I'm new to the forum and I'm still trying to get a handle on all of this. I've been playing around with what works for me and haven't found the perfect combination, yet. I take 2 stool softeners a day (200mg generic Colace) and drink about 3 liters of water. The stool softeners don't seem to be working that well lately. I started drinking 8 oz of prune juice in the morning...that worked, but the consistency was too loose. So, I cut back to 4 oz, which has zero effect. (No BM yesterday and nothing but rumblings so far today.) I tried the All Bran Buds for the first time this morning. Is the serving suggestion (1/3 cup) effective? I have 4-5 servings of fruits and vegetables, cereal, activia yogurt, and a fiber one bar daily. (I usually have a small amount of tuna, chicken, or turkey for protein, as well) My fiber intake is usually about 20-23 grams, but with the addition of the all bran, it should be around 30 g. No fried stuff, chips, caffeine, etc. I'm so afraid when I don't go daily bc I really want this to heal. I've heard about the fish oil and flax, but won't be able to try that stuff for a bit. Am I doing anything wrong? Will the All Bran help? I'm so confused. I feel like I'm doing the right things but I don't understand why I'm not going daily. Maybe I'm just obsessing too much...

Some people jsut don't go daily. drs say normal is anywhere betweeen 3 and 21 times per week. go figure. I have always been a daily, morning bmer.
i did find, through trial and error, that grain fibers were binding for me, especially if I had them with milk. Methylcellulose (citrucel) and glucomannan (a japanese yam fiber) especially work much better for me.
Also I noticed that colace stool softeners didn't do a darn thing for me. I didn't notice and softening of stool until I started taking Milk of Magnesia or Mineral Oil.

Perhaps a teeny dose of MOM would help???

stool softeners have never had much of an effect on me either. i always had problems with the dreaded "hard-tipped" poo, even though the rest would be soft. what finally helped me was MOM. if you're worried about not going every day, try 1 or 2 tablespoons of that each night before bed. it should get things moving by the time you get up.
otherwise i wouldn't worry about not going everyday, even though it's hard not to stress about it... as long as things are soft every other day, that should be fine. at least your butt gets a break every other day - think of it that way! your diet sounds really healthy and full of fiber, make sure you don't get too much fiber as that can harden things ironically.

I do believe magnesium is the way to go to keep things soft. I use something called Natural Calm which is just a powdered form of Magnesium which I drink every night before I go to bed and for the first time in my life I now go every morning when I wake up. It has been a Godsend for me! You can look into it and order it on-line if your local health food store doesn't carry it.

I do believe magnesium is the way to go to keep things soft. I use something called Natural Calm which is just a powdered form of Magnesium which I drink every night before I go to bed and for the first time in my life I now go every morning when I wake up. It has been a Godsend for me! You can look into it and order it on-line if your local health food store doesn't carry it.

that was weird, why did my message show up twice??!!

also don't be discouraged so soon because things take time to change.
yeah we may take stool softners and laxatives and such to instantly create a BM sooner rather than later, but with diet changes, your body has to catch up and undo the bad layers inside your system before the good can help it function to its potential.
also, what works for some, may not work for others so despite reading what others are doing, may not be successful for you.
it's sometimes a hit or miss game and part of the rules are that you must keep patient, keep trying, and don't give up to find what truly works for you - and being flexible to understanding why it does or doesn't for your body.
good luck!