Slippery Elm Side Effect?

i've started taking slippery elm 4 days ago to help with tapering the enemas (also because the enemas were causing alot of irritation and swelling of hemmies) so i took it to help 'coat' and protect the mucosa. Well i've noticed an improvement however i've been going earlier at like 3 in the morning!!!

Ever since i started the slippery elm i would be woken up from sleep at about 3am (i usually go at 8am) and feel kinda heavy in the stomach -no urgency as such- and need to go. I try to ignore it and go back to sleep but the bloated feeling is too much and i end up going. Don't get me wrong i love the healing effects of slip elm but i NEED TO SLEEP!!!

Is there anything that can heal this disease without disruptive side effects? *sigh*

Am i the only one with this side effect? fyi i take about 1 -1.5 tablespoon of organic slippery elm powder and mix it up with boiling water. Then after it cools i glug it down. After i mix it it's a jelly/slimy consistency.
My BMs are soft and formed and normal looking. No blood. Which is why i don't want to stop taking it bc it seems to help.

Any suggestions/ideas? im now thinking of switching to psyllium but i don't think it has the same therpeutic potential as slip elm?

Stereo: hmm i never knew that you could have slippery elm without actually ingesting the slimy stuff. I make mine by mixing the powder (i use 'Soland organic slipper elm') with boiling water until the powder is all dissolved. It starts to gell almost immediately. Then once it's cooled a bit i drink it.
So what you are saying is that you can put the powder in a teabag and just steep it in boiling water and drinking the water? would that still help? i thought that slippery elm worked by coating the intestines with its 'slime'. So no slime no benefit. Or am i wrong?

Yes iam thinking about lowering the dose.. I think i may lower it to 1/2 a tablespoon and see how that goes.

Iam getting tested for allergies next week. Will be interesting to see what comes up!! but i have a feeling im allergic to pollen. because whenever the season changes i get bad headaches/lethargy/bowel upsets and achy feeling all over.

I just feel so meh about the whole thing...i always get excited when trying something new but im starting to just think that maybe this is how it is from now on...you know what i mean? but then i think no way im not settling for this. Urgh i don't know.

I really use the heck out of the elm and I have been for over a month. I love it and I have to say I really have felt great.
Thanks to InSoFla!

Anyway, that did happen with me at first, but things calmed down after a while. Give it a good three weeks or so. Occasionally it still happens, but I just jump up, go really quick and get back to bed.

I take 1 TBSP in boiling water along with a shake of cinnamon. That sets up to a porridge. I do that three times a day.
J

I find that slime to be 100% soothing. Aside from just a touch of the runs, I have been completely satisfied.

Though I must say that I have had a couple of slimey accidents and I can't pass gas with full confidence.

Still, I couldn't be happier with what is going on with the elm.
J

I have not tried slippery elm yet and find this thread of interest... Well, to be sure, I think that years back, when my ten year superremission ended, I tried some HFS concoction of various substances including slippery elm as one of manyitems in a cocktail... And it didnt go down well. But perhaps it was not the slippery elm that caused issues.

Has anyone reading this reacted horribly to aloe juice but reacted well to slippery elm? i know that they are like apples and oranges, but aloe vera juice has actuallyput me into flares. I am by no means doing all that great right now and am seriously thinking about trying slippery elm- if I do, needless to say I would begin with the tiniest dose.

Hey Conquer UC,

  I'm very new here and looking for help!  Saw that you are a nutritionist w/ UC!  I need ideas to try, as I am a teacher who had to leave my classroom, go into a different aspect of education due to the interruptions.  Been suffering with this unknown but finally diagnosed culprit for many, many years.  No one around my area seemed to be knowledgeable. Finally found a doctor who helps and actually listens. Would love to know how difficult the SCD has been for others, if Gluten-free and / or lactose free has made much difference, and hear ideas for what TO try.  Is eating now a regimen of self-prepared foods and no eating out?  Also, how has UC affected others ability to continue your profession?  I'm at a loss as I LOVE to teach; however, this disease . . . well, you all know what I mean.  Leaving a group of babies while visiting the "john" 7 or 8 times breeches our 'forseeability' clause as to what could happen in our absence.  Any suggestions?

