Dulcolax for Bowel Preparation User Reviews

• Use...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 18, 2021

"I'm prepping for a colonoscopy in 6 days. Due to being on strong opioids, I was advised to start dulcolax yesterday. I took ONE tablet at 2200. At 1300 today, I had a bowel motion, very soft, easy to pass. At 1430, I had a much looser, and smelly bowel motion. It's really important for people to understand that this medication takes time to work. Do NOT take more tablets if you don't open your bowels. Do NOT take more than ONE unless you are day before bowel prepping. This medication is safe to take daily, ONE per day, as that is what we give patients in hospital (I'm also a nurse). These patients don't have side effects. But it's important to only take ONE. I empathise with all those who left reviews but, don't ever take more than one tablet, every 24 hours. I wasn't prepared for how much came out today, it'll be interesting to see how things pan out over the next few days. Saying that, don't trust a fart while using and ensure plenty of fluids but stick to ONE."

• Phoenix
• February 7, 2020

"My bowel prep instructions for my procedure said to take 4 dulcolax pills. Within an 1 hour I started vomiting, sweating & muscles in arms & legs were twitching, then about 30 min into this nightmare, I started shooting yellow liquid out my butt non stop. This, before I even started drinking the 64 oz of the other concoction I was prescribed. I had to crawl on the floor. My dog was traumatized & howling because he was so worried. It took 3 hours for the nausea, vomiting & volcano to slow enough for me to start drinking the liquid prep solution. I’ve been up all night, shooting liquid. When I get to the colonoscopy center this morning I’m telling the doctor she prescribed way too much. I’m a small person with no history of bowel problems. Last night was worse than food poisoning or any illness I’ve ever had. Never again!!!!"

• Deb
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 10, 2020

"Ok I have extreme anxiety and was terrified of the colonoscopy prep. I’m not really sure why I was so scared except after reading everyone’s reviews I think that was the fuel. I had an EXCELLENT experience! Took two dulcolax at 12:00pm. Around 1:30 I felt some slight cramping no big deal I used a heating pad. Starting going pretty rapidly but no pain, nausea or sweating/feeling faint. I also drank miralax in between. Took two more dulcolax at 4 and then more miralax at 5. I’m proud of myself for completing the prep.. it was really no big deal! Drink LOTS of fluids. Also I didn’t eat too much the day before makes the prep easier. Don’t worry."

• Jasmine
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 24, 2020

"DO NOT TAKE DULCOLAX!!! This pill does the job but be prepared for excruciating pain. A week ago I took two pills because I was backed up for 5 days and it was the worst experience of my life! I took this in the night and around 7 am I woke up too terribly bad cramps and this went on for like 30 minutes and I decide to go to the bathroom and thank godddd I did because it came out like a water hose and I almost threw up. And this lasted the entire day! When I finally thought it was over I ate literally just a piece/crumb of bread and I had to run to the bathroom again. I went on my phone to see reviews about this product and I was so disappointed in my self for not reading the comments before I took this. I can not imagine this pill given to a child. please do not give this pill to your child!!"

• Anony...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 29, 2020

"This stuff Dulcolax is awful. Was taking it for colonoscopy prep. I told them I had taken dulcalax once before and it made me very sick so they gave me zofran. Zofran didn't work, all it did was give me a migraine. Took Ducalax at around 7pm and at 1 am was woken up by severe stomach pains and nausea. Rushed to the bathroom to puke however while I was barfing my guts out into the toilet, I pooped my pants. It just rushed out, I didn't even know it was coming. Left me bleaching half the bathroom and plainly throwing out my bottoms, and showering at 1:30 am. I know this is too much info, but this is to paint the pretty picture on how awful this medication is. WILL NOT TAKE AGAIN, NO MATTER WHAT. Would give 0 stars if I could."

• Kristy
• Taken for 10 years or more
• January 2, 2020

"I have Crohn’s Disease and have had 23 colonoscopies over my adult life. I have used Dulcolax as a bowel prep for the last 12 procedures. It is not fun during the bowel prep, you will probably experience painful cramping just like you would any other time you have diarrhea, but that is the point of a bowel prep. You have to be thoroughly cleaned out. You will need to be home and near a bathroom during your entire prep, this is not a time to leave your house! If you are afraid of taking this many pills, ask your doctor for a different prep. I will never go back to one of the gross liquid drink preps, this has worked 100% for me."

• Relie...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 9, 2019

"At 4pm the day before my colonoscopy I popped 2 dulcolax pills per my doc’s instructions for my bowel prep . I was curious how long it would be before it started to work, so I googled, and then found these reviews and was TERRIFIED. But, it was all good! Praise all the things. I definitely made a lot of trips to the toilet - that’s the point. But zero pain. I mean zero. I drank copious amounts of water and pretreated my bottom with Desitin, and used extra gentle TP. 24 hours later, post colonoscopy, I’m still a little rumbly, but oh so relieved that these reviews seem to represent a small segment of the population, just the most vocal segment, understandably."

