Having issues!!

Ahh. So annoying! I have been having issues with having bowel movements. Another issue I'm dealing with is feeling really full and bloated when I haven't eaten in a long time. I usually drink a protein shake for breakfast and I'll eat something around 12 or so.  It's always something healthy and proportionate to my stomach. I don't eat a lot at each sitting bc I usually measure it out. But a few hours after I eat I feel so stuffed and bloated that's most of the time I have to force myself to eat somethin be for dinner bc I know that my stomach isn't full bc I haven't eaten in hours. Like I get this crazy feeling that if I'm forcing myself to eat that I'm going to stretch my pouch. So idk if that links to the constipation or what the deal is. My dr just told me to do some enema and start taking stool softener which I did yesterday but I. Still feeling the bloating today and I've only eaten a little egg whites for breakfasts and some chilli for lunch. Any advice? Also, I'm 5 months out.

THis answer is cross posted in a post from December 3...my first question is are you getting veggies and fruits in your diet and enough fiber and enough water?  Then there is this:

THey told me that after my surgery I would change bowel habits...it didn't...I still take miralax 3 times a day. there is also a prescription called Linzess that works really well..it's miralax amped....that i take a half hour before breakfast. I still also take MOM, and flax, and both kinds of suppositories, and when I STILL can't go, i take senna tea. and enemas. Big fun. I would say see how your body does, cause it might change, but if you don't notice a change, check with your GI doc and go for it...mine is cause of some other meds i have to still take, and took for years, with laxatives, and my lower colon is shutting down, so I am stuck. My GI doc also from time to time orders Go Lighty for me...my pharmacist told me to split the powder in half and use half at a time, and save the other half for another "experience" since my pouch is so small. It was good advice, my doc is impressed, and it works for me. Not a big fan of Mag Citrate as a post op....too much dumping.  I had to do a barium swallow and swallow some effervescent stuff to see if there was some upper GI stuff going on and I dumped on the barium.  Not Fun.  Won't be doing that test again, i don't care how bad they need it. But for regular old average daily constipation, you should be fine on the miralax. My GI doc also suggested that when it's that time of day, to lean all the way forward on the potty, as it opens up the lower bowel, and gravity is on your side...also aloe vera juice, one oz daily, can be in health food stores, (wellese makes an orange flavor)...and probiotics....(siggis yogurt has NO sugar)...stay away from bananas, I use unsweetened almond milk, or  low fat goat milk, (which I diluted a but right after my operation cause I was a little worried about the fat....i never dumped on that and it works for me... not cow milk, as that can cause constipation as most parts don't digest well (non fat works better when I have to use it, or whole cow milk)... I also doubled my water because I tend toward dehydration.Because miralx works by pulling so much water from the rest of the body into the colon in order to permit a BM, it can be tricky to stay hydrated on  the maximum dose of miralax....at one point I had to get a RX for potassium tabs in order to help me keep enough water in the rest of my body, and had a little trip or two to urgent care the day after my BM to get a bag of IV fluid....not fun and a pain in the neck..... so I aim for 120 oz not counting my shake  and definitely get at least 20 min of daily aerobic exercise..one."trick" is learned is not to wait, if it even slightly feels like I have to go, go....and try to go at the same time in the am..my doc said if it's been longer than ten days I have to have an x ray to check for impaction and that could take a whole other forum to get into...don't let it get that long, take the miralax... and a little prune juice (dilute at first) or prunes, and a little fiber one cereal, and benefiber. (but don't take too much fiber, and start slow on the benefiber and work up to the full dose, because that can actually cause constipation by causing the stools to bulk up too fast) If you are at your maximum dose of fiber and double on your water, and exercise and miralax (max dose is one cap 4x day)  and still can't go call your doc.... .sorry for the TMI....I have become the lower bowel princess....one thing that happened as I got to my goal weight, is that my GI doc said that it should be changing for me....since it hasn't he has run more tests., amazing how much doctors notice weight loss......once I stalled on my weight loss, and hadn't gone for a couple days, did a clean out, and lost three pounds...it was a GREAT pick me up.....LOL....,another thing I did somewhere along the way is looked at the side effects of ALL of my meds, and worked with my docs to change as many of them that caused constipation as i could. Also check with your NUT regarding what kind of iron and how much iron to take as a post op...some kinds are better that way than others. I have anemia and have to take it daily, but i skip it the nights I do the go lightly, etc...but sometimes you might not need to do that, depends on how close  you are to menopause and all kinds of stuff. The cholesterol med I take actually binds the cholesterol to itself, and dumps it into the colon,  as fatty deposits, which is a big contributor to constipation....this may stop as you reach weigh loss...mine is familial high cholesterol...I have really bad genes....so I get to keep taking the medication..stay hydrated....especially for those of us with this difficulty, it can get pretty uncomfortable and hard to catch up...

I put the miralax and the benefiber in my shake....didn't know it was there....

.good luck with it....

I had issues prior to surgery as well so it was no surprise to me that once I started eating protein protein protein that I would have issues. I take MoM daily to try and stay regular. If I haven't gone in 2 days I take a dose every hour until I go. Extreme, maybe but really not too different than preop for me.

I know I have to drink about 100 oz of water a day in order to keep things working right. I also take 3 non stimulant stool softeners at night and I add benafiber to all my drinks during the day. That will help with the BM issues. But as far the full feeling have they checked you for a stricture? Liquids shouldnt make you feel full for hours. At least that is what I am told by my doctor.