have a bag of them I eat once in a while but they are the dried ones and don't seem to do all that much. I bought some papaya extract I am starting to take tomorrow as well as some Chollera which I read was fantastic for this condition. I will repost what happens after I start trying that. For now I am sticking with the miralax which I was told you can take for life if needed?


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## flossy (Dec 8, 2012)

Prune juice worked too well for me! It cleans me out too much. My body can't handle it, but it will do the job. I definitely recommended it for chronic constipation.


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## ioeides (Mar 14, 2017)

Hello,

I've been suffering from the same problem for more than 50 years now, but due to the remedy I found it does not bother me any more. I developed my standard practice at the age of 20, when a lump of rock hard stool caused a considerable bleeding in my anal channel, which contained a slight anal fissure, as was later found out by a doctor on the occasion of a rectoscopy. Behind this 2" to 3" long lump there was ordinary soft stool. As a student of engineering, I concluded, that any oral laxative would only increase the pressure to evacuate with the danger of another bleeding experience, but not soften the rock hard lump blocking the "exit". So, what was the easiest way to soften the rock hard lump right where it was? I bought a soft all rubber ear syringe (bulb enema), and every time I felt there was a lump building up, I injected about 4 oz of warm water, sometimes with a small addition of liquid soap or glycerine, tried to hold it for about 10 minutes and then evacuated without problems. Normally, there was no more evacuation for the rest of the day.

There are times, when a rock hard lump forms after just one day without a bowel movement. So, I take care to have at least one bm per day, if not spontaneuosly, then induced by an enema as described.

So, I always have a bulb enema handy, of course also when travelling.

As for the people and doctors who say that enemas as a standard practice are harmful for bowel health: I have taken thousands of enemas during the last half century, and my digestive system is still in good shape.


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## PD85 (Aug 19, 2010)

mbella2000 said:


> Yes I did. It didn't do all too much at all that I noticed. The fact that I am drinking oil made from petroleum/plastic byproducts didn't sit too well with me either. The miralax and 8 oz of prune juice a day seems to be working for 5 days in a row now. I haven't even had any abdominal pain for 4 days now except a few minor spasms here and there for a minute. I will try the stewed prunes if I need to. I have a bag of them I eat once in a while but they are the dried ones and don't seem to do all that much. I bought some papaya extract I am starting to take tomorrow as well as some Chollera which I read was fantastic for this condition. I will repost what happens after I start trying that. For now I am sticking with the miralax which I was told you can take for life if needed?


I actually think Miralax is bad to take long term as well. It might not be as bad as Senna daily but it will eventually destroy your ability to have a bowel movement naturally. I can not tell you what to do, but it is not a natural supplement that should be taken long term in my opinion. Slowly you can lower the dose and see. Perhaps you can slowly raise the magnesium and prune juice while you lower the Miralax.

To reply to your previous post. You are very brave to be trying all these things. The amount of magnesium you can take daily varies with the form of the magnesium. Certain forms do not absorb as well as others, and thus are great for using as a laxative. Unless you go out of your way to get a very absorbable form I think 1000mg would probably be a safe upper limit although I've seen 1200mg per day used.

I think continuing with the prune juice and magnesium is a good idea. Since metamucil stopped you up, avoid it for sure. Have you tried acacia gum, I forget (Heather's Tummy Fiber)? Acacia is great for loosening stools without adding much bulk.

Also for probiotics, I would suggest not only a higher dose, but of the correct strains as well. Have you tried VSL#3, Elixa, or Renew Life Ultimate Bifido? A quality probiotic is going to be a thousand times more effective than a cheap off the shelf one.


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

PD85 said:


> I actually think Miralax is bad to take long term as well. It might not be as bad as Senna daily but it will eventually destroy your ability to have a bowel movement naturally. I can not tell you what to do, but it is not a natural supplement that should be taken long term in my opinion. Slowly you can lower the dose and see. Perhaps you can slowly raise the magnesium and prune juice while you lower the Miralax.
> 
> To reply to your previous post. You are very brave to be trying all these things. The amount of magnesium you can take daily varies with the form of the magnesium. Certain forms do not absorb as well as others, and thus are great for using as a laxative. Unless you go out of your way to get a very absorbable form I think 1000mg would probably be a safe upper limit although I've seen 1200mg per day used.
> 
> ...


Hello

Well I have gone to see 2 gastroenterologists within the last 3 weeks, and 2 internal medicine doctors. All of them said miralax is safe for long term use even for life if need be. It doesn't destroy your ability to go. It adds water to your intestines. That's it. Its stimulant free. Read up on it. Not 1 bad remark about it being unsafe for long term by any doctors. It isn't even considered a laxative anymore they said. It is just a stool softener with 0 stimulants.... It doesn't make your intestines contract or make you go like stimulants do. It isn't like senna or dulcolax or linzess etc. It is just something that draws extra water in your intestines from your own body. I will be honest with you, it is the only thing working for me now for 3 weeks. All the senna stuff and linzess, milk of magnesia, etc I quit taking over 3 weeks ago. I am off laxatives. All I am taking is a half a cap-full of miralax every night and it calls for a full cap but it is doing what it is supposed to do with only half. I feel near normal again after 6 months for the last 3 weeks. I tried prune juice and all kinds of magnesium. All prune juice does is make my intestines gurgle all day. Magnesium makes my intestines gurgle and gives most everyone a gassy effect all day after, even with a small 50-100 mg dose, so taking 1000mg plus will be way worse.. Magnesium and miralax are just about the same. They are both osmotic stool softeners. They both put extra water in your intestines and soften your stool.That's it. They don't make you go. But the magnesium supplements, no matter which kind I take, gives me and most others bad side effects as mentioned above. Read up on the side effects of mag supp on this forum. Gassy gurgling feeling all day to most which makes my intestine spasm pain come back. The miralax has 0 side effects and does the same thing as magnesium with no side effects at all and just softens you up again...with no stimulant.









I haven't tried acacia gum but I have tried renew life ultimate probiotics. Probiotics aren't doing a thing for me. Believe me I have tried 50 different strands. I spent $225 on all the different kinds including perfect biotics which has 30 billion good bacteria in each pill and 25 plus strands...It is one of the best and most expensive available and created by a doctor.. I paid $60 a bottle for 30 days! They did absolutely nothing. I tried kefir probiotics and I even ate bags of fermented sauerkraut... Nothing helped to soften me up inside...Miralax is doing the job. Since I was told by 4 doctors including 2 gastros it is safe to take miralax daily because it isn't considered a laxative any more, but a stool softener, I will stick with that.. I don't wanna try something else all over again after I finally got down the right thing to take after suffering for 6 months trying everything else, including more fiber more water and 4 different fiber supplements, etc. I resigned from my lucrative job because of this ibs crap. It took me 6 months to figure out what worked and what didn't by trying everything in different combinations and having to stay home every day or every other day from the side effects. I was like a guinea pig. I changed my diet, i took out bread and rice and gluten, I took out dairy and ate all veggies for a week and still had hard stool after. I have spent close to $800 on things to try and miralax is a life saver for $20 a month so far. Everything else made me worse off or did zero to help.. My cabinet is full of things I bought at holistic shops and vitamin shops etc that I am tossing out this week because they did nothing for me. I wasted so much money and time on everything but I had to go through all this to see what works.. I hope you find something that works for you like I did







If I find a magnesium supplement that doesn't cause gassy bloated effects, I will post it up here. I tried mag oxide, and mag citrate and they are hard to digest. There is a brand that digests easily called non buffered magnesium glycinate but it causes no laxative effect, so that does me no good.... Unless you know a magnesium brand that doesn't have any side effects?

If you know one I will try it


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## Soccerlifter (Mar 23, 2017)

I am brand new to this forum and had no intention of even creating an account, etc. When I read this post, I knew I had to join the forum and specifically reply to this thread.

mbella2000, I am close in age to you and have had a similar situation where I was doing great and then felt like this thing started affecting my life. A bit of a different situation though. In 2012 I had been working out and noticed a soft bulge in my abdomen. Didn't hurt and really small. Ended up being an inguinal hernia. A few days later, my belly button started burning. Ended up being an umbilical hernia. Doctor sent me to a surgeon who confirmed it. I had started getting constipated which was one of the main symptoms. I thought, "I'll get this fixed and the constipation will go away". Didn't happen that easy unfortunately.

I got surgery and weeks later started getting several bouts of impactions, difficulty going, etc. I had done Milk of Mag once or twice but one time had to use an enema. I started getting frustrated. Went on a family trip with 24 people in one big cabin with one bathroom. Couldn't go and especially with people fighting to get into a bathroom. Finally took some Milk of Magnesia and was good. Months passed and was "ok" with fluctuating constipation. Fast forward to 2014 and started feeling burning in the other side. Another inguinal hernia. Got that fixed and then things went pretty much back to normal or as much as could be expected.

Last year I helped a friend move and started feeling a weird feeling where my 2014 surgery site was. Not pain but just weird. Got constipated again off and on. It has been off and on. About two weeks ago, went on a trip with family and on the way down there started feeling uncomfortable burning in my belly button region and got constipated, bloated, etc. Made the trip suck but wasn't competely a loss. Just couldn't eat the great foods available, get on fun rides, etc. I was so annoyed and felt like my health took my one weekend of fun away.

The past several years have been up and down with good and bad days. I've had days where I go normal and enjoy a night out, etc. with no bloating or issues and have other days where I"m constipated, bloated, have pain, etc. and have to push my rectum manually to get hard stool "moving". I have stayed away from laxatives for the most part and trying to be normal.

Here are some of the variables and what makes this so difficult to diagnose. I have three fixed hernia locations. I'm going tomorrow for an ultrasound to see if hernias have returned. A part of me feels like maybe I was just so constipated that it was pushing on the surgery locations. I'll just have to see what I want to do. Hernias can cause contipation but I don't think that is all that is going on. The other thing is that I have higher glucose than I've had in the past. Could it be that glucose levels are affecting my bowels? So many things to figure out.

Bottom line is that I have to figure this out. Like mbella2000, I normally have a bit of hard stool then soft. I tried probiotics years ago but seemed to do nothing. I probably didn't get the right type. I've noticed that if I cut back on food a bit and have soup, etc. it will help temporarily fix things. I have had X-Rays and a sitzmarker test about two years ago and they said my transit time was normal. I go almost everyday but is typically hard stool. I drink plenty of water so don't get it.

To mbella2000, remember that too much of anything can affect your bowels. If you are having too much fiber, laxatives, etc. it could make things worse. It sound funny but months ago when I would use a shoebox, etc. to elevate my feel when going, it seemed to get better. Also, not pushing and straining helped. I know that sounds crazy but there is a difference between a slight beardown and really straining. I try to hold out until I feel like I need to go and try not to worry if I miss a day.

The body is an interesting thing. I have been so frustrated over the past few years because I was never constipated growing up. All of this started in 2012 and I want to figure it out. I feel like I can't let this beat me. I don't want surgery again but if they find hernias then maybe I will. I dont want adhesions that will make things worse though either. I feel like I'll just see where it goes. Everyone hang in there and we'll help each other out.


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

Soccerlifter said:


> I am brand new to this forum and had no intention of even creating an account, etc. When I read this post, I knew I had to join the forum and specifically reply to this thread.
> 
> mbella2000, I am close in age to you and have had a similar situation where I was doing great and then felt like this thing started affecting my life. A bit of a different situation though. In 2012 I had been working out and noticed a soft bulge in my abdomen. Didn't hurt and really small. Ended up being an inguinal hernia. A few days later, my belly button started burning. Ended up being an umbilical hernia. Doctor sent me to a surgeon who confirmed it. I had started getting constipated which was one of the main symptoms. I thought, "I'll get this fixed and the constipation will go away". Didn't happen that easy unfortunately.
> 
> ...


