Constipation Question (hopefully not TMI)

Ok, so I've been experiencing constipation pretty much as soon as I got home after surgery.  I know that it can be pretty typical, but I seriously don't go unless I drink some milk magnesia, which then makes me REALLY go.  It seems so harsh; I go from being completely constipated to having horrible diarreha from the milk magnesia that I'd like to figure out a different solution.

My question for all of you is what do you guys do to overcome constipation?  I have spoken with my nutritionist about this already & she has recommended that I drink prune juice & take stool softeners & if that doesn't work then I should add in Miralax (I have tried the prune juice 2x daily along with stool softeners & they aren't helping).  What I would like to know is if there's anything you guys eat to prevent or help with this?  I'm in the pureed stage & will be onto normal (soft) foods starting in a week, so I can start incorporating some 'make you poo' foods. 

I'm open to any & all suggestions (which I will run by my nutritionist before incorporating) that could be more of a 'natural' way of getting things moving vs. take more pills.

Thanks!!! 

try fresh or steamed pears, they have a high natural fiber...I always use pears before prunes with my clients infants who are having 'difficulties' in that area!

hugs and best wishes for a new groove in the poo department!

I eat Kashi cereal in my yogurt in the morning. I also have one glass of water with Benfiber...it is completely tasteless. If that fails then I take Marilax....that does the trick everytime....I rarely need to get to this step.

Good Luck...keep drinking lots of water!!

Hugs...connie d

I use miralax everyday..........and don't have a problem with it.  You can tell if i miss a dose thoughso I make sure i take it every morning in my coffee.  Yes I still drink the coffee but I am only drinking no more than 2-3 cups a day instead of the whole goll darn thing.  Good luck to you sweetie........

I, too, have Kashi Go-Lean cereal with yogurt for breakfast, but I add a teaspoon of ground flaxseed to it. It really helped in the poo-department when I started adding the flaxseed.

Sue

Thanks for the great ideas!! 

I was adding Kashi cereal to my yogurt before surgery, I'll definitely have to start doing that again once I get to the next stage of my eating.  I think for now I'll add some Miralax to my daily routine & see if that helps to get things going (and in turn maybe will help get my weight loss going down too).

Hi Melissa
I do Kashi Go-Lean cereal for breakfast and benefibre added to my protein shake at midday, and everything  is good. Hope it work out for you.  Since you are still fresh out from surgery it might take your body a little time to adjust.

I had a question about protien the other day and RP posted a really great protien/fiber bar recipe.  I've made it (the chocloate version) and it has made a big difference in not only the energy I have, but my....ummmm....production as well.  Here is a copy of his post:

Post Date: 12/1/09 11:14 am
Post Date: 12/25/08 6:43 am
Many of us spend an inordinate amount of time praying to the poop gods for blessed relief from the bricks stuck inside us.  A couple of months ago I ran across a protein fiber bar recipe on a bodybuilding site and decided to adapt it for my own purposes.  I use this as a meal replacement.  I am a regular guy again when I have one of these every day.

3 cups dry old fashioned oatmeal
4 scoops vanilla protein powder
1/4 cup bran
1/4 cup golden flax seeds
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup milk
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter (I have used PB2, but the bars don't stick together too well)

optional:

1/4 cup sesame seeds (Penzeys sells these in one lb bags for a reasonable price)
1/4 cup almonds and/or sunflower seeds
1/4 cup millet

mix together the dry ingredients first
add milk and PB, stir for two minutes
spread mixture out in 9 x 13 pan
sprinkle with Splenda
refrigerate
divide into 8 (you could adjust this too)

approx 325 calories/bar (more if you add nuts)
14 grams protein
10+ grams fiber

Update:

I now add 1 Tablespoon of cinnamon, 6 scoops (2 cups of protein powder), 1/2 cup of granulated Splenda, 1/2 cup sunflower seeds, and up to a cup of creamy peanut butter, but you should play with it until you like it.  I have also used chocolate protein powder, some cocoa powder and no cinnamon, but I don't like it as much.  Have fun with it!

RP

I'm with Marsha! Miralax is amazing...

Best wishes.

My daily ****tail (and my surgeon's personal ****tail- who had RNY himself as prescribed by him)

1 docusate a day (stool softener)
metamucil as prescribed on bottle (i just put it in my daily water I drink)

Even if I am gone or something where I can't do the metamucil, the docusate usually keeps things soft so things move along...

works like a charm