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metamucil for the big D anyone?

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Crohn's Disease
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Posted 7/12/2008 7:41 AM (GMT 0)
I've been told soooo many times that taking a fiber supplement like metamucil would "bulk up" my consistently loose stools/diarrhea. Every time I have tried, it just gives me WORSE diarrhea for a minimum of 24 hours. It's bad enough that I can never convince myself to try it more than one night in a row!

Has anyone else experienced this? Do I just need to "ride out the storm" because it really will help in the long run? It has to get worse before it gets better kind of thing?

Please help!
Posted 7/12/2008 10:43 AM (GMT 0)
I am so sorry
I have TRIED everything including Lomotil and nothing even my opiates help at all with my daily bouts of the Big D

I do wish you all the best
I am sure someone will have a good answer for you
Sorry cannot be of any help
Wish I could get mine under control too

Take care

LYN
Posted 7/12/2008 4:17 PM (GMT 0)
I'm not really sure why you're having this issue with fibre supplements, it's been working great for me in the bulking department...are you taking it everyday consistantly? It could be that it just takes time for your system to adjust is all.

How much are you taking? Maybe you need to increase it...also, what is your diet like? If you're eating a fairly junky-D-Causing diet then this could also be a factor possibly.

Fibre supplementation can take a bit of playing around with and it can also take your system some time to adjust...all I know is my GI highly recommended it to me and it was the best advice I've ever gotten.

Maybe even try a different brand/form of supplementation, like the waffers or something?

:)
Posted 7/12/2008 10:31 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Patient, PB4 is right. But you might need to start with a small dose of fiber and gradually work your way up. It can take some time for your body to adjust. Hope this helps. Blessings!
Posted 7/13/2008 4:09 AM (GMT 0)
wait wait wait, eat fibre? i though you were supposed to do the low residue no fibre kinda dealy?
Posted 7/13/2008 4:15 AM (GMT 0)
If you're a stricturing crohnie than low fibre is best, but remember some fibre is always better than none or too little.

Fibre aids with exercising the bowels, keeping them functioning properly and is great for sweeping the bowels of bacteria.

:)
Posted 7/13/2008 12:52 PM (GMT 0)

abseeley said...
wait wait wait, eat fibre? i though you were supposed to do the low residue no fibre kinda dealy?

Yeah I avoid high fiber when I am having the big D, makes it worse and bloat!
Posted 7/13/2008 12:53 PM (GMT 0)
Hasn't anyone tried Cholestyramine??? Works great, I used to take it a few years back when I had D 15 times a day, really works. I pk all I took.
Posted 7/13/2008 5:12 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks for the info PB4 - that's the answer that I didn't want but that I knew was coming! As for the confusion Abs...- I totally understand that too. We're so programmed as crohnies to avoid fibre that it is VERY counter-intuitive to put globs of the nasty stuff in our bodies voluntarily. It really is supposed to help "bulk up" bowel movements though, and help them "consolidate" so to speak... meaning - I'm willing to take the stupid stuff if it means I can have ONE bowel movement in the A.M. that actually feels like I might have accomplished something... rather than 7 trips throughout the day that don't make me feel any better.

Back to the nitty-gritty of it though, if I could for a minute PB4...

I'm 10 weeks pregnant, so I had to be very selective about the fiber supplement (this is a problem I've had for much longer than my pregnancy btw). With my midwife's approval, I chose the psyllium (sp?) husk. It's the same stuff that metamucil is made of, it just doesn't have all the extra orange flavoring, etc. It also happens to be one of the most horrific, clumping messes I have ever tried to consume! What kind of supplement do you take? I tried mixing this stuff in orange juice, which seems to mask some of the massive clumps, but... any tips on how to get it down the hatch?

The recommended dosage is 2 tablespoons. I tried 1 tablespoon, and all hell broke loose. Should I lower the intro dose even more or should I just "suck it up" and deal with a couple days of discomfort and panicky quick trips to the bathroom? I noticed an IMMEDIATE improvement in my bm the following morning, but it's after that when things get complicated...

Since taking it, my bm's are a bit more "slippery", shall we say? My time-window to get TO the bathroom has shrunken considerably because the fiber seems to help things just move right along at their own darn pace! This is a symptom of not using it continually I hope? Does the slippery factor ever go away?
Posted 7/13/2008 5:56 PM (GMT 0)
I am one of those people who move back and forth between D and C. I find that Metamucil helps a great deal when I'm constipated, but make things worse when I'm having diarrhea. I know it is not supposed to work that way and that fiber is supposed to bulk things up, but I've tried it again and again with the same result, so I avoid Metamucil or any other fiber when I'm having D.
Posted 7/14/2008 12:19 AM (GMT 0)
I've had luck with Citrucel caplets -- that's the brand my GI recommended. I take one tablet a day, which is way lower than the recommended dose. Unfortunately, a lot of this is trial and error, and it's always confusing when we have so many variables (diet, meds, supplements) to consider.

LOL about the "slippery" factor... mine are not exactly slippery, but tend to shoot out smoothly, sorry if TMI. :)
Posted 7/14/2008 5:22 AM (GMT 0)

patientspiders said...

Back to the nitty-gritty of it though, if I could for a minute PB4...

I'm 10 weeks pregnant, so I had to be very selective about the fiber supplement (this is a problem I've had for much longer than my pregnancy btw). With my midwife's approval, I chose the psyllium (sp?) husk. It's the same stuff that metamucil is made of, it just doesn't have all the extra orange flavoring, etc. It also happens to be one of the most horrific, clumping messes I have ever tried to consume! What kind of supplement do you take? I tried mixing this stuff in orange juice, which seems to mask some of the massive clumps, but... any tips on how to get it down the hatch?

The recommended dosage is 2 tablespoons. I tried 1 tablespoon, and all hell broke loose. Should I lower the intro dose even more or should I just "suck it up" and deal with a couple days of discomfort and panicky quick trips to the bathroom? I noticed an IMMEDIATE improvement in my bm the following morning, but it's after that when things get complicated...

Since taking it, my bm's are a bit more "slippery", shall we say? My time-window to get TO the bathroom has shrunken considerably because the fiber seems to help things just move right along at their own darn pace! This is a symptom of not using it continually I hope? Does the slippery factor ever go away?

The brand I take is Prodiem and yes, it has psyllium, this kind is similar to metamucil...

The important thing is, I take the caps, not the mix with water dealies, maybe that's why I have success with it like I do and maybe why others have such issues if they're using the powder forms to be mixed with water, just guessing as I'm not sure but everyone definitely needs fibre in their diet.

What kind of hell breaks loose for you?

Initially when I first started it gave me extra bloating and gas (which is normal even for healthy people) for about 3 months, I did not ever increase my dosage of just one pill with lots of water just before bed, because once my system adjusted then all my bloating went away and I have very little gas (especially compared to before).

I don't know if the slippery factor will go away or not, since I've had this issue ever since getting sick with CD even when I wasn't doing the fibre thing.

Congrats on your pregnancy!!!  Do talk to both your GI and GP to confirm the fibre supplement is fine (which I'm sure it will be)

:)

Posted 7/14/2008 10:33 PM (GMT 0)
I tend to use the fiber for constipation, not D. I started with metamucil but it wasn't strong enough and moved on to Miralax. It would be mucho bad news if I were to use it while I was having D tho.
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