Ketones and constipation

Type 1 and LADA
1

Hi all :slight_smile:
I’ve had constipation for around a week and my doctor started me on a nightly stool softener - ducosate sodium. I took it the first night and had terrible panic attacks and woke up with high sugar and ketones of 1.4 which took hours to come down.
The next night I didn’t take the med and no panic and morning sugars good and ketones were zero.
I tried the med again last night and had panic attacks again and have woken up with ketones of 1.3. There must be a connection surely. ??
Any advice , suggestions , experience ?
Thanks.

2

@Amelia3, eat more fiber (salads, veggies, chia seeds, etc.) and drink more water. NO stool softeners, etc. for me.

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3

Thanks. Problem is I can’t have much fibre due to my gastroparesis which is probably the cause of the constipation to start with. Vicious cycle.

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4

Lots of probiotics then. Yogurt, pill form whatever works for you. Second to lots of water. Slippery elm may work pretty well and it shouldn’t cause your gastroparesis to flare either since it coats the stomach. Pumpkin if you can handle it is a great regulator as well.

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5

It sounds like you can’t take docusate sodium. There are other laxatives, when I was looking after my aged father. he was on a fluid diet. On the advice of the nurse we discontinued fibre. We then found fibre was making his constipation worse and were able to manage with just continuing the laxatives. Ask your doctor about GaviLAX (similar to movicol that we used, a daily half sachet was normally enough and then adjusted as need for a movement, at the most 3 days and then raising. Getting the daily dose is important, to minimise going from constipation and laxative induced diarrhea)

Ask about microlax enema, or what is similar in the US. They are a good standby when really needed and safe to use daily. There are bowel care doctors that can advise you on all this stuff.

You need to watch your hydration and electrolytes on osmotic laxatives

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6

Thank you. Yes i obviously need an alternative to the ducosate sodium. Trying to keep fluids up and electrolyte drinks as well as they are often low with just the gastroparesis itself.

7

I think it’s a matter of finding a plan that works. Don’t put up with symptoms that can be treated. As you know there are meds for gastroparesis and a diet called FODMAPS may decrease the fermentation of foods. It is worth looking at for ideas.

This is about FODMAPS from an aussie uni that put it together

you would need to google specific about gastroparesis and FODMAPS. There were bolgs and such about it.

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8

Thanks so much for the links and info :slight_smile:

9

@Amelia3 you might also consider polyethylene glycol 3350 aka Miralax in US. This laxative does not affect my BGs or gastroparesis and you can adjust the volume of laxative to suit your needs daily.

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10

Thank you. I think it’s called osmolax here in Australia. Sounds like it’s worth a try as well.

11

You know what gives me gastroparesis?. It’s the drugs that are suppose to treat gastroparesis.
I never experienced it until my doctor gave me some during a time my sugars were whacky.

It didn’t help with my sugars but I was full for hours after I ate meals. Luckily it went away after I stopped taking it.

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12

Yeh. It’s strange how our bodies react sometimes to medications that are supposed to help us.

13

I used yogurt, apples, prunes, cocoa baking powder form, pumpkin, water, upper core exercises, walking. ( have used Fiber 1 but overdid and got more constipated)/

Top5: water, apples, walking, pumpkin, and yogurt

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14

movicol has electrolytes, where osmolax doesn’t. Other than that they are the same. Both have the active ingrediencie macrogol.

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