Laxative abuse *updated*
 

I took more than the recommended dose of laxatives last night and am in severe pain right now; I've got an pounding headache, I'm shaking and shivering, I freezing cold and can't seem to warm up, I feel really weak, dizzy & disorientated & generally confused and my stomach is extremely painful.

I know this is my fault but is there anything I can't do to ease the pain? Should I be concerned?

Make sure you're drinking lots, as you'll be losing a lot of water at the moment, and try and rest.

It would probably be a good idea to call NHS Direct, to get some advice. And you might need to go get checked out at your doctors. Hopefully a FA advisor will have actual good advice for you.

ETA: Sorry to hear you've taken more, as this will only exacerbate the issue. For the moment, do not take any more. Can you hide them somewhere?

You need to get some rehydration salts in you. They can be bought from supermarkets and are fairly cheap.

I advise you get a friend to pick them up for you. Say you have a bug if you don't wanna say why. Or make your own.

I wouldn't. You need fluids.

Drink plenty of water and a glass of Lucozade Sport should be helpful. It's probably not as good as rehydration salts but it'll replenish some lost nutrients and electrolytes. When I have been in your situation I tend to find that I have to lie in bed and the really bad pain (like the one you're describing) lasts for three/four hours whilst the effects continue onto the morning quite badly and the afternoon a little bit.

I suggest you speak to a doctor about this. Laxatives, when abused, aren't good for you.

Distract yourself? Lyddie suggested hiding the pills, why don't you do that? Or give them to someone so that you can't get to them?

Make your own ORS: 6 level teaspoons of sugar and 1/2 level teaspoon of salt dissolved in 1 litre of clean water.

I shall remember this :)

Have you seen your GP about this yet?

i think you need to see someone asap

Hi Katie,

I seriously suggest ringing NHS direct and getting some advice. If you have taken above the recommended dose of tablets then I suggest you get yourself to a hospital, as any tablets can cause large amounts of damage if you exceed the stated dose.

Good luck.
x

Katie, do you want to PM me about it?

ODing on laxatives (like any drug even if they're 'herbal' which I know is mentioned on here a lot about laxatives (an awful lot of drugs used today started off as herbal compounds)) is very dangerous. It messes with the whole electrolyte balance in your body an also causes dehydration. Like with any OD, taking too many laxatives is something that needs to be dealt with at hospital by a medical professional; just because it is regularly done by some does not mean it is fine or less damaging.

They can cause dehydration in those that need to take them for constipation, just at their normal doses, nevermind those who don't need it and often the people that don't but take them (due to disordered eating patterns/ behaviours/ thoughts) are already dehydrated to some extent and taking them when dehydrated, even at normal doses, nevermind when at higher levels than this can cause damage. This can be to your kidneys due to dehydration but also the electrolyte imbalance can affect your whole body including your brain and the vital organ it can affect dramatically is your heart.

In the long term, even the use of normal laxatives, when not needed, will cause a lot of damage to your intestines. It stops them contracting in a nice pattern but instead it makes them contract really hard just in certain parts (which is more pronounced with some laxative types than others) and this can cause the pain. This is not the usual fluid, patterned contraction of one bit of your bowel followed by the next and is painful. Overtime your muscles become weaker around your bowel. They need the extra signal from the laxatives to get them to work and so people often just need them to go to the toilet and can never go without them. There body needs them and this in itself is damaging and is something which mens if you're taking them then when you come off them it needs to be done under the direct supervision of a doctor, preferably with experience of this type of thing and if needed also you having tests on your bowel. Is this what you want?

I've got a feeling from the thread (which may or may not be true) that you are new to abusing laxatives. If you are then you need to seek professional help sooner rather than later; in any case that is the truth and then this will reduce the chance of damage being done (which may be lifelong and painful) and mean you're more likely to come off them better and easier. I'm not going to force you to com off, I thought it was just responsible for me to advise that. I just also want to let you know that the only 'weight' you're losing through laxatives is water, nothing else. You don't lose any calories, they're all absorbed.

Just mixing ordinary salt table salt with water will NOT do the trick and actually I would STRONGLY advise against that. It will NOT return your electrolytes to normal, it will only change two of them, Sodium and Chloride ions and there are many more and doing this in itself can be damaging and has to be reversed so you should NOT do it. This is not what hospitals give and hospitals carefully choose the flids they give based on other things and may also 'spike' the fluids with other compounds if your blood shows you need this.

