Laxative Dependency

A little worried

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Re: Laxative Dependency

Postby Ana » 20 May 2016, 08:34

sore wrote:Hey Ana,

Have you seen anyone except your GP about your IBS? I've also got IBS-C and have just recently started seeing a dietician who knows so much more about the condition than any GP I have ever seen. With her guidance just over two months ago I started the low FODMAP diet which has significantly helped (one of the foods that are often causes major issues for people with IBS is wheat - but it's actually the sugar in wheat (a type of fructan) not the gluten). A lot of research has been done on this diet through Monash university. You can have a bit more of a read here: http://www.med.monash.edu/cecs/gastro/fodmap/

Hope things get regular for you again soon.


Hi sore!,

Well, I saw my GP who referred me to the hospital to see the consultant (though from what I read on the letter he is from the "general medicine" department so not so sure if a specialist in this area!!). Have you been referred to see a dietician or did you make a private appointment? I would like to have a consultation with the dietician as well.
I'm not sure how much of wheat I eat (the bread I usually eat is gluten, milk and wheat free) and I also tended to have lacto-free milk recently.
Thanks for the link, I will have a look and perhaps I should finally follow a strict diet but, it's trial and error, so difficult to figure it own on your own.
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Re: Laxative Dependency

Postby Ana » 20 May 2016, 08:40

Just had a quick look on this link. So you follow a low FODMAP diet? I can see that prunes are not recommended on it , whereas I find them to be very helpful and cherries as well.
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Re: Laxative Dependency

Postby sore » 20 May 2016, 08:51

I told the GP I saw that I wanted to see a dietician and she told me where the closest one was (who actually happens to work in the same practice as my CRS so it was very convenient). I am in Australia, and here we don't need referrals to see dieticians. (Make sure if you do go, you see a dietician though and not just a "nutritionist" - anyone can use this title pretty much, but a dietician has to be properly qualified.)

Yeah, the way it works is you remove all high FODMAP foods from your diet for 6-8 weeks then reintroduce them through "challenges" one at a time to see which ones are causing you issues. Every person is different so where one person may have problems with avocados, another is completely fine with them but may have a problem with, say, apples. Because it is so finicky and you are removing a lot of known beneficial foods from your diet for a significant amount of time, it really is something I wouldn't recommend doing without the guidance of a specialist as you need to make sure you are still getting the nutrients you need, not dropping excessive amounts of weight etc.

I have just started the reintroduction phase two days ago (decided to start with avocados because I was missing them like crazy, plus they are a really good type of fat) - so far, so good! Like you, I also found prunes very helpful to keep thing moving (actually, more specifically, prune juice), so will be challenging prunes next.
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Re: Laxative Dependency

Postby Ana » 20 May 2016, 09:03

I see. Thanks for a very helpful explanations. Yes, I would need to see a SPECIALIST, ie. propertly qualified dietician who also knows about IBS-C because I find that doctors very often put this diagnosis - "It's IBS" just to fob you off or just because they can't actually find the reason behind somebody's problems.

I'm in the UK so I will see what my consultant, which I was referred to by my GP, has to say regarding that. Yes, like you say, I would like to consult it with somebody first. I think I cannot afford to lose any more weight as I'm rather slim. I hope I will have some tests done too, in order to make sure there is nothing wrong "inside" as I found that I have a very small urge to go to the toilet, and a dietician whom I consulted online said this also could be related to some issues with the nerves in the bowels etc.
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Re: Laxative Dependency

Postby sore » 21 May 2016, 02:22

It's definitely worth getting tested for coeliac disease etc. first. IBS should actually only be diagnosed once everything else has been ruled out, but that is often not the case. I find too often the first thing GPs conclude when listening to the symptoms is "IBS!" without running the proper tests to check it isn't something else. They may do a blood test or two to check that iron levels etc are okay, but that's it and then, like you say, they fob you off. I am actually so glad that Monash uni has started doing this work as for the first time in my life (I've had these issues since I was a little kid) I feel like the medical system is trying to make life easier for people suffering from this rather annoying (and at times debilitating) condition. It's handy being in Australia (which is where the research is coming from) as more people here are now aware of FODMAPs. IBS is finally starting to be demystified.

