I am almost 6 months out from my sleeve surgery. I’m down 76lbs!! You are pre-warned, this is a thread on poop and poop problems, lol.
I am having bowel movements (BM) every 3 days on average sometimes 2 days or 5-6 days. They’re hard BM too. I am taking stool softener every night, minimum 64 ounces of water daily, 8tsp of fiber daily in the water, pro/pre biotic daily. I don’t know what to do differently/add/subtract.
Im terrified of laxatives because I don’t want to start them and not be able to go without them.
Any recommendations or advice based on your experience? ?

chronic constipation is a pretty common problem with both RNYers and VSGers. Different treatments work for different people. I have a capful of Miralax in my protein shake every morning. That usually prevents it - although I occasionally still get backed up, maybe once a month. When that happens, a night or two of Milk of Magnesia does the trick.

I don’t take fiber supplements because I find they back me up. I do drink Smooth Move tea most nights, and take a senna tablet on the nights I don’t. Since WLS, I find not going for more than two days is radically uncomfortable for me. The times I miss my tea or tablet typically results in days of misery getting back on track. I go most mornings with my tea or tablet and I am a happy pooper! ??

For the 1st 4-5 months I was having very loose stool and going to the bathroom like 6 times a day. Now I am almost 9 months out and am extremely constipated. My doc told me to take miralax every single day, and also 3 stool softeners at night before bed. I have been doing this for a week and although my poop is coming out, I still have to strain really hard. This has given me hemorrhoids, and I have to take at least 2 sitz baths a day. It is very painful. I tried to take Metamucil but it gave me massive cramps. I drink 1/2 gallon of water a day, eat a lot of veggies, fruit, etc. but it doesn't do anything. Doc says its because of all the protein and vitamins with iron. Hopefully it gets better. There are days where I can't even sit down because it hurts so bad.

10 minutes ago, HealthyLifeStyle said:

because of all the Protein and Vitamins with Iron. Hopefully it gets better. There are days where I can't even sit down because it hurts so bad.

yes - that's exactly what it is - the high protein diet + calcium + iron. All of those are known to back people up...

12 hours ago, catwoman7 said:

yes - that's exactly what it is - the high Protein diet + Calcium + Iron. All of those are known to back people up...

I had no idea about the calcium backing me up also?

19 minutes ago, HealthyLifeStyle said:

I had no idea about the Calcium backing me up also?

yep - it does. Calcium citrate isn't as bad at this as calcium carbonate is, but it can still cause it. However, dealing with the constipation is better than developing osteoporosis, so we're kind of stuck dealing with it (constipation, that is!)

Senna is my best friend, LOL

16 hours ago, HealthyLifeStyle said:

For the 1st 4-5 months I was having very loose stool and going to the bathroom like 6 times a day. Now I am almost 9 months out and am extremely constipated. My doc told me to take Miralax every single day, and also 3 stool softeners at night before bed. I have been doing this for a week and although my poop is coming out, I still have to strain really hard. This has given me hemorrhoids, and I have to take at least 2 sitz baths a day. It is very painful. I tried to take Metamucil but it gave me massive cramps. I drink 1/2 gallon of Water a day, eat a lot of veggies, fruit, etc. but it doesn't do anything. Doc says its because of all the Protein and Vitamins with Iron. Hopefully it gets better. There are days where I can't even sit down because it hurts so bad.

Thank you!! I think I may have just developed one from this problem. Any recommendations besides the sitz bath?

Thank you all!! I think I’m going to start doing miralax every night to be more regular. Hoping that fixes the problem. Does the miralax make the BM softer too?

1 hour ago, CM1234 said:

Thank you all!! I think I’m going to start doing Miralax every night to be more regular. Hoping that fixes the problem. Does the miralax make the BM softer too?

It is totally safe to take softeners with miralax. I would start with both and see how it goes. Also, Miralax doesn’t work for everyone. Be open to trying different stuff until you find the mix that works for you. Hope it all works out! ??

Till date I have no problem passing stool, in a matter of fact I drink a full mug of warm water every day morning one hour before breakfast, that helps me to visit the the toilet once a day, I eat more vegetables regularly, almost 90% of my meals, beside having exercise also helps my bowel to relax and function properly.

This is my experience [emoji3059]

On 5/9/2021 at 12:09 PM, CM1234 said:

Thank you!! I think I may have just developed one from this problem. Any recommendations besides the sitz bath?

I use the creams and wipes by Preparation H. They help a little bit, but the sitz baths help a lot. I prefer the water to be as hot as I can tolerate it. My doc says that the warm/hot water helps to increase the blood flow to the colon because it naturally doesn't have any.

On 5/9/2021 at 12:10 PM, CM1234 said:

Thank you all!! I think I’m going to start doing Miralax every night to be more regular. Hoping that fixes the problem. Does the miralax make the BM softer too?

I would double check with your doctor before doing this every day. I only do it every day because he told me to. The Miralax helps you go and the stool softeners make it softer/easier to come out.

On 5/10/2021 at 12:09 PM, HealthyLifeStyle said:

I would double check with your doctor before doing this every day. I only do it every day because he told me to. The Miralax helps you go and the stool softeners make it softer/easier to come out.

Healthy Life Style, any updates? Usually no news is good news. I’m 10 months out and super struggle with constipation and anal fissures. I take one capful of miralax nightly and that has helped but if I slack on my water, eat extra salty that day or even get a sunburn I’m right back to straining and bleeding. Such a delicate balance ??

I had the same problem-was so miserable all the time! I started adding 1tablespoon of chia seeds to my food twice a day and it works! I’m now regular! It’s so easy! I still take my probiotic and a stool softens daily just in case. Definitely give it a try! Good luck!