Man dude that sucks! Hope all turned out well after the mri/ct scan. I have been doing near great actually for 3 weeks now. Back to about 80% of my old self instead of a miserable 10%. All I have to take is a half cap of miralax at night and I am pretty much ok after in the am or afternoon. I tried EVERYTHING. The same "more fiber, more water, more exercise," routine didn't work. I tried prune juice, I tried stewed prunes, I tried magnesium, I tried flaxseed, and chia seed, baked apples... you name it.. I cant take any of them. The prune juice even if 3 oz makes my intestines gurgle all day and gives me lower gas bubble pains. I hate it. Same with the magnesium. I cant digest it. I tried 500mg 400mg 200mg and even 100mg. I tried citrate oxide and one other type, and same outcome. All did the same as the damn prune juice. Bloating gassy feeling with abdominal bubble pains for half the day to all day.

Miralax has been my life saver. It gives me no gas bubble pains or gurgling whatsoever. I even tried fiber bars, fruits, veggies, and gut juice made of fermented cabbage and pickle juice and still same outcome...Did nothing. I think fiber makes me worse even if I start with it slow and build up. Does ZERO for me...Thing is now my stool is soft, I still have to push and sometimes hard. I read others have the same exact issue. Still have to push hard or semi hard even after a stool softener doing it's job. It is possible I am pushing hard because I just want to go in the am and carry on with my day and not have to think about it anymore. It would be like a woman pushing the baby out to get him out instead of waiting a day or 2. I should probably wait a day or 2 to see if I still have to push. I mean I get a slight urge but I still have to push. It doesn't come natural. I don't know if its because my waste is too soft now or because I am not waiting long enough. But I get the abdominal spasms if I don't go every day when I feel like I should. It's as if my large intestine is saying "go push and go to the bathroom so I can stop the spasm pain I am giving you"

My pain isn't that bad but it does hurt. On a scale of 1 to 10 it's a 2-3. It's more of a bothersome pain saying hey look I have a pain in my side going up the left and right.... I would rather it be gone so yea I push and sometimes strain now even when my stool is soft. I have tried everything. I spent so much money on things and nothing works. I tried 8 different probiotcs. If it stays the way it has been for 3 weeks, I am a happy guy. I barely even know I have ibs sometimes the way the miralax is working now. I can't see it not working because all it does is put more water in your intestines and I cant even feel it doing that. It's not considered a laxative to a lot of doctors now, but just a stool softener with no stimulant like many/most of the others.

Yesterday for the hell of it I opened up a linzess 290 cap. I have a script for it but I am not taking it. I don't need it now that the miralax is working. But yesterday I felt I didn't fully evacuate. With IBS a lot of times you feel like you have to go but can't. It's nerve racking at times. So I opened one up and put the contents into a tiny bowl and wet my finger and touched about 8 of the tiny beads in the pill. Each pill probably has 500 beads in it. The beads are smaller than a grain of salt. I licked my finger with the 8 beads on it and can you believe an hour later it gave me an urge to go again? I mean I literally took 1/200th of a pill. I heard horror stories of people on here saying they took linzess for 2 weeks straight and nothing happened? I feel really bad for them. I guess I have a very mild case of ibs compared to most. But in the beginning trying to come up with the right combination took me 5 months of staying home. All I had was time... I mixed and matched everything. Wrote down what each did and went from there.I even had a daily food diary. If I quit alcohol which I did for 4 months and gave up dairy which I did, I still can't go without miralax. But at least I can eat what I want again and go for happy hours like I used to. I guess a stool softener did it for me. You should try miralax. It takes 1- 3 days for the water to get into your intestines to soften you up but after that it is soft every day after that you take it. My doc said I can take it for life if need be. I hope I don't have to but 4 doctors actually told me that. You can try dulcoease as well. Not dulcolax... "dulcoease". A huge difference. One is a stimulant that kills your insides with horrible pain and forces you to go. The dulcoease is a stool softener made of a different ingredient than miralax. It just softens you up. If you go to their website there is a $4 off coupon and it's only $4.99 in the store. So not bad to try for $.99. Takes 2-3 days to soften you up also. I hope I get back to normal one day because I am 100% healthy other than this. I checked my bp today (I check it every week in a grocery store due to a higi fitness app I use) and was 107/71... like always. Had a complete physical with blood work and ekg last week and I am like a 17 year old. If I didn't have this bs ibs stuff I would be 100% normal







Lemme know if miralax or dulcoease works. I used to take the milk of magnesia but it messed me up all day. I couldn't leave the house all day every day, and the magnesium in it killed my gut


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## Soccerlifter (Mar 23, 2017)

Years ago I was using Miralax and really didn't have any problems with it, just didn't want to feel like I HAD to take something everyday to go to the bathroom. I wanted to try to beat this on my own. I also think that I felt like my issues were tied with adhesions, hernias, etc. and needed that to get taken care of instead of just thinking it is IBS, etc. Could be that as well, who knows.

Most of the doctors I've talked to don't think my constipation has anything to do with surgery but it immediately started upon diagnosis of a hernia. Prior to that I didn't give the bathroom a second thought in my life. I did the ultrasound today and they didn't tell me anything today but should find out soon if they saw anything. Not sure I'll get surgery now regardless. I'll just have to see.

I have some Miralax that they gave me that has just been sitting in my closet. I'll see how things go and decide if I need a bit of that. Mine seems to come and go so I don't feel like I need to take it all the time. I"m fine with occasionally using something when I need it. Just wish we could go like others do.


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

Soccerlifter said:


> Years ago I was using Miralax and really didn't have any problems with it, just didn't want to feel like I HAD to take something everyday to go to the bathroom. I wanted to try to beat this on my own. I also think that I felt like my issues were tied with adhesions, hernias, etc. and needed that to get taken care of instead of just thinking it is IBS, etc. Could be that as well, who knows.
> 
> Most of the doctors I've talked to don't think my constipation has anything to do with surgery but it immediately started upon diagnosis of a hernia. Prior to that I didn't give the bathroom a second thought in my life. I did the ultrasound today and they didn't tell me anything today but should find out soon if they saw anything. Not sure I'll get surgery now regardless. I'll just have to see.
> 
> I have some Miralax that they gave me that has just been sitting in my closet. I'll see how things go and decide if I need a bit of that. Mine seems to come and go so I don't feel like I need to take it all the time. I"m fine with occasionally using something when I need it. Just wish we could go like others do.


I know what you mean. I cant plan my day anymore. Before I was stuck in the house all day.Now I just cant make plans in the mornings until I go..But better than staying in miserable all day every day. If someone asks me a week ahead, if I want to go on a road trip with them when they come to visit me on vaca my answer is always " I don't know have to see how I feel." Or even "hey you wanna go to the beach Friday", I always have to reply with "I don't know".... Can never make plans...It really sucks


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## Soccerlifter (Mar 23, 2017)

mbella2000 said:


> I know what you mean. I cant plan my day anymore. Before I was stuck in the house all day.Now I just cant make plans in the mornings until I go..But better than staying in miserable all day every day. If someone asks me a week ahead, if I want to go on a road trip with them when they come to visit me on vaca my answer is always " I don't know have to see how I feel." Or even "hey you wanna go to the beach Friday", I always have to reply with "I don't know".... Can never make plans...It really sucks


The last two weeks have been the worst and not sure why. I have felt pain here and there throughout every quadrant of my abdomen. Prior to two weeks ago when belly button pain returned for the first time since 2012. I had a difficult time in the bathroom this morning followed by a soccer game a few hours later. I feel like someone beat me up.


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## PD85 (Aug 19, 2010)

mbella2000 said:


> Hello
> 
> Well I have gone to see 2 gastroenterologists within the last 3 weeks, and 2 internal medicine doctors. All of them said miralax is safe for long term use even for life if need be. It doesn't destroy your ability to go. It adds water to your intestines. That's it. Its stimulant free. Read up on it. Not 1 bad remark about it being unsafe for long term by any doctors. It isn't even considered a laxative anymore they said. It is just a stool softener with 0 stimulants.... It doesn't make your intestines contract or make you go like stimulants do. It isn't like senna or dulcolax or linzess etc. It is just something that draws extra water in your intestines from your own body. I will be honest with you, it is the only thing working for me now for 3 weeks. All the senna stuff and linzess, milk of magnesia, etc I quit taking over 3 weeks ago. I am off laxatives. All I am taking is a half a cap-full of miralax every night and it calls for a full cap but it is doing what it is supposed to do with only half. I feel near normal again after 6 months for the last 3 weeks. I tried prune juice and all kinds of magnesium. All prune juice does is make my intestines gurgle all day. Magnesium makes my intestines gurgle and gives most everyone a gassy effect all day after, even with a small 50-100 mg dose, so taking 1000mg plus will be way worse.. Magnesium and miralax are just about the same. They are both osmotic stool softeners. They both put extra water in your intestines and soften your stool.That's it. They don't make you go. But the magnesium supplements, no matter which kind I take, gives me and most others bad side effects as mentioned above. Read up on the side effects of mag supp on this forum. Gassy gurgling feeling all day to most which makes my intestine spasm pain come back. The miralax has 0 side effects and does the same thing as magnesium with no side effects at all and just softens you up again...with no stimulant.
> 
> ...


Well look. Half a cap of miralax is probably safe long-term. That's a really really low dose and if that makes you feel better, I'd do it too. I'll be the first to say that if that made me feel better today, I'd do it without blinking an eye, and I wouldn't care who said it wasn't safe.

But keep in mind that there are literally thousands of drugs and chemicals that were "safe for long-term use" that ended up killing people. In fact there are many people on this forum who are here because a "safe" drug prescribed to them by a doctor ruined their life. If you truly research Miralax, instead of trusting the authority of a few doctors, you will discover for yourself why being "healthy" without it would be far superior to taking a synthetic chemical every day of your life. Five years ago I don't think there was a doctor in America who would say Prilosec is bad for you, and now days they are starting to think twice about it. The people who individually researched PPIs learned long ago the dangers of them. But it probably takes much more than half a cap of Miralax per day to really mess with things haha, so you're probably ok.

Also, there are people on this forum who have spent more than 30 years of their lives house-bound and have spent into the hundreds of thousands of dollars on treatment who wouldn't blink an eye at a couple hundred bucks. What I'm saying is, we are all extremely lucky to even have a warm house, bed, food, and computer to communicate with. It is not like this in many parts of the world, and I can only begin to imagine the suffering people must endure. In many instances, our own complaining only causes ourselves more suffering because it strengthens the part of ourselves that feels victimized by our circumstances. It is extremely fortunate to have found an answer in 6 months and I know we all hope you continue to feel well.


