Dej - As you know, this past flare has caused colon troubles for me that I have never had before. Not too sure if it was MS or the increase in gabapentin but it still is going on to some extent. I never knew constipation could hurt so much. And, as you know, I played around with my diet and have found some things that work for me and has been helping. When I don't eat Yoplait yogurt and my canned pears, I'm back to having difficulty. I don't know why that combination is working for me. I have tried other yogurts with no success. It must be that Yoplait has the exact amount of good bacteria that I need. The canned pears, I have no clue why they work better for me than fresh pears. (Maybe it's the HFCS that Kelly is talking about and if it is, then I'm ok with that.)

I have had constipation caused by rectal muscles and wouldn't feel the urge to go and became a little incontinent. That eventually resolved and I have been fine for years. It wasn't painful like my recent episode.

Speaking of difficulty, I think most people think of constipation as not going at all, having hard or pellet like stools, etc. when in fact difficulty moving the bowels is also considered constipation. This may be why people don't report it to their MD. For me, it is difficulty moving the bowels. They seem to be lazy and I have to just sit and wait. It's like something in my circuitry is not communicating properly - the brain is told it's time to go, bowel/colon gets ready, and the bowel/colon isn't getting the message or something like that.

When you find your magic bullet, let us know as I think sharing like this is so helpful. In the meantime, big 's.

BTW - I didn't vote as my option wasn't there. I did report it to my PCP but she wasn't too sure if it was the MS or something else and referred me to a gastro.