anyone know about constipation?!

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I had an impacted bowel for two months when I was seven and I'm still here. Trust me, you won't die from being constipated for three days. :P

Here's what I recommend you do in the short term:

1. If you're mostly just uncomfortable and don't need IMMEDIATE relief, take some Miralax. Miralax is a very gentle laxative that increases the amount of water in your intenstines, thereby making it easier to go. It comes in a powdery solution. Mix a capful with any drink and it will disolve. Take it once a day and you should have a bowel movement between 1-3 days, or even 4 if you're weird like me. It is nice because it's very gentle (virtually no pain at all when I take it) and not habit forming (I once took one dose a day for a month and it didn't mess up my bowels any more than they were already messed up), but it does take a long time to work, so not the best option if you need fast relief. If you have IBS-A (alternating episodes of constipation and diarrhea), you may get diarrhea from it, but I have IBS-A and have never had a problem. If anything, it's too gentle for me.

2. If you don't want to wait up to 3 or 4 days or if you're in a lot of pain, try Senokot. Senokot is an old, old laxative that uses a natural vegetable ingredient. They come in tablets that you can chew. You'll usually go within 6 to 12 hours. The package says "gentle" relief, but I usually experience some cramping, but it's not nearly as painful as the constipation itself. You can become dependent on this after a while, so don't use it for longer than a week without going to your doctor about it.

3. If you are in excruciating pain and need relief NOW, or if Miralax or Senokot doesn't work, try Dulcolax suppositories. Yes, I said suppositories. They're lovely little bullet shaped things that you shove up your butt. Use lubricant when inserting one (baby oil or mineral oil work well), because otherwise it can be very painful. After that, lie completely still for 15-20 minutes and then go to the bathroom to expell the rest of the suppository. You should have a bowel movement shortly afterwards. This HURTS. A lot. But the pain ends quickly and your constipation will almost surely be relieved. These are highly habit forming, so only use them when you have to.

No matter what you take, drink plenty of water. All of these will suck up your water supply and you will need to stay hydrated. If none of these work (unlikely, but it's happened to me), either buy yourself an enema or go to the ER. Enemas are very hard to use by yourself and I've never done it at home, so I have no tips. I've been to the ER many times for impacted bowels and they can either give you an enema there or resort to drastic measures if need be. But that probably won't happen to you, so don't worry!

Long term, eat more fiber and drink more water. Buy some metamucil cookies and eat two of those a day. If you're still having trouble, go see your doctor.

I wish you all the best.

Personal experience.

Dude, if it's just a matter of time elapsing, try to eat loads of fibery foods, like lots of bananas and take lots of water. Sometimes it happens that your bowels are sluggish and/or what you ate over the last few days caused it.

If you think it is serious or if it is painful, take an over the counter laxative or softener. CVS or Walgreens pharmacists can tell you what kind of dosage you require. If that doesn't help, do seek a doctor's advise.

Yes, constipation can be dangerous, but rarely. the cells in your bowels need water and this is a sign that you're very dehydrated. plus the bowel muscles are constantly moving and churning and having hard masses in your bowels can scrape or rupture them in rare cases. One of the symptoms that you may see when you eventually empty your bowels is bleeding from the rectum.

Keep drinking water! and remember to take in enough dietary fiber in the future!