3 1/2 months out. The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly.

I would caution you against taking Sensocort or any other laxative too often. You can get a lazy bowel. What they do is force a muscle contraction in your bowel and your body will start to rely on these pills to do that instead of doing it voluntarily. I had the same issue as you at the exact same point. I started taking 2 stool softeners a day (one in the am, on in the pm) and taking a fibre source called Fibre Choice. It is a fruit/veg derivative and has prebiotics in it as well. 2 of those 3 times a day, along with the stool softener, and things are back to the "new" normal which is much better than it was. Just my 2 cents.

Hi Zonechef!  What great success you have had!  Congratulations!

I agree with Skinny's advice about moving--a brisk walk can really help me.  I also agree with the advice about adding fat to your diet. I also agree with the advice about taking a probiotic regularly--super helpful.

Beyond that, in my opinion, the very best thing for constipation is Dr. Christopher's "Lower Bowel Formula."  This is an herbal supplement, and "Dr. Christopher" is the brand name.  (Dr. Christopher was a real person--an herbalist in the mid-1900's.)  When you are really blocked up, take 6 capsules at bedtime.  You can then take 2-6/day for maintenance.  Like many herbal remedies, you have to experiment to see what dose and timing works for you.  But this is very safe.  It is not habit forming.  It is not really a laxative--just for overall bowel health.

Another thing that helps me is that I take Magnesium Citrate capsules at bedtime for restless legs.  I started doing this a few years ago and discovered it also had a laxative effect.  This is the same stuff as that nasty Mag Citrate sparkly drink they give you to clean you out before a colonoscopy--and sometimes before WLS--but the caps are not nearly as high a dosage.  2-3 caps (@500mg) of the Mag Citrate at night is all I take.

I had a lot of problems with constipation in the years before WLS. I also have a son with IBS.  So we are real poop experimenters in our house!  Like a poster above, I have used Smooth Move tea, quite a bit in past years. It is made from Senna, and Senna is the same ingredient as is in Senakot. Senna can be very effective, but I gave it up for 3 important reasons:  (1) I read that Senna was habit forming...not like an addictive kind of drug, but in the sense that your body could become dependent on it to eliminate, that it could make it harder and harder for you to do it on your own. (2) The Senna/Smooth Move had a very very aggressive effect.  When I felt the urge to poop, I had to get to the bathroom IMMEDIATELY, or I was in trouble.  The timing was unpredictable.  This could be inconvenient, to say the least!  (3) Sometimes, the Senna/Smooth Move did not work completely.  It would loosen things up above a serious "clog," but the clog remained.  Then I was dealing with the urgency and discomfort pushing against the clog, but no effect.

The Doctor Christopher stuff, though, is not aggressive like that.  It is more consistently effective.  It is not habit forming.  I really love it and cannot say enough good about it.  I have found it in our local health food store and on Amazon.  I usually buy from Amazon, because it is often sold out at the store (other people must know its value too!).

Best of luck to you with this very distressing problem!

Thank you Pokemon for your informative advice, I did not mention that I am taking a pro biotic 2x daily also. It has not really helped majorly but I am feeling that it helps with gas. Thanks for the info on Dr. Christopher's "Lower Bowel Formula. That sounds interesting and I will look into that seriously. Thank You!

I hve had trouble with constipation and diverticulitis also.  I find that probiotics make all of the difference.  I really can tell the difference when I don't take them. 

For those running out to buy probiotics, there's a chewable probiotic under the brand name Culturelle.  Quantity 24 chewable tablets, orange flavored, 1 gram carb, zero sugar, 10 billion active cultures.  Unfortunately, it contains chicory root extract.  I bought them at a Target store but can't remember the price--somewhere between $15-25.  

WHOOSIE WARNING:  I can chew or swallow an entire handful of pills and can eat protein powder from a spoon if I had to.  After trying my first Culturelle chewable probiotic, I'm thinking some of you will find these difficult, if not impossible, to tolerate. On the other hand, if it will help you on the throne, maybe you'll be able to grin and bear it.  Pun intended.

Increasing fiber while you constipated my be the wrong thing...

Abstract

AIM: To investigate the effect of reducing dietary fiber on patients with idiopathic constipation.

METHODS: Sixty-three cases of idiopathic constipation presenting between May 2008 and May 2010 were enrolled into the study after colonoscopy excluded an organic cause of the constipation. Patients with previous colon surgery or a medical cause of their constipation were excluded. All patients were given an explanation on the role of fiber in the gastrointestinal tract. They were then asked to go on a no fiber diet for 2 wk. Thereafter, they were asked to reduce the amount of dietary fiber intake to a level that they found acceptable. Dietary fiber intake, symptoms of constipation, difficulty in evacuation of stools, anal bleeding, abdominal bloating or abdominal pain were recorded at 1 and 6 mo.

RESULTS: The median age of the patients (16 male, 47 female) was 47 years (range, 20-80 years). At 6 mo, 41 patients remained on a no fiber diet, 16 on a reduced fiber diet, and 6 resumed their high fiber diet for religious or personal reasons. Patients who stopped or reduced dietary fiber had significant improvement in their symptoms while those who continued on a high fiber diet had no change. Of those who stopped fiber completely, the bowel frequency increased from one motion in 3.75 d (± 1.59 d) to one motion in 1.0 d (± 0.0 d) (P < 0.001); those with reduced fiber intake had increased bowel frequency from a mean of one motion per 4.19 d (± 2.09 d) to one motion per 1.9 d (± 1.21 d) on a reduced fiber diet (P < 0.001); those *****mained on a high fiber diet continued to have a mean of one motion per 6.83 d (± 1.03 d) before and after consultation. For no fiber, reduced fiber and high fiber groups, respectively, symptoms of bloating were present in 0%, 31.3% and 100% (P < 0.001) and straining to pass stools occurred in 0%, 43.8% and 100% (P < 0.001).

CONCLUSION: Idiopathic constipation and its associated symptoms can be effectively reduced by stopping or even lowering the intake of dietary fiber.

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My GI doc gave me a RX for Linzess.  It has worked very well for me and totally resolved my issues

I also have had all these issues and ended up in the ER about 3 months post op because of constipation. I now take Sennekot (sp) and Dolcolax. Plus I was also told to under NO cir****tances ADD fiber because it was making the problem worse. I make sure if there is a day I don't "go", I take my pills =)