Leg Cramps and Constipation Tips ‘n Tricks
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Thanks everyone. I’m getting some lactulose and prunes today. Also, when we say to drink plenty of fluids, were talking about water correct?
Dear Lallo,
My daughter, Lauren, takes two stool softeners every night before bed and that seems to work for her. She drinks a lot of liquids during the day as well. When she first started on the pain meds she was really constipated. Nothing seemed to work. We tried miralax, senekot, a homemade concoction of bran buds, applesauce, and prune juice, milk of magnesia. You name it, we’ve tried it. Except for pear juice. Hadn’t heard of that one. Her doctor is always pushing her to take miralax, but since she is staying regular now stool softeners do the trick. Also, once in awhile she might use a glycerin suppository. That works really fast. Good luck.
-Pam
Hi Lallo,
My dad used to take Lactulose first thing in the morning and at night also and that worked well for him. He also tried Movicol at first but that didn’t work too well, the Lactulose worked much better. Another option could be prunes and again, these are something that my dad ate regularly and he enjoyed them too.
My best wishes to you and your dad,
Gavin
Lallo….constipation is one of our more discussed issues on this site. The pear juice worked for Tom and your Dad may also see some results.
Constipation is one of our more frequently discussed issues on this site. Have you tried stool softeners 1/2 hour before each meal, three times per day? Once bowel movement has been achieved you may cut back to once per day making sure for your Dad to have a bowel movement at least once every three days. Also, moving around post meal intake will also stimulate the digestive tract. In fact, people have a tendency to become very inactive when in fact it is important to have some sort of light exercise in their daily routine. Of course you would want to confirm with the physician all information given on this site. It also may be helpful to peruse some of our previous postings by using the google search function, top right of page. Simply enter “constipation” or “bowel movement.” As always I am hoping for others to chime in also and to share some of their thoughts with us.
All my best wishes,
MarionHas anyone tried the pear juice trick and did it work? Anyone other suggestions? My dad is getting constipation pretty bad.
Hi Erica,
For all I know stage 2, especially since the cancer hasn’t spread, isn’t that bad! So don’t loose hope. My Mum is stage 4 and she’s lost a lot of weight because of chemo too and the doctor suggested she drinks this thing called nutridrink – it also works for my friend’s son with Cystic Fibrosis, so I daresay if its save enough to give it to a two year old is save for your Mum as well.
Margaret, thank you for the leg cramps tips will try them out with my Mum.
All the best to you and your families,
Katethanks for the trick with Pear juice. My mom has not been able 2 go 2 the bathroom for days and i am going to try the pear juice. do you’ll have any advice to help with someone who has no appetite and don’t want to eat much (my mom has finished up her chemo and stuff but she is in such bad health now; she is losing wt. crazy like over 60lbs. and is so worn out)B-4 my mom was diagnosed with cancer, she was so active, has been a nurse for over 30 years. she is only 52 and i feel as im losing my Mom, best friend, and Hero.. we are so close i now don’t want 2 leave her side, i don’t want 2 work , or nothing its consuming my life with fear. We was told her is stage 2 and has not spread. therefore, this is very confusing? Please i will take any advice i can get!!!
My friends and I make a puree of pear, apricot and prunes for our babies for constipation and they always work a treat!
My dad still suffers the other way with malabsorption and diarrhea, and takes vast quantites of creon now.
Hi Margaret,
Many thanks for sharing Tom’s experiences with these issues, I know that they will be helpful to many others. As to my dads experiences with constipation, he used Lactulose and this worked well for him. He also tried Movicol but that did not work as well. And he also like to have prunes with his breakfast each day.
My best to you and Tom,
Gavin
Hi Margaret:
Me chiming in on this one serves really no purpose but to make me feel like at last!! I have a formerly-useless nugget of information that I can offload. I have no idea why I can remember this one, but pear juice (and apple juice) work because of the high sugar concentration. When you digest it, the sugar in the juice cause your intestines to draw and absorb water from your system, thereby relieving constipation. Many thanks to my son’s pediatrician for giving me the low-down on this 4 years ago when he was a wee baby.
All:
Just thought I’d post this as these are things that help my husband Tom for Leg Cramps and Constipation.
Severe Leg Cramps:
If your loved one who has CC experiences severe leg cramps this may be of help.
1) Place dryer sheets under the bottom sheet where the calves of the legs would be when sleeping. About 8 – 10 of them laid out, then place the bottom sheet over them. Don’t know why, but it works to eliminate them. Tom used to experience them about every 3 days, now after using the dryer sheets he only has them maybe 1x a month. Change the dryer sheets each time you change out the bed linens or at least every week.
2) When / if experiencing those pain wrenching leg cramps, the CC patient is usually in such pain that you can’t even touch the leg to try to massage the cramp out, so what we use are hot/wet towels. I run hot water over towels (as hot as my hands can stand) then wring them out, place each one in a plastic bad, then wrap the affected leg with the plastic covered towel, (being careful not to burn the patient) You may have to place a thinner dry towel over the leg first. The keep replacing the hot towels until the cramp subsides. (Generally within 5 – 10 minutes) It’s a lot of running back and forth from the patient to the sink, but IT WORKS. I have been doing this for Tom for the past year, and these are the ONLY things that we have found that work for his severe leg cramps! (Don’t laugh, try them both)
Constipation:
Many CC patients suffer from constipation, and moreso if they are on painkillers!
Tom has tried colace, milk of magnesia, miralax….etc. and NONE of them were effective!
I then remember that one of my grandchildren suffered from severe constipation as a very young child and one of the things we gave her to ‘help her go’ was pear juice!
So off to the store goes I and the search for pear juice begins….well you can’t find it in the regular juice section of the store, so go to the baby section, where they have diapers, baby food, etc. And you WILL find PEAR JUICE.
Have your constipated CC patient drink one 4 – 8 oz glass of pear juice every day and like clockwork, they WILL be able to go to the bathroom! Don’t know why it works, or how it works, but it does! Tom has been constipation free for the past two weeks since he started drinking pear juice (before that he suffered terribly from constipation with nothing relieving it) This also works for young children all the way to adults/seniors. For young children, be careful not to give them too much (no more then 3 – 4 ozs daily) or you will have the opposite of constipation!
Hope these tips ‘n tricks help others out there!
Margaret
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