Safe to have an enema?

Yesterday afternoon I went to the movies with a friend, I was feeling fine one minute then as soon as I sat down I got the worst constipation pains ever, my friend thought I was in labour lol. Anyway it has settled down a little but I am still VERY uncomfortable to the point where I can hardly walk at times. DH suggested he go and get an enema from the chemist for me - is this safe? (I'm about 38 weeks). I've got an appointment with my Ob tomorrow but I really don't think I can wait that long, I am that uncomfortable...

short answer yes, but you will need to go to the chemist & let them know how far along you are & they will give you some that are ok or pregnancy. I had to have them with DD because I was constipated the whole PG & even had to use one during labour before I went to the hospital. I cant remember what brand they gave me but the also gave me a liquid in a massive bottle to keep taking for the next few days afterwards to keep it moving

Just wondering how you got on? Did the enema work? Does anyone know how often it is safe to use them, and if you can after a c-section?

I'm having major constipation issues and starting to freak out about how painful it's going to be trying to poo after a c-section. Sorry if TMI! I've been on a high-fibre diet for months, swimming heaps, drinking loads of water and more recently taking Lactulose daily and still no relief! I've tried every remedy known to man and I'm getting desperate.

It worked great for me - I've since started having physillium husk on my cereal and mixed in with a couple of glasses of water or juice a day and that seems to have helped to get things moving.
I had a c/section last time, they gave me metamucal to drink in the hospital after delivery - that wasn't doing much though so they were talking about giving me a depositary (sp?) - I think just talking about one scared my bowels into working because I didn't have any trouble after that!

Hi Boo, so glad you decided to do the enema, Some people say they are not safe but I intend to do one if need be, just one of two squirts is generally enough to get things moving without having to keep going back for a full enema iykwim :D

Using a standard water based enema is not going to help much and if anything can cause significantly more discomfort - you are better off using something like a Microlax enema which also contains a softener.

Because abdominal surgery does slow the bowel, Lactulose is usually given as a prophylaxis post surgery. However, sometimes an enema becomes necessary if oral softeners are not working because an enema is preferable to straining.

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Using a standard water based enema is not going to help much and if anything can cause significantly more discomfort - you are better off using something like a Microlax enema which also contains a softener.

Because abdominal surgery does slow the bowel, Lactulose is usually given as a prophylaxis post surgery. However, sometimes an enema becomes necessary if oral softeners are not working because an enema is preferable to straining.

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Thats what they gave me, Microlax

Glycerine suppositories will help soften as well, not sure if they're safe in pregnancy though...

Thanks so much for all the comments. It's not really something that many people chat about during general conversation!

Daydream - how often would you have used them, and does it matter? Did you get tummy cramps etc after using them? And did you need to stay at home for a while after using one, or are they pretty much instant? Sorry for all the questions! I just don't know of anyone that has had such terrible constipation in pregnancy before (or anyone that's admitted it!).

I'm not at all confident that the Lactulose will help me after surgery as it's not working for me now so I want to try and have taken some action just before the c-section so there's not already a big problem before I even start. Hope that makes sense!

Boo - I think what they were going to give you might have been a suppository?? Does anyone know that difference between that and an enema?

An enema is in a liquid or gel suspension, a suppository is a solid waxy "bullet" shaped form of the drug. From my experience (nursing), the longer you can hold an enema in, the more effective it'll be. Supps tend to work within 15-30 mins (in my field anyway!).

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Daydream - how often would you have used them, and does it matter? Did you get tummy cramps etc after using them? And did you need to stay at home for a while after using one, or are they pretty much instant? Sorry for all the questions! I just don't know of anyone that has had such terrible constipation in pregnancy before (or anyone that's admitted it!).

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**WARNING** Could be TMI **

Enema worked within 30 mins & I was in the shower at home before we went to hospy, didnt get any tummy cramps from those. Used 2 in the last month of PG, one before I went to hospy & 2 within the month after I got home.
Suppositories didnt work at all for me. I was also give Lactulose to use for the entire last month of PG (because the constipation was really bad the entire pg I was only going once every 2-3 weeks, I have to add that for me regular was once a week). 10 Days after I left hospy I still hadnt "gone" & I rang the midwives at the hospy & they told me to take the lactulose for 3-5 days & use an enema or a suppository, and that if it happened again the next time to do that again, and I have been ok ever since & now find that I go every 1-3 days. The midwife also suggested to have a small bowl of sultana bran before bed if it seems to be slowing down & that seems to help too

Boo I forgot to mention the other day when I posted about the physillium husk. I know you said you are having it with water which is a great thing but are you just putting it straight onto your cereal? The reason I ask is because it soaks up the moisture/water (as you will find when you mix it in with water) so maybe soak a couple of teaspoons in water over night and in the morning it will be like a jelly and you can put that on your cereal. People who have IBS use un-soaked physillium husk so that it takes up some of the moisture in their bowel to relieve their symptoms so for being blocked up you need to make sure it is already hydrated before you eat it if that makes sense. Other things which will be great to keep moving is fresh LSA on everything and flazseed oil on your salads and in smoothies etc.