Slow transit constipation and fatigue
Posted , 6 users are following.
Post on behalf of my wife.
Seeking some advise as my wife struggles to clear her bowels unless taking medication. She has been diagnosed with slow transit constipation but it seems there are no answers to it. Im really worried about her. She is always bloated, always in pain with it and always exhausted no matter how much she sleeps. She has a reasonably healthy diet and not overweight but she can go weeks without passing her bowels and is forced to use laxatives (more than recommended dose) to get anything moving.
Just after your own experiences? We are going to make some diet changes etc and see if anything will help.
I'm convinces the tiredness is due to bad stuff in her body constantly.
I've red about dairy free, no red meat, enemas, magnesium supplements and a few others. What we really want to achieve is something that is a permanent change and enable her to get back to some kind of normal life! It's painful for me watching it I can't imagine going through it!
0 likes, 10 replies
jen78653 Ni241c
Posted
Hi,
I am so sorry your wife is battling slow transit. My 16 year old daughter has had this issue for years. First advice would be to find a good gastroenterologist. It took us a few tries to find one thay really ljstened. My daughter is a vegetarian and she has to watch as too much fiber slows her intestines even more. Second, make sure you have your wife (under gastro care) do a cleanout. My daughter has to do a cleanout every month (12 caps miralax in 80 ounces Gatorade). Two ducolax before and two after drinking it. Then, she takes lactolose and ex lax everyday. She has been doing great and feeling great. Eventually she will wean off monthly cleanouts. Our gastro said our backup plan is Linzess. Has your wife tried that drug? It is a struggle to deal with functional issues with the bowel. Please feel free to ask me any questions as we have been dealing with this chronic issue awhile.
Ni241c jen78653
Posted
Thank you for the reply. My wife is concerned about taking laculose daily. She has only discussed with a gp though!
I will pass on some of the info and come back if there are any other questions
jen78653 Ni241c
Posted
Sure! We first tried to use our GP, but it all they suggested was prune juice or drink more. 😃. Do you mind if I ask what specifically your wife is concerned about regarding lactulose? Initially, my daughter was put on a ton of Miralax and I had to keep increasing the amount to get any movement. I feel the Miralax had many bad side effects, while the lactulose was just some gas. Our gastro said she could be on lactulose the rest of her life as it is a very safe medicine, after all, it is just a sugar.
All the best!
Ni241c jen78653
Posted
I think her fear of taking laxatives every day is her becoming dependent and her bowles just getting worse or giving up!
jen78653 Ni241c
Posted
I understand her concern! I had the same fears in regards to my daughter. After all she is only sixteen. I will look for the private message and respond to your email.
For what it is worth, our gastro said that yes, for a person that doesn't suffer from my daughter's affliction, laxatives are not good. But, my daughter needs laxatives, otherwise she will not move her bowels and becomes impacted. We have had that happen twice and she has felt horrible. For her, it is a necessity, similar to someone needing blood pressure meds for their high blood pressure. There is something wrong with her bowels and she needs help. 😃. The gastro's long term plans are to slowly wean her off the ex-lax and monthly clean outs. For example, she went from three to four weeks to now every five weeks to have a clean out. Her intestines are recovering from her constipation and are shrinking. The next step is to wean her off ex-lax, but she will probably always be on lactulose. 😦
albert_99155 Ni241c
Posted
I was told by several Doctors that the dependency is contingent on which laxatives one is using. thinks like dulcolax, magnesium citrate, and anything with senna are addictive and cause problems/addiction. However Mirilax, Linzess,Trulance,etc. are not addicting and are safe to use. I have found magnesium supplements can help as magnesium (safely and naturally) helps draw water to the colon
.
Ni241c albert_99155
Posted
She bought some magnesium suppliments yesterday so see how they go!
albert_99155 Ni241c
Posted
I sent you information in a private message, please check your inbox. Did not want to post on the forum as some of it is personal
don65158 albert_99155
Posted
Albert did not see any private reply. In any case I have not written anything personal so publish anything CHEERS
don65158 Ni241c
Posted
So sorry about wife problem. While my own problem is not in the same scale i suspect my experience may help. I have been plagued on and off with mild constipation, However one small bottle of lactulose 500ml per year fixed me,
However starting last year we joined a slimming club using what was a low fat diet We ate a lot of vegetables and fruit. Coincident with this diet I started a doing exercises for a problem with my balance This used a series of exercises based on Otago university but included 300 stairs every morning, I did this most enthusiastically every day since my balance problem was severe. During a 3 month period I lost 20 pounds bot noted that I had joined the happy band of ' regular movers' for the first time in my life, My bowels were working better than ever, Though I only appreciated this later,
After 3 months like this I had another problem with my balance and took to falling , This was some problem with my ears and was quickly fixed, However I lost my enthusiasm for the balance deal and stopped exercising,, On reflection is this when my problem with serious constipation started My GP went all round the houses and now L I have Lactulose and bisacodylNothing happens without straining and pushing, It was when I thought; when did this suddenly happened, and I am sure it was around that timed,My consultant has researched the literature and says there is no research that would explain it , Meantime I I struggle on , Ah! I hear you cry start the exercising again , I have other new problems that makes that difficult My GP says this is a coincidence. I am a graduate engineer and skilled in dealing with problems and this is no coincidence ,It was a Cause and Effect Any comments