Does constipation ever get better? ;(

[Mslg]

Currently 11 weeks and been having bad constipation really badly on and off. This weekend seems to be particularly bad, haven't had a bowel movement in 3 days and I'm so bloated and uncomfortable. I know the next time I go, which will be god knows when, I'll end up with fissures 😫

Does this last all the way through pregnancy? Does it ease off after the first trimester? At this point for me, it's almost as bad as the nausea

It's hormonal. Progesterone is like a muscle relaxant and makes the gut sluggish.

Movicol (or Laxido, same thing) is available on prescription and is an absolute life saver. Ask your GP.

For those asking about fissures (ow!) Movicol is the answer here too - you need stool softeners so the fissure has a chance to heal.

Yep - progesterone slows down the peristalsis, which is the waves of contractions that move your food through the gut. When it gets to the colon, the water is reabsorbed, and as the gut is moving slowly, it dries out the poo, which gets harder and moves more slowly to the rectum and slows down the movement of the gut. A catch 22.

Movicol holds on to the water. Glycerin suppositories stop the difficult hard stuff damaging the rectum.

Drink plenty, eat plenty fruit and veg and have a good breakfast, then go to the loo afterwards to encourage things.

A spoon of coconut oil- melted, cooled and lashed back like a shot- guaranteed to keep you regular. I do this every day and havent had a single day of constipation all pregnancy. It's also very very good brain food for the baby

eating a couple of slices of this everyday will sort you out (promise) - plus it is lovely:

www.mynewroots.org/site/2013/02/the-life-changing-loaf-of-bread/

I'm also told reflexology and osteopathy can help get things going too.... Definitely worth a try!

Coffee.
Homemade apple sauce.
Lentil and veg soup.
Porridge.

Obv only one coffee as you're pregnant.

Dehydration has been the biggest cause of this for me I think, I read that I should be aiming for 2-3 liters of water per day... when I started tracking my intake, I was nowhere near. Also started tracking my fiber intake and again was way short of the recommended 28-35g per day. To complete the trifecta, a 20-minute walk at some point during the day seems to help too. The first day I managed all three (Wednesday, my 6w mark), I got my first full night's sleep after nearly a week of waking up nightly for painful movements. Apparently it's best to try for a range of fiber sources; I've been mixing All Bran, muesli, oat bran and desiccated coconut for breakfast, dried apricots and fresh bananas for snacking, brown rice and skin-on potatoes with meals, with as much veg as I can stomach.

Have a bowl of all bran each day. It works