I'm going to go into some detail about constipation so if you can't deal don't read. How can i take this drug and not get so constipated? The first time I took it, I was so blocked up I had to be manually disimpacted by a nurse in the dr.s office. The pressure from the build up kept me from being able to urinate and i had to leave my place of work in tears to rush to the dr. Luckily i was able to pee after a while. I was told to take strong laxative and finally was able to go. But it was a traumatic and painful bowel movement. I litteraly screamed when it came out. It was like delivering a baby.
So since then, I've had other pregnancies and have tried to combat nausea with zofran. This time I took the with prune juice and mirilax. But the side effect of the zofran still won and I got severely constipated until I took a strong laxative.
I have always had unusually strong reactions to medication, I suspect this is no different. But I'd be curious to know how you all were able to take this med and not get severely constipated.
I have generally decided that pregnancy nausea was better than rectal tearing and have not taken it. But now I face a new challenge. I am flying to my parents for the holidays. My sister is having complications with her pregnancy and she is in the hospital. They will deliver the baby at 32 weeks on the 20th where she will continue to stay with the baby in the NICU. So my mom has my sisters kids all day while the dad works (age 5 and 16 mo). During my stay, dad (my BIL) will go the the hospital an hour away for the delivery. So we will keep their kids both day and night. I wish they were easy kids, but they are not. They are difficult kids (but I won't go into that, only to say that problems in the home have created poor behavior and a baby with high needs). I cannot afford to be sick. I need to get in there and help take care of kids. I have to error on the side of not being nauseated. What can I do?
I took zofran for morning sickness. I also took stool softeners 2x day as well as suppositories or else i wouldn't go. Good luck.
can you start taking a stool softener before you start taking zofran, so that when when you do go it is not so impacted that it is painful? will they let you take a low dose laxative so that your situation does not become urgent?
You poor thing!!
Of course, check with your OB regarding how much but start taking a stool softener as often as she allows and some Metamucil (again, ask how much). Do this before you take any meds and get stopped up. Drink more water/fluids than you think you possibly can (add some lemon if you'd like).
Also, be conscious of what you eat. Don't eat anything that is binding. Including cheese.
Ask your doctor about adding some vitamin oils to your diet. Like flax seed. And keep drinking and eating prunes/prune juice, OJ, etc.
Good luck!!
Oh God, I've been there. It's hard because it's not fun to do what I'm going to suggest when you're constantly throwing up. But, I found that the stool softener didn't work for me...at all. But, prune juice did--I would say fairly massive quantities think 18 oz/day. Milk of Magnesia worked really well for finally helping me poop, but it left me feeling miserable. So if you get desperate Milk of Magnesia might work well, but it comes with it's own set of issues. I would say prune juice up. I decided that the horrors of constipation were better than throwing up nonstop, but frankly, it was a close second--I didn't think anything could be worse than that sick feeling!
I am not understanding if you take the Zofran to help with upset stomach due to pregnancy or just for stomach upset.
I take nausea medication daily. I will take it daily until I die. It is the only way I eat more then Banana's and Apple Sauce.
Zofran for me gives me headaches. Not so much the blockage(that comes from pain medication for me)
You can try to take a stool softener with the Zofran.
You could also ask about changing medications. I take Promethazine for mine. I can take it a bit more often. I dont get any awful side effects.
If you are expecting, they will not give you Promethazine. It is one they consider pretty unsafe, so it may not be an option.
The other thing you need to remember is to drink lots and lots of water.
Staying active will also help ensure that you keep things moving.
There are other options out there on what you take for nausea. I would discuss your options with your doctor.
Being backed up like this is kinda counter effective. You dont want to be sick constantly. But you can not be backed up all the same.
Good luck and I hope you figure out something that works!!
I don't recall being particularly constipated when I was on it. And I used it daily (actually every 4 hours during waking hours was my dosage schedule) for about 3 months. Gradually I was able to get by with using it less (though the nausea never went completely away), until around month 5 of the pregnancy I stopped using it altogether.
