zelnorm

Tuesday · 06-13-2006, 01:53 PM

those who take it. how often do you take it, what dosage do you take, do you do any other prep, and what level are you?

sorry for the detail request. i'm having bp difficulties and nothing is helping. i'm c4 complete, and use colace bid, senakot and citrucel.

SCI-Nurse · 06-13-2006, 08:33 PM

This medication is indicated for irritable bowel syndrome, not just for anyone with a neurogenic bladder. Have you been given this diagnosis? Do you have an alternating pattern of diarrhea and constipation? What is your actual current bowel management program?

(KLD)

Tuesday · 06-14-2006, 11:51 AM

my current routine is 3x a week - monday evening, thursday and saturday morning. i take colace bid, and 12 hours before each routine, i take 2 senakot and a full dose of citrucel. I begin the routine by lying on my left side for 20minutes w/ 2 magic bullets in order to allow them to melt. i then get up in the commode where i sit praying the MPs will do their thing. Lately I've had no reaction even after an hour. We then do dig stim to complete [and sometime start] the routine. Lately this struggle can take up to 2.5 hrs. way too long with too much trauma.

Up until about a month ago, i was having strong urges almost daily which typically resulted in me transfering to the commode and never having any real results other than excreting a bunch of gas. this would tend to relieve the bloatness. the feeling of constant constipation, bloatness, sudden urges and discomfort led my gi doc to suggest trying zelnorm. i have been taking 6mg once a day. it has seemed to help get from one scheduled routine to the next without having to get back on the commode.

my biggest issue is that things are not moving. i feel everything gets hung up in the ascending colon for way too long and does not move into a position that would allow the magic bullets to be effective.

i'm concerned about the prolapse, the lack of movement and the time i waste. its controlling my life but i want to exhaust every possibility before i take the colostomy route.

thats a little bit about my world.

SCI-Nurse · 06-14-2006, 04:02 PM

Do you eat or have a hot drink within 30 minutes prior to your bowel care?

How much fiber to you get in your diet in addition to the Citrucel (which should be daily)? 30 gm. minimum is recommended.

How much fluid do you drink daily? What kind?

Do you stand daily?

Have you tried Enemeez instead of the MB? The Magic Bullet is not necessarily the best product for everyone.

Bisacodyl suppositories (either MB or regular) only work for bringing stool down from the descending colon into the sigmoid colon and rectum. They only last about 30 minutes. After this, they really don't do anything. Digital stimulation should be started as soon as you get on the toilet/commode, and serves to both stimulate peristalsis and to relax the anal sphincter so that stool in the rectum can come out. Waiting 1 hour to do dig stim is too long.

The MB should start working within 5-10 minutes. You don't need to wait 20 minutes for it to fully melt for it to be effective.

You should not be trying to empty your ascending colon with a bowel program. That is stool that you should evacuate 2 days from now.

How long have you been injured? You may already have some degree of megacolon and may have to use more stimulation to get activity from your bowel, or consider a colostomy down the road.

(KLD)

Tuesday · 06-15-2006, 10:23 PM

i'm 20+ yrs post but was tld i dont have megacolon. i think i have a pretty good diet - lots of green vegis, fruit, and occassional bowl of bran cereal. with that said, i probably am not as disciplined as i could be and could use a constant supplement. citrucel or metamucil every day? if the daily goal is 30grams, its confusing to me that most of these supplements are only 3grams per serving. i know the diet is suppose to provide most of one's fiber need but what do you think is the most effective supplement?

06-13-2006, 01:53 PM	#1
Tuesday Member Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: ny,ny,usa Posts: 67	zelnorm those who take it. how often do you take it, what dosage do you take, do you do any other prep, and what level are you? sorry for the detail request. i'm having bp difficulties and nothing is helping. i'm c4 complete, and use colace bid, senakot and citrucel.

06-14-2006, 11:51 AM	#3
Tuesday Member Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: ny,ny,usa Posts: 67	my current routine is 3x a week - monday evening, thursday and saturday morning. i take colace bid, and 12 hours before each routine, i take 2 senakot and a full dose of citrucel. I begin the routine by lying on my left side for 20minutes w/ 2 magic bullets in order to allow them to melt. i then get up in the commode where i sit praying the MPs will do their thing. Lately I've had no reaction even after an hour. We then do dig stim to complete [and sometime start] the routine. Lately this struggle can take up to 2.5 hrs. way too long with too much trauma. Up until about a month ago, i was having strong urges almost daily which typically resulted in me transfering to the commode and never having any real results other than excreting a bunch of gas. this would tend to relieve the bloatness. the feeling of constant constipation, bloatness, sudden urges and discomfort led my gi doc to suggest trying zelnorm. i have been taking 6mg once a day. it has seemed to help get from one scheduled routine to the next without having to get back on the commode. my biggest issue is that things are not moving. i feel everything gets hung up in the ascending colon for way too long and does not move into a position that would allow the magic bullets to be effective. i'm concerned about the prolapse, the lack of movement and the time i waste. its controlling my life but i want to exhaust every possibility before i take the colostomy route. thats a little bit about my world. Last edited by Tuesday; 06-14-2006 at 12:04 PM.

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06-13-2006, 08:33 PM	#2
SCI-Nurse Moderator Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: USA Posts: 41,354	This medication is indicated for irritable bowel syndrome, not just for anyone with a neurogenic bladder. Have you been given this diagnosis? Do you have an alternating pattern of diarrhea and constipation? What is your actual current bowel management program? (KLD)

06-14-2006, 04:02 PM	#4
SCI-Nurse Moderator Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: USA Posts: 41,354	Do you eat or have a hot drink within 30 minutes prior to your bowel care? How much fiber to you get in your diet in addition to the Citrucel (which should be daily)? 30 gm. minimum is recommended. How much fluid do you drink daily? What kind? Do you stand daily? Have you tried Enemeez instead of the MB? The Magic Bullet is not necessarily the best product for everyone. Bisacodyl suppositories (either MB or regular) only work for bringing stool down from the descending colon into the sigmoid colon and rectum. They only last about 30 minutes. After this, they really don't do anything. Digital stimulation should be started as soon as you get on the toilet/commode, and serves to both stimulate peristalsis and to relax the anal sphincter so that stool in the rectum can come out. Waiting 1 hour to do dig stim is too long. The MB should start working within 5-10 minutes. You don't need to wait 20 minutes for it to fully melt for it to be effective. You should not be trying to empty your ascending colon with a bowel program. That is stool that you should evacuate 2 days from now. How long have you been injured? You may already have some degree of megacolon and may have to use more stimulation to get activity from your bowel, or consider a colostomy down the road. (KLD)

06-15-2006, 10:23 PM	#5
Tuesday Member Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: ny,ny,usa Posts: 67	i'm 20+ yrs post but was tld i dont have megacolon. i think i have a pretty good diet - lots of green vegis, fruit, and occassional bowl of bran cereal. with that said, i probably am not as disciplined as i could be and could use a constant supplement. citrucel or metamucil every day? if the daily goal is 30grams, its confusing to me that most of these supplements are only 3grams per serving. i know the diet is suppose to provide most of one's fiber need but what do you think is the most effective supplement?