Painful Bowl Movements

[med5224]

I found out that I had celiacs a little more then a year ago. Before I found out about it I was lucky if I was able to have a bowl movement once a week and when I did it was painful or it wasn't that much. When I started my diet it was no longer painful to go and I was relieved and over whelmed with happiness, as weird as it sounds, to just be able to be in the bathroom and not be in pain, the first time in I can't remember how many years.

But lately I am started to hate having to go to the bathroom again. Almost the whole time since i have been gluten free and before i have had blood on my toilet paper. It was something I could deal with and my gastroenterologist didn't seem worried because when I last talked to her they had just run all the tests and checked my insides and everything was fine. Since she thought it was fine i thought it was fine, I trust her a great deal since she is the only doctor that has ever actually investigated into my complaints and pain instead of dismissing it as "growing up". The problem is in the last few months it has gotten more painful.

When I go and it is hurting usually rubbing the side of my tube helps just because its smooth and some how it comforts me. This has stopped working. The stools have gotten bigger in some cases or shaped in such a way that I cry out when I am on the toilet. It is really embarrassing but luckily no one has noticed yet. After I leave the bathroom it even hurts to walk just because of the pain that I feel from it. The other night it took me 30 minutes to fall asleep just because of the pain. I haven't been exposed to any gluten lately because i haven't had a reaction but I did have a reaction to nitrates about a week ago but thats it. It just doesn't make sense and i guess i want to know if anyone else has felt this way before I start freaking out about it.

I appreciate any help or advise anyone can give me,

M

[burdee]

You may have developed hemorrhoids during all your years of constipation. Those will make bowel movements very painful and cause you to bleed when you 'go'. There are many OTC hemorrhoid ointments. However none of them are as effective as using a 'sitz bath' to shrink hemorrhoids. That doesn't mean sitting in the bathtub. A sizt bath is a device that you put on your toilet. You fill the sitzbath with very warm water and sit in the 'bath' for at least 10 minutes. That will shrink the hemorrhoids, decrease the pain and stop the bleeding. You can usually buy sitzbath at medical supply stores. Maybe your local pharmacy carries those. (I actually got my 'sitzbath' AFTER hemorrhoid surgery, which is another PAINFUL, albeit last resort option.)

Nevertheless, you may also want to consider why you still have hard, painful bowel movements after abstaining from gluten. I'm surprised your gastro didn't seem concerned about your symptoms. Maybe she doesn't think hemorrhoids are serious. Maybe she never had them or experienced hemorrhoid surgery. As someone who experienced years of hemorrhoidal pain and then 3 months of painful recovery after surgery, I'd recommend you address your symptoms ASAP.

SUE

I found out that I had celiacs a little more then a year ago. Before I found out about it I was lucky if I was able to have a bowl movement once a week and when I did it was painful or it wasn't that much. When I started my diet it was no longer painful to go and I was relieved and over whelmed with happiness, as weird as it sounds, to just be able to be in the bathroom and not be in pain, the first time in I can't remember how many years.

But lately I am started to hate having to go to the bathroom again. Almost the whole time since i have been gluten free and before i have had blood on my toilet paper. It was something I could deal with and my gastroenterologist didn't seem worried because when I last talked to her they had just run all the tests and checked my insides and everything was fine. Since she thought it was fine i thought it was fine, I trust her a great deal since she is the only doctor that has ever actually investigated into my complaints and pain instead of dismissing it as "growing up". The problem is in the last few months it has gotten more painful.

When I go and it is hurting usually rubbing the side of my tube helps just because its smooth and some how it comforts me. This has stopped working. The stools have gotten bigger in some cases or shaped in such a way that I cry out when I am on the toilet. It is really embarrassing but luckily no one has noticed yet. After I leave the bathroom it even hurts to walk just because of the pain that I feel from it. The other night it took me 30 minutes to fall asleep just because of the pain. I haven't been exposed to any gluten lately because i haven't had a reaction but I did have a reaction to nitrates about a week ago but thats it. It just doesn't make sense and i guess i want to know if anyone else has felt this way before I start freaking out about it.

