Dear Motherload,
I am in a rut. I have suffered from constipation for years. However, I have learned to deal with the issue and had started to successfully poop daily. I changed my lifestyle to include daily exercise, drink lots of water, eat bran in the mornings and fruit during the day and take Metamucil twice a day. I am careful of what I eat, because the next day I might suffer from yesterday's eating.
My problem started about two months ago, when my bowels started to slug a bit. In the past three weeks I have not gone but three times, and that was due to my pharmacist telling me about Magnesium Citrate. But I have to drink the whole bottle to get any relief. My doctor put me on Zelnorm two days ago.
So I have been thinking about a cleansing. What are your thoughts? Can my body just become immune to Metamucil? I did stop taking Lexapro and Wellbutrin about two months ago when this all seemed to become a problem. Can you give me any insight?
Dear Poopersally,
This seems like a question of poop frequency as opposed to the hard, large stools associated with actual constipation.
It seems that you are interpreting not having a bowel movement on a daily basis as constipation. This is not necessarily so. You may just be a person that only has to go once every several days.
The diet and exercise regimen that you mention sounds like a good one. And judging by your name, I am going to assume that you are female. That alone speaks volumes about pooping. Women tend to poop less frequently than males. That does not mean that we are constipated.
Now, as far as the Lexapro and Wellbutrin are concerned, these medicines are usually prescribed for anxiety and depression. If you suddenly stopped taking them without the advice of your doctor, you may just be experiencing symptoms of those conditions.
Imaginary constipation is very real. People just assume that if they are not having a bowel movement every single day like clockwork that they are constipated. This usually leads to the use and abuse of laxatives, which actually backfires and causes constipation.
Get back on your meds and quit obsessing about pooping every day. Keep up the diet and exercise.
Thanks for asking Motherload!
Motherload is a Certified Nurse Assistant as well as an IBS sufferer, which means she knows a lot about poop. Got a question for her? Ask it here. [1]