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## Hanamarie (Mar 29, 2017)

Hi. I seem to have a similar problem. I don't know what caused it, but in 2015 I was suddenly unable to pass a bowel movement. Without going into too much detail here of my symptoms/tests etc, I'll say that I do have what you experience...the beginning of the bowel movement being hard and difficult to pass and then following with softer material, and more recently very loose stool. I do not use any type of oral laxative. When I was experiencing the worst of my symptoms - severe debilitating pain, I tried some of them. However, I just settled upon using suppositories. In the UK they are called glycerine suppositories and I believe in the US they are known as fleet suppositories. All they need to be is glycerine. Just use a glove, lie on your side and push it in (I push in quite far as things get stuck further up!!). This is enough to initiate a bowel movement within minutes. I don't use any other laxatives, so no nasty surprises, with regards to timing etc. I am totally in control of when I go. I don't use probiotics, fibre supplements or anything else. I do have a lot more fat in my diet than you do. I'd recommend giving it a try. They are safe to use, daily for the rest of your life if necessary according to my gastro surgeon that did all the tests. No medical person recommended this to me as such...only my Mum who was a nurse all her life. This is the only thing that worked for me. For 2 years I needed to use them daily. I am now managing to go without most of the time. Anyhow, give it a try. Come off all the other laxatives. Don't be concerned if it all doesn't evacuate at one time. It will only remove what is in the rectum, but may initiate a deeper bowel movement, especially if the rest is of normal consistency. I used them twice a day. This should be enough for you to just draw water into the rectum and soften the tip allowing you to pass it. I hope this works and gives you back some control in your life. Let me know. PS new user here and yours was the first post I read, so I had to sign up in order to give you my advice. Good luck.


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

Hanamarie said:


> Hi. I seem to have a similar problem. I don't know what caused it, but in 2015 I was suddenly unable to pass a bowel movement. Without going into too much detail here of my symptoms/tests etc, I'll say that I do have what you experience...the beginning of the bowel movement being hard and difficult to pass and then following with softer material, and more recently very loose stool. I do not use any type of oral laxative. When I was experiencing the worst of my symptoms - severe debilitating pain, I tried some of them. However, I just settled upon using suppositories. In the UK they are called glycerine suppositories and I believe in the US they are known as fleet suppositories. All they need to be is glycerine. Just use a glove, lie on your side and push it in (I push in quite far as things get stuck further up!!). This is enough to initiate a bowel movement within minutes. I don't use any other laxatives, so no nasty surprises, with regards to timing etc. I am totally in control of when I go. I don't use probiotics, fibre supplements or anything else. I do have a lot more fat in my diet than you do. I'd recommend giving it a try. They are safe to use, daily for the rest of your life if necessary according to my gastro surgeon that did all the tests. No medical person recommended this to me as such...only my Mum who was a nurse all her life. This is the only thing that worked for me. For 2 years I needed to use them daily. I am now managing to go without most of the time. Anyhow, give it a try. Come off all the other laxatives. Don't be concerned if it all doesn't evacuate at one time. It will only remove what is in the rectum, but may initiate a deeper bowel movement, especially if the rest is of normal consistency. I used them twice a day. This should be enough for you to just draw water into the rectum and soften the tip allowing you to pass it. I hope this works and gives you back some control in your life. Let me know. PS new user here and yours was the first post I read, so I had to sign up in order to give you my advice. Good luck.


Wow great reply and thank you!!!!! I actually bought them 5 months ago and was saving them for a rainy day as a backup under my sink in case miralax quit working. Some person on here said that they were considered stimulants so I put them away. But now I know they had wrong info and just never went back to trying them. After researching it, they are just fleet glycerin melts with 0 stimulants and 1 doctor told me they were safe for life also, although he prescribed me linzess so he could get a kickback and told me to use miralax first. I took one of the linzess last week (less than 1/5 of the pill) and man they work way way too well and make you stay home all day miserable with cramps and gurgling and pains and even abdominal muscle twitching spasms...so I am throwing out the linzess.

I only used glycerin once 5 months ago but they did seem to work as you described. It seems now the miralax is making me too soft. I am only taking 1/4 cap at night now. Maybe I am healed and don't even know it and should quit all and see what happens?? I still have to push and strain just to go because I am just too soft inside now... No hardness in weeks even with 1/4 cap or miralax.... either that or I am not eating enough anymore and don't have enough food in me to make a complete bowel movement without pushing hard. I don't eat as much in fear I wont be able to go. It's a little of both probably I am sure. It sucks .. I can't tell anymore... I will definitely give them a try and maybe I wont ever have to use anything again. I quit the probiotics and magnesium and fiber supps also like you last week as they were making me gassy gurgling and bloated feeling when I did. Didn't make me worse or better. Miralax is the only thing that doesn't do this.. Even the Linzess kills your insides all day for 18 hours straight. Glycerine cant harm you at all it seems and it doesn't go in your bloodstream and stomach like all the others. I will try these! Thanks for reminding me. I remember the one time I did try them I went less than 3 mins later and had control of a time instead of taking something, & waiting 2 hours...I was miserable..still am but not as much...This could be my answer. Damn I totally forgot that these worked for me that one time I tried them and may be all I need. I got IBS about 7 months ago while on vacation after a bout of food poisoning. It was my first time with bad food. 2 weeks later I had burning pains in abdomen and rock hard stool at the end constipation. Had ct scan and blood work 2 times and all was normal. I ate healthy pretty much all my life and work out and bike every day. I haven't even had a cold in probably 25-30 years and then I get this ibs stuff out of nowhere. The burning pain in stomach and abdomen is gone and so are most of the spasms but I do get minor pain if I don't go every day or close to.. So far I beat 75% of this and now I am just stuck with constipation and hard tip stool no matter how much water and fiber I eat. It's never the whole stool just about 3 inches. Miralax was my lifesaver for the past month or more. Will try your way and will repost... Thanks dude (or chick) again!


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## annie7 (Aug 16, 2002)

yes, you are both right. glycerin suppositories are safe to take on a daily basis for as long as you need. my primary care doc , both my gastros and my colorectal surgeons have all told me that plus i researched it online. they do not contain stimulants-- they contain just glycerin--soap--which works well to soften things up.

there are also liquid glycerin suppositories, which some people find work even better.

in case anyone is interested, linzess is now available in a lower dose--72mcg--which is supposed to cause less D and which would be even easier to split up if necessary. a

also-my gastro told me that linzess works on the same receptors that food does. so the closer you take it to eating, the more D you'll get and conversely--the further away you take it from eating, the less D you'll get. if you're getting too much D, try taking it one or two hours --or even longer--before eating instead of a half hour before, as prescribed.

there is also a new med out called trulance (plecanatide). it was approved by the fda in january and just became available last week. it is similar to linzess but is supposed to cause much less D.

mbella--good luck with the suppositories. hope they help


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

annie7 said:


> yes, you are both right. glycerin suppositories are safe to take on a daily basis for as long as you need. my primary care doc , both my gastros and my colorectal surgeons have all told me that plus i researched it online. they do not contain stimulants-- they contain just glycerin--soap--which works well to soften things up.
> 
> there are also liquid glycerin suppositories, which some people find work even better.
> 
> ...


Hey









I am done with Linzess no matter what the mg dose is. I have already tried less than 72mg. As I stated I opened up a 290mg capsule and took roughly 1/5 of it with apple sauce which equates to about 58mg give or take as I couldn't measure accurately, but it was a tiny tiny amount. Could barely see it. It was literally about 10 grains of salt size. It killed me. Linzess is for people that cant go no mater what they take or try or for people that haven't gone in weeks. It isn't for people that have hard stool but can still go with a miralax type softener as it works way too good and causes D and pains all day in many. The reviews on it are not very nice except for a few. It reminds me of the movie American pie when stifler snuck some laxative in paul Finch' mochachino and he was in the bathroom all day after







It took me near 3 days to recover from 58mg to get it out of my system. My stomach was gurgling 48 hours after and intestines were still sore from the small amount 2 days after...... I wish I could give away the 2 months supply I bought to others that cant afford it instead of tossing them. Guess I will try glycerin when the miralax is outta my system and see what it does.. I hope it works







PS the trulance I read was approved for CIC but not IBS C I read. I have a feeling it is going to do the exact same as Linzess so I am gonna skip it and stick to miralax or hopefully glycerin...


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## Soccerlifter (Mar 23, 2017)

Thanks for the comments about the suppositories the last few posts. I think every other "fix" is mentioned so much that people forget about them. For people with hard stool in the beginning of a bowel movement, suppositories are probably the best option because there is no real problem with the movement through the colon, it is that that hard stool brings everything to a halt at the end. I imagine there are probably so many versions of what someone would call "constipation" that there is no "one size fits all" type of fix (pardon the reference).

mbella2000, in my opinion you should cut back on some of the things you had to do and see what happens. Who knows, maybe things will straighten out for you quite a bit?

As hard as it is to do, don't worry about not having a bowel movement, not eating to avoid things, etc. Keep in mind that digestion can be affected by worry, stress, anxiety, etc. I have gone almost 48 hours without a BM and had a more normal one than when I've gone twice in the same day. There are so many factors that are involved. I think you have the right idea cutting back and seeing what happens.

I am trying to eat better and look at it as a win/win. If it results in feeling better than it is great. If it results in nothing more than me being a healthier person and having more control over sugar levels, etc. than that is great too. Rather be constipated and healthy than constipated and a disaster.


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## dlind70 (Aug 7, 2015)

If nothing else look into sulfur salt to help you go. You need sulfur if your Caucasian to help the body out. Real Salt is a good brand. Cut out the pork. I don't do well on eating pork or fish. Try fresh coffee in the morning roasted from green seeds fresh (the canned coffee is dead from the lack of gases) Fresh is better. I've talked about this before. Almonds plus orange juice. Drink orange juice in the morning hours. Orange juice keeps your thyroid up and temp working. Don't worry about the sugar in OJ because its in balance with the high potassium.


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## Soccerlifter (Mar 23, 2017)

Today I've had three Colace and one half-cup full of Miralax (different name but same thing). We'll see what happens tomorrow. 

When you guys get constipated, do you get little sharp pains in your lower abdomen and in other areas like the upper right, etc.? I think since I've had hernia surgeries, I'm always thinking I'm one of the only folks that feels this but I guess that pain can be an IBS thing rather than a hernia mesh thing, etc.


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## Soccerlifter (Mar 23, 2017)

Soccerlifter said:


> Today I've had three Colace and one half-cup full of Miralax (different name but same thing). We'll see what happens tomorrow.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


The one thing worse than just having constipation issues? Getting the flu. This sucks!!


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## Soccerlifter (Mar 23, 2017)

Took some Miralax yesterday as well as Colace throughout the day. Got significantly backed up, so much so that almost had to use a Fleet Enema. Decided against the enema and used one of those glycerin suppositories. Helped a bit but since I was already so backed up, was a real struggle. Like others on here, had pellets followed by soft stool.

I should mention that I've been taking Dayquil/Nyquil the past two days with being sick with the flu. Probably not the best thing for someone that gets constipation.  Something, either the Colace or Miralax was causing a lot of stomach gurgling, etc. last night Probably the Colace.


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## elt123 (Apr 19, 2017)

Ok, I too joined this group based on seeing this post.

I'm a female, 35 years old.

I have exactly what mbella described.

If I don't take miralax EVERY SINGLE DAY, when I poop (if I poop), the end that comes out first (like 3 inches or so) of the stool is like a clump of hardened clay pebbles jammed together, making it hard or impossible to go, and the rest is obviously softer and tapers into being pinched off at the other end.

I was 'diagnosed' with IBS-C years ago.

Unfortunately, unlike mbella, taking miralax doesn't make me go.

It just ensures that, when it DOES happen, it's not hard.

It also gives me insane bad gas, and little spasms in my guts and rolling horrible noises, but I have to weigh the evils and found taking miralax is the only way.

.

After looking up types of stool and looking at constipation sites, I also started thinking, waitaminute... this rock hard stool thing is like, every day.

