Excess fat causing constipation?

I have the same problem.  And while I'm not trying to air out all my crap (pun intended), I've dealt with full on fecal impactions before that were pure misery to deal with (ie, glycerin enemas, and latex gloves with ky, the whole 9.  Just misery.)   I still have issues with constipation and I'm lucky to poop 4x a week.

I asked my surgeon about this yesterday and he said that's really not normal since our guts are short-circuited and that his guess was that it was a sluggish colon which leads to the stool backing up in the intestines.  He recommended glycerin or dulcolax suppositories, which I refuse to do.  No way in hell am I going to be a slave to the bathroom with DS poops.  He said to make sure to eat throughout the day, every 2 hours or so, make sure to get enough fiber and fat.  I've been taking colace before bed a few times a week and it seems to help. 

When I had my partial small bowel obstruction a few weeks ago, I was on liquids for a week.  The liquid diet, along with a few milk of mag doses and mineral oil, really helped things move on out.  Mineral oil is harmless, so maybe it's worth a shot?

I find that lean proteins are the biggest offenders.  They seem to just get stuck without any fat to help move it along.  I also find that when I eat a lot of 2% or full fat Greek yogurt, my bowels function just fine.

I personally wonder if some IBS meds like hyoscyamine wouldn't maybe help things, but I'm no doc.

I suppose my reply was of no help at all, but I just wanted to sympathize.  I'm really curious what your GI doc says on Tuesday.

I used to get pencil thins that were super hard to get out... felt constipated but the urgency of diarreah.. this only happened when I had too much sugar or carbs early out.  Now that you are further out and can eat more carbs maybe it is the cause of some of it, some of the time. There is prob other things going on too.

I recently had to get on nystatin ( i have to be on it for several months and probably off an on for life) because yeast overgrowth in my system (I am allergic t yeast, have been on too many antibiotics, repeated doses of steroids for repeat sinus infections).

One of the symptoms is chronich constipation.  I inlcuded a link and copied th list of all the symptoms of yeast (candida) overgrowth in the digestive tract and body (it especially messes with the brain)

All my seemingly unrelated symptoms (including hearing loss) were on the list.

Yeast overgrowth is a very common occurance that is misdiagnosed. My constipation has gotten better and I can hear much better now. I had chronic ear pain. I can tell when I have missed a dose as my hearing gets worse and the pain returns.

Just throwing it out there and if it isn't the culprit, it might help someone who has this problem.

Good luck with the gastro. I know you have been struggling with this for awhile. I honestly think (just from researching yeast stuff) it may be part of the problem.  Being diagnosed with this issue is making a huge difference in my life in just a short time.

Nina

edited to add: food dyes and any sweetener also feed the yeast. i had to cut out all the sugar free coolaid. :(  There's alot more I could say but being DSers, if anyone thinks they have this problem I KNOW they will research it to death like I did. It was a big lightbulb AHA moment for me.

http://www.womentowomen.com/digestionandgihealth/candida.aspx 

What is systemic yeast (Candida)?

Candida albicans is a fungal organism that is present in everyone’s intestinal tract. It is normally kept under control by the immune system and by beneficial intestinal bacteria.

This balance is upset when these bacteria are destroyed (typically by antibiotics), when our immune function is impaired (typically due to stress or illness), or when we develop environmental or food sensitivities.

Once that balance is upset, Candida begins to proliferate and invade and colonize our body tissues. It most commonly appears as a vaginal yeast infection or as oral thrush. But Candida albicans can also spread inside the body and become a systemic problem.

How does Candida albicans affect the body?

When Candida proliferates, it changes from its simple, relatively harmless form to an invasive form, with long root-like structures that penetrate the intestinal lining. Penetration can break down the boundary between the intestinal tract and the circulatory system. This may allow introduction into the bloodstream of many substances which may be systemic allergens, poisons, or irritants. Partially digested proteins may enter the blood through the openings created by Candida (called leaky gut syndrome), which explains why individuals with Candida also often display a variety of food and environmental allergies.

What are some of the symptoms of Candida yeast infections?

While many of these symptoms may be caused by conditions other than candidiasis, a woman suffering from systemic yeast will typically experience a number of the following symptoms:

Generalized: Fatigue, lethargy, migraine headaches, weakness, dizziness, sensory disturbances, hypoglycemia, muscle pain, respiratory problems, chemical sensitivities.

Gastrointestinal: Oral thrush, diarrhea, constipation, rectal itching, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), flatulence, food sensitivities.

Genitourinary: Yeast vaginitis, menstrual and premenstrual problems, bladder inflammation, chronic urinary tract infections (UTI’s), bladder inflammation, cystitis, PMS.

Dermatological: Eczema, acne, hives.

Mental and emotional: Confusion, irritability, memory loss, inability to concentrate, depression, insomnia, learning disability, short attention span.

Autoimmune: Multiple sclerosis, arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, myasthenia gravis, scleroderma, hemolytic anemia, sarcoidosis, thrombocytopenic purpura. <--this is tiny red dots all over your skin (i have this too).

---- note: some other symptoms listed on other sites include frequent urge to urinate and urgency to urinate.  I had these problems way back when and even posted on here about that many months ago.

 

How did you get diagnosed?

Went to my ENT (ear, nose and throat specialist) because I could not shake a sinus infection after 3 rounds of antibiotics.  I hadn't been since 2005 because I had moved away from that city and was just stubborn.  I was so desprate to get in with an ENT because the ear pain was excrutiating and i had been wanting to get a hearing test because my hearing was getting really bad that i called my old ENT.

