Constipation is bad - help!

So glad you had success!
My mom was recently hospitalized for constipation. it’s possible she was backed up for 3 weeks! We tried to treat her at home for ten days and who knows how long before that she’d last gone.
They sent her home the first day but we took her back 2 days later and she was admitted.
I was amazed how many enemas and suppositorys they tried! They kept her 6 days and withheld the constalose All that time. They were taking cat scans regularly but I guess there can be a blockage that can’t easily be detected. She finally went in the hospital without taking the constulose.
I personally had a bowel resection and had an ostomy bag for ten months. Let me tell you, it is not something my mother could handle at this age.
Since she came home we’ve been trying different medications and Linzess has helped a lot. She now has a “poop” calendar that she places “poop” stickers on each time she goes. We are watching it closely!
Charlotte

Magnesium, without fail, will give regular bowel movements. Make sure you get the gel caps.
Two at dinner or bed time will give the results you need.

My friend with end stage renal disease was fluid restricted had the same problem with her bowels until she started taking Miralax powder in her coffee every other morning. I also think the Preparation H is a good idea too. Also, the Hospice people have a lot of experience I'm sure.

The name of the medicine for opioid inducedconstipation is Linzess I believe. It worked wonders for Mom at first, actually we were overdoing it, but now not so well. We have had to resort to the constulose often but not until she’s missed 3 days. It is very harsh.
I suppose what worked well at first was due to her hospital diet. I think the inactivity is responsible as she no longer takes any opioids.
When she ever gets her teeth working we plan to invest in a prune spree. Hope it won’t affect her sugar.
It seems to me that all daily fixes have a short period of promoting bowel activity. Her body seems to need a regular change.

My husband has always had constipation issues and now has Parkinson's, which makes it worse. We, too, have found magnesium supplements to be very helpful. Usually taking 250 mg daily is quite helpful.

Plus, magnesium is good for so many things!

Take her to the ER so they can dig it out. We use miralax daily in my moms protein shake. Has really helped. I hope she goes soon.

My mom was hospitalized for it also. I was amazed they took their time fixing it with laxatives that didn’t work but at least they were xraying daily for a blockage.
They were holding off giving her constulose but they sent home a rx. That works fast!
Going forward, she was taken off Vicodin, added peri Colace and started Linzess. Also got physical therapy to move around more but I’ll be darned if she doesn’t still get backed up!
or explosive diarrhea.
Also in hospital they quit giving her oral meds because she was throwing up indicating she was full to the brim! FYI
charlotte

Caster oil or cod liver oil take orally.
Enema would work.

I used Miralax daily for my Husband and he was on Senna twice a day.
(By the way you can not mix Miralax with a food or liquid that has been thickened with one of the food thickeners, the Miralax will thin it out right away.)
We also used Lactulose daily, much easier on the kidneys than some of the other products.
But when we needed to there were a few other remedies we used.
"The Bomb" this was suggested by Hospice. 1/4 Cup milk of Magnesia + 1/4 Cup Prune Juice + 1/4 Cup orange Juice this gets warmed up. Works pretty well.

I also kept pureed pineapple and pureed papaya in the freezer and I would mix the two together and portion it into 1/2 Cup amounts and give that to my Husband when we needed to "loosen things up a bit". This also worked pretty well. Common ingredients in a lot of the commercial "cleanses" available.

Suppository's can work well. But if there is a small impaction you may have to use a gloved hand and some lubrication like Vaseline and try to break it up. Do not do this unless you check with the nurse or doctor first.
(Oh the things we do for the ones we love!!)

Last resort was Magnesium Citrate , pretty inexpensive, under $1.00 a bottle but very high in sodium and tough on the kidneys.

Opioid medications are known to cause constipation. I am surprised that the doctor didn't state that up front. Yes, I understand that he gave her Colace, but she's in pain. A perfect storm.

I think a stronger laxative
If you can monitor it then 12 hours should help. Maybe also a stool softener

Call a nurse. This is going to be uncomfortable for your mother, but a trained experienced nurse will know how to handle it with minimal trauma.

And a thousand thousand curses on any doctor who hands out a px for morphine or codeine without stapling a second px for lactulose to it. May they all poo footballs for a week so that they learn that constipation is no joke.

SWright,
So sorry for your loss.

So sorry for your loss. 🤗 hugs