Not the "after a long time sitting in the colon the water is absorbed", we're talking 14 hours, we're talking 12 hours, and when I really honed in on it--

I was even horrified to discover that, after taking stimulant laxatives, only FIVE HOURS after having a movement, in the very same day 5 hours later, the tip of the stool was hard again.

And you know that it's not pockets of hard stool because the stool behind the rocky part is closer to soft serve.

This isn't normal.

I started asking other people about their bowel movements. No. Not rock hard. In fact, not even after days is it rock hard.

My boyfriend suffers occasional bouts of constipation due to a medication he's taking, and I found out that after 4 or 5 days when he finally poops, it's not rock hard like I described.

Like mbella, it doesn't matter how much fiber I consume, or what healthy cruciferous vegetables I eat, or if I don't eat lactose or fruit or if I take probiotics or god, you name it.

I have tried eating it or not eating it. Cutting out coffee, alcohol, drinking a capful of vinegar with every meal,

I don't eat meat and at that only fish/seafood infrequently, blah blah blah, I swear to Christ, if one more person tells me some inane thing like 'drink more water you're probably dehydrated' when I make sure I drink like, 2 liters of water a day not including any other type of beverage because I would do almost anything to change this, I will go ballistic. Yes, we have tried all the basic stuff and more. I've tried taking a slew of different supplements.

At one point I was taking like, 30 various vitamins and supplements, this dehydrated veggie stuff and metamucil, doing yoga for bowel movements, doing external colon massage, squatty potty technique, seriously, why would you think I haven't tried it when it's debilitating, depressing, painful, embarrassing.

And yes, after years of suffering, I finally got on lexapro/escitalopram.

Do not tell me 'maybe it's the lexapro'.

I just said, I suffered for YEARS before taking this drug.

My brother who, literally drinks only a glass or two of water a day with meals and has a perfect bowel movement or 2 every day is like, drink more water.

Unlike mbella, Linzess doesn't work for me. It causes horrible spasms and sloshing sounds, but may not make me go at all.

Nothing matters.

The only thing that helps is taking miralax every day religiously so that it isn't like a rock.

With miralax, even if I don't poop for 5 days, when it finally happens, it's soft. Maybe 2 feet long, but soft.

In my experience, doctors seem to decide that, once you've got "IBS", that's it, there's no underlying cause, IBS is the end-all-be-all of what there is to know.

I had a barium enema, which came back "inconclusive", because even after the course of laxatives, there was still too much stool in my system to make any determinations.

(And btw, they clearly didn't believe me when I told them yes, I did follow the instructions to the letter, and I took it all on the schedule laid out.)

I had a colonoscopy, which came back 'fine'.

I have had a scan for hernias which came back 'fine' except that 'your bowels were completely filled with stool'.

The general surgeon who evaluated the scan recommended taking miralax, which I'd already been on four like, 6 months, and it had been a whopping six days since I pooped.

Without going too deep into my case,

I want to come back to the issue of rock hard stool tip, which is the point of this thread.

No doctor I've seen seems to have any idea why this would happen, except "IBS-C".]

After looking at tons of stuff on the internet, I can only speculate that it's either

A) some type of hyperactive colon issue

(because yes, it's the job of the intestine to absorb water and firm up stool, but it's not supposed to be so "efficient" that 5 hours after pooping your stool is made of stone)

B) some type of liver problem

(because that's apparently the other major player in the scenario, but I'm not going to pretend to understand it)

I can't afford to quit taking the miralax, and I can't 'push' to get the softer stool out. I'm terrified to strain or allow hard stool to pass because, before I started taking miralax every day, the constant battle with getting out rock hard stool has given me little hemorrhoids and I was told they'd continue to get worse from straining.

What happens if I quit doing everything?

Rock hard stool.

I had my tonsils out a couple of years ago and it hurt to eat or drink and it was all I could manage to just drink plain ass water on the regular and a little soup.

I didn't take miralax.

Needless to say, I didn't poop for a week. I started feeling the urge to go, and it hurt like crazy. After hours of this, I took some laxatives, stimulant and miralax, but it had been too long. More pain, waves of nausea, dizziness. After about 8 hours of misery and passing out from pain in the john, I took a suppository and pushed like my life depended on it. Finally, a rock hard chunk approximately the size of a baseball dropped, followed by a bunch of watery crap, and my anus was bleeding.

No. No, no, I can't stop the miralax, but it sucks.

I'm truly hoping that somebody somewhere with a doctor more invested in solving the mystery behind why we have this problem will respond to this thread with a definite answer, maybe even a solution.

Not something like eat/don't eat, but like, hey I discovered I have hyperactive colon absorption and there's a pill for it.


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## flossy (Dec 8, 2012)

For elt123 -

Just read your post. Click on below link to read:

http://www.ibsgroup.org/forums/topic/325690-the-abcs-of-chronic-constipation-aka-ibs-c/


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## Soccerlifter (Mar 23, 2017)

My constipation issues fluctuate from either "some pebbles, then soft" and "normal", to "backed up, dizzy, hard to breathe, this trip I'm on is ruined". I don't take laxatives unless I have to. I have noticed that I stopped eating nuts (I was eating cashews, peanuts, etc.), my issues seem to have improved but probably just a coincidence.

One other thing I'll say, and to piggyback on what elt123 said, is the whole "drink water" thing. I don't believe that anymore. I think back when I was a teenager, and I would get up and not drink water, hang out all day in an amusement park and maybe have a cup of water or a can of Coke, then have something to drink maybe when I got home. Never got constipated and probably only had 3 ounces of water all day. About a year ago I got a viral infection and they did urinalysis, etc. on me at the ER. The doctor said "I know you probably think I'm going to say "drink more water". I think you are drinking too much water". She said I was washing away some of minerals, etc. Of course I was like "WTF?". So, I think a normal amount of water should do.

I think I get these temporary obstructions from time to time and I think it just becomes a bigger problem over days. It is really frustrating but I'm starting to learn that when I stop hearing sounds, not as much gas, etc., it is time to cut back on food, have orange juice, soups, etc. and take some laxative. Once it gets to a certain point back to somewhat "normal", I try to get back to regular stuff. I know when things are getting rough because I lose my appetite, get bloated, pellet stool, aches, in a fog, etc.

This website is great because hearing about other stories makes us realize we are not imagining this. One more thing I'll add. I do think stress is a huge part of constipation. I had two "trips" or "events" with family over the past two months. Both events I had constipation and was worried about having to go and not being able to, etc. I think I just need to stop worrying about it. My body will go when I'm ready. Hopefully.


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

Soccerlifter said:


> My constipation issues fluctuate from either "some pebbles, then soft" and "normal", to "backed up, dizzy, hard to breathe, this trip I'm on is ruined". I don't take laxatives unless I have to. I have noticed that I stopped eating nuts (I was eating cashews, peanuts, etc.), my issues seem to have improved but probably just a coincidence.
> 
> One other thing I'll say, and to piggyback on what elt123 said, is the whole "drink water" thing. I don't believe that anymore. I think back when I was a teenager, and I would get up and not drink water, hang out all day in an amusement park and maybe have a cup of water or a can of Coke, then have something to drink maybe when I got home. Never got constipated and probably only had 3 ounces of water all day. About a year ago I got a viral infection and they did urinalysis, etc. on me at the ER. The doctor said "I know you probably think I'm going to say "drink more water". I think you are drinking too much water". She said I was washing away some of minerals, etc. Of course I was like "WTF?". So, I think a normal amount of water should do.
> 
> ...


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## Soccerlifter (Mar 23, 2017)

mbella2000, we are the same age and crazy when I read your posts because it is like reading my own life. I bought slippery elm years ago, bought magnesium but haven't tried it yet, etc. It is insane that after you were doing everything doctors say to do, it didn't help at all. It is like doctors themselves don't know what to do.

Years ago they sent me to a GI doctor. I got the young guy who was just starting his career. Before I went in, I had been keeping a journal of what I ate, etc. and when I took it in with me he said "oh....well, that is more for you to keep for yourself". I was like what? Why wouldn't he want to know what I'm eating to figure it out? He said, "here I have something for you" and handed me a "relaxation on the toilet" pamphlet. It was talking about finding your inner self and thinking about trees and birds and all kinds of crap (excuse the pun) and it irritated me so bad. I said thank you and walked out, and threw the pamphlet in the trash can. I felt like "oh well, I guess I'm doing this alone".

I used to get distraught about this situation but I'm actually getting more strong minded as this goes on. I refuse to let this affect my life. I don't care what I have to do but I'll do whatever to be normal. Mine comes and goes so I'm going to keep dealing.

I know that a lot of us on here are always looking for answers and fixes. I'll throw this out here. The past week, I've had Taco Bell, broccoli with cheese, spinach with cheese, sandwich, soup, spaghetti and various other things (chocolate for example). My BMs have been fairly normal. The only thing I've cut out significantly is nuts. Like I said, I'm sure it is just a coincidence but found it interesting.


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

Soccerlifter said:


> mbella2000, we are the same age and crazy when I read your posts because it is like reading my own life. I bought slippery elm years ago, bought magnesium but haven't tried it yet, etc. It is insane that after you were doing everything doctors say to do, it didn't help at all. It is like doctors themselves don't know what to do.
> 
> Yep I did the same thing dude. I have kept a food journal every day since this started in November last year. I am about to quit doing it this month as I am done wasting time with it......Nothing on the list they gave me to eat helps! I am the frigging opposite. They said eat brown rice beans spinach potatoes papaya apples etc and nothing fried etc.. Thing is If I eat fried food or pizza or pasta with a rich cheese sauce I go the next day better than if I ate fish and salmon or anything on the fodmap diet or the ibs diet! If I drink 4 beers I go better the next day . They said don't drink alcohol at all it dries you up. If I go out and drink beer and eat pizza and half a cap of mlax I am fine the next day. As a matter of fact I go 3 times after the night. before sometimes. That to me is better than none. They have no idea how to treat it. I wanna write a book on this because the doctors wanna see you, listen to you for 2 mins, then push you out the door to go to the next patient ,so they can make their fast money. They don't care what our food journal says or what works for us..My gastro's answer was to take linzess so he gets his kickback. I took one of them and it was horrible. I was stuck home for 2 days. I even tried half. Same thing. I tried 1/6 a linzess I was miserable and stuck home all day again. I put them under my sink and haven't had one since. I threw out the ibs food papers he handed to me. I threw out the fodmap diet and all the others because not one thing worked on them. I take a 1/3 cap of mlax at bed and eat whatever the hell I want now ( I still eat very healthy ..no red meat, but eat pizza once every 2 weeks or 3 weeks) and I am fine after. Nothing they recommended works. I came to the conclusion the whole fodmap diet and all the others are for people with D not C. My ex co worker has ibs D and she goes by the fodmap diet and it works for her but not for people with C. Does ZERO!!!!!! I can eat beets, oatmeal, baked apples, and every fiber known to man and it does nothing. So my magic formula is mlax at bedtime and fiber 1 cereal in the morn (even though fiber does nothing for me), a healthy lunch as in tuna salad sandwich or a cobb salad, and then say chicken sandwich or fish at night and I am good to go so far for 2 months now. Doctors want to "treat" you as fast as they can. They don't wanna listen to you so they can help figure out what helps you so you can have your old fun life back. They wanna send you out with linzess asap, and tell you not to take a natural herbal tea like senna made from a frigging tree. They wanna tell you to take the $400 script made in a laboratory that's been out 2 years so they can get a kickback from the rep. As far as stress? I'm in my 40's and been retired for 8 years. I have zero stress. So the whole stress thing/ibs correlation doesn't cut it. with me The Drs. obviously know nothing about this syndrome....Just like they know nothing about non bacterial prostatitis... That's a different story...


