Hi there :wave:
I had really messed up my bowels after abusing laxatives and I thought I'd developed IBS as a result, it was a nightmare. Well since trying to recover and having regular meals, I've noticed that including more fibres in my diet has made such an amazing difference! I have some bran flakes for breakfast and a slice of brown bread for lunch, and it does the trick :D . Am just posting this in case anyone else has the same problem, because it's helped me feel so much better to be able to go normally everyday without even having to think of laxatives anymore...
Take care :)

Hey PurpleCat :wave:

glad you posted this...I never really abused laxatives but I sure as hell messed up my bowels anyway!!! It's amazing how this illness can mess up your body when you've been in recovery for years. I'm actually having to take laxatives and fibre supplements (which taste SO disgusting!!) to 'keep things regular'(ish). I find eating plenty of fruit helps as well,particularly dried fruits like sultanas, prunes and apricots, on top of the brown bread and bran. Stress makes things more difficult, surprise surprise! Anyways just wanted to agree with everything you said and hope that the fibre is making ya feel better!

J*L xxx

wow! thanx, i was going to post something about laxative abuse, bc i've dealt with that... but im "recovering" now... or tryin to, at least... i would binge and for some reason i cant make myself throwup so i'd just take laxatives... well now i have to take a bunch for it to even do anything... so yeah, thanx again! :)

Hi!
I really should get back to doing that because I used to abuse laxatives for a while as well and have been having some "problems" :( . I used to take fiber supplements but for some reason got away from it, but I shall get back to it! Thanks for reminding me! The bran flakes are good too (not only because they are full of fiber, but because I like them too!) :)

Bjork

Getting off of laxitives is hard, i used to take them anytime i would feel like i ate too much b/c i physically could not throw up! So i know how hard it is to get off them soo congratulations! As for getting your bowels back to normal...it makes you kick yourself for taking them doesnt it? Its so hard and you get so bloated aarggg anyways, including eating lots of fibre, drinking water and tea etc, i also take flax see oil supplements or i include flax see oil in my salad dressing. this helps me ALOT. Im not entirely sure why, but its helped me maintain a certain regularity which is a comfort to. Not only are they helping me stay regular, but they are the 'good' kind of fat for your body. Perhaps before trying those ask the pharmacist, but they have really helped me so hopefully you will find them helpful too!

okay this is a little of topic but I didnt want to start a new laxative thread...

I am a purging bulimic so I haven't had a history of abusing laxitives...I have been eating pretty well for the past week and keeping it down but the thing is....I havent gone to the bathroom in almost SIX DAYS!! I feel so sick and it's gross to think there is five days worth of food just sitting in me! I am eating raisen bran and all of that good fiber stuff so I don't get it! Should I take laxatives?!?!?

Also, does laxative abuse really make you lose weight? I heard your body still processes the calories so it isn't like throwing up because the food stays in you. There is this girl in my dorm hall who is abusing lax's and she thinks it is making her lose weight? I am just wondering because this is something I know nothing about...thanks!

it really doesnt make you lose weight... its kinda like a mental thing... what you lose when you take laxatives is really mostly water weight... and it only hurts you in the process because your body gets "hooked" on the laxatives then once you stop taking them its soooo hard to get things "moving" again [cant think of any better words] ive just recently have been FORCING myself to stop because I know its doing damage to my body... a very nasty thing to mess around with... :eek:

Laxative abuse is a tough one to stop. I've been abusing laxatives for about 3 years now and have IBS because of it. The strange thing is that sometimes I'll eat things that I know will trigger my IBS just so I can say that I didn't take any laxatives that day. It's a sick game but for some reason I can't stop playing it. I don't have to eat to take laxatives. Sometimes when I'm angry or upset about something or something doesn't go my way and I get frustrated I'll take a handful of laxatives just for the release. Does anyone else do this? :nono:

Also, does laxative abuse really make you lose weight? I heard your body still processes the calories so it isn't like throwing up because the food stays in you. There is this girl in my dorm hall who is abusing lax's and she thinks it is making her lose weight? I am just wondering because this is something I know nothing about...thanks!

I remember when I first started abusing laxatives that there was this lady on tv talking about how she used to take 25 laxatives a day and how she was really losing weight. I've heard that it doesn't help you lose weight and then I've heard people say that they've lost 10 to 15 pounds using laxative. I really don't know. :nono: