Let me tell you a funny story.

Oh, I haven't EVEN TAKEN THE BENEFIBER YET. But this is to show you how my mind works.

Two days ago I didn't feel right. NOTHING FELT RIGHT, if you get my drift. That's why, when I had to buy my next magnesium pill, I purchased the Malic Acid, because one of the side effects can be LOOSE STOOLS. When Mrs. D told me that in a post, I responded with 'HEAVEN'.

Haven't gotten them yet, just ordered them two days ago.

So I didn't feel like myself, couldnt' go to the bathroom in a normal way, felt OFF MY GAME, if you get my drift. It's not the most comfortable way to feel, believe me, and I gather most of you have had this happen to you at one time or another.

As a matter of fact, the nurse who calls me every three months to check on my diabetes, well, I asked her 'do diabetics have constipation problems?" and she responded "honey, EVERYBODY I SPEAK TO HAS CONSTIPATION PROBLEMS".

I can't eat fruit the way Alan eats fruit (he goes twice a day by the way and his stomach has NEVER BEEN BETTER).

I do eat my salads and my veggies, but obviously I have not been getting enough fiber in my diet. I did have a bran muffin (home made) but I believe that upped my sugar so that's a no no for me.

I had to resort to a saline you know what to make sure I wasn't backed up and it worked great and I felt fine, but what does one do the next time one has to go???.

So my friend who was just out of the hospital and is a diabetic, her doctor told her to use BENEFIBER. So I said "if it's good enough for her, it's good enough for me".

Last night I took two stool softeners before retiring. Hadn't bought the Benefiber yet. This morning after we returned from Dunkin Donuts I did 'GO" but not like I wanted to GO, if you know what I mean (I'm trying to be delicate while speaking about an INDELICATE subject.

So I go to the drugstore and the pharmacists explains all about Benefiber (he takes citrucel every day by the way,) and he drinks 2 liters of water every day. He said 'if you don't drink the water, NOTHING WORKS". I HAVE NOT BEEN DRINKING ANY 2 LITERS OF WATER EVERY DAY, that much I know.

Well I bought myself a bottle of water, I purchased the Benefiber. I drank the bottle of water, and was planning on going home and mixing the Benefiber with another glass of water.

Well, I practically didn't make it to my house.

I gather the stool softeners from last night finally kicked in.

I went and let's just say, I have a new outlook on life today.

I am going to read up on Benefiber. I have it in my house. I don't know whether to take it before bedtime, in the morning, WHEN DOES ONE TAKE THIS?? I do know i have to drink the water. Don't worry. I'll do this.

If I can get my stomach to work like it did this morning (and I have not taken any laxatives or anything) so, for me, I'm content.

But oh my god, isn't it funny, that I purchased the benefiber and didn't even have to take it.

All I can say is AMEN!!!

lol
Melody

Oh you poor thing. I hope you enjoy the rest of the day now that your plumbing is "fixed."

I can relate to your issues with the "going" issues. I used to go all the time, a few times a day. Then it all stopped.

I have MS so I am thinking this is a complication from that. My neuro's NP told me that I should start taking something like Metamucil daily. In addition to that I needed to make sure I was getting plenty of water, especially at the time I was drinking my fiber goodness.

On the bottle I have it says you can take it up to three times a day. I have been taking it once for about a month now and have started to try to drink it twice a day. I know on my bottle it tells you how much to add to water (I use really cold water). The neuro's NP said to then try and get in at least that much water right after without the Metamucil.

I have read on the bottle that you shouldn't take any meds about 2 hours before or after as they could get absorbed by the Metamucil and then not be effective.

I take a lot of meds so that's why it can be tough to find a time to take it!

In addition, the NP suggested that I also take a stool softener and the Metamucil. The important active ingredient in that should be docusate sodium only. It is like Colace but at Wal-Mart they have a far cheaper generic version of about 120 capsules for about $4.00.

Of course, you have to take that at another time than you do the Metamucil type stuff.

The NP said don't take Miralax because of what was in it. I guess your bowels can get reliant on it.

I guess the active ingredient in the Metamucil is the psyllium fiber/husk.

Good luck and I hope everything works itself out okay! (Chuckle, chuckle!)

Weebs37

Since doing both these things

Why Melody, I do believe this little problem has turned you religeous! "Heaven", OMG, "Amen"..LOL
We've all been there and trust me, it'll all come out in the end..
OK, enough bad jokes..Benefiber can be taken any time of day, as it isn't a laxative or a stool softener..Just adds needed fiber to your diet which should help with the regularity..And drinking plenty of water really is a good idea..Good Luck!!