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)




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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

Elt123-

I just read your whole post. You sound like what I have except I never went a week without going and I didn't have a baseball come out and bleed







So I am lucky in that respect. I had every blood test done and my liver is fine. Pancreas fine and gallbladder etc. Even my thyroid. It makes no sense how I can go one day 2 times or 3 times and take barely any miralax and 5-6 hours later it is near rock hard at the end. I mean did I just absorb all that water in 5-6 hours? Digestion takes 24-72 hours not 6 hours. I went out drinking last week for first time in weeks and ate white rice and forgot it binds you up. I drank barely any water that whole day, and I was taking only 1/4 cap or miralax. I went to the bathroom the next day 4 times normally! The very next day (last Thursday) I didn't go at all nor the next day. Wtf? I ended up taking 1/4 a linzess and now my rhythm I had going is screwed up after having this down to a science for 1 1/2 months. I'm taking a full cap of miralax again to get it back to the normal rhythm and its not working yet because the 1/4 linzess I took, purges your system and then you have to wait 2-3 days for your body to build up the unused digested food inside.... This roller coaster sucks. I hope I am back to semi-normal again tomorrow or it's back to milk of magnesia again for a while


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## Soccerlifter (Mar 23, 2017)

mbella2000 said:


> Elt123-
> 
> I just read your whole post. You sound like what I have except I never went a week without going and I didn't have a baseball come out and bleed
> 
> ...


That is what irritates me the most I think. If I had the same kind of bowel movements everyday, even if they were bad, at least I would know what to expect and would have some type of pattern.


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## Sunna (Jul 26, 2017)

I just wanted to say that I am grateful for having found this forum and specifically mbella2000's very descriptive posts, which mirror my experiences almost exactly. While I have had IBS-C in the past, it has never ever been like this. My symptoms began after a bout of Norovirus in January and then intensified following severe case of the flu (in early March) -- both of which involved very high fevers.

At first I attributed the severe constipation to the fact that I was on a paleo / keto blended diet so I started adding in various types of *additional* fiber (I had no idea that there are four different kinds of fiber...) and numerous strains of probiotics (ditto -- there are zillions). A few things helped some, others not at all, and after about a week, I was actually worse off. I then added resistant starch, which helped for about a week, and then I was back where I started. Changed my diet and that helped for a week and then back to square one again, and, that is how I found this forum.

In finding this forum at least I am assured that I am not crazy, and, it got me to thinking that it may have to do with an imbalance in the healthy bacteria in the rectum, since Bella's issue and mine were both the result of a gastro-intestinal assault (and we were pretty much okay before that).

A healthy colon / rectum needs to have the following bacteria to assure motility:

In the lumen there must be bacteroidaceae

In the mucus there must be lachnospiraceae, coriobacteriaceae, ruminococcaceae, family x1 incertae sedis, and planctomycetaceae.

Dysbiosis (lack of motility) occurs when these bacteria are crowded out.

In the lumen layer of the bowel, overgrowth of porphyromonadaceae; bacteroidaceae; veillonellaceae; and, enterobacteriaceae (like Salmonella, Escherichia coli, Yersinia pestis, Klebsiella and Shigella) can cause all sorts of problems including kidney failure. (Who knew).

In the mucus lining itself, overgrowth in peptostreptococcaceae, bifidobacteriaceae, ruminococcaceae, and coriobacteriaceae which can thin the bowel mucus and make the bowel permeable (and inflamed).

Ref: https://www.google.com/search?q=layers+of+healthy+bacteria+in+the+rectum&rlz=1C1GGRV_enUS751US751&tbm=isch&imgil=zVEy9s0CKYIaJM%253A%253BcMzwLrvQYKNakM%253Bhttp%25253A%25252F%25252Fwww.nature.com%25252Fnrgastro%25252Fjournal%25252Fv12%25252Fn5%25252Ffull%25252Fnrgastro.2015.46.html%25253FWT.ec_id%2525253DNRGASTRO-201505%25252526spMailingID%2525253D48607188%25252526spUserID%2525253DMzcwMzk3NDY5NTAS1%25252526spJobID%2525253D680866654%25252526spReportId%2525253DNjgwODY2NjU0S0&source=iu&pf=m&fir=zVEy9s0CKYIaJM%253A%252CcMzwLrvQYKNakM%252C_&usg=__CuBQ_f_1qM-Wa4xb_AjDBkkt14U%3D&biw=1707&bih=870&dpr=1.13&ved=0ahUKEwj4zaD75qbVAhWIVD4KHcWxCb8QyjcIOA&ei=oXd4Wbj5Doip-QHF46b4Cw#imgrc=zVEy9s0CKYIaJM:

To correct the problem, then I guess eradicating the bad bacteria would allow the good bacteria to come back / repopulate by taking the correct probiotics?

According to this article (https://www.nature.com/articles/srep09253) researchers tested the effects of anethol (anise), carvacrol (oregano), cinnamaldehyde (cinnamon), eugenol (clove), capsicum oleoresin (cayenne pepper) and garlic extract on colon mucus... "The mechanism by which eugenol causes mucus layer thickening likely involves microbial stimulation as analysis of the intestinal microbiota composition showed eugenol treatment led to an increase in abundance of specific families within the Clostridiales order. Further, eugenol treatment confers colonization resistance to the enteric pathogen Citrobacter rodentium. These results suggest that eugenol acts to strengthen the mucosal barrier by increasing the thickness of the inner mucus layer, which protects against invading pathogens and disease."

So, what if the dry stool was a result of a lack of mucus in a specific area of the rectum? Water wouldn't make a difference. However having more mucus in the rectum would allow the stool to retain moisture. Kind of like in your nose, after all, mucus is mucus, right? If your nose is dried out, it's crusty and uncomfortable.

So, I started seearching for something that was a clove oil soft gel and I found a product (EuroPharma/Terry Naturally Bacteril) that contains concentrated plant oils of cinnamon, thyme, clove, and oregano and I am going to order it and see if this helps my issue.

Also they mention metronidazole (flagyl) which can be bought OTC for fish as 5 grams "Metroplex". You can't drink alcohol with it, BTW flagyl plus pepto bismol is what they give people who have h pylori infections...

Anyway, that is all I have for now&#8230; I will keep you all posted.

Again, thanks to all of you.


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## CouldItBeGluten (Jul 27, 2017)

I feel your pain...literally. This has been my story for the past 18 months. Excruciating moments trying to pass stool that could best be described as "cement".

Out of desperation, I went gluten free and still had the same problem morning after morning. Some days it was a little better than others, but it still didn't completely resolve.

In March of this year, I decided to do a heavy metal cleanse. Not sure if this was the problem, but I certainly began having more normal bowel movements after I did it.

Beginning in May, I began having normal BM's again. I couldn't believe the turn around. It's like the entire 18 months never happened.

It made me suspect that the body takes a long time to recover from gluten damage and it's important to remain gluten free long enough to find out if that's the problem.

I personally felt like my body had betrayed me. I had a cast iron stomach and could eat anything I ever wanted...Until I couldn't anymore :-(

Fast forward to this week. I got gluten'ed and the rock hard stool has returned. I have a couple of coping methods that help.

First, I don't get freaked out by it anymore. Second, I use a glycerin suppository to help soften up the first couple of inches of hard stool. Next, I manually apply pressure on the rectum to help push the stool out of the colon.

This became necessary after the stool kept breaking open an anal fissure and I found that applying pressure to the rectum helped prevent that.

Funny, I now use this technique all the time and it makes morning BM's so much more pleasant.

IMPORTANT to Note...

I did ALL the anti-constipation stuff. I drank plenty of water, took probiotics, ate plenty of fiber and still had the hard stool, but ONLY the first couple of inches...the rest of the BM is normal.

So, I have to concur that diet has to be the reason.

Don't you just hate the fact that Doctors have no idea what is going on with everyone???

If I was a Doctor and I saw this many people struggling with the same problem, I sure as hell would want to get to the bottom of it.


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

Let us know if Bacteril works. I looked on ebay and its about $19.00


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

Sunna said:


> I just wanted to say that I am grateful for having found this forum and specifically mbella2000's very descriptive posts, which mirror my experiences almost exactly. While I have had IBS-C in the past, it has never ever been like this. My symptoms began after a bout of Norovirus in January and then intensified following severe case of the flu (in early March) -- both of which involved very high fevers.
> 
> At first I attributed the severe constipation to the fact that I was on a paleo / keto blended diet so I started adding in various types of *additional* fiber (I had no idea that there are four different kinds of fiber...) and numerous strains of probiotics (ditto -- there are zillions). A few things helped some, others not at all, and after about a week, I was actually worse off. I then added resistant starch, which helped for about a week, and then I was back where I started. Changed my diet and that helped for a week and then back to square one again, and, that is how I found this forum.
> 
> ...


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## Sunna (Jul 26, 2017)

Probably too early yet to tell if the Bacteril is working yet (in terms of pooping). I can tell you that I have had no burping on it (it smells really great) and no other ill effects other than probably some "herxing" (feeling low energy / kind of blah) from die-off.

I haven't added the metronidazole (flagyl) yet because you have to be alcohol free ideally for a few days before, during and definitely afterward and I have an event next weekend that will certainly involve drinking. So, next Monday (August 7) will be when I start the metronidazole along with the Bacteril.

While waiting for the Bacteril to complete its job, I have been doing a modified salt flush each morning as soon as I get up using 1/4 teasp. Kala namak ("black salt"). I literally put it in my mouth add water, swallow and swish and drink a chaser of water. While it smells like rotten eggs due to the sulfur content, I am not finding it unpleasant - so I guess I need the sulfur.

BUT since taking the Bacteril along with the salt flush I am now having a "normal" BM (with neither a rock hard tip nor digital assistance required) within 40 minutes or so with little or no spasm. I have had no nausea or ill feelings afterward; there is a speedy and complete emptying, accompanied by a choir of angels, the hallelujah chorus, and my own standing ovation!

BTW, I am eating normally (cold potato with HB eggs, olive oil, sea salt for breakfast; mixed salad w/ white meat for lunch; and, a high protein / low carb dinner) and I am not using any other stool softener (like psyllium seed husk) and things seem "A-OK".

In terms of pain management, the doctor gave me dicyclomine (an anti-spasmodic) that I take at night but it makes me too loopy during the day so I have been taking 20 drops lobelia tincture, 1/2 dropper-full each of Cascara Sagrada and Cramp Bark in 2 oz. water that I sip throughout the morning and that seems to take the edge off the spasms really well.

Right now, I can actually put my hand over my abdomen / bowels and rub it around and things seem less compacted and tense. J

My theory is that I will still be in pain for a while even though I have less spasm because things were so knotted up for so long.

Will keep you posted.


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

Sunna said:


> Probably too early yet to tell if the Bacteril is working yet (in terms of pooping). I can tell you that I have had no burping on it (it smells really great) and no other ill effects other than probably some "herxing" (feeling low energy / kind of blah) from die-off.
> 
> I haven't added the metronidazole (flagyl) yet because you have to be alcohol free ideally for a few days before, during and definitely afterward and I have an event next weekend that will certainly involve drinking. So, next Monday (August 7) will be when I start the metronidazole along with the Bacteril.
> 
> ...


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## Hartigan (Jun 28, 2017)

mbella2000 said:


> Sunna said:
> 
> 
> > Probably too early yet to tell if the Bacteril is working yet (in terms of pooping). I can tell you that I have had no burping on it (it smells really great) and no other ill effects other than probably some "herxing" (feeling low energy / kind of blah) from die-off.
> ...


