# Confused about miralax, fiber, and colace



## StacyP

Hi. Hope you are having a good day, and thank you for taking time to read this. I have been to 3 diffrent pharmacies, and hear diffrent things about what miralax does, or doesnt do.

One pharmacist suggested colace *stool softener* and I have been taking it with senna, hopefully it will work well.

Is there any problems doing the colace with senna daily or is that a bad idea? I have heard mixed things.

What the heck is miralax or what does it do? I thought it was a stool softener but I hear its not, can anyone clarify for me please?

I understand fiber bulks the waste up, does that mean its harder to pass then?

Also, I would like to hear suggestions on my regimine. I do 10 fiber pills a day, which equal 5 grams of fiber.

I was told to keep taking miralax daily

I have/am also trying the Colace with senna, but I could easily get the colace by itself *no laxative effect*.

What do you suggest or think?


----------



## Kathleen M.

Stool Softener - Act as a surfactant, enabling additional water and fats to be incorporated in the stool, making it easier to move.

Osmotics (miralax)- These cause the intestines to hold more water within, softening the stool. There are two principal types, saline and hyperosmotic.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laxative

Basically the do similar things, but by different mechanisms. Both add water to the stools.

People have different opinions of Senna. Some say it should never be taken regularly, but a lot of the all stimulatory laxatives are dangerous and will cause your colon to become inactive and make you worse seem to be based on not much data from some very old laxatives that are not on the market.

Most of the recent data shows that senna and other current stimulatory laxatives will not make the colon get worse than it would have gotten on it's own (so if you have slow transit constipation that tends to get worse over time it will get worse at the same rate no matter what you do).

Fiber also holds water with it, so as long are you are generally hydrated it keeps the stool bulky and easy to pass. If you are dehydrated you can end up with bigger dried out stools than you would get if you had little to no fiber in the diet.

Usually fiber helps keep people regular (standard issue humans generally do well with 35-40 grams of fiber from all sources). Some people with IBS do not tolerate as much fiber but there is no way to determine who does well with more fiber and who needs to take in less. You just have to see how you do with fiber.


----------



## StacyP

Thank you Kathleen. The senna really helped today. Do you think I should try to use that sparingly or just use it daily? The miralax and fiber by themselves are not doing much. The doctor seems unwilling to answer or help until after the colonoscopy. I could just get stool softeners as well. Should O change my regimine up or stay on it?


----------



## Kathleen M.

A lot depends on how miserable you are, and how much is physical misery vs anxious misery.

Some people can sometimes do more than they need because of what they fear might happen rather than what is actually needed to be functional.

Like people who overdo Imodium and get really constipated because they take as much as the fear says they need, not as much as their body actually needs. You can do the same thing with laxatives if you have to feel too cleaned out (which then sets you up for rebound constipation).


----------



## jdinvirginia

StacyP,

I'm sorry to read about your problems.

I am fecal incontinent and have chronic severe constipation and a defecation disorder for which I use a combination of enemas and Miralax (polyethelene glycol or PEG) stool softener, both prescribed by my gastroenterologist.

Regarding the stool softener, I found Miralax to be very effective but needed a considerable amount of experimentation to find the right dosage for long-term maintenance use. In my case, I began with a fairly heavy dose (which corrected the constipation but caused my stools to be too loose) and then backed off until I reached the correct dosage for me (stools now usually are Bristol 4 to Bristol 5, which I can defecate).

Best wishes,

--JD


----------



## Bpd1962

StacyP said:


> Hi. Hope you are having a good day, and thank you for taking time to read this. I have been to 3 diffrent pharmacies, and hear diffrent things about what miralax does, or doesnt do.
> 
> One pharmacist suggested colace *stool softener* and I have been taking it with senna, hopefully it will work well.
> Is there any problems doing the colace with senna daily or is that a bad idea? I have heard mixed things.
> What the heck is miralax or what does it do? I thought it was a stool softener but I hear its not, can anyone clarify for me please?
> I understand fiber bulks the waste up, does that mean its harder to pass then?
> 
> Also, I would like to hear suggestions on my regimine. I do 10 fiber pills a day, which equal 5 grams of fiber.
> I was told to keep taking miralax daily
> I have/am also trying the Colace with senna, but I could easily get the colace by itself *no laxative effect*.
> What do you suggest or think?


Colace is only a softener, though they now have a "gentle laxative " in it now. It's primary action is to make it easier to pass. Again you have to drink tons of water in order to even get the softening effect. If you are taking that many pills of either colace and/or senna then it will not work for you anyway. Stop taking them and see if your dr will prescribe Amitiza. It worked for years for me,alone. Then I had to start taking a laxative with it. After about 6 months it was plain I had desensitized to the Amitiza and laxative. Now my GI has me taking a months trial of Linzess.


----------



## StacyP

Thank you all for your replies so far. I have tried twice talking to the doctor and he seems to be refusing to do anything until after the colonoscopy. At this point, frankly the thing that works best is the senna, although my bowel habits are changing again. Hopefully after the colonoscopy, he will help but anyway. I will do my best to use the senna as a last resort but despite that, it makes the day easier to take it.


----------



## Bpd1962

Psyllium husk is a good daily fiber but again, it's a two-sided sword. I tend too agree with your dr though. He wants to see your colon before chancing masking something he should see. You really do need that to clear you for further tests. I promise you will be in heaven when you prep for the colonoscopy. You won't doubt being sparkling clean. Then your GI will see the effects of your bowel habits better. He could find polyps and need to remove them and test. He also will see if there is an area of your colon that is particularly different than it should be. Hang in there. I seems like a lifetime ahead but once you know there's no (mechanical) problem then you can expect him to get more aggressive about the constipation. 
I have dealt with this since my teens and I am 51. I had per-cancerous polyps removed and scoped both ends. Not fun but I know I don't have cancer. Small consolation when you can't poop.


----------



## georgemorale

I was constipated all of the time due to a medication I was taking and nothing helped. I tried drinking lots of water, over the counter drugs, even consulting a doctor. I know this is an embarrassing subject, but left unchecked it can do massive damage to your digestive system.It got so bad that one night I had a terrible stomach ache and felt like I needed to go. What happened next caused me to seek help online. Since the waste couldn't come out where it was supposed to, it found another route. I think you get the picture.Later on, I found out how extremely dangerous this incident was and that I could have even died from it if an infection had resulted.I just want to say that the only thing that helped was this guide constipation cure. Thank-you so much!


----------



## ClarissaB

Hi Stacy,

Miralax has been a miracle for me. I used to drink Metamucil everyday but it doesn't work as well as the Miralax & I get it prescribed so it doesn't cost much. My Miralax bottle says that it's a laxative. It's gentle. I drink it at night & usually in the morning I can have a good bowel movement. I'm on prescription painkillers which constipate me very much combined with my IBS & I'm thankful for the Miralax. It's definitely worth a try. You wouldn't, hopefully, need any other fiber or stool softeners. Sometimes I need some extra help, maybe I skip a couple of days of Miralax, so I take Milk Of Magnesia which is awesome!!!! Never lets me down!!! None of these are solutions to my problem, the pain I'm in every morning, but they make my life a little better.

I wish you all the best!!!

Take care,

Clarissa


----------



## Alyeska Martinez

Hi Stacy,

I've found that senna works very well to get things moving, but it causes a lot of cramping and pain (at least for me). I would suggest trying the stool softeners or osmotics first to see if one of them works for you.


----------

