Has anyone else had any problems going to the bathroom since being banded. Once I got to my sweet spot and my intake was so small my outtake has almost stopped. I know this is a gross and personal subject but I know there has to be others on here with the same problem. I bought an organic 15 day cleanse to try. But the pills are so big that I am having problems getting them down and keeping them down. I try to eat at least on Fiber Bar a day. I hate to take laxitives but sometimes have to and they dont even always work. Does anyone have any suggestions? This has been a problem for at least 6 months. I would love to do a cleanse because I feel that since this has been an ongoing problem I need to get everything out. Any reccommendations of one that I can get down. Sorry for the gross subject.

Common; you said it yourself, you're eating less, so you can't expect to be 'going' as much as you did pre-band. Make sure you're getting at least 25g Fiber a day, it helps. Otherwise I guess just be patient. Maybe try a mild laxative.

I would stay away from cleanses. I've read that they mess up the chemical/baterial (and yes there are good bacteria) balances in the intestines. I add unflavored benefiber to my breakfast yoghurt. I also have a couple fiber chews at breakfast and a couple at night. They are bound to be less calories than a fiber one bar (and they tast pretty good). I would also look at the foods your eating make sure you are eating enough veggies.

I go less which is not an issue to be concerned with. If you are constipated then you need to fix it. Occasional constipation can be treated with non-stimulant laxative but the best and most important for your long-term health is to increase fiber in your diet rather than use quick fixes like laxatives, in other words get to the root cause of the problem for better health. Those fiber powders gave me severe gas so I try to get fiber naturally by adding more whole grains and high fiber veggies. Yogurt helps add Probiotics which are good for digestion and prunes are a good natural choice if you can tolerate them.

A good safe laxative to use is Miralax. It takes a few days to get things moving but my doc said it is the safest choice.

And of course drink plenty of fluids. Dehydration will cause constipation.

What do your doctor(s) say?

A completely natural cleanse (that is recommended and used by medical professionals) is a salt Water flush.

Take 1 L of water and mix in 1 tbsp of salt. shake to dissolve, then chug it best you can.

It will taste horrible. You will not want to sip it.

However, about 15-30 minutes later you'll start cleansing your system. Do this in the evening when you can be near a bathroom for a while. You'll likely have several movements. It won't kill the bacteria in your system. It won't cause you to be ill from a reaction.

It's completely natural, safe, and it works amazingly well.

Make sure you have about 2-3 hours to spare for this. Seriously.

A completely natural cleanse (that is recommended and used by medical professionals) is a salt Water flush.

Take 1 L of water and mix in 1 tbsp of salt. shake to dissolve, then chug it best you can.

It will taste horrible. You will not want to sip it.

However, about 15-30 minutes later you'll start cleansing your system. Do this in the evening when you can be near a bathroom for a while. You'll likely have several movements. It won't kill the bacteria in your system. It won't cause you to be ill from a reaction.

It's completely natural, safe, and it works amazingly well.

Make sure you have about 2-3 hours to spare for this. Seriously.

Does the temp of the water matter? I hate gargleing salt water for a sore throat because it is supposed to be warm water. If I can do cold water it wont be so bad. I will def try that. I am only going to the bathroom like once very two weeks. I stay constipated. Gentle laxitives dont seem to do much and fiber supplements dont do anything. Ive only used a harsh laxitive once and it just killed my stomach. My Dr says take fiber supplements, like I said they dont seem to do much. The health food store said to start taking magnesuim daily. Maybe I will try that if the salt water flush doesnt work. I cant keep only going once every two weeks. My stomach stays so messed up. Thanks for all the suggestions everyone.

My GI doctor told me to get 35 grams of fiber a day. It will do three things....keep you full longer, make you lose weight, and keep you regular. I have had horrible bowel problems since being banded. I have severe constipation most of the time. I now take Miralax once a day, Fiber One bar "oats and chocolate" is really good...once a day, two fiber gummies daily, two fiber choice chewable tablets daily, and Metamucil Pink Lemonade mixed in with my water bottle and Miralax once a day. It really does the job! You can scale it back to fit your needs...but, this is what has worked for me. Good luck because I know how miserable it makes you feel to be so bloated from poo! I lost 13 lbs. in two days just from finally being able to have a BM!

Thank you to those of you brave enough to post on this embarassing subject. I am also having major problems in this area. I was banded in June and the problem has gotten progressively worse. I talked to my doc and they told me just take 1 stool softener a day and that should take care of it. It's nothing for me to go two weeks in between movements. Here's what I've tried...

Stool softeners - started with 1 then 2 then 3 a day. No luck.

Strong coffee. Before surgery, if I was backed up, a strong cup of Starbucks took care of that problem. Now, nothing.

Exercise. I walk from building to building at work and have been doing home renovations myself so my body has been moving, but not my bowels.

