Hi, question!

Hi Brian, and welcome! Any other symptoms besides the unusual constipation? Any bloating? More gassy than usual? Any cramping? Have you maybe increased the fiber in your diet a little more lately? That alone could soften things up enough to cause thinner stools.

Most of us would "rather not go to the doctor" when problems crop up "down there", but please try to get past the embarrassment factor and at least have a chat with the doc you do have. It is possible this is something that will clear up on it's own and you'll never know what caused it, but 3 weeks of symptoms is getting to the point where it's definitely worth having a chat with a professional. If you do need to have the "camera up the bum" (LOL!) don't worry about it as you'll be knocked out for it and won't know a thing when they do it!

Are you on a low-fat diet? Sometimes if you don't get enough fat in your diet, it can cause you to have constipation. Are you drinking prune juice? Not all fruits have the same level of fiber; prunes are known for their laxative effects for a reason! Also, if you do have any problems with gas or cramping, then try going off raw apples and apple juice as they are both known to cause excess gas. Some yogurt everyday also wouldn't hurt you any, as the good bacteria in it can really help your guts stay healthy. If you drink milk, switch to the acidophillus kind to get some of that good bacteria too.

In my opinion (mind you, I'm NOT a medical professional), you don't have severe enough symptoms to warrant going to a doctor. While you can say that you are constipated, because your stools are small and hard to pass, you're no where near the level of constipation to warrant prescription medicines. I can't imagine why cancer would be a consideration either. Sounds like a routine case of normal amounts of constipation. Heck, sounds like me a lot when I was younger. A good doctor will tell you to take more fiber and use OTC laxatives on occasion, when you need to. A not-so-good doctor will order a lot of expensive tests, find nothing wrong with you, and then tell you to take more fiber and use OTC laxatives on occasion, when you need to. You can't even get a diagnosis of IBS until you've had these problems for 12 weeks in the course of a year (don't have to be consecutive). That's because it's so easy to get a lingering stomach bug or go through a period of stress that will upset your bowels, and yet not be a permanent problem, like IBS.

The other things you can try, if a simple change in your diet doesn't work, are magnesium supplements (magnesium being a natural laxative), and aloe vera capsules. Aloe vera is a natural laxative, and given your level of constipation, I wouldn't take more than one pill a day--probably more like one every other day. It sounds like you just need a little boost in order to get back to regular. You can also look for a product called Equate, which helped my mild constipation greatly (what poops!), but it's pricey to use reguarly, so try everything else first.

Equalactin, not Equate. You may not can find it in a chemist's where you are, but you can probably try ordering it online if you find that you need to give it a try.

Note that Indersonu just posted some information on aloe vera that shows that you can, over time, build up a dependency on aloe vera, just as you can any other kind of laxative, so may want to try and use it just as you start to have problems. Someone else on here takes a laxative about every three days because she is normal for a couple of days after taking it, then starts to clog back up again. I can't remember what chemical laxative it was, but her doctor told her that (at least in her case) it was okay to take it regularly like that. My only thought is you've got to do what you've got to do to keep it moving. I think a lot of the laxative warnings are more directed at people who DON'T have to have them in order to be regular--like people who are using them as "diet aids"; they are most at risk for making their otherwise normal digestive tract dependant on laxatives in order to continue to function normally. I think if your digestive tract's not working to begin with, what's it matter if you get dependent on laxatives? You weren't moving before without them; you're already dependent on outside aids to make you move.

If it were me I would go to the doctor. Its always good to at least talk to your doctor about it. Ribbon stools can be caused by a lot of things from hemmroids to cancer but its better to get the doctor's take on it.