I had been tested for allergies back in 2004/2005 and was allergic to 28 out of 32 environmental allergies and many foods (including chicken, corn, potatoes). I am allergic to yeast too but I never paid any attention to all that because I am allergic to everything. I just learned  to "live" with it. Well way back then, he put me on nystatin for a month saying I had the yeast overgrowth goin on. I got better and lived life.

When my ENT heard all my complaints, and my hearing test came back normal he knew it was yeast again.  It wasn't til he said that and gave me the prescription did I remember how it had helped me years before. 

He told me take it and if i didn't feel better in a few days to take a strong antibiotic. I never had to take it. I felt better in a couple days.  I have to do nasal sprays, allergy meds ( i won't do allergy shots anymore) and take the nystatin 2x daily.  I did feel a bit worse for a bit as the yeast started dying.. all the toxins enter the bloodstream. 

I went home and researched and realized I had at least (off the top of my head) 10 symptoms including hearing loss, consipation, inaility to concentrate, irritability, memory loss, frequent urination, urgency to urinate, joint pain, arthritis, fatigue (this is a biggie for some), lethargy, headaches (which i had never been prone to in the past), alot of dizziness (that i thought was low blood pressure or part of my anemia), hypoglycemic episodes (which i posted about), chronic UTI's, mystery hives that came and went and EVERYTHING just about, under the mental and emotional areas - had a hard time doing my job at times because of the inability to concentrate.

Yeast is a big deal  messes with the brain, an is very hard on the immune system. People with Fibromyalgia and Chronich Fatigue syndrome do well once yeast is eliminated.  

I would go to your family doc (if they are good and listen to you).  One of the symptoms is recurring sinus infections.. that is how some people end up figuring it out because alot of ENT's are also allergists.

Sorry so long winded but its kinda like when I discovered all the research on the DS. Life-changing for me.  

Have you had some of the other symptoms??

 

 

I had some intermittent ear pain last year, but it seems to have resolved.

A lot of the symptoms seem pretty generic, can't really say I have all of them.  I am definitely not suffering from any yeast infections in other areas of my body.  Even with excess skin, I got infections more when I was heavy.  I do have a pretty much sugar-free diet though.

Definitely no headaches.  I have had maybe 2-3 headaches in the last 2 years.  No sinus problems.  Been pretty healthy as far as colds go.

Some fatigue on and off, some muscle aches and joint pain.  Not too bad, but I work out, and it seems to be the cause of the pain when I get it.  No UTIs or hives.

I did have a time post op where I kinda felt like my mental faculties were a little wonky.  I felt like I was stuttering or misspelling words more often.   I feel a lot better though.  I'm not really having an "ah-ha" moment reading the symptoms, KWIM?

I DO, however, feel this is somehow or somewhat bacteria/microorganism related to some degree.  I have had improvement on various antibiotics and probiotics.  Sometimes the improvement is temporary or comes with its own side effects, but I can't ignore that there have definitely been changes when altering those two things.  Last year I could have SWORN it was bacterial overgrowth related.  I'd take a dose of flagyl and be on the toilet within 30 minutes emptying myself.  I can't lie, it felt amazing.

Gawd, emptying my bowels daily, that'd be a dream.  If I can get there, I imagine I'd be a much more pleasant gal to be around.  LOL

Thanks for the perspective!  I'm always open to ideas.

Good to hear not an AHA moment. Yes, alot of the symptoms are generic which is why people don't realize - if they do have the overgrowth - that some or most of the symptoms are related. I never really got yeast infections either. 

Something you can mention to the gastro since yeast can be a cause of leaky gut syndrome (which is right up their alley).

Hope the visit is enlightening and that you and your stubborn bowels are helped soon. constipation is a miserable thing to live with. If I don't drink a hot 1/2 cup of coffee when i first wake up I won't poop. when it gets to day 3 I am eating anything and everything I think will get things goin again.. so i feel your pain! 

edited to add: my ear pain has always been intermittent , sometimes with nothing happening for months and months- with no explanation why.   

For awhile, the coffee thing was totally helping me.  There was like 3 weeks of bliss there.  Get up, have 1-2 cups of coffee...empty out, daily.  Happened so predictably.  Then it stopped.  Coffee couldn't get it going again.

Switched to heavy cream for my creamer...ahh, 2 more weeks of bliss.  Stopped working.  Switched to drinking like 48 ounces of straight up water every morning.  Just chugging it down!  2 weeks of bliss...stopped working.

Tried flagyl...3 more good weeks, stopped working.  Switched to probiotic, another 2-3 good weeks, stopped working.

Had luck with a combo of antibiotic/probiotic.

Then, I always seem to have luck when I go several hours without eating.  I get nauseated and somehow it triggers a bowel movement, I empty out, and then end up with a voracious appetite.  It's been a pretty awful cycle.  Some days just purposely starving myself so I can get nauseated enough to stimulate a bowel movement so I can get through the day without feeling so backed up with stool.

"thrombocytopenic purpura. <--this is tiny red dots all over your skin (i have this too)."

Like little bright red dots.. in the middle of no where.. slightly raised?? But tiny????

yes. that's what mine look like.

This sounds similar to something I've gone a few rounds with. I even had scans to see if there was a partial block (had a total blockage early on, but this is totally different). I'm still not positive there may not be a narrow area causing occasional problems, and I don't really have 100% trust in any doctor I've had to diagnose accurately.

I think it's more like sluggish intestines too, but I can't seem to correlate it to anything. I DO still have my gallbladder, and it happens to get better if I don't eat for a few days (other than apple and protein drink) but I'd rather figure out what's going on. I hope you get it figured out.