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How to overcome dependence on laxatives?
Last reviewed: 18.10.2021
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Suppositories for constipation should be used only on a temporary basis, because if abused, the body can become dependent on them. If this happens, a person is not able to defecate by himself, without using candles. What is the dependence on laxatives and how to get rid of it?
What is the dependence on laxatives?
Psychological dependence is a psychic predilection for a certain substance. While drug use can lead to physical dependence, in which the body reacts negatively, if the drug is not available, psychological dependence convinces the person's mind that he has a constant need for this drug. While there is a difference between addiction and dependence, their treatment is similar, and these people often need the help of family, friends and therapists.
If the constipation is chronic and accompanied by bloating, abdominal pain and cramps, excessive gas release and rectal bleeding, the doctor's services are needed as soon as possible. Although these symptoms can be associated with minor illnesses, they can also signal serious diseases of the gastrointestinal tract or genitals.
Details of dependence on laxatives
Dependence on the laxative is often determined by the presence of a "lazy colon", which is an organ that requires stimulation with a laxative in order to work properly. On the other hand, dependence on a laxative may have little in common with a person's inability to have defecation, and instead may be related with an eating disorder.
The abuse of laxatives is very common among people who want to lose weight fast. Some people have a habit of taking laxatives more than four times the normal dose. Weight loss is only the weight of water, and the person again adds weight, if he drinks water again.
To get rid of addiction due to a laxative, eating disorder-related disorder, the safest way is to visit a doctor. Eating disorders are very damaging to the human body and sometimes lead to death. Some people who suffered from dependence on a laxative could quit, simply not taking it more, and at the same time returned to a healthy diet.
For most other people to quit any dependence, including laxatives, is not so simple and requires help from friends, family and doctors.
[Negative effects of enemas and candles
If the symptoms of constipation persist or a person becomes worse, he should stop using all of these medications and consult a doctor. In most cases, after enemas and suppositories there may be trivial symptoms, for example, mild discomfort, which soon passes. But it happens that the enema can cause mild spastic pain in the abdomen and a strong desire to evacuate feces from the intestine. Do not use suppository and enema if constipation is accompanied by severe pain in the abdomen, vomiting, blood in the stool, nausea, fever, or without consulting a doctor.
One example of the interaction of drugs with enemas and suppositories may be alcoholism. Alcoholism is a disease, but many alcoholics have residual amounts of alcohol in the body more often than healthy people. Alcohol can destroy the effect of a laxative or strengthen it depending on the level of alcohol content and the type of laxative that is used.
How to deal with dependence on laxatives?
It is important that patients do not use enemas and suppositories without prescribing a doctor. Enema can lead to damage to the colon if performed too often. Suppositories, as a rule, are not absorbed by the body, but they cause rectal stimulation, and this can lead to problems. If the anus and rectum stimulate suppositories and enemas too often, a person can be difficult to defecate without additional stimulus. This can lead to dependence on suppositories and other laxatives.
The person's age, weight, height and physical activity will also help determine which doses of laxative are required. The general rule, though not always true, is that young people need a laxative less than an adult. By the same principle, there is an unspoken rule that people with more weight need more powerful medicine. This is because the weight and height of a person is an indicator of how quickly a medicine can be absorbed and absorbed.