Senna and Gas: What Users Say

• Syc...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 25, 2019

Senna for Constipation "I took Senokot at about 10:00 pm at night and was fine. At about 12:00 am, holy crap, all hell broke loose! Tummy muscle spasms, painful stomach pains, gas pains, lightheadedness, dizziness, extreme sweating, increased anxiety, trouble breathing, chest tightness, chest pains... BUT NO BOWEL MOVEMENT! It is now 1:15 am, and I am still having these side effects, feeling like I'm going to die or something. I am literally staying up all night because of this poison! I'm so scared right now, and no way am I going to the hospital because hospitals suck where I live. Can't tell if I'm dying or having a severe allergic reaction. Help! I'm never taking these again!!"

• Hoo...
• August 27, 2019

Senna for Constipation "I took this medication for my first ever episode of prolonged constipation in my life, around 4 days. I am not a regular user of any drug like this, or in fact any medication. It was the only medication of this sort in our cabinet, so I thought, why not? I took one tablet at around 21:45, and by 09:45 the next day, I was able to open my bowels successfully. I did experience some mild cramping and gas at first, but it seems to have done its job. I would suggest, purely on the basis of my own experience, that you start with a low dosage and work upwards! In addition, drink plenty of water and eat lots of fiber! Don’t let the medication do all the work, give it some help by being hydrated and eating plenty of fiber."

• che...
• August 10, 2020

Senna for Constipation "I had a bit of constipation and felt quite bloated, so I took a Senokot with the softener. 1 tablet around 3. Had a fairly minor BM at 5 and a larger one at 9:30. No cramps, no nausea. Had a wee bit of gas, and when I had to go, it came somewhat suddenly, but nothing that left me frantic or uncomfortable. I’ll see how the rest of the night goes, but it seems to be doing its job."

• Tru...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 19, 2021

Senna for Constipation "Senokot is a disgusting medication. I don't even understand how it's even legal to sell this. Not only does it not get rid of constipation, it gives you more problems on top of it. Basically: gas, nausea, extreme dizziness (sometimes I feel disconnected from reality), extreme farting, diarrhea (yes, I have constipated diarrhea now, even I don't know how it works, basically, a bit of poo comes out like water around the solid bit of poo that stays inside and creates cramps, making the constipation even more unbearable). Never take this, I beg you."

• IBS...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• October 2, 2022

For Constipation "This drug is pretty straightforward if you want/need to have a bowel movement. If you are constipated due to medical conditions, diet, stress, lack of physical movement, or lack of exercise, follow the directions and take the tablet(s). Note that this is not a magic pill, people. You still need to drink lots of water (average adult 128 fluid ounces per day), plus you must have the proper amount of fiber in your system not only to pass your old food, but to also clean out the new food. If you are gassy, bloated, cramping, your body is trying to tell you something! You need fiber, roughage, and fluids in every meal in addition to movement (walk, run, stretch) to get everything moving forward. The pill does not supply nutrients, you do! The price is much more expensive than it should be for 50 pills, but that’s where we need to fight to lower costs. Anyway, I’ve taken it for 10 years and it works every single time. Have a good diet, great hydration, and movement!"

• Mad...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• April 9, 2016

For Constipation "I hadn't been to the bathroom for almost one week. My stomach was rock hard, and I felt so sick. I took three senna tablets at 7 pm. At around 2 am, I woke up with the most horrible stomach cramps and gas. I lay on my left side with a cushion pressing into my cramping stomach until 5 am. I had the most intense urge to poo. I barely made it to the toilet. I had explosive diarrhea. It was the most painful stomach cramps I have ever had, I sat on the toilet for an hour, bent over my legs, crying from the pain. I still feel sick and crampy at 6 pm. It did get the poo out, but it was horrifically painful."

• JDB...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• June 3, 2022

Senna for Constipation "I am 7 days post-op from a hysterectomy, and the pain meds I’m on have caused constipation. I took 2 of the Senokot-S (stool softener + laxative) at the request of my doctor. 7 hours after taking the pills, I started getting sharp and severe cramps in waves. Gradually, they became more intense, more severe, and more frequent. This lasted for 6 full hours. I had 2 small BMs during this time. Finally, the cramping became so severe and there was no break between waves of pain that it had me comparing it to childbirth and kidney stones, it was damn close to both. At that point, I had an explosion of diarrhea - multiple times in the span of 5-7 minutes. This was approximately 13 hours after taking the pills. I was able to get some relief at that point from the cramping, but the bowels are still having spasms 24 hours later and expelling gas. Is this medication effective? Absolutely - it will 100% empty your bowels, but it is a HORRIBLE way to go. Don’t do it."

• ont...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• February 13, 2018

Senna for Constipation "Product works! (But beware) I bought Senokot to bring on vacation (time change messes with my bowels), and I was feeling a little backed up, so I decided to give it a try ahead of time to test the effectiveness. I only took 1 pill before bed, and as other comments said, I woke up around 2 a.m. with some slight cramping and discomfort but was able to fall back asleep. The next 2 days produced 5 movements and a lot of gas and cramping. Nothing excruciating, but certainly not comfortable. For someone with severe constipation, I'm sure this product is great, but for the occasional user, this is simply too strong."

• Bet...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 4, 2016

For Constipation "It was a long 3 days of food eating in the Christmas holidays. Nonstop eating of diversified, cultural, gourmet food that literally hardened like cement in my intestines, blocking the only safe exit passage of excessive debris. Finally took one blue pill as a desperate measure for relieving myself like a normal human being, feeling like a pig. Having farted a single time three hours later, I had to take my second blue pill and hope for the best. Will get back to you with an update report as soon as a major bowel evacuation occurs."

