# Dementia and bowel issues...



## sisterpine (May 9, 2004)

We have tried about all we can to help mom go to the bathroom. Unfortunately she seems to have forgotten how to bear down or release her bladder on command. We took her to the doctor at the beginning of the week and were told that her bowels were moving just moving very slowly. She takes Metamucil, prune juice, a gentle laxative pill and Lasix for water. We have really bulked up her diet this past week but still no results. When we put her on the porta pot there is always some stool to be cleaned up but her abdomen is very distended and I would think miserable. Last night she woke up thinking she was having a baby (round tummy) and she was awake every 15 minutes all night so now we are all tired and DD and I are kind of frustrated. LOL we are both hoping that the movement of bowels happens during the day time when we are both awake! We did try some fleets stuff last week as well and all we accomplished was a big mess. Open for suggestions please. Oh, I forgot, mom is 86 and has dementia, COPD, heart disease, bi-polar disorder, some kind of kidney issue and some other breathing issues as well. How do you teach someone to bear down?


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## haley1 (Aug 15, 2012)

http://www.vsl3.com/index.asp

You could try prescription strength probiotics. Each packet of these is as strong as several bottles of regular probiotics. Her guts may need this life back in them to work properly


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## sisterpine (May 9, 2004)

Thanks I will ask her FNP about this on Monday...we are at wits end.


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## vicker (Jul 11, 2003)

Without the proper water intake, fiber will cause constipation. It's hard to get them to drink enough water.


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## motdaugrnds (Jul 3, 2002)

It is difficult to make suggestions to another, especially when the one being tended is up in years. However, I can tell you what I know works:

To get the bowels to moving...a good cleaning *without having to "bear down"*... get some "Magnesium Citrate". It has a good taste; so it can be poured into a glass and made to look like an exotic drink. 

For bulk: Get some "ground flaxseed" and mix 2 heaping tsp with either a liquid or scrambled eggs each morning. (I would not use any of that metamucil, prune juice and stuff you've been giving that lady)

Get some "flaxseed oil" as this, when used daily, helps keep moisture in the body.

Get a "stool softener" and swallow one of those gels daily.

Create some "kefir milk" for the digestive tract. Start out slowly with only about 1/2 cup daily, increasing it slowly to a full 8 oz glass daily.

As stated, this works well; and the magnesium citrate only needs to be used when the bowels are stopped up, which actually does not happen while using the other stuff I've mentioned above.


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## mekasmom (Jan 19, 2010)

I just wanted to say that I'm sorry your Mom is having trouble understanding. Dementia is a really hard disease to watch. I'm sorry.


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## sisterpine (May 9, 2004)

Well, something is working. DD manually removed some yesterday that she said was hard and then a bit later we had a poosplosion (unfortunately while standing up near the toilet LOL) I need to immediately take back every bad thing I said about my DD. She is a champ! And she loves her grandmother so much even though DGM was not always real nice to her while in the grips of her mental illness many years ago. We are determined to not have this happen again and have instituted some more daily fiber, much more water and a diet that is so yummy she will eat it every time. Kind of reminds me of trying to keep weight on an elderly horse! Cept mom is much nicer. We all slept the sleep of the exhausted last night and we all feel better today. Thank you all for giving me a place to discuss these things. Blessings, sis


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## Bellyman (Jul 6, 2013)

Sis,

I'm glad to hear the good report!

Dementia is a terrible thing. My sister-in-law was just put into a mental health facility just this past week. She had gotten so bad with fits and rages that my wife's dear brother just couldn't handle it anymore. She's 67 years old, all of about 125 pounds, barely eats, and it took four people to restrain her once she got to the hospital and she bit two of them in the process. 

She's got the kind where the frontal lobes shrink, which is not the same as many of the other Alzheimer's patients so the typical Alzheimer's drugs really are not right for her. It is sad, indeed, as it's almost like they revert to something more like an animal than a human, at least mentally. 

At this point, for my SIL, I think it's just about to the point where they will be trying their best to make sure she's comfortable as there really is just not much more that can be done.


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## Harry Chickpea (Dec 19, 2008)

The natural peristalsis in older folks can slow down. The mag citrate works but is a bit strong. A standard alternative is senna, start low dose and work up to where it functions without excess cramping. Another tack is triphala and fenuthyme at night. My grandmother used milk of magnesia on a regular basis. She only lived to 107

Distension can be from full bowels, food intolerances and inflammation, liver disease, and/or ascites. Sometimes water pills will cause more urination, causing the colon to remove more fluid, creating harder stools.


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## sisterpine (May 9, 2004)

I know we always think of Alzheimer's when we say dementia but there are so many causes of dementia that we seem to be using Alz. as an umbrella for all of the cognitive declining illness's of the elderly.