I feel your pain. Know that you are not alone - I too developed this miserable condition after gastritis brought on by restaurant food. Suffering one problem or the other every other day to the extent that I feel embarrassed to speak to anyone about it for fear that they might start to think I have lost my mind...& sometimes I think so too...

I found that Miralax - two doses per day is what led me to have regular comfortable bowel movements with near normal consistency - not ideal situation though as i always have to vary the time between doses but It does the job reasonably enough that I can have some sort of a life.

PM me if you have any questions and feel free to share your experiences.

Atb.


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## Sunna (Jul 26, 2017)

I would recommend trying the Bacteril - I have been taking it 2 x daily and I can definitely feel an improvement. Some days I even have a BM after I eat, which means that things are beginning to communicate / sync up from "top to bottom".

While I do have some stomach gurgling, it's not creating intestinal pressure. I take the Bacteril with an extra strength Gas-X capsule.

I do think that an anti-spasmodic is key. If you can't get your doctor to prescribe Dicyclomine, I have had some success with the 20 drops lobelia tincture, 1/2 dropper-full each of Cascara Sagrada and Cramp Bark in 2 oz. water that I sip throughout the morning and that seems to take the edge off the spasms really well. (You can take this amount up to 3 times a day for 8 days.) They do make it in glycerin for people who can't tolerate alcohol.


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

Sunna said:


> Hi
> 
> I got this stuff in the mail today. I only took 1. Within 1 hour my intestines are frigging gurgling and causing havoc spasms going up and down both sides of me. What the hell is in this? I thought it was a an immune system support with natural oils? These are making my symptoms worse so far. I surely didn't want gurgling as I go through that with magnesium, senna tea, aloe vera juice etc and all the rest.... and I didn't want more spasms.. I had 0 spasms all day today. Took one of these and I within 30 mins I have pain spams for 2 hours so far.. I have taken eccentric coated peppermint oil pills and they work great for spasms with no pain. This stuff is causing them. Am I missing something?


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## guest123 (Aug 1, 2017)

Dear mbella2000,

I am also suffering from the same issue. I am from India so taking Ayurveda treatment for this, It's very effective.

My daily routine:

1. Wake up 6:00 a.m in the morning and drink 3 glass of warm water in a particular position(put your left foot little bit forward and right foot little bit behind on toe). I feel to go urge after drinking water in this position. Don't force too much even if it is incomplete evacuation. Sometime I put oil in my rectum to do the evacuation. That will smooth your intestine and hard stool will also came out easily.

2. I do 1 hour of Yoga (Kapalbhati, nauli kriya and meditation). Nauli kriya is a very difficult yoga so learn it slowly using Internet.

3. Hot and Cold massage of abdomen and spinal cord (to calm your nerve system). I do it with alternatively putting hot and cold towel on my abdomen and spinal cord.

4. Eat Curd(yogurt), 1 chapati(whole grain) and One glass of milk with Raisins. Don't eat rough raisins. Put them in water last night and eat them in the morning with milk without its seeds.

5. Go to work and drink as much hot water as much you can.(I also take natural herbs around 11:00 A.M which are prescribed by my Ayurveda Doctor).

6. Lunch 2 Chapati with cooked vegetables and 1/2 kg papaya.

7. Yogurt and fruit juice.

8. In the night, don't eat too late. I eat again 2 chapati with salad and papaya 1/2 kg.

Other tips:

1. Sleep well to give rest to your mind and nerve system.

2. While doing work, just try to focus on your work too much so that you can forget you problem.

I have too much believe in Ayurveda and body has it's own healing property. Don't forget to do Yoga daily for at least one hour. Relax your mind and body as much as possible.

Healing gut will take time. You need to be very stick to your diet and have firm determination in your mind that I you will be cured.

Hope it helps... If you need more help, It's my pleasure to help you. May God give you relief.


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## Sunna (Jul 26, 2017)

If you are gurgling then you are either hitting the bugs where they hurt (and as you kill them they are causing you discomfort) or you have a sensitivity to some of the properties in one of the oils. I have listed the bio-active properties below:


Cinnamon (Cinnamomum cassia) Bark Oil: Antibiotic, antiseptic, antiviral, tonic, vermifuge
Thyme (Thyme satureioides) Flower Oil: Antibiotic, antiseptic, antiviral, tonic, diuretic, vermifuge, and immuno-stimulant
Clove (Eugenia acaryophyllus) Flower Bud Oil: As a local irritant it stimulates peristalsis. It is a strong germicide, a powerful antiseptic, a feeble local anaesthetic applied to decayed teeth, and has been used with success as a stimulating expectorant in phthisis and bronchial troubles.
Oregano (Oregano compactum) Flower Oil: anti-aging, anti-viral, anti-bacterial, anti-cancer, anti-diabetic, anti-fungal, anti-mutagenic, anti-parasitic and anti-inflammatory properties

When I first started taking it I went through a few days of feeling like I had the flu and my bowels were tender. A Herxheimer Reaction is a short-term (from days to a few weeks) detoxification reaction in the body. As the body detoxifies, it is not uncommon to experience flu-like symptoms including headache, joint and muscle pain, body aches, sore throat, general malaise, sweating, chills, nausea or other symptoms.



mbella2000 said:


> Sunna said:
> 
> 
> > Hi
> ...


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## Sunna (Jul 26, 2017)

Added Metro-Plex (AKA Flagyl or Metronidazole) yesterday. As mentioned previously, I got mine at the aquarium store. Had two doses yesterday and one this morning (I am working up to four per day). It comes with a scoop. Humans can take up to 1500 mg daily. Metro-Plex comes in 5 grams / 5,000 mg. This morning I had a "complete" evacuation of the whole colon, the first time in almost six months&#8230;

CAUTION: DO NOT consume alcohol-containing products (such as cough and cold syrups, aftershave), products containing propylene glycol, lopinavir/ritonavir solution, lithium. Do not take metronidazole if you are also taking disulfiram or if you have taken disulfiram within the last 2 weeks...

Still taking the Bacteril (I will continue for 30 days).

For those just joining the thread, I have had two different medical exams. The first doctor in April wanted me to pay $500.00 for a send away stool kit, and, didn't give me anything to address my symptoms. The second doctor gave me a PPI, samples of LINZESS® (linaclotide) (which I DO NOT RECOMMEND), and upon request an antispasmodic, and wanted me to have a CT scan of my abdomen (out of pocket >$300.00).

I knew it was irritable bowel and I knew that it was the result of having had two viruses... all I needed was the right medications. American doctors don't know how to address parasites, I guess.


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## Sunna (Jul 26, 2017)

Finished Metro-Plex (AKA Flagyl or Metronidazole) yesterday. I found that it was "soothing" to my bowel and that I had less pain overall while I was taking it. I am on my second pack of Bacteril. Some of the curezone.com forums indicate that it may take months to completely eradicate the imbalance and build new mucousa lining. While I still sometimes have "pebbles" there does seem to be more moisture in the bowel, the pebbles aren't dry and very thin, clear mucous (a by-product of the clove oil) is evident. Things just move more easily overall.


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## Sunna (Jul 26, 2017)

Also, check out the book "The Microbiome Solution: A Radical New Way to Heal Your Body from the Inside Out" by Dr. Robynne Chutkan M.D. (Author). She has a website "Gut Bliss" ; https://www.digestivecenterforwellness.com/about-us/ and they take appointments apparently. (They are in Chevy Chase, Maryland). 1-301-215-7700


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## Barney71 (Aug 1, 2017)

I've noticed that cutting on proteins in my diet will help me loosen my stool, but then if I eat too much of carbohydrates then it's affecting the problems that have already IBS brought so I have found to eat less proteins, carbs but more of non-saturated fats, but it's a very personal matter, one that you should figure out for yourself with preferably doctor's control.


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## Sunna (Jul 26, 2017)

I think that this is my last post. After finishing the Flagyl (metronidazole) (which made a huge, huge lasting difference) I switched from Bacteril to doTERRA On Guard Softgels (2 x daily) and I kept everything else the same: generic simethicone (anti-gas) from Advance Pharmaceutical (stronger than Gas-X) and dicyclomine (anti-spasmodic). Still eating 2 HB eggs / cold boiled potato for breakfast; chopped fermented vegetables and 3 oz light protein (poultry) for lunch; sensible dinner&#8230; For the most part I am doing amazingly well&#8230; poops even when a bit pebbly (now just infrequently not every day) come out just fine and the lining to my rectum, which seemed really dry before seems to have healed. So, that's my story, and, I hope that I was able to help someone&#8230;

Note: at first I thought the doTERRA was weaker, but, overall, long term, I like it much better. It costs less and seems to work on more things.


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

elt123 said:


> Ok, I too joined this group based on seeing this post.
> I'm a female, 35 years old.
> I have exactly what mbella described.
> If I don't take miralax EVERY SINGLE DAY, when I poop (if I poop), the end that comes out first (like 3 inches or so) of the stool is like a clump of hardened clay pebbles jammed together, making it hard or impossible to go, and the rest is obviously softer and tapers into being pinched off at the other end.
> ...


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## flossy (Dec 8, 2012)

mbella2000 said:


> elt123 said:
> 
> 
> > Ok, I too joined this group based on seeing this post.
> ...


Great post, mbella2000.

You should try Dr. Schulze's Intestinal Formula # 1. I've been on it for a few years now. Take it once every day, while you are eating a meal (meaning in the middle of it). In a few days time you should be having BM's every day, with no hard parts included. You might want to get the I.F. maximum strength if your constipation is real bad. (I use the regular strength and extra strength daily.)

Have I ever posted this to you before? I can't remember. Please reply and let me know if you read this. Thanks.


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

flossy said:


> Great post, mbella2000.
> 
> You should try Dr. Schulze's Intestinal Formula # 1. I've been on it for a few years now. Take it once every day, while you are eating a meal (meaning in the middle of it). In a few days time you should be having BM's every day, with no hard parts included. You might want to get the I.F. maximum strength if your constipation is real bad. (I use the regular strength and extra strength daily.)
> 
> Have I ever posted this to you before? I can't remember. Please reply and let me know if you read this. Thanks.


Hi flossy, you mentioned this stuff last year. I actually went and bought a bottle online last March. Then I realized when I got it, that it has senna in it. I was trying to avoid senna. It makes me feel sick when I take senna as in gassy and bloat all day after for 10-12 hours and sets off spasms bad all day. Also, it has some Habernero or Cheyenne pepper in it as well. It burned my stomach for 2 hours so I stopped them. I'm about to try triphala. Its all natural fruit suppliments outta India- look it up. Its for C and been around hundreds of years.. No stimulants like senna. I'm also going to try magnesium hydroxide caplets ( I took milk of magnesia last year for a month and it worked but I hated staying home all day and waiting.). Phillips M.O.M. stopped making their chewable caplets a while back, wish I knew why. But, they sell Fleet pedia-lax chewables in walgreens and online for kids or adults I found out yesterday in 400mg..same as the phillips M.O.M ones were. Gonna try popping in a few chewables next week when I get them, go on with my day, and see if it just works later on and not have to sit home all morning like I have had to do for a year with everything else.