Waiting for it to gel is way too gross for me to get down! A couple ounces of cool water, teaspoonful of the SE, quick stir then chug.

If you start Slippery Elm, make sure you get a good quality organic powder. The first time I bought it from a "vitamin" store. It was like drinking dirt. horrible tasting stuff. I ordered my next batch online from a company recommended by someone on this site. It came as nice fluffy powder and is much nicer going down, but it gels alot quicker.

Sunny76 said...

Hey Conquer UC,

  I'm very new here and looking for help!  Saw that you are a nutritionist w/ UC!  I need ideas to try, as I am a teacher who had to leave my classroom, go into a different aspect of education due to the interruptions.  Been suffering with this unknown but finally diagnosed culprit for many, many years.  No one around my area seemed to be knowledgeable. Finally found a doctor who helps and actually listens. Would love to know how difficult the SCD has been for others, if Gluten-free and / or lactose free has made much difference, and hear ideas for what TO try.  Is eating now a regimen of self-prepared foods and no eating out?  Also, how has UC affected others ability to continue your profession?  I'm at a loss as I LOVE to teach; however, this disease . . . well, you all know what I mean.  Leaving a group of babies while visiting the "john" 7 or 8 times breeches our 'forseeability' clause as to what could happen in our absence.  Any suggestions?

SUNNY, personally my diet helps me, i willsay though that during a flare , all foods feel pretty terrible, but some like gluten,potatoes and dairy & chocolate make it WAY worse.  the SCD is quite a regimin but i can see the concept , i dont eat out , unless i am feeling 100% and am VERY careful. a naturopathic/alternative dr or some books could help you get started on some diets http://www.breakingtheviciouscycle.info/legal/legal_illegal_a-c.htm 

as for my career .... :( impossible at this stage for me too many bathroom trips, not a close enough bathroom  etc, very sad . good luck sunny

Hi , I have come across slipper elm supplements, have any of you tried taking it in capsule form?

I also heard that slipper elm can interact with prenisone where the pred does not work as well. So i have yet to try the slippery elm.

my colitis is in an active state, where there is blood, but my trips to the washroom are manageable and it is not ruining my daily life.
I am tapering off pred, now at 7.5 mg. The stools are not the most formed, and I am unsure if slippery elm is a good idea to take, as it seems it can cause looser stools.

Would you take slippery elm, if you were me in my current state?

After reading blogs, I am writing to describe the way I prepare Slippery Elm tea powder. The temperature of the water makes a difference in the way I enjoy it. I put about a 1/3 cup of water in microwave on high for about 39 seconds. I then add about 1/3 to 1/2 tsp of slippery elm powder. I then drink it warm for the most pleasure. Too hot of water makes a gel. I don't mind drinking the gel if it is cold. I will sometimes make gel to apply topically.
Since I am unable to take meds or vitamins by mouth, slippery elm is my life saver. I had spastic colon pain one time, took it, an hour later I had to remember that I had been in pain. Keep in mind that we absorb 60-80% of what we put on our skin. I have to take Vit E and magnesium by rubbing it on my skin. I wonder if slippery elm has any health benefits by taking it by douche or enema. One day, I'll try it.
It also has been great for viruses, diarrhea, constipation, pain, internal bleeding (Urinary Tract Infection, proctitis, and other areas, bronchitis, and nausea. I think boiled raw cranberries juice is better for bronchitis since it has a natural enzyme to clear out the bronchials. Since I am 66 and had these health problems since I was 20, I have had a lot of experiences with these issues.

Any suggestions on how to take slippery elm! I open two capsules and put in water and drank it and soon as I did my stomach started hurting. I didn't know this was a side affect. I know taking that way you in jest more quickly. Should I just take one and let system used to it or just forget about it. Anybody had a bad experience like this please let me know.

I'm no expert with slippery elm, but commonsense dictates that if it hurts your stomach then don't take it anymore! Anyone can have an adverse reaction to anything whether it's a medication or supplement.

Have you considered not taking it? A bad reaction is a bad reaction, and there's no sugar-coating it! There's a million other UC treatments to try...

What other treatments do you take for your UC? What are your current symptoms like?