embarrassing question:anyone with cp having severe digestive issues?

nuffa

hi people. my name is nuffa and i am 33 years old. at the age of 27, i started experiencing severe constipation. laxatives are barely working. before that i had absolutely no problem in that department. now i can't function at all. have already been to 15 specialists and no one knows how to help me. Any ideas? anyone with cp struggling with similar issues? please help. kind regards, nuffa

liayn85

Nuffa, what kind of CP do you have? Contrary to the novel I have written below, it is hard to help you without knowing that. But I can tell you what worked for me.

If you are a hemi, you should try weight-bearing and using your weaker side. That will use up a lot more energy than an unaffected person would and burnt energy will help your cause. Work on your posture! I'm sure there are videos online.

I actually had this problem for a lot of my childhood and I thought it was normal. Now I know that it was because of the CP.

What has worked for me: drink a lot of water throughout the day, do yoga (they even have special moves for digestion), get a therapeutic massage where--if you are willing to have them done and it is safe --they are open to alignments (NOT with a chiropractor or doctor imo) and tell this specialist about your digestion issues, work on that posture and spine for as much of your day as you can (sit tall, back forward, and suck that belly in), Stay AWAY from JUNK FOOD. STAY AWAY FROM SUGARS, especially artificial. Be more aware with processed foods... I can't say no to bread but right now I am buying fresh and local. Make those kinds of changes. I would also just sit on the toilet for a few extra minutes a day.

CP affects posture... go ahead and google "does posture affect digestion"... On top of this, a person with CP may have developmental delays of body parts affecting function, making healing more complex, individual, and compounded.

Don't expect the specialists to help you lol. Sad but true, probably a waste of money. The question is what were you doing at 27 that sparked this change? It could just be the CP premature aging, but I doubt it... something must have triggered this. Doctors are not so smart or interested when it comes to us, so you have to do the investigative bit yourself. There must have been some form of stress. You need to figure that out and THEN go to the doctor. Then they can connect the dots. Unfortunately professionals don't know what to do with adults with CP. Six years is a long time to have a medical problem, and they might say it is too old to fix... Happened to a friend of mine with a more minor problem.

And don't be embarassed by your question. Hoping for improved health for you.

nuffa

hi. i have spastic quadriplegia. but that doesnt mean that i am not exercising a lot. well, i had anorexia until i was 27 on top of a very abusive mother. As i said i was very regular before that and suddenly i realised that i can eat more without gaining weight bc i was going to the loo up to 5 times daily. then i met my boyfriend and we started going to restaurants a lot meaning that i was eating much more than before. At the beginning i was pleased that my digestive tract slowed down a bit but after three months i stopped going at all. my general practitioner thinks it has sth to do with back problems and my pain management dr that i am seeing bc of my digestive issues thinks that my fight or flight response is activated bc of having to do with my abusive mother for so many years. many grastros say that i am in a wheelchair i have to exercise more and drink more water. one gastro who actually asked about my exercise schedule said that he thinks that my brain stopped communicating with my gut. i am taking ortoton for my cp. before that i was on tetrazepam and baclofen. thank u so much for replying. kind regards, nuffa