Bowel Incontinence

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Hi, I'm here to try to find help for my husband. He has Parkinson's, and a lot of trouble with bowel motility. I believe they call it "slow transit." He gets the urge, and nothing happens. But if he takes Miralax and Senekot, the diarrhea (sorry for the TMI!) is nonstop. We are both exhausted from having to constantly change the soiled undergarments and clothes, and having to clean up, take a shower, etc.--only to have it start up all over again. His Parkinson's makes it necessary for me to pretty much take charge, since he is physically unable to coordinate himself. So this plea for help is for me, too.

What I'm looking for right now is good products--pads, shields and undergarments that will be easier to change. We have tried Depends Flex-fit, which are comfortable all-in-one pull-up diapers. But they are designed for urinary incontinence, so he has to wear them backwards! The other problem with them is that, each time they are soiled, my husband must take off his shoes, step out of the Depends, step out of his pants, wash himself, then replace the Depends, his pants and his shoes. It's too much for him (and me) to manage. The diapers with tabs are too difficult for him. I think we need some kind of easily removable pad, with adhesive to make it stay put in his briefs. But I haven't found any pads meant specifically for bowel incontinence. They all seem to be shaped for urinary issues. And I haven't even found leakproof briefs with elastic legs to put the pad into. Do these products even exist for this problem??

Thanks for whatever advice you can offer!
wcl

 

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Hi wcl, just read your post and if I were facing your situation I would not go the Depends route (as you know they are not made for heavy bowel issues). I'd find an online supplier and there are plenty of them out there, just an 800-call away. They probably have the items (or something similar) that you have described in your post. A couple that come to mind are North Shore (near Chicago) and Carewell (Charlotte NC) but they have warehouses in various other markets and can get your supplies to you reasonably fast. Both North Shore and Carewell may be able to rush you samples and supplies although you'd pay more for faster shipping. But in your case it sounds like you don't want to waste a lot of time and wait on the mail. Both of those companies have reps who are friendly and are happy to give advice. Other possibilities may be Parentgiving (in either Texas or New Jersey?), HDIS (St. Louis) or HPFY (I think they're in Connecticut.) Hopefully that'll help and good luck finding something that works!

 

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Hi wcl,

Reach out to Northshore and ask about their underwear insert pads. They make several and should help both of you allot. Great products and people at Northshore.
Kind regards,
Jim

 

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You should try actual adult diapers. The ones with tabs. I personally use the Seni Super Quatro Briefs.

 

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Thank you all so much! I will call North Shore tomorrow! And I'll take a look at the Seni briefs. I think the tabs will be too hard for my husband to handle, but hey, I'm doing it for him anyway, so might as well try them.

wcl

 

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Hi wcl, it definitely won't hurt to try. Not sure which company has Seni briefs but they shouldn't be too hard to find. And yes, North Shore should be in tomorrow and I think their phone hours go until sometime into the evening (central time) so you should be able to find out something from them within 24 hours. If you have a little independent pharmacy near you maybe you could pop in and find samples of Seni briefs. There is such a place near me (in Florida) but the big box stores probably won't carry them unless you go online and place a special order.

 

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The only issue is Northshorecare does not offer Seni briefs. But seni briefs are very good for bowel incontinence. Why are they good? They seem to hold it all in. Because i have used them before. Thanks.

 

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Xpmedical.com or liveanew.com has the seni briefs and so does amazon.

 

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He could try the Abri-San Special pads, which are designed to be worn inside underwear (or their fixing pants) and intended for fecal incontinence.

https://abenausa.com/products/abri-san?variant=3152294150168

The link takes you to a product selector; for type, choose pad (no adhesive strip), and for absorbency, choose lose fecal. That should get you to product 300200.

I have never used these, but I was looking for another product and cake across them.

 

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I am so glad I found this site. I am sorry you all have these issues, but you clearly know the ropes, and you have all been very helpful!

wcl

 

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I've found that high-capacity plastic backed slips (i.e. diapers/nappies) are good for my IBS issues. If he's struggling with putting them on (it took me ages to get the hang of it and I'm in my 20s!) then there are belted products like the Tena Flex (alas they're not plastic backed). They're similar to the traditional taped products but much easier to put on. You just put the belt around your waist and bring the pad up. I had some issues with them as the velcro tabs started to dig into my skin after some wear but if taped diapers are too difficult to put on and pull ups cumbersome to change then these would probably be the way to go.

 

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Encopresis (bowel incontinence)

this is something I struggled with throughout my childhood and still have issues with on occasion and it can actually be a symptom of constipation

 

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DP, is encopresis the same as overflow incontinence? I'm sorry you've had to deal with this in your life.
wcl

 

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Hi, thank you for doing what you do for your husband. It is HUGE what you are doing and I hope there might be visiting nurse or respite home health care for you to have some time to yourself. Ask the doctors for recommendations of services. If there is any senior care centers in your area they might help too.
I can tell you a natural product that is supposed to not cause constipation but helps control bowels is Banatrol. You can look it up on Google.
Glad you are reaching out for support here. You may want to use this as a place to vent and chat but you might find on line forums for family care givers that also will give you support as you are doing a HEROES task, no doubt about it.

 

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I would suggest the Tena ultra briefs- they have one large Velcro closure On each side and have good capacity and containment.