Didgee, I may go out today and eat a bran muffin from the coffee shop and then some raisins later on. The gas from prunes is no fun. Now that I know from experience that prune juice take about 4 hours for me to create a bowel movement, I wonder how long boiled prunes will take.

Do you have to constantly eat prunes? How does one get ahead of their constipation? If you're a woman, your hormones mess up your digestion before, during and after your period. I tend to get constipated right after my period and it sucks. Also, my hypothyroid disease causes constipation so I really need to probably take something OTC against my will, to keep it all soft in my colon. So frustrating. I just don't know what to do!!

I drank some microwaved prune juice last night around 10 p.m., after having anxiety all day about which methods I should use to get rid of my constipation. At about 4 hours later, 2 p.m., I strained for about 30 minutes and had a really hard bowel movement after a lot of belching and farting. It was really painful and only a small piece, but it was definitely blocking things.

I think I will ask the GI dr. tomorrow about taking stool softeners. Because, if its all hard and stuck in there, I don't see how taking an osmotic laxative that will bulk up and make larger what's already hard inside my colon, easier for me to pass. This is why my anxiety is so high. There's just no right way to get rid of constipation b/c it depends on what's stuck inside -- how hard it is etc. -- and the best way to get it out.