Constipation!

[Sunflowerx]

Does anyone have any tips for helping with constipation in early pregnancy? I'm 6 weeks today and maybe a bit tmi but I can't remember when I last went to the toilet!

Is this a serious question? Er water? High fibre food? Over the counter medicines if none of the above work?

Yep! I drink around 2 litres of water a day and have a lot of fibre rich foods.

Thanks for the not so helpful tone in your reply though!

Well then speak to a pharmacist, it really isn’t rocket science

I swore by prunes in pregnancy, I used to make a prune puree as hate prunes and could only stomach it in liquid form, but 5/6 before bed every night and Weetabix in the morning really helped me.

@PCar20 I'll be sure to come to you if I have any other pregnancy related questions!

@annlee3817 ooo I never thought of prunes! I may have to try those and see if they help at all! Thank you

Prunes, 3 with every meal.

Figs are good too, but they set off my gag reflex lol

Prune juice. Drink a glass, go for a walk, rush home for the toilet. Worked every time when I was constipated in pregnancy.

@Pcar20 no need to be so unkind. It's always useful to hear other people's experiences or hints and tips before defaulting to a pharmacy. What is this forum for if not that?

OP like you I tried drinking gallons of water a day, fresh orange, higher fibre in my diet - but there are only so many prunes and baked beans that one can stomach, especially in early pregnancy!

I have a glass of fybogel every day, and got some lactulose from the pharmacy. 15ml after breakfast and dinner. It's really gentle and keeps me 'regular' (which is currently every three days but better than it was before!)
Anyway, I was mad at myself for waiting so long to try it, so would highly recommend.

Seriously don’t get the point in people being rude to you! Ignore OP!

I had a real problem with this in both my pregnancies, and in both cases I absolutely HATED the feeling of being backed up even after 2-3 days it made me feel so sick. I tried everything and I found a combination of the following helps me:

• A large bowl of fruit and fibre every day
• Snack on dried apricots
• if it got to day 3 of still nothing I had a small black coffee and that never failed! Limited caffeine the rest of the time.

In my experience water alone did not do the trick. Good luck!

No idea why that user is being so rude. Seems a very legitimate question to me!

In previous pregnancies I really struggled with painful constipation which I realised was being caused by the pregnancy multivitamin. I switched to just taking separate vitamins D & C, calcium and a gentle iron tablet and that solved the issue.

Oh hun I remember the feeling!
Gets better in the second tri but I'm not 33 weeks and can hand on heart not remember at all the last time I had a poo 😂😂 😩
Speak to the pharmacy & get some lactolose x

Blimey, what a stinking first response to a perfectly reasonable question!

As others have said, water and fibre definitely. Prunes, figs, etc. I also noticed that adding soups to my diet helped, especially with cabbage added! Drinking the water the cabbage is boiled in was good, too. Plenty of salt and pepper. 😂

I'm 36 weeks now and had an episode of this the other week. Nothing at all was working, and it was hellish. My midwife suggested a glycerine suppository, and that certainly did the trick! I didn't try it in the first trimester so maybe check with midwife/GP first, but they really do help if you're stuck.

Good luck, OP. It's such a horrible side effect - I'd have honestly chosen the nausea if I had the choice between the two, which is saying something as that was bloody awful too!

It’s sth that you might have to deal with the entire pregnancy. Prune juice works wonder do you can have daily but May be half a glass and see how you feel. Otherwise fibogel. I only ever use prune juice though that was enough.

Fybogel or some other high fibre drink really help. Staying well hydrated and plenty of fruit/veg.

Thanks so much for all the helpful responses!

This is my first pregnancy so I don't have a clue what I'm doing so really do appreciate the tips :) x

Fybogel and lactulose. Also found having some dates after lunch seems to help. I know how you feel, it can be really uncomfortable. If you're finding nothing works please speak to you pharmacist or doctor as they may be able to help,and you don't want to be uncomfortable.

Porridge and lots of water. You need soluble fibre as well as insoluble it sounds like your only having insoluble

I struggled so much with this at the start, even lactulose didn't help and gave me terrible stomach cramps. Tried everything else too, more fruit, prune juices. Nothing worked...

I've been prescribed laxido from my gp and I have 2 sachets a day and I'm more regular now then I ever have been in my life! I generally struggle without all the pesky hormones adding to it.

Hope you get sorted it's really horrible.

@PCar20 you’re a twat.

@Sunflowerx some great tips here, I hope they help.

Hi,
I was a bit constipated at 9 weeks. I started having bran flakes with chopped up grapes on top and haven’t had any issues since. If it’s ongoing for you after increasing fibre I believe fybogel is fine to take but I would ask a pharmacist’s advice. X

@GrapefruitGin I'm trying to cut down on my swearing ready to be around a baby all the time so thank you for saying how I feel hahaha

Oh... I added in yakult too and that has helped calm my guts.

My advice is to get stocked up on haemorrhoid cream in advance.

You’ll probably face the delightful experience later on in pregnancy, especially if you’re constipated. I wish I’d had some ready instead of letting it get worse while I got round to buying some.