Symptoms of constipation
This page has information about the symptoms of constipation. Constipation means having difficulty opening your bowels. If you are constipated you won’t have regular bowel movements (stools) and may go days without one.
Constipation is a common symptom in people with cancer and during cancer treatment. Knowing what is normal for you will help you decide if you have constipation or not.
The early symptoms of constipation can include
- Difficulty and pain when having a bowel movement
- Fewer than 3 bowel movements a week
- Having to strain a lot when trying to open your bowels
- Hard stools that look like small hard pellets
- Feeling bloated and sluggish
Severe constipation can cause more serious symptoms such as
- Swollen, hard tummy (abdomen)
- Very liquid diarrhoea that you can’t control at all (overflow diarrhoea)
- Loss of appetite
- Feeling and being sick
- Headache
Making sure you get treatment for constipation. It will make it much easier to sort the problem out. Leaving constipation too long can lead to more serious problems such as a bowel obstruction.
If you have not had a bowel movement for more than 3 days, let your doctor know straight away. There are medicines you can have to help with constipation.
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