• Use...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 22, 2021

"I left a previous review. Things are going well with ONE Dulcolax per day. Tomorrow is C-day (colonoscopy day) ! I wanted to update re: cramps. If you’re very constipated and use this, those cramps are your body’s peristalsis (muscle contractions) trying to move the poop so it can be eliminated. To make it easier for the medication to work, you need to drink more fluids. This will help minimise the cramps as the poop will move more easily. Please only take ONE every 24 hours."

• Natur...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 20, 2019

"I had to take dulcolax twice (2 pills x 2 doses 24 hrs apart) for scope prep and spent most of the week leading up to that terrified after reading these reviews. Totally understand that some folks had adverse reactions, but if you read the drug info that’s about 1-10% of people. Most won’t come online and report a good experience. I took 2 pills at 12pm and awoke at 3:30 am with moderate cramps and diarrhea. Then I was back asleep by 4:30 and fine the next day. Next dose didn’t do anything, I was pretty cleaned out and on a liquid diet. So it CAN be an easy experience. I drank LOTS of water and didn’t eat anything too heavy the day before as recommended by some- that was helpful, so thanks! Don’t fear the dulcolax- you will likely be in the 90% that are just fine when they take it!"

• ADt
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 3, 2020

"Hi, I wanted to weigh in on the bowel prep experience. I read a lot of these comments and was terrified about what might happen. I stayed well-hydrated all day, took 4 Dulcolax at 3 pm. Then at 5 pm, I started the process of drinking a whole bottle of Miralax. By 3:45 I had a standard BM. From then on I had slight bubble guts, and an occasional gas pain. By 7:20, I had completed my Miralax prep for the evening. I had two small watery BMs around 6 and 6:45pm. The serious action started around 7:45. Large, urgent, watery BMs about every 5-10 minutes until about 8:30. One more at 9:30, and a smaller one at 11:30. During that first active window I felt pretty rough. I felt nauseated but never threw up. I was exhausted and couldn’t really focus. I stayed hydrated as I could. So, bottom line is that it’s no picnic, as I was certainly emptying my bowels fast... but neither was I writhing on the floor in pain. Whew!"

• Cricket
• July 20, 2019

"I've taken Dulcolax before but the most at one time was 2 tablets. I'm having a colonoscopy in a couple of days and I absolutely cannot believe the instructions. Two days before the procedure, I am supposed to take 5 tablets at 4pm, 5 tablets at 6pm, and 5 tablets at 8pm. The same the next day followed by two enemas on the day of the procedure. If people are having terrible pain taking 4 tablets, how on earth am I supposed to take 15 within 4 hours? I was given a prescription of Zofran for the nausea but I'm afraid I will end up in the ER if I take 30 pills in two days. I'm thinking about cutting back on the Dulcolax dosage and adding Miralax or Magnesium Concentrate. Has anyone ever been given instructions to take such a high amount like this, and did they survive?"

• JJano
• May 17, 2020

"I had to take 4 Dulcolax for colonoscopy prep. 2 hours after taking had severe cramps and vomiting. No bowel movements. I have had colonoscopies before never using Dulcolax and had no problems. Will NEVER use Docolax again!"

• JohnJ...
• August 31, 2014

"I have used the product over 7 times now, and it has worked like a charm each and every time. I take 3, and drink about 24 oz of water. I take 3 because I'm a 280 lbs. Take it on a Sunday afternoon, don't make any plans to leave the house, and by the evening it's all done. I usually end up going to the bathroom 3-4 times. First 2 are usually soft movements, any after that it's just getting rid of the excess water. I think people that are getting bad craps is they are not taking enough water with it. Try more water, see if it helps! I have had zero side effects using this product."

• Tammy
• December 12, 2019

"I've had constipation for years. I started two nights before the colonoscopy. Monday night I took 2 Dulcolax and about 7:30 Tuesday morning I could feel it was time. It started easy and went to more liquid. 4 or 5 trips. Then about 3:00 on Tuesday, I started the Miralax drink. It started to work in about an hour. By night time, I was just about finished. Directions had me drink more but I had one more glass and had to get back to the bathroom about 4:00 am. I was still passing just a little water when I got to the hospital. This was the easiest prep I have ever had. Usually drinking all that stuff makes me nauseous and vomit. I think you have to find what works for you and stick with it. Don't let the doctor have you try all this other stuff. This works for me and usually, I'm pretty sensitive. I would never take more than 2. I had no cramps at any time."

• Apple...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 17, 2020

"I took Dulcolax as directed for the colonoscopy preparation. It was a horrendous experience. I vomited and had blasts of diarrhea. In addition, I suffered from excruciating stomach pain. I will not take Dulcolax again!!"

• Yasser
• January 7, 2020

"I was advised by doctor to take Dulcolax before colonoscopy. Day 1 @ 8:30PM: 2 tablets 5mg each. Woke up at 6:30AM with cramp and passed out motion. Then it all started an hour later with severe diarrhea and cramps. The pain was so intense I thought I’d have to call Ambulance. Alhamdulillah (praise be to God) it was okay after few minutes. Had mild broth for breakfast and few hours later passed motion twice with severe pain again. Had to take Drotin DS 1 tablet. Had motion again in the night. Day 2 3:30AM. Woke up midnight with cramp and motion. Did my Tahajjud prayers and went back to bed. Feeling of discomfort and sense of passing motion remains for next 2 hours. People with IBS D & A should “never” touch this tablet ever in their life. It’s a poison not a life saving drug."

