Dulcolax

My IBS has been really bad recently and no medications were really doing the job (except Movicol but the extreme heart palpitations meant that's a no-go again at the moment) :(
Normally for short term relief I use senakot (or senna tablets) but over the years these have become less and less effective - to the point where I have to take it for several days before they have any effect at all, and even then the effect is minimal.

But when I was in Sainsburys the other day doing my grocery shop, I just (in a moment of desperation) picked up a pack of dulcolax. I (wrongly) assumed this was just another brand of senna tablets, but wanted to try them just in case there was something different about them that would be able to prompt a bowel movement.

So I took 2 tablets last night, not really expecting much of an effect, yet today I was able to CLEAR MY BOWELS (not completely, but mostly). They worked very well, it was all very natural, no urgent rush or anything (thank goodness), but I was so impressed that they worked over one night!

So I went back to check what they contain - these tablets aren't senna tablets, but have bisacodyl as their active ingredient. Wikipedia tells me it is an organic compound used as a laxative and sold under the names: Dulcolax/Durolax, Fleet, Nourilax, Alophen, Correctol, and Carter's Little Pills.

It is worth noting that the recommendation is to take one tablet if it is your first time, and for other people to take two, but I took two because my IBS was in such a bad way, and I can't be sure that one would have done the job.

But I'm intrigued that no doctor or specialist has ever recommended this to me, when I have tried pretty much every other laxative going (see previous post for a mahusive list of all the drugs I've taken, and all the new trial drugs I've tried that haven't worked), Whilst they were putting me on all these weird new drugs, there was an over-the-counter-remedy capable of providing me with short term relief needed to keep me comfortable! Next time I go to the doctors I'm going to take them with me and ask about it.

But it shows that sometimes your body likes trying something new, keep it guessing if the old routine things aren't working (but probably best to check what you are taking first rather than just assuming it's a similar medication to something you have taken before!)

New Year, New Me!

So 2015 is here! 

I want 2015 to be the best year, I can do this! I've got great things planned with friends an family for the year including a couple of balls at university and a trip to Morocco in the Summer, as well as applying for internships, really hope I get one!

So the question is then is how I'm going to tackle my IBS this year? The last few years have been about trying all these crazy diets and lots of new meds to see what does and  doesn't help, but now I feel like I want to settle down and find a routine that works that I can stick to, and I kind of hope my IBS-C won't be so up and down if it's able to adjust and get used to what I'm putting in my gut.

So what is my plan at the moment?

• Exercise - going to go for this as much as possible (within reason, I'm not supposed to be losing weight, supposed to be gaining it!) - zumba once a fortnight and my plan is to go the gym twice a week, probably just to run on the treadmill rather than do any weights stuff (I'm not built for weights!). This should (as my mum says) 'get stuff moving' although obviously have to keep any eye on my weight, and I won't be able to exercise when my IBS is really really bad, I'll be too uncomfortable, and when it stops me eating I get too weak to do much exercise.
• Food - Aiming to actually eat all 5 portions of fruit or veg each day. Plus cutting back on white carbs. I find I can digest rice better than pasta, so more rice this year!
• Water - Oh my goodness I need to drink more water. Movicol makes me dehydrated so this has become even more important, and it's something I'm so bad at! Drinking loads means I need to stop and wee every 15 mins or so which is so annoying, but it's definitely worth it in the long run! I find drinking water in conjunction with taking movicol really works best for me: this is my magic formula! One doesn't work so well without the other! My holiday is Spain in 2013 was so good IBS-wise , unbelievably so, and I put it down to my good diet out there, drinking loads and movicol!

So that's my plan at the moment, but would be keen to hear any other ideas I can include!

Louisa xx

Update - and a bit about bathrooms

Sorry I've been away for so long, but thought I would write a bit about how it's been this term at university with my IBS.

I'm in my second year now so I've got used to the communal bathrooms but the added challenge this year is we got to choose our rooms so I'm living with my friends, who have no idea what my IBS really entails and so it could potentially be far more embarrassing if anything was to go wrong!

I'm lucky, though, in that I can still use any of the other bathrooms in the college, so sometimes I've been walking further when I know my IBS is particularly bad and I know I'm gonna need to be in there a while! That way it's much more anonymous which suits me far more. I know some people are happiest in their own bathroom, and that's how I feel about my one at home with my family, but when I'm at university or on holiday somewhere I often find that really big bathrooms with lots and lots of different cubicles are good because again you can be anonymous. No-one knows where any smell or sounds come from and there is less likely to be a queue (so the person going in after you is less likely to know who you were). Service stations and airports are particularly good for this.

I then find the other extreme is good for IBS sufferers too: when there is a completely empty bathroom. I often find myself waiting until weird times of night to try and empty my bowels at university, simply to know I get the bathroom to myself.

So it hasn't been too bad this term, and my friends are still none the wiser. Of course, it all becomes much more complicated if I decide to ever share a house with them, but we shall cross that bridge when we come to it!