Quote:
Originally Posted by Johninwestbury
I've been having constipation problems for the past several weeks. There has been no change in my diet, but I've only been going every 3 days or so instead of everyday like I used to.
My stomach looks and feels bloated, and it's so bad when I sit down it kinda pushes up against my chest and its harder to breathe.
When I'm standing up or walking I dont feel it as much, so I dont think I have any congestion or condition in the lungs as I can walk for miles fine. But when I sit down or bend over I feel it, like a brick in my chest. Sometimes when I'm walking my back hurts abit, from the bloating.
My lower abdomen feels quite hard. It does make me more sluggish.
Should I go to the doctor, or try something to relieve the constipation on my own? I really dont want to take a laxative...but its really starting to weigh me down...  |
Don't run to the doctor just yet. Try to help yourself.
I've dealt with constipation and bowel issues a lot in the past.
1st .... Someone recommended drinking more water and that is definitely a good piece of advice. If you're really backed up and/or bloated you may not feel like drinking lots of water but do it anyway. But sip it slowly throughout the day to avoid creating even more discomfort and try to get at least 6 - 8 glasses in your system.
2nd ... if you have a health food store nearby, buy a high quality, organic,
whole leaf aloe vera juice. It works wonders and has many health benefits besides being very helpful in dealing with constipation.
3rd ... in that same health food store find some ginger tea or better yet buy some ginger root and chop it up as fine as you can and simmer it for a good long time and make a nice tea with it. Add honey. It's yummy and it helps with digestion and it helps any gas in your intestines to move out. It'll help ya fart! which you may need to do a lot of right now.
You're most likely experiencing back up of feces and lots of gas which can be really, really uncomfortable.
4th ... Cascara Sagrada is an excellent natrual / herbal remedy to help move the bowels. I'd go that route before using a drug store type laxative.
Avoid Senna as it causes gripping which can be just awful. It's a natural way to go but not recommended. There's also a tea that you can find in most health food stores. It's called "Smooth Move" and i think that the brand is Traditional Medicinals" but i'm not sure. A clerk will know.
5th ... eating fruit ... just fruit ... in the morning can be helpful although if you're digestion is poor the fruit may cause some gas. That's why it's important to eat fruit alone ... it's called food combining ... optimizing your digestion and, in this approach, fruit should always be eaten alone.
You say your diet hasn't changed although if you're not eating well in general, it can catch up to you and you'll start having intestinal issues.
6th ...Try hot bathes and/or a heating pad on your belly. Relax.
Gentle massaging can help too. Massage in a circular motion beginning on the right side of your belly and round and round. You'll be moving in the direction of the poop .... sorry, i don't know how else to explain it without going into detail about the various parts and action of the lower intestine.
7th ...If you've got some heavy or even not so heavy emotional issues going on, address them.
8th ... If possible, eat light until your bowels start to move again. Eat easily digestible food.
That's all i can think of at the moment. I have some other
remedies but this is a good way to start.
If you can deal with your bowel problems in a holistic way and get to the root of the problem, you'll be glad for that in the future.
Like any ailment this is a symptom and it's best to deal with the cause as opposed to just treating that symptom which doesn't mean you can't also treat the symptom which, given your discomfort level, you definitely want to do.
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