I have been diagnosed as having Candida and IBS in the past and one of my main problems has been diarrhea.

I heard that fibres that absorb water and add bulk to the stool often help so I got some psyllium powder and started taking it. Now I have solid stools but feel like my colon is all blocked up! I am pretty sure there is a hard lump of psyllium stuck in there somewhere. I always feel like there is more there after I've been to the bathroom.

Any ideas what I should do now?

Hi there,

You should drink lots and lots of water with psyllium, not just the one glass when you consume the psyllium husks. At the moment, your psyllium husks possibly still need more water and are sapping up as much water as they can from your body until they reach their maximum size. However, until they reach their full size, they will need absorbing as much water as they can from your guts. Once they've absorbed all the water they can, they still need to be flushed through, so you still need to drink lots of water!

Basically, drink lots of water! That should help you. Bear in mind that people may be allergic to it...? Who knows. But first of all just neck lots of water!

Humpy.

NOTE: I am not a Medical Doctor. The information above is provided for you to use at your own discretion and I cannot be held in anyway responsible. If in doubt, visit a doctor.

HOWEVER..... this is the information that I have collated from various sources over the internet and is the first course of action I myself would follow. If the problem persists, see a MD.

I agree entirely with humpy, water is extremely important when taking psyllium as this makes sure it remains soft and bulky so it can pass through the intestines easily.

Another important thing could be stress and tension. I had similar problems to you and it was the result of the muscles of my colon constantly being tensed as a result of stress. This can narrow the colon and prevent the stools passing through smoothly resulting in constipation. If you have a large amount of fibre such as psyllium trying to pass through a narrowed tube (the colon under stress/tension) you may encounter problems.

If this is a problem you may find that relaxation techniques such as meditation, deep breathing, biofeedback or adrenal support may be beneficial.

Hope things improve for you soon.

Thanks to both of you.

I quit taking the psyllium and drank loads of water and tried to relax as much as possible for the past week and things have definitely improved.

I do think the psyllium can be of benefit so I guess I just need to go easy on it and drink plenty of water. I'll probably give it another week off and then try again with your recommendations in mind!

Thanks again