• Not...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• February 19, 2018

Senna for Constipation "Whoa. Ok, it will produce a bowel movement. But you ain't gonna like it. It will also produce cramps, gas, and an unpleasant feeling. Do not take this before going to work! I only took 2 pills and it hammered me. It is anything but gentle. Am throwing these out and sticking to stool softeners, no laxatives."

• Too...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 19, 2017

For Constipation "I drank a cup of senna tea (Smooth Move brand) after reading only positive reviews about how gentle it was. After 4 days with no poop, I was ready for a gentle laxative, so I took a cup of this on the low end of the recommended dose at 10 pm. Not 1 hour later, I can hear my stomach gurgling, and I get painful gas. After 2 hours of this, I am very suddenly overwhelmed with the urge to use the toilet. After running to the toilet, I had a lot of very watery diarrhea for about 1 hour on and off (no breaks long enough to leave the toilet). When I felt I was empty, I went back to bed only to keep running back and forth to the toilet every 20 minutes or so. This product does what it says it does, but prepare for some serious diarrhea."

• The...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 14, 2019

For Constipation "Taking senna made my constipation much worse. Some people who take this medicine, no matter how much water they drink, end up with severe cramping of the lower GI tract, so it's difficult to initiate urination, pass wind, or push stool. If you take this medication for the first time and you notice a cramping feeling in your lateral obliques and the symptoms listed above, then throw the remainder away and never take it again. I took a total of six pills over the course of 1 1/2 days (2 pills every twelve hours for 36 hours - as directed on the package) before I realized it was the medication making things worse and then had four days of stomach and gas pain before the senna cleared out of my system. The cramping in my lower GI tract appeared to make other laxatives less effective, so I ended up having to use Magnesium Citrate to finally break things loose."

• Sen...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 25, 2018

For Constipation "I tried a senna tea after being backed up for 4 days. I had tried the tea in the past and steeped as recommended with no real results, so at 10 pm I steeped 2 bags at the recommended time (15 mins). At around 5 am I experienced loud stomach bubbling, gas, and some abdominal pain. Around 10 am I passed one solid BM and felt much better! It is now 1:30 pm, and I am in and out of the bathroom every 45 minutes or so with diarrhea. I am still also experiencing stomach gurgling, cramps, and gas. Definitely did the trick and then some. If you want a good clear out, this is the way to go! But make sure you are near a washroom. Oh, and the urge to diarrhea is very intense every time."

• Sun...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• June 21, 2022

Senna for Constipation "I had read a lot of reviews about people in the worst pain and how they feel like it has been worse than labor, but I did not have that experience. I made sure to drink plenty of water when taking the tablets, which I think definitely helped. I took them around 10 pm at night and around 6 am I was a little bit gassy. At 9 am I had a small BM, and then around 3 pm another. I feel so much better and didn’t experience any pain with these tablets, they really are my go-to!"

• sub...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• December 26, 2021

Senna for Constipation "I've been on Senokot for about 4 months with no issues. I take two, 8.6 mg at 10 pm at night, and usually at about 11 am the next day, I either have a brief abdominal pain followed by some gas or brief abdominal pain followed by a bowel movement. Today, however, is different. Today I woke up with that pain at around 9:30 am, and it was severe. At about 11:40 am, it got so bad I puked up all my liquids, then it quieted down for a bit. It's now 1 pm, and I still get quite extreme cramps, although less frequent, and I still haven't been able to pass gas, let alone a BM. It's 3:40 pm now, and I feel like I might be okay, I haven't had a cramp in about an hour. I found a way to lie down in my bed where I wasn't cramping as much, and that seemed to put me on the right track. For the love of God, though, be warned. I've dislocated my shoulder, broken ribs, my back, elbow, chest plate, I've even gone through heroin/fentanyl withdrawal, and those Senokot side effects were the worst thing I've been through."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 23, 2017

For Constipation "I took an extra-strength generic senna laxative after a week of incomplete bowel movement. It was overnight, so I took it at 7 pm. At around 9:30, stomach gurgling started, followed by intense cramps and gas, and at around 11 pm, I had one large solid movement which relieved the cramps so I could sleep. Woke up at 9 am to even more intense cramps and gas and had another solid movement which turned to diarrhea halfway through. Then no more cramps, gas, or poop, but I didn't feel satisfied, so I had a cup of coffee to get me moving, and about 5 minutes after finishing it, I was rushing to the toilet and had some more diarrhea. Just be prepared for this medication to take a while if you do use it."

• Den...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 23, 2018

Senna for Constipation "Did not work at all. Took at nighttime, nothing happened next morning except for occasional period pain, but I was due on soon anyway, so it could have been that. Took another dosage the next day to see if maybe I needed more for it to kick in. Nothing... All it did was give me a headache. Bloated and a lot of gas. Would never use again and chucked the rest in the bin."

• Hon...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• April 11, 2022

For Constipation "TL;DR Took 1-2 pm on 4/10. As of 4/11, HORRIBLE gas pains that didn’t produce much, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, etc. Still no BM. 0/10. A week ago, I got a severe concussion from a motorcycle accident. The pain relievers from the hospital stopped me up. I took the dosage of 2 tabs 1-2 pm yesterday. I already haven’t been sleeping due to head pain. It is now 7 am, and I still haven’t slept. I’ve been in my bathtub crying since like 12-1 am. HORRIBLE gas pains that didn’t produce much, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, etc. While I type this, I’m sitting on the toilet, yet to have any BM. I feel I’ve taken this before and the same thing happened. I just didn’t remember and made the same mistake again."

• It...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 12, 2016

For Constipation "Took 2 pills at 9pm, went to sleep - gas approximately 5am - soft stool passing from 6:50am to 7:20am."