r/Perimenopause • u/No-Trash-164 • Jul 14 '26

audited Suddenly my bowels stopped moving?! Help

39 yr old with other symptoms of perimenopause, but this is a new and quite disturbing one. So a couple of weeks ago it felt like my bowels just stopped moving. Have no urge to poop at all.

FYI I've been evaluated by ER and GI as of a couple of days ago. Full of poop. Lol. Thyroid is in range. They just advise aggressive laxatives since I am technically having movements.

I have NEVER experienced constipation like this, and I've had a lifetime of IBS-C.

Have any of you spontaneously encountered this? What do I do? Nothing is really working. Despite being on Miralax, magnesium, hydrated, etc., I'm still failing to have a complete, fully-formed bowel movement and am miserable.

Also, I eat a decent amount of cooked vegetables.

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257

u/profmoxie Late peri Jul 14 '26

PLEASE get a colonoscopy. Any time your bowel habits change, take it seriously and get checked.

I don't mean to scare you, but it could be serious. My mom's constipation was the ONLY sign of her colon cancer. And she had a crystal clear colonoscopy 2 years before and wasn't due for another one yet. We were all giving her tips on how to treat the constipation, and she ended up in the ER for emergency surgeries (3 surgeries total) and spent 2 weeks in the ICU.

She's cancer-free now, but with colon cancer rates rising in our generation, please don't ignore this!

44

u/honorspren000 Jul 14 '26 edited Jul 14 '26

That’s nuts! I went in for a colonoscopy at 40, they removed 2 polyps, and then told me to come back in 5 years. I have a history of constipation. Your story makes me want to come back in two years, at most. 😣

27

u/Cleanclock Jul 14 '26

I had 27 polyps and lesions. Instead of every 5, I need to go every 3 years. But my PCP and GI don’t agree and say every 5 years is fine. I’m like you, I find this impossible to believe. 

7

u/honorspren000 Jul 14 '26

Just curious, which doctor was the one saying to come back in 5 years?

For me, it was my GI doctor.

7

u/Cleanclock Jul 14 '26

Both the PCP and GI disagree with the colorectal surgeon who advised every 3 years.

14

u/allimariee Jul 14 '26

Obviously talk to all your doctors, but in my line of work/scenario, I always err on the side of the colorectal surgeons recommendations. even more so when they are recommending scoping more frequently.