Symptoms And Treatment Of Severe Constipation

Constipation is the state when you don't have regular bowel movements. It is a common belief that regular bowel movement should occur on a daily basis, however the fact is that if you have three or more bowel movements a week, you are not constipated. Severe constipation is considered the state in which you have one or less bowel movements a week.

Cause And Symptoms Of Severe Constipation

Severe constipation is very unpleasant and it can be caused by a variety of reasons and some of the most common are: not drinking enough fluids and in particularly water, as some people feel that drinking coffee and tea will be beneficial to your state of constipation and that may be actually the cause of it as caffeine, which is found in both tea and coffee (unless you drink decaf) dehydrates the body naturally.

Your diet can cause severe constipation, stress is also a natural cause, a medical condition that you may have and for which you are administering drugs can cause severe constipation and last but not least regular intake of laxatives will result in severe constipation when stopped. Medical conditions in the colon or digestive tract such as, pelvic floor dysfunction may also cause severe constipation.

The symptoms of severe or chronic constipation are having bowel movements that are painful and dry, having loose motion followed by constipation, having less then one stool a week and also having trouble pushing the stool out. Other symptoms of severe constipation can also be headaches, nauseas, change in appetite and fatigue.

Treating Severe Constipation

Severe constipation should always be taken up with a doctor in order to find the exact cause and thus, follow the right treatment as soon as possible, however you can help with natural and simple remedies, which if they don't help will not cause any harm and they are: drink plenty of fluids especially water, eat foods that contain natural fiber such as broccoli, spinach, prunes and cabbage and try to be active in order to increase your metabolism by increasing your blood circulation, which will in turn pump blood to your digestive tract and force, naturally the bowel movement.

Herbal remedies are also of great help for constipation such as mint tea after any meal or herbal drugs; try and stay away from laxatives as much as possible, as they are habit forming and can in fact promote severe constipation if used for long periods of time.