At Santa Clara they worked with us as much as possible to follow whatever routine we had had before. I wasn't an everyday girl, smiling, so we settled on every third day. After I got home every third day was a pain in the you know what because I could never schedule anything very far ahead. We then changed to three days and four days. This worked for years and until I began to have problems with one, a twisted intestine, and two, bloating, gas and diarrhea. A couple of years ago my gastroenterologist put me in on regular dosages of Metamucil, Align and a laxative. It took a couple of weeks but I finally stabilized and I now do a bowel program every morning (being sure to drink a cup of coffee at least 30 minutes earlier, or tea or hot chocolate works also,) and once in awhile it will be 20 minutes, but usually less than 15 minutes. I haven't had a bowel accident in bed or up in the wheelchair for 18 months. Ask me if I am now a believer in everyday!!!
However, each person is unique, and you'll just have to experiment and find what works for your lifestyle. My mother suffered from constipation as long as I can remember, and she had a stroke when she was 78 and was definitely a problem for us. She had multiple blockages over the years, and she finally died from a blockage when she was 91. The doctors thought that she was too frail to survive the operation. So I have been cautious and have definitely been aware of problems that can arise. On a lighter note, the first day I was home from Santa Clara rehab that we had to do a bowel care was one I will never forget. My 15 year old daughter and my husband had trained at Santa Clara and were confident we have everything under control. We didn't count on my body adjusting very slowly to a new routine. Sea level to 5500 feet, totally different diet, less structured routine etc etc and so forth. After quite awhile of no results we were all frustrated. The radio was playing in the background, country music, and suddenly Hank Williams Sr. song begins to play "please release me let me go" and we all collapsed in laughter. So whenever we are having a bad BP day, somebody will start to sing and that will definitely light up the mood. It does get better, we just have to remember that it was probably worse at one time or another. Joan C4