Well, aren't we having an interesting topic here??

I felt really good all day. Nice and empty. Unfortunately I must have picked up a bug a few days ago. I'll never really know. I didn't feel "myself for a few days, and with the heat and humidity, it felt like strange things were on my arms and feet. I have diabetic neuropathy (which I control very nicely with the Methyl B-12), but when the weather is hot and humid, my feet sometimes burn.

Well two days ago, like I said, I was not "on my game" with my bowels or the rest of my body. Something was definitely up inside of "me".

Today, after I went to the bathroom, I went about my normal day, and at 1 p.m. took my sugar. It was 300. IT'S NEVER 300. Never!! I tested the machine, I used the solutions that they give you to test it. The machine was fine. I tested Alan, He was fine. So it was my body. I felt fine by the way. I had had my usual breakfast at Dunkin of a multigrain bagel with light cream cheese. I have had absolutely no problem eating this way for months. Sometimes I have an egg on an english muffin. That, and my cup of coffee, and I'm good for a long time. I do have to remember to drink my water.

I haven't seen a number like this in 3 years. My sugar is extremely controlled. But I have been told that this CAN happen when one is diabetic. I did figure out what might have been the culprit. I changed my dosage of Lantus recently from 22 to 18.

Guess what I didn't check? They gave me new syringes. These are not the BIG NUMBERS syringes. So I examined the syringe and I came to the conclusion I've been giving myself 16 and not 18. I could not believe this. There's a big difference between the two syringes. You have to count the lines in a certain way with the large numbered syringes. In the small numbered ones, each line is a unit. Not so with the larger ones. I should have realized this.

I did not eat anything today and I drank water all day long. It came down at 5 p.m. to 148. We shall see tomorrow morning what it is. I will also use a magnifying glass to check the syringe. I feel so stupid. I wish I had the pen thing but I get my stuff at Cornell and they supply me with everything.

I ate dinner at 5. I had fish, veggies, some Quinoa, and a small salad. And some water.

At 6 p.m. guess what kicked in again?? My oh My, never felt so good.

My a1c is 6.5 and the doctors were telling me that this is just as important as the occasional rise you get upon taking your blood sugar in the morning. And checking it two hours after eating dinner. When I began Cornell's Accord program, my a1c was over 9.

Now I don't know if 2 units less of the Lantus could do this. I really don't know. But I am determined to make sure what I put in that syringe from now on.

I actually went from 22 to 16. Good Lord.

Melody

I'm glad you caught that!

My own doctor once asked me... don't you have any questions?

I said..."like what?"... and she said== constipation?
And I laughed... she knows about my GI congenital problem, but I guess she wasn't connecting the dots.

She said EVERYONE pesters her about poop.

I told her I could maybe give lessons, on how to poop. Actually
I poop too often! (this is called fast transit-- and is just as troubling). Just not as common.

My general feeling is that when you get old, being able to go to the bathroom without problems, or accidents, is a great gift for the day!

That's the best ability for when you get old. Being able to go the bathroom AT ALL without any problems.

Yesterday I was speaking to EVERYBODY around the corner. On the porch, on the corner, LOTS OF PEOPLE. All over the age of 58.

EVERYBODY'S CONSTIPATED. Everybody either takes stool softeners, or laxatives.

One person takes both every single night. She said "if I don't do this, I'll bleed".

The whole nation seems to be constipated. Good Lord.

It's scary.

I once read that one's immune system is in the gut and if the gut works, everything will work.

Seems to be that most people's guts ARE NOT WORKING.

At least not in Brooklyn, NY. lol

Oh, if one more person tells me to stop losing weight, I'm going to bop him on the head. It's always the larger sized people who tell me this. It's NEVER the normal sized person.

The big ones look at me and say "enough already, your face is going to disappear".

My face is not disappearing. my body is....lol

What the heck am I supposed to do?? Go back to eating ribs and beefburgers??

My doctors are extremely happy with my body (I'm not, but that's me, I'm like most girls, we don't like what we see in the mirror).

But honestly, if one more person looks at me and says "okay, you can stop dieting now".

I don't diet. I just eat what I'm supposed to eat.

jeez. Look for an explosion in Brooklyn, NY sometime today.

One more person!!!! lol

I really can't stand to be there more than 3 days or so!

Not my kind of place....

Now I know why--- you are all constipated over there! LOLOLOL

LOL..I'm trying to picture myself being a part of a conversation like this 20 years ago..The picure just isn't coming..Just strikes me funny. Once you go thru pregnancy and childbirth, nothing's embarassing anymore..