I hope you can find the help you need. :)
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Re: Laxative Dependency

Postby Ana » 21 May 2016, 13:20

Thank you. I hope so too. I will try to be more firm when I see my consultant next week.
I've notived on another thread you've mentioned that you had constipation when you started low FODMAP diet. I would very much like to aviod this if I ever started this diet. Has the constipation gone now?
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Re: Laxative Dependency

Postby sore » 22 May 2016, 05:17

I was actually put on a "plain food diet" by a GP for two weeks before I saw the dietician and I'm pretty sure in retrospect that is what caused the constipation - all I was eating was rice, meat, eggs and veggies - some of which were high FODMAP, I later discovered, so by the time I started the low FODMAP diet my system was already completely out of balance. Not only had I removed the foods I knew helped me stay regular (prune juice, bran), I was also exacerbating the problem with other high FODMAPs. The main issue happened when I reintroduced bread into my diet (on advice of the GP) a week into the two weeks. That's when the constipation hit. It was pretty extreme and actually caused the fissure I am still dealing with, which was what I really wanted to avoid, but unfortunately it turns out that was not to be. :roll:

But my dietician and CRS think I have a super sensitive system when it comes to getting constipated, so I don't think most people have major issues when they transition across to the low FODMAP diet. I'm not constipated now but I am still taking movicol twice a day and have been since week 2 of the whole process, so I can't say for certain I wouldn't be constipated on the diet alone. (I did become constipated earlier this week but I think that is either related to the medication I am on - anyway, upping my dose of movicol to 3 a day for a couple of days resolved that issue.)
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Re: Laxative Dependency

Postby Ana » 18 Aug 2016, 06:01

Hi again :) (apologies if this is not the right topic, but it's a follow up to my previous posts)

So I finally saw my consultant and I will be having a colonoscopy on September, 8th. I actually am very woried about the procedure (which is a week after my holiday so I hope it won't be thinking about it constantly during my holiday :( .. ) Does anybody have any experience with colonoscopy..? I will have a sedative. I also just hope that the laxative they give you to take one day prior to the procedure does the trick as not many things work well on my 'resistant' bowels..
I was told that the diet needs to be adhered to only 3 days before the procedure.

I would be grateful for your suggestions/sharing experiences.
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Re: Laxative Dependency

Postby Canadabum » 18 Aug 2016, 17:38

Ana -- I had a sigmoidoscopy....if you will have a sedative i wouldnt worry too much...so long as your fissure is not super active and you are relaxed there is little that i would be concerned about.

As for the laxative...if you are generally very constipated I would recommend eating lightly for the days leading up to make sure it works as desired.

All best- CB.
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Re: Laxative Dependency

Postby Ana » 19 Aug 2016, 02:54

Hi CB,

Thank you very much for your reply.

I had rectoscopy (if I call it right) in the past, but that was a long time ago. Yeah, perhaps with a sedative I shouldn't worry too much about the procedure. I think I'm not concerned so much about the actual colonoscopy but rather about the preps. I'm not so much constipated in a literal sense, but rather my bowel tends to be lazy and resistant to many medications (hopefully the stuff that needs to be drunk beforehand is strong enough!) although I do take Movicol/Ladixo and that does help to an extent.

I definitely make sure I eat lightly in the days leading up to the procedure. I usually eat lightly anyway, but I think it is necessary to avoid fruit, vegetable, fiber in general a couple of days before. I just want to avoid the situation when the doctor tells me that my bowels were not cleared enough so that they could not carry out the procedure properly. Will see- I will do everything as instructed, just waiting for the 'intruction pack' to come through.

Thanks again,
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