Fiber - Fiber One bars, Fiber cereal, Fiber Gummies, fruit, cherry flavored prunes. I find that the extra Fiber gives me terrible, terrible gas pain. The natural cherry flavored prunes are the best so far. I started with a few and kept upping the amount. After a quite large quantity of prunes at first I started to go, but even eating 5-10 a day isn't resolving the problem anymore. Plus, I'm getting very tired of the taste of even cherry or orange flavored prunes. Plus, when I eat a lot of prunes, they fill me up and I don't get my protein in.

Occasional laxatives - somewhat effective, but terrible cramps. Plus, I dislike the idea of trying laxatives.

I have endured things in the bathroom that no person should have to endure. I've come out in tears, exhausted and embarrassed. I will not discuss the details of what I've had to do to get the baseball sized compacted poo out of me. It's simply unbearable. I am tired of bleeding every time I poo. I'm embarrased to go at work because what if someone hears me sniffling while trying to poop and I'm embarrased to go at home because it never fails to stop up the toilet for days, even after it goes part-way down. It's become a very serious problem for me. I'm incredibly ashamed to even have to post this online to try to get help, but it's easier than talking to someone (even my doc) face-to-face about it. It's extra hard to speak to my doctors about it because I work for the same company in a professional position - it's awkward.

So, to sum up: I do not tolerate fiber well at all, I'm severely, severely constipated and nothing seems to be working. Feeling a little hopeless.

That sounds like a terrible problem. I'm not banded and I have occasional problems. If I up my fiber and drink lots and lots of water it does the trick. Dried apricots work well, but they would probably be the same as the prunes - too filling and no protein. I don't know what else to try. Maybe your nutritionist could be more help?

I have found what helps me most - if done regularly - is taking the Pearl pills. They are acidophillus/probiotics (like what is in Activia yogurt), which is basically just the healthy gut bacteria that everyone needs to keep things moving. They help keep the system in balance. They do NOT have laxative effects but if taken regularly, you will go on a regular basis. I've had slow movement my whole life (even pre-band) and they help me a lot.

They can be found at most drugstores or supermarkets. They come in a bright royal blue box. They are tiny little pills that really look like small pearls. They are super easy to swallow (even though I have trouble with most any pill) and they are not the least bit harsh on your system. They come in regular and "IC" (Intensive care or control) which is 3X stronger than the regular. I really think you should give these a chance. Perhaps do the natural cleanse, then start taking them - they should keep you going once you clear out the backup.

Hope it helps!

Lisa

Thanks Lisa & Rainy - I'll check out the Pearls - I've never heard of those before. I'm a big yogurt person though. Does anyone know if freezing the yogurt kills the good bacteria? I'm in love with Go-Gurts.

I was having the same problem. I told the dr and he told me to take miralas oncea day. I have been takin it and it works wonderfully . I got it form target. it is a powder/crstal you put it in your drink. it dissolve and has not taste at all. I take it before bae and right ontime in the am it works, with no cramps of stomach pains.

I have found that a natural sea salt cleanse does the work within an hour of drinking. You need 32oz of lukewarm water and 1 tbs of all natural sea salt (not iodized) add lemon or lime juice (1-3 tbs) if you can't stand drinking the salt water by itself. Drink it all and within a hour you will have a bowel movement. Make sure that for the next day you drink plenty of water to flush your system. What I like about this cleanse it does not cramp your stomach like the other cleanses do. One last thing after you drink the solution, within 15 - 20 mins you will start passing some gas.

I suffer also. I went to the health food store and they sold me an enzyme that breaks up the protein and acidipholouis? also. The enzyme pills are horrible tasting, they are so big you have to crush them up. My dr. told me to eat more fruits like papaya, mango (anytime of mushy fruity) and also drink a lot of work. So far it is working. Over the weekend I did not follow my schedule too good and was constipated on Sunday. But Monday a.m. I had a bowl of fruit, had 2 of those pills and then had 2 egg whites w/cheese. About 2 hours later it all came out. I feel so much better.

Does the temp of the Water matter? I hate gargleing salt water for a sore throat because it is supposed to be warm water. If I can do cold water it wont be so bad. I will def try that. I am only going to the bathroom like once very two weeks. I stay constipated. Gentle laxitives dont seem to do much and Fiber supplements dont do anything. Ive only used a harsh laxitive once and it just killed my stomach. My Dr says take fiber supplements, like I said they dont seem to do much. The health food store said to start taking magnesuim daily. Maybe I will try that if the salt water flush doesnt work. I cant keep only going once every two weeks. My stomach stays so messed up. Thanks for all the suggestions everyone.

Hello there, sounds like you're having a dilly of a time. I have been in same boat with taking tylenol codeine for almost two weeks post op jaw and chin surgery - completely backed up. Tried everything though not the salt water flush. senokot, restoralax, xtra strength exlax, chinese herbal tea, carter's little pills ,nothing worked until "Milk of Magnesia" today! - what a relief

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