Well, it works for me. And when I had my adult care home, the home nurses told me that even though it's called a "stool softener", it also has the opposite effect because it causes stool to sort of "gel". That the term "softener" is misleading because it's so often used along with a laxative in it to prevent constipation or treat it. Just a straight "stool softener" without a laxative added is helpful for a lot of people having diarrhea type problems.

I guess it depends on the person.