I don't recall doing anything in particular differently, either. I guess I just wasn't as affected by that one side effect issue as you are. Sorry you are having to deal with it. Neither choice sounds fun.
Generally, for constipation, I think upping your fiber intake and fluid intake a lot (but gradually) can help. I wouldn't go from zero to taking huge doses of fiber overnight.
Can they just give you something different? I had zofran as an anti nausea drug while undergoing chemo. and had a sever allergic reaction to it. constipation was not an issue I had severe diarrhea and throwing up. But I would ask for something different.
when i was taking it i ended up getting an enema. it helps a lot because i handnt gone in 2 weeks!.. you can try supossitories every other day to help you go along with a stool softener. oh castor oil may help just dont plan on leaving the house anything soon!!! no joke i took it trying to jump start labor and then went for a walk...BAD IDEA!!! i was running home afraid to cough sneeze or laugh!
as for the kids set the rules and dont back off. if they are with you then they need to obey you.
I am 7 months pregnant and STILL on Zofran and I have had terrible constipation. The same story as you - by the time I finally went it was unbearable and I now have ongoing problems down there. My suggestions:
Drink LOTS of water as others have suggested. Keep filling your glass all day long and do not stop drinking.
Metamucil didn't work for me. It bulks up your stools so for me, it felt like it was making things worse.
I take 1-2 Colaxyl (maybe in America it is called Colace?) per day, every day.
I take the Colaxyl with pear juice (instead of prune juice, cannot stomach the prune juice!)
I changed to high fibre bread and ceral and I started taking probiotics every day.
It took awhile but things seem to be under control now, other than the damage that was already done! Now I just have to pray I don't have to take an iron supplement to help my anemia or I'm back to sqaure one!
Been there!
I could not decide if the nausea was worse or the constipation PAIN.
I took this and the constipation was so bad, I was screaming in the bathroom. This happened a few times! It was WORSE than having a baby. And bloody.
You have to take 2 Colace daily, and maybe Metamucil, and TON of liquid. But depending on you, it might not be enough. But it helps. And you don't force yourself to go if you don't really have to.
Note the Zofran didn't do anything for nausea for me (it was severe) but it did keep me from throwing up, but I didn't throw up much anyway to begin with. I could not handle more than 1 Zofran in 24 hours, so I took it the time I needed it most.
I suggest that you need to aggressively treat the constipation. Take Miralax daily or more often if allowed. Drink 2-3 quarts of water daily, take Metamucil twice daily. And start this before you start the Zofran. Then continue to do this even if you have a bowel movement. Do not wait until you're compacted. Give yourself an enema if you haven't had a bm in a couple of days. You can buy OTC enemas which are a bottle of special fluid that you insert and then hold it for as long as you can. Lay on your left side on the floor on a towel in the bathroom to do it. You do not have to have a medical person deal with this if you take care of yourself along the way.
BTW: Milk of Magnesia always worked for our family but I don't know if you can take that while pregnant. Take it every day. Don't wait until you're in pain.
Drink a TON of water, be sure to walk a lot, and take 2 to 3 Colace with EACH dose of Zofran.
My doctor prescribed Zofran for me to try when I had morning sickness with my daughter. It didn't help my nausea at all. What helped the most was the trans/scop patch. It is a patch to wear behind your ear for three days. It is mostly used for people that have severe motion sickness or patients going through chemo. This may help your problem since you aren't ingesting it? I had terrible constipation from the painkillers (hydrocodone, vicodin, they were horrible! I don't see how people can get addicted if they deal with that kind of constipation as a side effect!) after my daughter was born. I just made sure to eat lots of apples, prunes and other fruits, vegetables and grains with a lot of fiber. I also drank a lot of water because if you aren't drinking enough fluids to keep the fiber moving along it is a moot point!
Good luck!
A.
Ask your doctor to prescribe you Lactulose for constipation. It works very well and is safe. I hope you feel better. Constipation sucks!
