I have Irritable bowel syndrome with constipation (IBS-C) that can be triggered by a lot of food types and I have some concerns regarding drinking SN because I'm not sure if it may cause more more pain or if SN won't be effective in my case and I end up with failure attempt.
I don't care if there will be kinda more pain since it can be controlled with painkillers but my main concern is about effectiveness.
Anybody have any thoughts or advices ?
Are you taking any prescription medication for your constipation? I have major issues with constipation which does not respond to simulant laxatives. However, my constipation is very unique in that it started after receiving the COVID vaccination. I won't go into all the details, but after the jab, my bowels completely stopped moving. Full stop - nothing coming out. Something happened to the nervous innervation of my gut and food was not even reaching the colon. Most people's fecal matter make it to the colon but become constipated when it doesn't move further along. In my case, the stools don't really make it into the colon and feels as if they are higher up in the small intestine.
I used osmotic laxatives and they worked, initially, but later had minimal effect. So, I read about a prescription medication called Prucalopride (Canada) or Motegrity (United States). It works on serotonin receptors in the gut. I tried this and it was like magic. I was able to go about 2 times daily for numerous months but eventually, it stopped working altogether. I don't know why it was no longer effective but I suspect it was due to the progression of my physical illness (I'll spare any details). So now, I'm back on lousy osmotic laxatives which do not relieve the constipation much at all. My gut is not responsive to any stimulant laxatives as they had been prior to receiving the vaccination.
I can understand the fear of failing if you can't get the substance to be absorbed properly in the gut. I'm not sure where in your intestines you get constipated (in most people, it becomes lodged in the large intestine) but mine seem to be in the small intestine. This leaves me with using osmotics which barely work in my case.
So, if you're constipation is like most others, you should cleanse out your bowels with whichever way you are doing it now. If what you're doing is not working, you can try other medications. I only know of Prucalopride (Canada) and the same drug called Motegrity (USA). It's not generic, so the price may be quite high. It really works well and you don't have to run to the restroom like when you use an osmotic laxative.
So to answer your question, I'll tell you what I think but it's just a theory. In general, your food becomes digested within the small intestine.... Absorbing mostly nutrients in this part of the gut. As the fecal matter moves into the large intestine, water/liquids become mostly absorbed here. So, in my opinion, the SN would most likely become absorbed in this area as well because it is suspended in water. I could be wrong about this and maybe it actually gets absorbed in the small intestine. Basically, I feel that you should try to empty your bowels to the best you can prior to ingesting SN. If you tend to be constipated and you have a medication which relieves you, then I suggest you try and empty your bowels as best you can before taking SN.
I plan on fasting for about 12 hours or more because I have delayed gastric emptying. However, read that prolonged fasting can cause an increase in stomach acid content and increase the pH. I know that members on this site mostly advocate for using something like a PPI, H2 blockers or even Milk of magnesia. I feel personally feel more comfortable with MoM rather than the other 2 types. So, for me, emptying my bowels will be very difficult as my current med for my constipation is no longer effective. I'll have to resort to the osmotic laxative which doesn't really help much either. I have a host of other medical issues and this is just one severe symptom of a larger diagnosis. I am now fearing if SN will work or not especially since I have delayed gastric emptying and lack of movement of food through the small to large intestine. I don't want the SN to be absorbed by stool and, thus, rendering it ineffective. Maybe the liquid mostly becomes absorbed in the large intestine and that may be fine if most food is getting stuck or stagnant in the small intestine. Like I said, this is going to be very difficult for me because of delayed getting emptying, food not becoming propogated through intestine and the poor response to laxatives. I'll try my best with the laxatives, of course, but I fear that the food will be mostly in my small intestine and that the SN water mixture will become less effective if it encounters foodstuffs in the small intestine.
Bottom line on my opinion is to try and get the constipation under control by using whatever method which works best for you. If what you use doesn't work well, see if the medication I mentioned above can help. If you can get you bowels mostly cleaned in one or two days, then I feel you will have more success. Also, fasting is important, but you don't want to fast for too long as this may increase stomach acid production and lower the pH.
I hope that helps answer your question.
