He tends to worry a lot if he's not had a 'normal' bowel movement. He took to his bed this morning and has not left it as he thinks he has a 'bowel obstruction'. I'm giving him oatmeal tonight for dinner and yogurt (if he'll eat the yogurt). He's currently on an antibiotic for a urinary infection (been on it for 6 days). Any ideas?
i heard eating fresh blueberries is good to try to get a bowel movement.
also make sure he drinks water/hydrated.
if you're really worried, of course ask a nurse/doctor to check your father, see if he's ok.
Smooth Move Tea. Senna is the active ingredient.
Suggested by Hospice was "The Bomb"
1/4 Cup Prune Juice
1/4 Cup Orange Juice
1/4 Cup Milk of Magnesia
Combine all and warm it up. Should be about body temperature.
This works in about 30 minutes.
I bought a fresh pineapple and a fresh papaya
cubed them up and pureed them. Portioned into about 1/2 Cup serving sizes. Froze most. But he would eat a portion as a fruit serving and both the pineapple and the papaya have a lot of fiber.
I also kept a supply of Magnesium Citrate on hand and used that once in a while.
I had Milk of Magnesium on hand all the time as well.
then we also got a prescription for lactulose
He had Miralax every morning I did have to mix that separately into food since I was using Thick It for liquids I found you can not combine Thick It and Miralax in the same glass. (The Miralax thins out the Thick It)
Also, a UTI can cause very odd behavior in the elders for quite a while until the infection is FULLY cleared out of their system. I remember my father was delirious when he had them!
Wishing you and dad the best of luck!
Miralax is gentler so I would try that into his routine if he continues to have issues going forward.
Remember that no one on this forum is able to examine or give medical advice. True obstruction of the bowel is a medical emergency, and not something any of us could "guess" about; when in doubt about medical problems you must see the MD involved in the patient's care.
Antibiotics can cause constipation, so you're right to give him yogurt to put the good bacteria back in his gut. If he's normally extremely regular, I'd go slow with anything else, because it might not take much for him to get cleared out. Even Miralax can have effects that can go on longer than you'd need or like.
My son will suddenly become constipated, but a bowl of melon every day keeps him as regular as can be.