Question:
Why do I feel weak and then pass out when having bowel movements?

I'm 3 weeks post-op (proximal open RNY)and am on a full liquid diet. I have not had any problems what so ever with puddings on this diet or anything else. Last night I ate some pudding and an hour later I was cramping to have a bowel movement. When my bowels started to move I became very weak, cold and clammy and felt like I was going to pass out. I headed toward the bedroom to lay down when in fact I did pass out. My husband says I wasn't out for long but then I had to go back to the bathroom and had a large loose stool and at this point I became very weak and clammy again, short of breath and I passed out the second time. My husband called the ambulance to take me to the hospital. My blood pressure was 120/40 which is low for me but all my lab work was normal, EKG was normal. I was given LR a full bag and feeling back to normal when I left the hospital. Why do I do this when my bowels have to move this is the second time this has happened to me.    — [Anonymous] (posted on June 30, 2000)

June 30, 2000
Was each time this happened with milk products? (Pudding etc).. Not sure but might be lactose intolerance and/or dumping from the sugar content in most puddings. I only had one dumping syndrome in 6 months and it was from milk.. Check the sugar content on the pudding.. Should be sugar free and made with skim milk.. I'm sorry you had such a hard time..
   — Victoria B.

June 30, 2000
Hi. Just a couple of things to be aware of with pudding. I am assuming that you had an RNY. #1 - must be sugar free pudding - too much sugar in regular pudding and it will make you dump. #2 - if you are making pudding - make it with lactaid milk - lactose is a form of sugar - the most concentrated kind of sugar and milk can make you dump. Other dairy products are OK - cheese, sour cream, yogurt - these are cultured and the lactose is gone. Skim milk has the MOST sugar of all. I hope you are feeling better.
   — Marjie W.

June 30, 2000
Hi, I am now a stay at home mom but hubby and I are both Paramedics. We get many calls for people passing out while having a BM. Usually it's due to what is called a vasal vagal response. If you bear down long enough...your blood vessels will dialate. This may lower your blood pressure enough to keep your brain from getting the oxygen it needs. When you pass out...your head is level with your body, your vessels probably go back to norm and your brain is refreshed with oxygen and lets you wake up. This would be my suspicion since your blood pressure is lower than normal. That would aggrevate it. Try not to bear down...that's what causes it. Please talk to your doc about this as it may be dumping or another problem particular to you. But I suspect that this is the problem. It's fairly common. I have passed out blowing my nose when I was dehydrated from having the flu...same thing/different setting. LOL Good Luck to you and make sure you call your doc. That's why they get the big bucks ;)
   — Nicole P.

June 30, 2000
Are you eating sugar-free products only? It sounds similar to what I've experienced when I tried sugar (except I did not pass out). I did get real weak with heart palpitations, thought I was going to pass out, severe abdominal cramps, and was burning up hot!
   — Cindy H.