Log #11 (Discomfort)

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My doctor appointment with my Primary Care Doctor is tomorrow instead of today so nothing to report there.

I guess the thing I'll write about today is blunt and maybe even gross to some, but it's part of the ordeal and should be addressed. To be sure, it's very embarrassing.

One of the many side effects of pain medication is constipation. Many doctors will suggest that you take laxatives to help, but it doesn't help much. Eating a lot of fiber can make things a little better, but it doesn't alleviate the problem. There are supplements like Activa yogurt that help as well, but the fact remains that the constipation is a real problem associated with most pain medications.

I've had stomach problems since I was a child and stomach pain has been the most consistent problem I've had in life. I have not had appendicitis, but I've had Gall Stones and had my Gall Bladder removed.

Anyway, my point being, I don't have the best track record when it comes to my stomach or digestive system. Add to that, my nerve problems are affecting everything south of the belly button. So while the pain medication relieves my back and nerve pain somewhat, it adds stress to an already stressed system.

Taking oral laxatives makes my problem worse because it works from the top down. It is like turning the hose on full blast while keeping it kinked--nothing gets out and pressure builds up. Prune juice and grape juice have the same affect. The other kind of laxative is a rectal suppository. That sometimes works, but most of the time can't work it's way in deep enough to do much good.

The only thing I found that works consistently are enemas. That was one thing I never wanted to do and the idea of it seemed too gross, but my wife said it may be the only thing that would work and after feeling like my stomach would explode I reluctantly decided to give it a try.

It is a very uncomfortable process involving the use of water up the rectum to flush things out. Totally sick, but it works. The problem is that most times the enema has to be done several times before full relief is felt. Most of the time it initially feels worse than the constipation mainly because you're adding pressure to the pressure that's already there. Sometimes the water goes in, but doesn't want to come out and that is the worst feeling.

When I use this process to get relief it will generally take me more than an hour with so many trips to the bathroom that you wouldn't want to believe. I have had times when things were so backed up that it took three hours to feel relief. Today was one of those. Talk about wasting the day!! So much time lost just trying to go to the bathroom.

This may not be the method that most people with this problem use, but the cause of all of it is the same. When someone suffers from chronic pain they also suffer a lot of things associated with side effects from the medications they take. The side effects are worth it when compared to the pain felt otherwise, but they add to the big picture. Chronic pain in one area of the body causes the rest of the body to react. What may start as small and localized pain can grow until other areas begin to compensate and then have problems of their own.

From my experience and reading what other people like me have written, it seems like the original problem can set off a chain reaction. A lot of the time if you go into the doctor and get the cause of pain diagnosed early you'll be able to head off the burning fuse. It's when you have nagging pain and you keep hoping it gets better on it's own that you run into problems. Listen to your body! The pain is there for a reason and it's there for your protection. You ignore it and it yells louder until it eventually forgets what it's like to be quite.