I appreciate any help or advise anyone can give me,

M

[jennifert]

I had the same issue- at first I was going better and then I was more constipated. ..figured out that i was not getting enough fiber and bought a multigrain gluten-free bread instead and started drinking prune juice and adding lots more fluids and salads. Things are much better now in that regard. Also, I think I have noticed that i have an intolerance to milk, which was causing more consitpation...tried lactaid pill for a couple days and started going easier...

good luck!

[burdee]

I had the same issue- at first I was going better and then I was more constipated. ..figured out that i was not getting enough fiber and bought a multigrain gluten-free bread instead and started drinking prune juice and adding lots more fluids and salads. Things are much better now in that regard. Also, I think I have noticed that i have an intolerance to milk, which was causing more consitpation...tried lactaid pill for a couple days and started going easier...

good luck!

I also noticed that dairy products influenced constipation. After I was diagnosed with IgA mediated dairy allergy and abstained from all dairy products, I rarely had hard stools. The lactaid tablets did nothing for my constipation, because I reacted to the casein protein.

Consuming more fiber, fluids, magnesium and vitamin C all helped reduce constipation. However, treating for gut bugs (bacteria, parasites and especially candida) completely eliminated constipation. Taking daily probiotics keeps me more 'regular' than anything else I've tried.

SUE

[espinmari]

I having difficulty staying in bed with such pain, last few days when I walk I felt lower abs pain that went away .. but every time I have the urge I feel like I must call for help.    This is all after I cut Glutten for almost 3 months now... I was thinking maybe is part of the healing process since abs have been in bad shape, but do wanna find out if there is something else going on.. 

[Ennis-TX]

1 hour ago, espinmari said:

I having difficulty staying in bed with such pain, last few days when I walk I felt lower abs pain that went away .. but every time I have the urge I feel like I must call for help.    This is all after I cut Glutten for almost 3 months now... I was thinking maybe is part of the healing process since abs have been in bad shape, but do wanna find out if there is something else going on.. 

This is a old post with the last poster being from 2010. If your having issues you might want to start a new thread to better address your symptoms. NOTE constipation with celiacs can be caused by multiple factors the No1 being magnesium deficiency, which will require you to take stuff like Natural Vitality Calm which is a magnesium Citrate which will also help stimulate your bowels and keep more moisture in your stools. Start with 1/4 tsp (1-2grams) and over a week slowly up it by another 1/4tsp or 1gram til you reach the full dose OR til you get loose stools and back it back down to find your tolerance (dosing to tolerance) other causes can be low fiber if you eating processed gluten free and not a WHOLE foods diet which we highly suggest with this when starting. Other factors can be vitamin C, not enough fluids or bad gut bacteria and in some cases a SIBO or candida overgrowth can be a factor but these have other signs like bad gas, bloating etc.
If your new to the diet please look over the newbie 101 thread as there is a steep learning curve...and you sorta have to decon your kitchen to be gluten free. And whole foods only really makes the transition easier and the healing progress faster.
PS remove dairy and oats for the first few months, dairy intolerance is very common as the vili that help with the enzymes to break it down are damaged. Oats are commonly contaminated and some celaics also react to oats.

[ravenwoodglass]

11 hours ago, espinmari said:

I having difficulty staying in bed with such pain, last few days when I walk I felt lower abs pain that went away .. but every time I have the urge I feel like I must call for help.    This is all after I cut Glutten for almost 3 months now... I was thinking maybe is part of the healing process since abs have been in bad shape, but do wanna find out if there is something else going on.. 

Welcome to the board. Were you diagnosed by your doctor?  If so you may want to contact the doctor to make sure nothing else is going on.  Many doctors don't tell us all we need to be aware of when we are diagnosed. Keeping safe involves more than just the food we are eating. If you haven't already please read the 'Newbie 101' thread at the top of the Coping section to make sure you are doing all you need to do to keep from being glutened.

If by chance you are not diagnosed and went gluten free on your own do be sure to get in touch with a doctor. Go back to eating a slice or so of bread a day so you can be tested.  It is important to get a formal diagnosis if possible so we can be looked after properly for follow up testing and have our dietary concerns followed if we should be hospitalized. It is also important for your other family members as if you are positive all your first degree relatives should be tested whether they have symptoms or not.