Quote Originally Posted by geonagual
This is to Birdgirl,
I talked to my mom today and I was talking to her and asked her about her bowel movements and she told me it had been 12 days since she has had one. I was alarmed quite a bit. I asked if she was taking anything for it and she was kind of vague, I know she has Miralax there and I told he that she was prbably compacted and that she would probably need an enema and doctor care. I told her she should go to the hospital. Cause it was already late today. I called the hospital there but nobody is allowed to give any kind of information on whether you should go or not. I am now in Cali and she is in Ohio. What do you think she should do. My dad is willing to give the enema, but I don't think it would be safe for him to do it. Being inexperienced and all. I know mineral oil helps too.
Yikes, that's a bad deal. I'm not sure what the answer is, hun. I'd agree with the recommendation to get her to the hospital or her doctor. Regular folks like your dad can give enemas, but if she's lost so much muscle tone that she's impacted, she's likely going to have a hard time holding the enema liquid in till someone can get her to a potty. In other words, there'll probably be a fairly significant mess. Nurses are accustomed to that and can prepare for or prevent that situation better than dads can. Mineral oil can indeed help, and they also sell glycerin suppositories at the drug store that can help, too, and are easier to administer at home than an enema. My sister had that same problem toward the end of her cancer, and my grandmother who had Parkinson's had it, too. Hope they can find a solution!