Colace, Miralax, etc....

[meatie]

I bought a bottle of colace, miralax, and milk of magnesium, in preparation for chemo-induced constipation. According to the labels, the time to noticeable bowl movements are:

Colace: 12-72 hr
Miralax: 1-3 days (?!)
Milk of Magnesium 0.5-6 hr

For those with experience with the above laxatives, how long did it actually take to work?

[taje]

My husbands constipation is so bad none of those things have worked. We have also been through 11 rounds of chemo so far and it is cumulative. If those are working for you great. If they don't let me know. We are trying other things that seem to be working. Best of luck!!

[JDinNC]

Meatie,

Each person body is different...can I suggest you trying a "Fleet" anema, they are already made up and ready to use. You can find them in any drug store, Walmart etc. I also found taking laxative pills work well, I would take them at bedtime and by the next morning my body is ready for a BM.

As for the ones you are asking for...Miralax worked for me when I needed a clean out for my colonscopy but I also drank a lot of it along with a laxative pill.

[NWgirl]

I use Smooth Move tea, which contains Senna, a stool softener and Miralax, which works by drawing fluids into the colon to flush things out. Average time for me to see results is 24 to 36 hours. Go slowly because you may think things aren't working and end up taking too much and yikes! Sometimes I just take one of these, sometimes I use both.

This is where having a colostomy is nice because if things start moving really fast, it just goes into the bag.

[nkoske]

Like others said...everyone's system is different. But I took a 'cocktail' of Colace (Docusate Sodium, Generic name) and Miralax. If I recall correctly I'd do 3 Colace a day plus one dose of Miralax (I may have done two the last couple). Starting the day before infusion, then taper off the drugs as the cycle progressed and my bowel movements became softer. It seems the drugs they gave me with the Oxali Infusion made my bowel nearly stop. My bowel movement the day after the infusion was like trying to pass a telephone pole.

Also drink lots of fluids.