constipation and gastroparesis
#366903 - 02/19/12 06:11 AM
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Aly
Reged: 08/16/04
Posts: 669
Loc: Columbus, Ohio
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I'm not getting any real help from my docs and really need some advice. I've had gastroparesis for a few years and am in a really bad siege. Because I'm not digesting well, I am also dealing with quite a bit of constipation. With the diet they suggest, it's just white bread, low fiber, etc... which certainly won't help the constipation. The docs took me off my soluble fiber supplements also when my GP flared so badly. Last week I got an X-ray during a bad attack (which for me is nausea, vomiting, bloating, pain) and it showed constipation and lots of distension. Now, I don't think you have to be a genius to realize that if you're constipated, nothing will move in your stomach, causing the GP to flare up. Right?! So I'm focused on treating the constipation, in hopes the GP can settle down.
I tried Miralax before and it didn't do great with me-- some cramping, really loose BMs, even when I didn't take a lot. But I'm thinking about giving it another go. Are there any other safe alternatives? I also might just take 2 colace every single day...
Any advice?
Thanks! 
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IBS-A
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Hi Aly,
I also took Miralax and did not do well as I felt it caused me pain/bloating and "really loose" not consistent BM's, and also did not really make me go without the support of stool softener or a stimulant. I am now using Magnesium Oxide along w/Vitamin C. This will make you loose (depending on what you have eaten) also but it has been more consistent and productive for me (in the a.m.)
and w/less
side effects, than Miralax. It has been working for me about 1 1/2 months so far (fingers crossed). I only take it at night.
P.S. I am also a fellow Gastroparesis sufferer just dx 1/2012, they say my case is mild, but I don't think there is a difference in degrees when it comes to discomfort, pain, nausea etc. I had a really bad flare about a month ago, and could not eat a thing, lost a ton of weight!! I went to a pretty much liquid/low residue diet until I weathered the storm (about 2/3 weeks) Hang in there and I hope you feel better soon.
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IBS?-C Looking for answers
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thanks for sharing your experience with me. Are you also in Columbus? 
Where did you get your dx from? osu?
i think i'm going to stick to colace for the next week and see if it does the job... then I can see if I need to try something new.
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IBS-A
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My dx was with Mt Carmel(East), I guess that is who my GI works with. I'm still testing, but mY GP is in "remission" right now (thank god) but I'm still trying to manage the chronic constipation, it is a DAILY struggle but it has gotten better lately thanks to diet, desire and hopeless optimism. 
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IBS?-C Looking for answers
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Sorry, yes I am in Columbus
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IBS?-C Looking for answers
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Hi Aly,
I don't have gastroparesis, but I do have really similar attacks and symptoms to yours. I also get nauseous and vomit, and I get very bloated and constipated (and have lots of pain...tho not always).
Anyway, I don't know what the differences are when you have gastroparesis, but I have the most luck with a combination of Acacia and Citrucel. I have to take a LOT for it to work, but if I'm faithful I'm able to go pretty regularly (and normal stools, too! Yea!!). I take the Citrucel first thing in the morning, pretending it's my orange juice so I won't mind having to take it (and it helps me remember it). I do the regular dose, which is a heaping tablespoon in 8 oz water. Then I make sure I have between 4-5 teaspoons of Acacia fiber throughout the day. I found that if I dissolve it in my hot tea (fennel, pepp, chamomile...), it does 2 really good things: I drink more, and I get my sol. fiber! Follow Heather's advice for getting it to dissolve. Finally, I end my day with a second dose of the Citrucel. It's pretty easy to remember to do all these, and that's half the battle for me. If I'm not really CONSISTENT, then the constipation is hard to control. This routine is the most successful I've used in all my years of trying.
By the way- I know you didn't mention having any issues with methane production, but I also know that for most of us this long road to complete and proper diagnosis and help is a very long and frustrating one, and it helps to have ideas to bounce off of from others. Check out my post today about methane and see if it's something you might want to test for. People who have it have the same symptoms as we do: gas, bloating, constipation (diarrhea for those who produce hydrogen, constipation for those who produce methane), cramps and pain. Some articles mentioned that some people also have the nausea and vomiting, but that's not a common thing (tho I do). It's interesting, too, because when I read about what gastroparesis is, I realized that it seems to be very similar to my problem- Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth, or SIBO. SIBO is not well studied yet, but they theorize that it occurs in people who have a "subtle abnormality" in the muscles of their sm. intestines that keeps them from moving things thru the intestines like they should. Isn't that the same as your issue, only with the stomach muscles? Interesting! Since the muscles don't operate like they should, they don't continually flush the bacteria thru. It can stay there and multiply. It then reacts with certain things that we eat and a chemical reaction occurs, creating a gas - either hydrogen, methane, or both. This causes the symptoms of SIBO. It also appears to be that the methane gas causes constipation!! Wow. What a mess!
Well, I don't know if any of this will apply to you or help you at all. I hope you are able to fight your way out of this awful time you're having...been there too many times, and I feel terrible for you. 
KellyJean
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