Sounds like we have some similiar colon issues. There are some foods that cause cramps and make me go almost immediately after they hit the old intestine. I've also always had trouble with constipation and hard stool. Pregnancy always excerbated the problem.
I'm not going to give up my dairy, the calcium is too important and I like dairy products, love all kinds of cheese. Same with peanut butter and bananas, two other binding culprits, not going to give them up unless I absolutely have to. None of these things upset my colon, but cause problems in elimination. Metamucil, while effective, is messy in the glass, don't like the taste or texture and caused me cramps, bloat and lots of gas. Stool softeners caused a nasty dribble type thing, without helping with real elimination. I've never tried aloe, but you want to do some research before using it. Aloe is one of nature's healers, but there are side effects on the digestive system. Plenty of fluids are key. You may become concerned about water retention, but actually, lack of fluids contributes to water retention problems. The advice for a warm drink in the morning is good. I personally, drink decaf coffee that's half milk. Any tea that suits your taste is good also. Doesn't have to be a high priced one, they all contain the same anti-oxidant properties, contrary to marketing and advertising propaganda. You may want to stick to the decaf varieties, though. If you like your drinks sweetened, don't use sugar, brown or white. You want to be sparing with white sugar use, regardless. It's also a real binder and encourages the growth of bad bacteria in those with other colon issues. Use honey, or if worried about extra calories in the honey or overbalance of glucose vs insulin, try stevia drops. I use stevia, no impact on glucose/insulin, (have low blood sugar issues). It's an herb, no side effects. You could also try xylitol for sweetner, not an herb, but no impact on blood sugar. Just be careful where you buy either, if you use. Lots of sellers, but lots of fillers in some brands. I buy stevia online from Puritan's Pride. Try to make it a habit to consume 4-6 ounces of liquid every hour or so, whether you do it in one gulp or just sip every few minutes. The old rememdy our foremothers used of a prune a day is quite helpful. Quick to eat, inexpensive. I don't really care for prunes and don't use them much, but they work for me. No cramping, no gas, no dribble factor. Eat something for breakfast every day as soon as you can tolerate food. You hear many reasons for eating breakfast, most all are right on target. Helps with weight maintenance, blood sugar stabilization, brain power. One they often leave out is the effect eating breakfast has on peristalsic rhythm. I guess it isn't pretty to talk about the body's need to poop on a regular basis. There needs to be something added in order to push the old used up stuff out. If we don't keep something going in, our bodies hoard the waste trying to squeeze every last drop of water and nutrients. Squeezes it down to something very dry, rock hard and not much of it. Hence...constipation. I eat oatmeal a lot of days with a dozen or so raisins in it and sorghum molasses or honey to sweeten. Some days it's raisin bran. (I like to heat the milk and let it get soft) Some days I want bacon and eggs, or pancakes, so that's what I have. I like english muffins with cream cheese and blackberry jam. On the days I'm eating those things not considered fibrous, I drink about 6oz of pure grape juice, not the grape juice drink. I also use Benefiber about every other day. About a teaspoon in a drink, or sprinkled in my cereal, or even over the eggs. It's tasteless and dissolves well, even over the eggs. No gas, no cramps, no dribble effect if I only use it about every other day. If you think you need to "jump start" the process, or think the stool may be becoming impacted, at this stage of pregnancy, you can safely use a Fleet's enema sold at pharmacies and in the health sections of box and grocery stores. Just be sure to warm the bottle in some warm water first to avoid causing cramping. Conversely, don't get it too hot. I hate the effects of by mouth laxatives, as they are unpredictable and sometimes don't know when to stop, also full of chemicals I'm not sure about. With a small enema, once the water is out and the initial elimination is done, that's it. I would stay away from any fast working laxative, especially enemas in the last trimester, as they can trigger labor. Eat as many naturally water containing veggies as you can tolerate. Citrus fruits are good if you can tolerate them. Personally, I love the taste and texture of citrus, but they wreak havoc on my colon. Spinach, kale and turnip greens seem to be helpful to me. Fresh, canned, frozen, all have done equally well. I like the dark, almost bitter chocolate and have noticed they have a slight laxative effect. You might break your prenatal vitamin in half, take half with breakfast, the other half with lunch or a snack in the afternoon. That serves three purposes. Many of the nutrients contained in the supplement are not retained. The body absorbs some of it, the rest we pee out within an hour of taking. Taking it in two doses assures you get the max benefit of all the nutrients, help with that mid afternoon sag we all get and keeps the body from being loaded all at once with the nutrients that are retained and add to the constipation problem.
One last thing, try not to strain at the stool. You don't want to add hemorroids to the problem list. This last may seem a little too graphic, but here goes anyway in the hope it may help. If you can tell the stool has worked it's way down enough it should be coming out, but won't because it has become quite rocky hard, try a little manual stimulation of the anal sphincter. Many chronically constipated people have "trained" their intestines to not eliminate. The peristalsic process has been interrupted and retrained to hold on to the matter as long as possible, all the way to the end. A little preparation H or other water soluble ointment(so as not to clog the pipes) on a gloved finger, or even a few layers of toilet tissue for lubrication and gentle massage for several seconds will help the final peristalsic muscles begin their duty and help you do your doody. Just be careful to not get the fingernails involved and cause a cut or tear to the anal tissue. You also do not want to make this a frequent habit, as the muscle will become trained to always need stimulation for elimination.
The things to remember are: you can only eliminate as much as you put in, minus the water and nutrients. i.e. if there isn't much going in, not much can come out and it's been compacted by your body to the max because not enough came in to replace it. Put in more water than your body actually requires to aid in the elimination of all the toxic stuff that needs to be dumped. Keep the flow of things going in at a steady pace, that trains your intestines to let things through, not hoard them. Good luck to good riddance!
