Posted 4/13/2014 12:53 AM (GMT 0)
Hi kix2989,
I am sorry that you are struggling with this. I have left-sided UC and am also struggling with chronic, severe constipation (4 consecutive days with no stool at all, just blood), stomach bloating and extreme discomfort. I have tried so many things, and some of them helped a little bit.
My GI doctor increased my dose of Balsalazide/Colazal and that helped. I am also on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet (SCD) and make my own non-dairy yogurt. The probiotics in the yogurt do some good, I think, but you need to buy a specific one by giprohealth that is SCD legal. All vegetables and fruit must be peeled and cooked at the beginning of the diet. Also, I eat 3 prunes with my breakfast and tea each morning. I think this works better than a fiber supplement.
I hope you feel better soon! Please update us on how you're doing and if you find something that works really well for constipation...it's miserable dealing with it, I know!
The only other thing I have tried that has helped is Colace, a stool softener. The nurses told me to take it after I had surgery to alleviate the severe constipation that usually happens afterward. It made my stomach crampy and gassy, and it has sorbitol--a sugar alcohol--in it, which is not SCD legal and can be hard on your gut, but when I was desperate I took it and it worked. It didn't give me diarrhea, it just softened my stools enough to pass them.