Really, all the bloods would show, other than at the time, would be whether your electrolytes are out of sync or not. They will only show kidney problems if it is really severe or it is happening at that time plus, doctors are unlikely to take bloods if you go up and ask them to. I'd advise you to see a doctor, I'm not saying not to, but don't be surprised if they don't take bloods or advise that.

Try to make sre you drink plenty of water. By not doing you will only make it worse. Yes, water you take in does have some weight to it bt all that means is the nmber going up on the scales to what it should be, not that you are getting fat or anything as water in itself contains no calories and by restricting the amount you drink (whether on purpose or not), especially with laxative abuse, is likely to lead to you being chronically dehydrated and lead to further problems and you feeling really unwell (as well as having an affect on your kidneys along with your brain, your heart and every other organ in your body. If you don't take in enough water/ lose more than you take in then it really does affect everything that your body needs to do to function in terms of reactions that must go on/ blood flowing properly/ cells working correctly/ materials passing from place to place in the right way so you do have to try and increase that if you can.

As much as I've said for you to stop (both on here and via PMs), t is important that you don't do this straight away. You need to see a doctor before doing this and talk to them truthfully about how many you're taking and the length of time this has been going on alongside other related things (such as if you've ever not taken them for a few days during this time have you been really constipated or anything). If you stop straight away then it may be that right now that the muscles in your bowel need them to actually make you pass a motion as they are so used to responding to these rather than your nerves and as well as that the muscles have become weaker. It is something that you do need to talk to a doctor about and come off steadily to reduce problems when coming off them and also long term problems in the future.

Also, I've kept meaning to suggest that you read the ED Article; you may find it really informative and it may answer more of your questions or clarify some things for you.

Have you got a therapist or counsellor you can talk to? I think that would be really worthwhile or even just a close friend or relative. You need help with this to stop it spiralling further. You could also look on the net for your local mental health crisis team. They do often come around to your house and I know the one local to me always did (unless they were meeting you in hospital) though I managed to convince them let me go to them which was totally against their rules but they made the exception so if that makes it easier for you they may let you and it may be your local one does that anyway. The one I used did when they first opened but promptly had to stop due to the behaviour of one individual. So, I would look into them. They're often specialists in stuff like this and often they have a 24hr phoneline (though not always) and it may be that they are able to come and see you in the middle of the night even just if things are going wrong and you need to talk. I would also advise you strongly to seek help about these behaviours with your GP, write it down if it's hard to say, trust me it makes it easier. I once went to see a GP about something I couldn't talk about. I bullet pointed everything I wanted to say on my computer including the repeat prescriptions I wanted and it made the whole thing a lot easier and she also really appreciated it as it meant she didn't have to remember it all as I said it, got things moving quicker and she also, I believe, sent it off with my referral to show just how much I was affected and how. I wouldn't have been able to go otherwise so I would definitely think about it. Purging will also do you serious harm and has some similar consequences to laxative abuse such as electrolyte imbalances and dehydration but it does other things rather than affect your gut.

Like I pointed out above, I would also strongly encourage you to read through the ED Article I linked you to.

Also, it may be worth contacting the supporters on RYL via Live Help if they're online or emailling support@recoveryourlife.com and they should be able to help you better than myself with the emotional side of things though I would strongly urge you to seek professional help sooner rather than later.

I was just coming on to suggest the supporters. You beat me to it.

Like I say, you have the options of seeing your local Mental Health Crisis Support Team (they'll be one listed somewhere in the phone book or the net for your area)/ contacting the supporters on here/ you could also get an appointment with your GP before Weds; phone up first thing tomorrow and say you really could do with seeing a doctor then/ if you're really bad and feel like you can't control your thoughts and feelings then by all means pop down to A&E. But yes, also don't be afraid to talk to people who you trust and are close to (even if it's just texting them, that's what I used to do because I'd spend all day with one and not say a word about my problems because I found it too hard, we'd go home and the within 30minutes I'd text them and say look I've been really struggling....) and you can also make threads on the support areas on RYL (though be careful if you feel typing these or some of the replies you get may trigger you further as sometimes, even unintentionally, that happens).