Magnesium oxide Caplets work for me sometimes but its not steady and I have to take a lot and certain types of magnesium set off my spasms... Linzess ruins me for 3 hours every day so I'm trying to get off that too. I'm trying a new probiotic outta U.K. called bif lactis BB12- Look them up as well. Many people with c say it works. There are many studies conducted and they prove it helps or works for many. I bought them and waiting for them in the mail. So I'm still in the trial and error phase for a damn year with this ibs bs . Found out over the past few months with all my trials, I cant use prune juice or prunes or anything with sorbitol, not even extra sugar free gum. Since I got this ibs 1 year ago from food poising, I am now allergic to sorbitol. I guess my gut doesn't digest it and it just ferments and spasms out for about 6 hours after. It wrecks my intestines same with aloe juice too. Wrecks me for the whole day. Your formula you suggested didn't do anything with 1 pill. And I didn't wanna take 2 or more as suggested because of the senna inside and the fact the pepper in them is horrible. Burned up my inside like eating a ghost pepper challenge chip.. If they took the pepper out I would maybe still use them. Until then, its equate senna caplets from Walmart for $4 until I get the right combo down with magnesium.

I cant even take fiber supps. I tried them all Metamucil, benefiber, guar gum fiber, even fibercon tablets. Fiber makes me feel sick and it causes more spasms and bloat and does nothing to keep me soft. It actually did the opposite made it worse and more hard. I take Miralax sometimes but it doesn't make you go with an urge. So I'm still trying new stuff. I even tried a 5lb Jar of fruit eze I bought online then find out it's full of sorbitol. If triphala and the new probiotic do anything I'll come back and tell everyone. They sell a triphala supplement combo with magnesium hydroxide in it on amazon and Ebay so I'm about to try it and report back. Been a year I've had this ibs and its every day. It's not flare ups like a lot of you. I have it every single day. The minor spasms I have, I can handle daily. Its the no urge not knowing if I'm impacted issues and the after effects from the magnesium, sorbitol, linzess, fiber and all the other things mentioned I tried that sets my spasms off. I actually took nothing for 3 straight to see how I felt. No Miralax, no fiber, no magnesium, no senna, no linzess, no fruit eze, or pruce juice etc. My spasms were gone. I may have had 2-3 pinches in 3 whole days! But, I could not go to the bathroom, so again I had to start all over with the Miralax and linzess stuff etc etc and around we go . So frustrating Had to quit my career over it


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## flossy (Dec 8, 2012)

@ mbella2000

Too bad about the I.F. # 1 having negative affects on you, but I'm glad you tried it. I really like it.

I would definitely say no to any extra fiber and no to probiotics also. There are a few people with chronic constipation who try probiotics and like them, but for the majority? It just makes us more constipated, me included. Waste of money, and I've tried several. But hopefully they will work for ya.

You definitely sound like you have different intestinal problems then me, but in the end we both still have CC (sighs). Good luck on your journey and as always, keep us posted!


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

flossy said:


> @ mbella2000
> 
> Too bad about the I.F. # 1 having negative affects on you, but I'm glad you tried it. I really like it.
> 
> ...


Thanks man. Ill post up if this new concoctions works. Then Im writing a book when it does


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## saddlecub (Jan 27, 2018)

I get this very same thing. I narrowed it down to some sort of fructose in my diet. Many of the "OK" foods on the IBS lists still cause me enough problem. For example, strawberries are ok but if I even eat one of them I get a "plug" as I call it. Even a small amount of fructose can cause bacteria in your gut to go on feeding frenzy. Then when there's no more fructose to consume, they die off and frequently toxins are released. I believe this to be the cause of the plug.

I believe either the toxins from the dying bacteria or the proliferation of bacteria feeding on the fructose are the cause of the gut spasms which further add to the other IBS symptoms. Combine that with a rock-hard stool that your gut is trying to get out and you have a perfect storm.


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

Well I cant take probiotics ever again. Tried the bb12 strain as well as 5 others that people said helped. Never understood what helped means with ibs. They either work or they dont work. Helping could mean you had a good day with your ibs whether you took probiotics or not and you had a day of luck.. Well all the strains I tried caused severe reactions which I looked up and said happens to some on the livestrong website. . My hands were sweating for 8 hours, they started shaking and my heart started beating irregular to the point I had at least 60 scary palpatations all day and night til 3am and thought I needed to go to thr E.R. Im back to magnesium and maybe milk of magnesia. Please no more probiotic recommendations


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

For anyone still on here please watch this q and a video by a leading gi specialist and professor out of Cali. There may be a cure coming for ibs c. Its in phase 2 and is based on sibo. They are developing a drug made of a cholesterol statin that has been proven with trials to kill off the methane bacteria that causes sibo and causes ibs-c. I have every symptom they discuss with other doctors that are at this sit down. Sugar carbs and fiber all make my spasms worse. My gut is fermenting them. Im pretty sure this is why I cannot take fiber supplements or drink anything with sorbitol or fake sugar. My gut bacteria feeds on both of them and ruins me for 12 hours each day. Im currently in day 2 of eating no carbs no sugar no fiber at all and my spasms are down 80%. Im hoping they will be gone after doing this for a week. I cut out all supplements. Most of them make you worse its true. Anyways Ill come back on after day 10 and give an update. Til then watch this video. Many of you are gonna say omg I want this doctor. Hes the one that is creating a cure for ibs c with killing off the methane bacteria which I know I have. Everything they mention happens to me when I eat them.


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## Gooby (May 11, 2013)

mbella2000 said:


> Soluble doesn't do anything at all for me
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Fiber One cereal is mostly insoluble fiber.

The fiber gummies have soluble inulin fiber in them, but I have found that the gummy format of inulin is not nearly as effective as the inulin powder mixed into water. The gummies are generally made from chicory root inulin which I have found to be less effective than inulin from jerusalem artichoke roots. You can only find that in powder form. The cheapest one I've found is from bulk supplements online. It mixes easily in water rather than clumping up and it is the most effective supplement I have ever found for constipation issues. It will cause gas (farting) because that's how it works-- it feeds the good bacteria. But it produces smooth easy stools after that.

If that doesn't work, then try short chain FOS (Nutraflora FOS) powder mixed in water. It gives me the runs with lots of farting if I take too much of it. It is far more powerful than regular inulin because it is all the short chain version of the inulin molecule and the bacteria love it, a bit too much! I now only take a tiny amount of it to maintain regularity, but you'll probably need more at first.


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## reflex42 (Feb 3, 2018)

Hey mbella2000,
I'm curious. How did your body respond to cutting out all the carbs?


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

Hi

Its hard to tell because if I dont go within 2 days I get antsy and take a half linzess which cleans you out. Im gonna do no carbs again (just tuna and shrimp and chicken) in the next 2 days and just wait 3 days to not take anything to make myself go this time and see what happens. I don't like waiting past 2 days because in the past 1-2 days of no bathroom = hard stool again with no urgency. I've taken a linzess at say 8pm on a Monday and the next morning by 7am its hard again. I don't understand how within 8-10 hours or so it's like that after I just cleaned myself out. It doesn't even seem possible within that time frame since the average person still goes through the digestion process 53 hours up to 72 hours. Mines hard within 10 hours after a linzess which is like taking stuff for a colon prep. It empties you out so I cant see how within a few handful of hours I'm back to square one again being hard inside with no urge

I'm gonna wait 3 days before taking a linzess this time . I think I'm just not giving my body enough time to recoup from the clean out it causes. I take about 900mg magnesium oxide at bed so I cant tell when I wake up if I'm stuffed and hard inside or if the magnesium worked and I just need to wait another day or 2 to try and go. So frustrating not knowing. Then I freak out and take a linzess and I'm back in the cycle again so its very hard to tell if the no carbs diet is working. I don't eat much every day... here is my typical food diet. I only weigh 151lbs. Been that weight all my life.

Breakfast (sometimes I skip and eat a combo lunch breakfast at 12pm of 2 eggs 3 bacon and small tuna packet (4 oz) with ice tea.
Dinner around 5 would be maybe half an eggplant cooked in coconut oil or white meat chicken with squash (a kids meal size) and then a small tuna packet for snack and handful of pork rinds ( I know they sound unhealthy but they arent. They are low on fat high in protein and have 0 carbs). I drink ice tea and water all day.

So I probably shouldn't expect to go the next day since I purged the day before from linzess and I literally ate 2 kids meal sized portions that day. But I get antsy and scared Ill be impacted within a day because in the past within 10-12 hours of taking a linzess and I was cleaned out, the next morning its back to being 1/4 hard and lumpy and it wont move and give me an urge because of this.

All the softeners I've tried make me feel sick. The gurgling the spasms come from all of them incl Miralax colace and dulcoease or anything else. Fiber supplimets also and probiotics. They wreck my insides and make me sore and spams also after taking just one. Like my bacteria ferment them all and make me feel worse for 14 hours. I cant drink prune juice or anything like it because the sorbitol inside I cant digest anymore and wrecks my intestines with sore spasms all day after just liek the damn probiotics and fimer supplements. . When I take nothing at all all day or night, I feel healed. Literally 0 to little spasm pain except I just feel stuffy inside in the morning and I cant go on my own. Magnesium sometimes works too good or not at all so I can never tell I if I took too much or not enough. There are times I've taken 500mg and I went on my own a little bit, but have that unevacuated feeling all day. . There are times Iv'e taken 1000mg and the next day I'm rock hard and take a linzess again. Frustrating as hell. I can never ever make plans cause I never know how I'm gonna feel and the fact the linzess makes you have to stay home for 3 hours after taking it and your intestines are sore and spasm out from it all the rest of the day til bed....and the cycle continues again









I'll post back up here on the no carb and no fake sugar thing again this week or next if I get any luck. I just have to psych myself out to wait 3 days for my digestion to fully go through and not take a linzess or anything else like it.


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## reflex42 (Feb 3, 2018)

Hi,
I know exactly how you feel... got the same issue and I'm
also responding in the same way you described to magnesium, miralax, probiotics, fiber and prune juice.
Hard stool tip, followed by textbook perfect consistency everyday... no matter what.
Got into this mess by drinking lots and lots of alcohol and eating a very sh*ty diet.

Some months ago i did a stool test, and it came out i got some minor
candida overgrowth, very weakend gut flora (lactobacillus, bifido and enterococcus very low in number)
and an enzyme called lysozyme was found very high in my stool.
As I found out this enzyme is responsible for protecting the gut from negative bacteria by killing them.
But as it does so it is also lowering the number of the positive flora.
So my conclusion to this is there is something inside the gut my body is trying to get rid of but actually can't
and my first thought was PARASITES but I'm checking my stools on a regular basis and I haven't seen anything yet that looks like worms.

Now I'm very sure it has to be SIBO. I would do a breath test for CH4 but where I'm from it's only common to do a SIBO H2-test for IBS-diarrhea patients,
unlike in the US (from what I've read).

So i think there might be similiar pattern between your and my condition.

I would recommend to you to do some more testing. Go see a good naturopath or another gastroenterologist and get your gut flora analysised
and do some breath tests (CH4 + H2). I guess it will cost a little bit of money but on the other hand you'll get more clarity about what
is going on in your body which could be very satisfiying getting closer and closer to the route problem.

Right now I'm considering to try herbal antibiotics like oil of oregano, cinnamon and garlic extract.
But before I'll hopefully find someone who is providing the CH4 test.

Btw: Probiotics are not working in this condition cause the positve bacteria in the supplements or in fermented food are creating H2 in your gut.
The H2 feeds the bad SIBO bacteria and they will produce CH4 which causes bloating, flatulences and slow motility making the poop hard.
And that's very a shame. I LOVE fermented foods. Sauerkraut, Kefir, homemade Joghurt and so on, but they will give me a big bloated pregnancy belly
...so no more fermented food for me. 

