Side effects - Embarrassing but Constipated!

[Wallet]

Ok, so this is the worst SWIM has ever been constipated. It's been like 4 days since a movement and it's freaking him out! He has been lowering his H intake graudually but it doesn't seem to help. Usually when he doesn't use for over 12 hours he can go but this hasn't been the case. Anyone have any advice on some relief? Thanks in advance!!!

[m.swinehart81]

A laxative... SDewim has been in that same spot. In all reality he still is. Swim has a movement about every 4-7 days... He just deals with it the best he can. He used to take laxatives to help but they seemed to help a little bit too much... If swim is worried about it though then maybe he should give the laxatives a try... Hope everything "works out" for swiy

[east_of_eden]

try drinking lots of water and eating foods with more fiber.

swim drinks a lot of tea and gatorade and eats heathy so its not as much of a problem.

[Junkhead23]

Best thing to get for his is probably Lactulose or senokot(may be called something different in America) Don't go for all ou laxatives though SWIY reall just need to soften it. If that fails try an enema.

[shanesmith7]

swim remembers considering 3 days long, then reading trainspotting and hearing renton describing the agonizing 5 days he endured then 2 days after that swim still couldn't go ! it's strange, swim actually got used to not going

[dyingtomorrow]

SWIM does not recommend laxatives as they can cause very painful bowel movements.

SWIM recommends stool softener, and lots and lots of water.

[madfan]

Swims constipated much of the time.She thinks its probably worse for methadone users(which includes swim) because methadone hangs around for such a long time.
Good for keeping well,but not good for the bowels.
Laxatives help,but swim found the longer she used them,the more her system needed them.
Swim also found some of them made withdrawals start,when normally because of the methadone she doesn`t suffer withdrawals.
In particular this happened with different brands of chocolate flavoured laxatives that contained the ingredient yellow phenelph ...something.Sorry guys but swim cant recall its name exactly (& doubts she would know the spelling if she could)
However,lately swims been eating lots of pro biotic yogurt & has increased her fruit intake with lots of fruit salads(some vanilla ice cream on top,yum,delicious)& she has seen a big improvement.

[rogerrinseout]

Swim finds drinking plenty of water REALLY helps. Not being too grim but one day he drank about 4 pints of water on top of regular fluid consumption and his poo was a normal, healthy, cylindrical poop instead of the wee dried out rabbit droppings.
Good times!!

[rokman nash]

It all comes down to water in larger than normal quantities, lots of fruit and vegetables (more then you think), and again liquids. If using a laxative(as mentioned), use the mildest that will do the job. Less is more in this instance. The more natural vitamins and liquids that are introduced will consequently produce the best results.

The more Swim tries to force this, the worse it becomes. PM for some specific remedies and my friend will try to help. Dont force something thats not ready to happen. My friend has become very uncomfortable in the past, but is still here.


Good Thoughts

[Spucky]

Imo. People have a misunderstanding if they reduced constipation only to Stool-Softener and the real food!
Because a Opiate-induced Constipation is a problem of the Intestinal-Musculature!
The Benefits to get the Musculature back to real Work are much higher.

[dyingtomorrow]

SWIM thought he would add to his previous laxative warning with some gory detail.

If you are heroin-constipated, and try to shoot it out with a ton of laxatives, often times you will end up with what SWIM has named "cannonballs." Instead of the stool being oblong, it is more round and thick, and will rip your ass for hours until you are literally sitting there crying and bleeding. SWIM has verified this with some other people, and maybe it's not the same for everyone (probably only for heavy users, or users who spike their usage and then try and laxative) - but SWIM wanted to warn.

That is why SWIM recommends stool softener and water instead.

[Gradient]

Mineral oil works wonders. And bananas. Edamame too; both will facilitate peristalsis. Nicotene can help the process, if the individual in question isn't averse to a cigarette.

[Spucky]

Originally Posted by Gradient

Mineral oil works wonders.

That sounds interesting, are there more Information about it?
Bender-Style

Swim found that:

[funkcentralstation]

though there are probably safer ways, taking uppers can also help

[Gradient]

Originally Posted by Spucky

more Information about it?

Certainly. Here are some specifics to peruse at your pleasure:

Mineral oil is a lubricant laxative. It coats the bowel with a waterproof film that keeps water in the stool. The additional fluid in stool helps it slide through intestine.

Mineral oil is considered an essentially nontoxic remedy. If you take a great deal more, perhaps 10 times, the recommended dosage, you could experience drowsiness.

So long as you're not chugging the stuff down in gulps, it should help to keep poo nice and soft. Attached is an article discussing the saftey of using mineral oil for this purpose. Here's a pretty definitive statement on saftey:

Our case would support the position that even massive over-dosage of mineral oil for a period of as long as 5 months does not have any significant impact on vitamin ADEK levels in an adolescent. Taken together with previous studies results supports the safety of mineral oil in regular doses.

Just so we're clear on what mineral oil is and how it works, here's a snippet from the attached article:

Mineral oil is a mixture of hydrocarbons obtained from petroleum. It is indigestible and is only absorbed to a negligible extent. It softens fecal contents by lubrication and retardation of water absorption. It is considered as a safe medication...