• lilgirl
• Taken for less than 1 month
• April 10, 2019

"I am 18 years old, 4’10 86 lbs (probably a little less from all the pooping I’ve done in the past 24 hrs) I was literally terrified to take 4 dulcolax 5mg after reading these reviews. Being so small, I thought I was surely done for. I took my pills at noon (followed by a huge amount of colyte later in the evening) but I had some cramping kind of like period pain but was tolerable. I drank like 4 or 5 bottles of water before noon and I ate spaghetti AND salad the day before. I’ve had watery bowel motions since like 3pm yesterday but nothing that made me feel like I was dying. "

• Nikki
• November 26, 2018

"DO NOT TAKE!! Tonight was my first time taking a laxative and I happened upon dulcolax. I woke up at 2 AM with the worst stomach cramps of my entire life. Spent two hours puking/dry heaving, bawling my eyes out, my whole body tingling and blood red, and sweating profusely while butt naked on the toilet. I seriously almost called 911. I really thought I was dying. I would much rather go through labor again than ever feel like this. Will NEVER take this again!!!"

• Jan
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 18, 2021

"Took 4 ducolax at 4 pm after being on clear liquid all day, and already having loose stool. Started MiraLAX at 5:30. Finished first bottle of gatorade/miralax mix by 6:30. Drank extra water. Had horrible stomach cramps, nausea rest of evening. Could not drink anymore till 6 am gatorade/miralax. Colonoscopy went well. 2 small polyps. 4 days later, still having stomach cramps, nausea, anorexia. I think 4 ducolax was over doing it for me. I'll consider it an adverse reaction to ducolax tablets."

• yuckugh
• September 10, 2014

"I am getting ready for a colonoscopy and I am taking these two days prior. I was thinking since I have problems with constipation I would take 2 with dinner and then I took 3 before I go to bed. I woke up in the most painful cramps and have been peeing out my butt for 3 minutes. I would recommend not taking more then 1. I was stupid because I thought it wouldn't help. Wow was I wrong."

• Bmac
• September 14, 2019

"This drug was horrible. I was instructed to use it as part of a “light” bowel prep for surgery. Took the dose (three tablets) and expecting a “light” and “gentle” laxative effect over time, headed to the mall with my husband and son to do a bit of shopping. An hour later I started feeling a little weak, tired, and generally off. I blamed this on poor sleep last night. Within another 30 minutes of that onset, those feelings intensified, and the feverish sweating and intense stomach cramping began. I ended up in the toilet at the mall evacuating pure liquid from my bowels. I texted my husband to get the car and meet me at the closest entrance. I barely made it the ten minute drive home without having an accident. The pain/constant bathroom trips/liquid poops/sweating/nausea lasted a couple of hours. I will never ever take this drug again!!!"

• MAD
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 27, 2020

"Preparing for a colonoscopy and dr instructions told me to take 4 Dulcolax tablets. I took 4 at 11:30am. Been drinking Gatorade and now water. Finally had "liftoff" at 1:45. Some cramping and noises from the intestines, think I'll be stuck on this throne for a long time. Make sure you drink a lot of Gatorade and water before even taking any of these. At 4pm I start the miralax. What a night this is going to be... dang."

• Watz
• Taken for less than 1 month
• June 22, 2020

"I had to use Dulcolax along with Miralax for a colonoscopy prep. I had to take 3 Dulcolax pills @ 10AM and another 3 @ 3PM. This is in addition to the Miralax. I will never take Dulcolax again. I still have diarrhea and it's been over 24 hours. Had colonoscopy and had to go non-stop right up until they wheeled me in. And like I said, I still have diarrhea after 24 hours of taking them. Very harsh laxative. Don't take it!"

• Mom
• October 12, 2016

"This is the WORST med ever! There is absolutely nothing "gentle" about it. I've tried it 3 x's & have given up. First the cramps were unbearable, to the point where the pain was so bad I started sweating real bad, my hands were clammy, I was dizzy, I felt like I was dying. I literally almost passed OUT! They need to pull this off the market!"

• Hotbe...
• January 7, 2021

"Prepared for a flexible sigmoidoscopy on a Friday at 1pm began Wednesday. Wednesday: light breakfast of solids, the rest of the day 1 gallon of water spaced out and clear liquid fluid foods. Had a BM as I usually daily do in the morning.. 1 dulcolax 4:30 pm that Wednesday with 2 bottles of water, regular BM at 11:30 pm.....I wondered why I wasn’t running to the washroom or in any painful symptoms described here. Set an alarm at 6am Thursday and popped 2 more with 2 bottles of water. Normal BM as I usually daily do, and then a normal but large watery BM at 3pm. No symptoms again as described in other reviews. I think the key to the prep is just drink a ton of water, and when you think you can’t drink anymore, drink some more. I wondered why I wasn’t making more BMs all Wednesday or Thursday but it’s likely because I eat clean and I also already wasn’t eating solids when I had began the prep...."