Same thing with fiber. It gets fermented by the gut flora which produces H2 and so on and so on.

I hope this might help you in some kind.


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

Hi there. Yep. Sounds like you have exactly what I have. I got it from food poisoning a year ago. I have it every day. I have to take linzess every 2 days now. Its possibile Im just not waiting enough days after taking a linzess to try and go on my own again because Im scared to wait 3 days or so to find out, since I usually have a hard end of stool and its bigger than the rest and doesnt wanna give me an urge within a day. . My fiancé tried a linzess once to see what I go through. She doesnt have ibs. It took her 2.5 days to have her get back in normal rhythm after cleaning out. Linzess cleans you out every time u take it...It may be Im causing some of this bs, by not waiting enough days after taking one, but I know what happens after 1 day sometimes. Hard and bigger on one end And rest seems normal. ....sometimes after like 12 hours it does this. Seems impossible in that short time but it happens almost always. . I tried the oregano and allicin (garlic pills) and believe it or not they did the same exact thing that probiotics, fiber, and sorbitol do. They made my intestines sore for 14 plus hours with spasms all day and gurgled all day also. It may be bad bacteria die off? I cant tell anymore. I took an anitibiotc yesterday. Just one. Within 2 hours I get same exact symptoms I get from fiber, garlic pills, sorbitol, and probiotics. Its like my gut is fermenting worse no matter what I take to knock it out. I even tried that atrantil supplement that supposedly kills off sibo. Same exact reaction as all the rest after taking only 1. . Maybe I should just bite the bullet and try them for 7 days straight and see if it goes away? Thats my next move. Diet doesnt do anything


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## Sunna (Jul 26, 2017)

I know I said that my last post was my last post, and, I have been fighting IBS-C for over a year (and despite adding more and more fiber, while things were moving, I was still stopped up, cramping, and miserable).

Since I posted my odyssey on this thread, see previous posts - and while my attempts were somewhat successful -- what I am describing below made an almost overnight difference, and, I felt it necessary to share what I experienced.

This protocol (lower fiber but more probiotics and buffered Vitamin C) has made such a difference, and, turns everything I thought I knew about constipation and fiber on its head.

Please see the website: https://www.gutsense.org/fiber-menace/about-fiber-menace-book.html

I have read the book (it's free) cover to cover at least twice, and while I bought the supplements, they are available on Amazon prime (under different names).

Their Hydro-C Colonic Moisturizer is the exact same as Douglas Laboratories® - Effer-C (Buffered) - Vitamin C Buffered with Calcium, Magnesium and Potassium - 240 Grams;

I take that in the mornings first thing - I need 1.5 teaspoons in water on an empty stomach - and along with coffee (and breakfast about an hour later) I have a complete well-formed BM with no problem at all&#8230;

It was a little rough at first because fiber had stretched me out and I am having to get rid of that first. (My poop was stacking up in a rectocele and impacting my bladder and vagina). But, now that I am regular as rain every day, the cramping and spasms are much less with no medication required. My bladder empties fully and my perineum is no longer distended or sore.

In the evening before bed I take:


A version of their GI Recovery (L-Glutamine-based prebiotic) which can be recreated using BulkSuplements or Now products (L-Glutamine plus FOS (fructooligosaccharides) and acacia fiber). Note: I have a sensitivity to too much FOS so I use .5 teaspoon Now brand L-Glutamine and 1 teaspoon BulkSuplements Laminara Japonica (brown seaweed).*


1 scoop of a powdered probiotic (I use one for animals - because I had it on hand and it's cheap / works) Vet Plus Probios Dispersible Digestive Powder


1 teaspoon of Colostrum-LD Powder (not necessary, because it can make you herx, but, I am taking that to heal my intestines which are definitely a little sore and inflamed after being so blocked up in spasm for so long).


2 caps of their Enterophilus probiotic (if you want to recreate it on Amazon, the ingredients include:

Lactobacillus acidophilus (DDS-1) - 1.15 Billion*

L. Rhamnosus - 1.15 Billion*

L. Rhamnosus (Type B, Bifidus) - 775 Million*

Bifidobacterium lactis - 275 Million*

Bifidobacterium longum - 275 Million*

B. Bifidum - 275 Million*

Streptococcus thermophiles - 150 Million

The book also gives some pretty sound dietary guidelines and explains why we should eat some things over others. I am still low carb (around 100 g a day) and now low fiber (under 15 g a day) and for the most part I feel like I am on the right track.

* https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24456357 (Laminaria japonica combined with probiotics improves intestinal microbiota: a randomized clinical trial.)


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

Hi and thanks for sharing whats working for you. Many of the things you mentioned Ive tried. I cant take probiotics. I am having a spasm reaction to them all. Ive tried 8 different strands. Withinin 4 hours my intestines are so sore from the spasms they csuse for 12-24 hours after. . Its a side effect on many websites discussed. Same with fiber supps and sugar alcohols (fake sugar as in sorbitol (prune juice) mannitol etc etc)

Ive found a new miracle concoction and I strongly suggest anyone on this thread try it!! Sea Salt water flush.

Its healthy to use, works every time and doesnt make you stay home for the day. I remember as a teen on my dads boat to beach or taking swimming lessons whenever I swallowed a mouthful of water by accident I felt the he urge to have to go to the bathroom within 30 mins after and never knew why. No internet back then. So I googled it. Low and behold the sea salt water flush. I tried it out. Used a sea salt shaker I had laying around and put in 1.5 teaspoons into a smal 16.9 0z Gatorade bottle. I warmed it up first in a glsss cup in microwave. Drank it with some lemon and then chased it with another half bottle of cold water.

Within 25 mins it works! Its as if someone put a water hose into your intestines and flushed you out. Ive been on Linzess for a year. That stuff is horrible. The salt water flush caused no side effects after. No spams! No soreness all day! No stay home for 4 hours waiting for it to kick in or when its gonna stop flushing. . It works in under 30 mins and lasts about 1 hour to 1.5 hours depending how much you drink. I weigh 153lbs and a small Gatorade size bottle is still too much for me.. You can carry on with your day after though.

First time Ive been able to do this without staying home all day. I read up on it and every website says its healthy. Sea salt has so many minerals in it which are good for you....look it up. . I think its 60 minerals or so, and our bodies already have salt in them. Like your tears have salt.

From the info I gathered the sea salt goes into your intestine and straight out. It doesnt really get digested. I dont have any kidney problems or anything and my blood pressure has always been normal around 109/74 so I can use this when I want. Its a win. I stopped the linzess. Id rather use sea salt than a $400 drug made in a lab that we dont know the side effects in the future. This concoction cleans you out and you can actually wait 2-3 days after to not worry about going again since its a complete flush out. I stopped the milk of magnesia, senna tea, and everything else. Its worked everytime for 3 weeks and Ive only had to do it 4 times.

Now what Ive been doing is taking a 500mg magnesium oxide capsule at bed. Wake up in am and I drink half cup of cofeee. Im not a coffee drinker but it works many times. If for some reason I dont go within 2-3 days then I use the sea salt flush and Im good within 1 hour and good til 2 days from then.

I bought pink Himalayan sea salt at Walmart for $4 for a 1lb bag. Itll last you 6 months plus to a year or so. It doesnt have to be this type but just make sure its sea salt and not the iodized table salt which has chemicals in it. Try it out. Anyone here that does this and it works hit me back up and thank me  
Good luck


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## whimofnature (Apr 30, 2018)

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## StevieO (Dec 6, 2016)

This "tip being rock hard" thing happened to me during my bad days of IBS-C when I was fighting a really bad fissure (that was a living hell). I started taking Librax (as per my doc's recommendation) and totally went gluten-free and no dairy. I also had a all-natural fiber supplement every night in addition to the fiber I already ate with my meals. It settled down after a few weeks and it's been totally normal since.

In short, don't worry. It'll be fine eventually. Good luck.


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## whimofnature (Apr 30, 2018)

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## whimofnature (Apr 30, 2018)

Hey! I have found the cause of these issues. I've ordered DNA sequencing kit and I have the MTHFR C677TT homozygous mutation, where the MTHFR enzyme is only working at 20%. This leads to a folic acid / B12 deficiency, even if you supplement enough. I've been taking folate 400mcg for 2 weeks now and my life long issues (there are dozends) mostly faded. My bowel is recovering more slowing but it gets better every day.


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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

whimofnature said:


> Hey! I have found the cause of these issues. I've ordered DNA sequencing kit and I have the MTHFR C677TT homozygous mutation, where the MTHFR enzyme is only working at 20%. This leads to a folic acid / B12 deficiency, even if you supplement enough. I've been taking folate 400mcg for 2 weeks now and my life long issues (there are dozends) mostly faded. My bowel is recovering more slowing but it gets better every day.


How much folate did you take? Im not going to pay for a dna test but I went out and bought folate yesterday for the heck of it since it cant hurt. Im taking 1000mcg a day once a day. If this doesnt work which Im almost sure it wont since nothing else has, Im getting a sibo test from life extensions. Its $249. Ive tried everything else going on 2 years now. Lemme know the dose you took and how many a day


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## whimofnature (Apr 30, 2018)

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## Gooby (May 11, 2013)

Sunna said:


> I know I said that my last post was my last post, and, I have been fighting IBS-C for over a year (and despite adding more and more fiber, while things were moving, I was still stopped up, cramping, and miserable).
> 
> Since I posted my odyssey on this thread, see previous posts - and while my attempts were somewhat successful -- what I am describing below made an almost overnight difference, and, I felt it necessary to share what I experienced.
> 
> ...


Interesting about the addition of glutamine to your diet. In the scientific literature they are finding that adding glutamine reduces firmicutes and increases bacteroides in the colon which is what they find in healthier subjects. I've started taking it as a supplement for this very reason. Also, I noticed you're taking colostrum. I've started taking it too as it has been found to help repair damaged intestines. Ultimately, at least in my experience, the way to get back to normal daily bowel movements is to get your good bacteria revved back up to near normal levels again, and then they will make sure that your bowels move everything along as it should. Ultimately, you want your good bacteria to produce lots of butyrate in the colon to help heal it. To help matters along, I've added a butyrate supplement as well in case my good bacteria are not quite up to where they should be to produce enough butyrate. And of course, I still take inulin and FOS to feed my good bacteria on a daily basis.


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## whimofnature (Apr 30, 2018)

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## 178042 (Feb 21, 2017)

Just giving an update that the 500mg magnesium oxide (its $4.25 at Walmart for around 200 of them) and coffee in am is still working most of the time. Still have spasms from the coffee after as thats what coffee does. The 500mg of magnesium oxide is keeping my large intestine with enough water in at bedtime. I havent had to use senna or linzess or anything else really in almost 5 months and for the most part the magnesium is keeping me water hydrated inside my large intestine at bed and the coffee is stimulating my insides in the morning. Still have that unevacuated stuffy feeling all day after but its working without using any over the counter dugs or any prescriptions. I havent had to use the salt water flush in 4-5 months either, but its good to know its a great backup plan. Still not feeling normal enough to go back to work yet. The spasms arent horrible from the coffee or the magnesium or the ibs, its just they are there and you are constantly reminded of them being there. The unevacuated feeling all day you get after is what bothers me the most. Just figured Id put an update on here. Basically prescription linzess drug free and over the counter drug free. Just using a 500 magnesium oxide mineral supplement and coffee which is working almost every day so far. Hope everyone else is doing better.


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## flossy (Dec 8, 2012)

Good to hear mbella2000!


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