This should bring pain down to a tolerable fraction of what it would be otherwise. It's often given to infants to prevent constipation. Good luck with this, Wallet.

Reputation Comments on this post:

Domo for the interesting File, provide a good case report.

[EyesOfTheWorld]

Stool softener and water, as said. Laxatives are best used on the first day of a multi-day run, before there is so much fecal matter built up that it could cause a painful, if not medically dangerous, enormous, hard bowel movement. Once a swimmer is onto day 4, laxatives are not a good idea. SWIY should egt strong (max strength) stool softeners, and drink a lot of water. Smoking cigs if one is not a regular smoker can also help get the bowels going.
Monkey knows the following will be unpopular advice, but swiy should try going without dope just long enough for mild wd's to start, as one of the first parts of mild wd is usally diarrhea, which in someone with backed up bowels, usually just means taking a big shit, and even if it is diarrhea, it might be unpleasant but lifesaving/pain relieving. Once swiy's bowels are empty swiy can resume use, this time remembering to take stool softeners and water. Also, it helps to avoid eating foods that naturally cause constipation, such as fatty red meat (swiy can look up others, Monkey is not a doctor) while using.

[Wallet]

Yeah, SWIM thanks EVERYONE for their advice. Very good stuff to remember.

SWIM just buckled down and didn't use first thing in the morning like he was doing and vola! He was getting very worried about it so it's a good thing he had it taken care of before it got to a bad stage. From now on he's no longer using in the morning and is only going to get his first hit by noon-2pm so that he can get all the "bowel movements" out of the way in the morning. Sure, he doesn't feel too good for the first few hours and his muslces ache, etc etc but now he isn't constipated! Yippy!

[missparkles]

Swim found she got this too. She didn't take good care of her health when she was using.
Now whatever happens she always has lots of fibre, (yuk) eats loads of fruit and drinks lots of water (not tea and coffee).
Now if swims world is full of shit, internally, all is good.

[mickey_bee]

4 days? pfffffffft! swim's been over a month without anything other than a rabbit dropping. Got to the point he couldn't sit down, walk, or well, do anything other than lie in the foetal position...........and even that wrecked.

Swim would agree with others who have advised against laxatives. Some of the most painful experiences in swims life have been due to taking senokot and dulcolax.
Stool softeners are ok though.

If it get's bad..........i.e. you just can't get anything out because there's just too much in there.......... then enema is the way to go.

No matter how full of shit you maybe, half a litre of warm water will manage to find it's way up there, and will make the whol process damn near painless, and over in 15 minutes.
Best o luck.

[missparkles]

Reading that first paragraph of swi micky bee had me holding my tummy. Sounded so painful, glad it's sorted now.

[Wallet]

Hey SWIBEE - That is crazy! SWIM's 4 day experience didn't even include rabbit droppings but obviously is still nothing compared to what you are explaining.

SWIM just can't see how it can get that bad! Wasn't SWIBee concerned about it after a week? So SWIBee must've finally had an enema eh? I can't imagine a toilet being able to flush everything that came out though!!!

[Mushboom]

I find that Fiber One cereal works great for constipation. It's very gentle and natural on your system, and it feels great to have a normal bowel movement again. Benefiber also works pretty well. If you are going to use an enema, do not use them often as they are quite harsh on your system.

[mickey_bee]

Originally Posted by Wallet

Hey SWIBEE - That is crazy! SWIM's 4 day experience didn't even include rabbit droppings but obviously is still nothing compared to what you are explaining.

SWIM just can't see how it can get that bad! Wasn't SWIBee concerned about it after a week? So SWIBee must've finally had an enema eh? I can't imagine a toilet being able to flush everything that came out though!!!

At that point swim just didn't give his bowels thought unless they were making him think about them .........i.e. if they were hurting. And even though they started hurting after a couple of weeks, swim would just get high and then the pain wud go away........i think he basically just got to a point where he was too scared to make 'today the day'.

That first time he didn't go the enema route, instead he just took loads of horrible laxatives and screamed it out. Never again. Nearly passed out!

Enemas will sort you out no matter how bad a state your in, and it's painless and easy on the arse.

[cockney]

When SWIM was first on pain management his meds really knocked the shit out of him, having not even touched a little smoke for over 10 years, and SWIM didn't notice he hadn't gone for about 10-11 days. At that point he thought he would sit and strain it out which was a mistake as his arse sort of 'jammed' halfway through expelling this mis-shapen boulder and refuse to either carry on or suck it back up.... A call to his GP recomended a greased finger and then a couple of glycerin suppositries, if this didnt work he was calling an ambulance for me. But the cry of relief was heard across the land and SWIM still shudders at the size of what came out...

SWIM now makes a note if he cannot recall going for a couple of days and starts to take action. Recently the addition of oramorph caused a rapid lockup which is still being dealt with but as many SWIM's have said, loads of water, fiber for breakfast and a bit of fruit works wonders. SWIM knows thats all graphic but almost ended up in hospital for a 'manual evacuation' and that still doesn't sound like fun.

Peace