Anonymous Personal Story: “living with chronic constipation”
My story of living with chronic constipation:
I’d been healthy my whole life and never experienced any gastrointestinal issues until I was 16.
Things started to slow down quite a bit in my digestive system. I would go up to a week and a half without a bowel movement, but I assumed it would all catch up. Then I started experiencing the worst day to day nausea of my life. It would hit at random times and prevent me from performing basic tasks. I thought I had Crohn’s disease but I ignored any symptoms and never scheduled a doctor’s appointment.
After about 4 months, it all came out. For three days straight, I would have around 8 bowel movements a day with excruciating pain preceding each one, preventing me from leaving home. On the last day, I had a bout of diarrhea, and the next morning I had my first healthy, non painful bowel movement in a few months.
My doctor referred to this as overflow from being constipated for so long. For about a year, my bowel movements were normal. Then things started slowing down again to one bowel movement per week. I tried everything. Fiber pills, water, exercise, kombucha, tea, vegetables. Nothing worked.
My doctor diagnosed me with chronic constipation and told me it was time to try a laxative. I was told to try Miralax. No issues since, but the second I get off of it, it’s back to constipation.
Knowing that my body will always be dependent on a drug to perform a basic function devastates me and I’m still coming to terms with it, but I’m thankful for all of the support we have today.