My mom supposedly does not have Alzheimer's though she does demonstrate some type of cognitive decline and a total absence of short term memory. Her body lost its ability to process Lithium (mental health med) which caused some liver and kidney damage years ago. Also made her psychotic as all heck! She is always strict about taking her meds which means she kept taking them even though she was not feeling right. That coupled with a severe auto accident causing a broken neck and a major frontal lobe depressed skull fracture (that is what took her short term memory) kind of did her in. So when the doc says she has cognitive problems and he does not really know the cause I just laugh LOL.

My mom has lived with me and needed assistance since 1980, by 1990 she was seriously handicapped and no longer even trying to work, she needed help with all activities of daily living. Then she got better for a few years and was able to live in an assistive living situation. She had her own apt. but went to the dining room for meals and there was a nurse on duty at all times available for the residents. Then she stopped taking her psych meds and crashed out again and we had to bring her home and care for her again. I was just thinking LOL I should get a gold star for mom care I had no idea I did it for so long. Thank the Lord my sister took over caring for mom in 2002 because I just could not do it and take care of my self any more. Now mom is back with me again after 4 years in an adult care home. It is an interesting experience living with someone who has dementia. Sometimes I feel so much love my heart swells up and sometimes I want to send her off with the next passing car. I suppose that is normal and yes I do know how blessed I am to be able to spend this time with mom. Ok now I am just wandering around....must have needed to write for a while. sis


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## Bellyman (Jul 6, 2013)

sisterpine said:


> ... Ok now I am just wandering around....must have needed to write for a while. sis


That's just fine, sis.

Sometimes, a person just needs to chat for a while. 

You're right, Alzheimer's seems to be the buzzword everyone uses while Dementia is probably the more correct word for an "umbrella" type word.

Life does get complicated and it's amazing how often there are multiple things going on. Accidents. Unintended medicine reactions. That's life. 

My mom had heart issues with a very leaky valve and afib. But... 30 years ago, she had a major auto accident where they said at the time that she bruised her heart as it slammed into her chest wall from the impact. It's just this past year she finally got the valve fixed by one of the newer technologies in the US (a clip) and she's like a new person. 

Guess it's me who rattling on. 

Blessings!


:typomat:


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## Maura (Jun 6, 2004)

Yea, whenever I hear &#8220;Alzheimer&#8217;s&#8221; I wonder what is really going on. Alzheimer&#8217;s is specific. There are other types of dementia, and a person could suffer from more than one kind. A study at a California university found that high doses of niacinamide broke down plague in the brain and even reversed Alzheimer&#8217;s. I make a point of popping a niacinamide pill every once in a while. But, dementia isn&#8217;t necessarily caused by plague.


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## DisasterCupcake (Jan 3, 2015)

There is an intimate connection between the gut and mental illnesses. 

That said, adding fiber to the diet of a constipated elderly will create more of a problem than it solves. Softer bowels need softer stools until the gut can heal, and become stronger. At her age and health, it will take a long time and may never become strong enough to allow for a very fiber rich diet. 

I would suggest cutting out the grains, breads, and starches. These are very difficult for even a very healthy person to digest. In someone with gut issues and mental health disorders, impossible. Up the soups, warm broths, steamed vegetables, especially yellow vegetables! Try to get a yellow vegetable in her every meal. These are high in magnesium, and this means it's a *gentle* laxative. Magnesium foods strengthen the bowel, instead of weakening it like prescription laxatives do. 

Hot soup made from bone broth every day- every meal if possible. You will be absolutely amazed at the difference in her bowel health.


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## motherhenshow (Apr 7, 2015)

If she has kidney or heart issues, please no fleets enemas!!!! I have cared for dementia patients for 10+years, and bowel movements are difficult. Sometimes a cup of strong tea or coffee in the morning will help, along with light housework/exercise. Lots of fluids help, try offering a small cup of apple juice/water/milk every hour or so. Offer lots of snacks, melons are good. Any bread, crackers, etc need to be whole grain. Let us know how things are going!


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## Harry Chickpea (Dec 19, 2008)

"Let us know how things are going!"

I think her mother died a few weeks later. Systems shutdown cascade from aging and chronic stuff, IIRC.


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## frogmammy (Dec 8, 2004)

Yes, her mother DID die a short time later.

Mon


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## Bellyman (Jul 6, 2013)

Hope I won't step on any toes by saying this, I mean no disrespect towards anyone.

But would it be a good idea for a thread like this, where Sis's mom died, to close the thread? Maybe out of respect? 

That's not to say that further discussion couldn't continue on other threads. Just seems a little awkward continuing the discussion on this one. 

Again, no offense intended.


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