Pain meds and bowels

[Digits]

So, i have not had a BM since thursday, when i was taken in for a tonsilectomy, and i have been on Norco since then (a hydrocodone and tylenol mix). i have felt myself backing up and up and up (i am eating applesauce, mac n cheese, mashed potatoes) with not one rumble in my stomach.

It was wonderful! no rushing to the bathroom, no accidents, no interuppted sleep due to changing sheets..

and then today, i had a solid, formed, bowel movement! i was so happy. first non water stool in 7 years. (i have a J pouch with CD)

but i was wondering, how long will this last? will it continue as long as i take the pills, and stop immediatly, or maybe linger for a bit? i have not felt this well in a long time!

have others had this experience with narcotics? i wish they could figure out a med or some way to make my BM stay like this forever...how wonderful would it be.

 

[Keara07]

I am not sure, but last week in hospital they had me on hydromorphone and ty;enol but took me off tylenol regimen to get the bowels to wake up....and after to days they did. The theory was the tylenol mixed in was slowing me down so maybe they helped to *solidify* you....

 

[Colt]

This is a normal response for a crohn's patients using narcotic pain killers. Congrats. It's too good to be true forever though. You'll need to watch your intake and keep your use of them to a minimum to avoid addiction. I highly recommend Darvocet as it is by far the least addictive narcotic, can be given in a combined form with Tylenol, and while it's not as effective as a direct pain killer compared to codeine it will slow your bowels.

Make sure you either look it up in a drug fact book or get the information from your doctor on how often you can take a pain medication without getting an addiction. It's not like being addicted to heroine or something but you will have headaches and generally feel miserable when you miss a dose.

 

[Kev]

Wonder if it was the tylenol, or the codeine typically found in tylenol 3... which is a std painkiller most docs give out to patients...

Anyone else experience a 'slow down' while taking just ordinary tylenol?

 

[BWS1982]

I was thinking the same....back a couple months ago when my cramping was bad, I'd only be allowed to use tylenol for obvious reasons asprin was a no no and so was ibuprofen. I started just now thinking about the effects I had of the tylenol other than pain relief, and I recall being "generally" healthier feeling as well...but slower bowels? I can't recall as well as I was on Lonox tablets at the time too.

 

[TheLazy1]

I think it depends on the person when it comes to addiction, I take Tylenol 3 for pain when needed and experience no effects aside from pain relief and sometimes drowsiness.
The constipating effect can go either way though, sometimes you just want to stop having to go so often but on the other hand there will just be more to get rid of later on which can often be worse.

For me taking one painkiller slows everything down for the entire day but everything returns to normal by the next day or within 14 hours.

It would be nice though to have non narcotic pills that have the same slowing effect though for those times when there is no pain but you're sick of going to the can all the time.
Immodium doesn't count, it's a very, very bad idea.

 

[Keara07]

i had never thought tylenol could do it - it was just 500mg, no codeine, but the docs questionned my system....i guess we are all diff, and heck, maybe it had nothing to do with it. for sure, the hydromorphone i take occassionally these post=op days does not slow anything down, *sigh* but my surg said i can have d for at least a month with the resection. i guess it's better than c which could be very uncomfy....